SAGuy

Thanks for the additional information and advice Ropey. I'll put Sawasdee on the list, as you point out its romantic and selfie-friendly! I get the point about the Isaan food. I previously had a GG gf and so learnt the ropes about Isaan food, going through the tears in my eyes barrier etc. My favourite ever farang put down was the place that served 'liitle spicy' sauce for my fish and it had a small spoon in it (smaller than a normal teaspoon). When I asked what that was about I was told "oh that's a baby spoon, as you got baby spicey." It all adds to the rich tapestry of the Thai dating experience! Cheers and thanks for the recommendations. SAG

Assante Bwana That's great info. I've also taken some to Long Table as it's just a short walk from CIB and it has a more laid back vibe. That list is very useful as there are a lot of new places on it. Cheers SAG

Wow thanks for taking the time to make so many great suggestions Ropey, thats really appreciated and 95% of them are ones I would never have thought of. (I did say I have limited imagination!) I think the Moon Bar will be chocker on the 14th and did take her up the Lebua Tower on the last trip (its the lack of imagination once again). I like the idea of Maggie Choos, as it seems to tick all of the boxes, so I think that may be the solution, after a dinner. I was thinking of Kinaree on Soi 8, as its just a brief walk from the hotel. I was there a few years ago and really liked it, but don't know what its like these days. I'll be seeing her quite a bit for the time I'm in BKK, so will also work through your list and let you know how it goes. The selfie tip was a top one, its something I hadn't thought about, but its well on the mark. Thanks once again for making the effort to help out on this, it was really good of you to pass on a wealth of knowledge. If our paths cross, I owe you a beer. Cheers SAG

Hi there Sebastien I am now on my fourth hotel which is citadines soi 8. I did a review. It's maybe half a star below S15 and the Dream hotel but I like being on the other side of sukhumvit and as I stay for 3-4 weeks the price difference of approx. 800-1000 per night adds up. Saying that I still have fond memories of the Dream. You will enjoy your stay there but make sure you are in the main hotel and not the annex across the street. Cheers SAG

This could just be a temporary measure. They are rebuilding one of the runways over the next few months and so are cutting back on the flights across a lot of routes in order to reduce capacity to a manageable size for the other runways. Hopefully it will all be completed on time and then service will get back to normal. (They did the same exercise a couple of years ago and it went like clockwork). The reason for the switch in planes isn't because they are terminatingthe A 380s, in fact they have more on order, as pointed out by KH. Its probably that due to the less flights, they are re-deploying the A 380s on the most popular routes to handle the capacity. SAG

Anyone who has spent more than a week in the magical kingdom of Saudi can attest to the the power of the eyes looking at you through slits and slots. If only the eyes could talk! SAG

If you walk the mean streets of BKK, particlularly lower Sukhumvit from soi 3 up to about 13 you'll see plenty of vendors selling dildos etc. I've never seen adult shops in BKK, but plenty of street vendors selling various items. Cheers SAG

I often travel with the condoms and lube, but never with any 'medicine', as my flights originate in the ME and so its just not worth any misunderstandings. As for dildos and other toys, I normally buy them in the LOS and leave them there, as I could just see myself getting pulled over after an x-ray scan and have to explain to the friendly Arab female customs officials what these 'massage' items were all about... It was bad enough about 2 years ago when I brought 6 cans of tuna back from the LOS and they were insistent that it must be caviar! Only in the ME could you ever be accused of trying to smuggle in caviar! SAG

My fourth and final hotel choice in BKK is Citadines soi 8. The rooms are identical to Citadines soi 11 and at first glance, the hotel seems to be too far down soi 8. However, they run a 24 hour tuk tuk and so it only takes 5 minutes to get to Sukhumvit and you can call it from Sukhumvit when you want to return. Its a bit smaller than the soi 11 property, but is in better condition and is MUCH quieter. Its also LB friendly and the walk of shame is even shorter! All Citadines have card access elevators, but the elevator on the right can be used without an access card, for some reason. Cheers SAG

Citadines Soi 11 was the 3rd hotel that I stayed in on my visits to BKK and I stayed there approx. 8 times between 2015-2017. Pros - its typically priced below THB 3,000 per night and the bard downstairs is pretty good. Its also on Soi 11, so right in the heart of the mainstream nightlife. Its LB friendly and the walk of shame is short. The downside is that the rooms needed refurbing and unless you stayed on a higher floor in one of the back facing rooms, it is very loud at night, with all the music from the clubs across the street. I often compared the prices between booking.com, agoda and the citadines own website and 90% of the time, the best deals were to be had from booking directly with them. The rooms are apartment style and theres 3 grades. The standard room is about 40 m2 and is large enough for daytime work and night time frolics. Theres a small kitchen, fridge etc. There are also washing machines on the top floor next to the gym. I eventually gave up on Citadines Soi 11 due to the noise, as my stays in BKK also involve work, so I did have to hit the hay at a reasonable time during the week. The only other downside was that it is quite a walk along an often crowded street to get to Sukhumvit and the fleshpots. I hope this helps. SAG

Thanks for the response Manga. No I've learnt over the years never to sweat the small stuff. Regarding tipping, yes I do tip for good service etc. I learnt over the years always to look after the chamber maids, who often get overlooked. More often than not, my room sometimes resembles a crime scene after a 'busy' night and so its the least that can be done! The chamber maids will often reciprocate to make your stay more comfortable. (Extra fruit and water etc.) In the bars, its more of a fine line. You don't want to be thought of as a mug, or an easy mark, but on the other hand, a few extra drinks here and there to mamasans or friends etc. can also make for more fun in an evening. The objective is not to minimise costs, but rather maximise the fun and overall experience. Everyone is different, but that's my outlook on the LOS. Cheers SAG P.S. I saw a LB posting on the board with a similar name - mango tango. You should've copyrighted your screen name. LOL.

This is the second hotel that I used as my home from home when working and playing in BKK. I stayed there approx. 12-15 times between 2010-2015. It is located about 300 metres into Soi 15, from Sukhumvit and they do run a free tuk tuk also, but I never used it. The hotel is really nice and relaxed and the rooms are very comfortable. Its guest friendly and normally after about 00.00 you don't even have to sign visitors in. Its marketed as a boutique hotel and its USP is that there are blue lights in the rooms, which supposedly assist with sleeping. If you decide to book here, be aware that there is the main hotel and also the annex across the street. The main hotel is the nicer building and this is where breakfast is served. Just around the corner there is a sub soi which leads to Soi 19 (there is no Soi 17). There is a good massage place called Cha Cha Massage almost next door to the Dream Hotel on the sub soi. Cha Cha massage is a legit place, so no 'hanky panky' that I am aware of, but it is very good and reasonably priced. The hotel pool is located on the roof of the annex building and there is also a bar up there, but its not really a 'go to' bar. The staff were really accommodating there and I never had a complaint. If you walk to the end of soi 15 (about 700 metres?) you get to the canal and there is a canal boat stop there which you can use to catch a ride up to the palaces and museums etc. I did that a few times and it was a lot of fun. The reason I stopped staying there is that they raised the rates about THB 3,000, which became too pricey for a 20-25 night stay. One final tip is that if you walk about 150 metres down soi 15 and reach 7/11 on the left, there is a cutting through the building which leads you to soi 13. Then there is another cutting which takes you to soi 11, so its a great, but not well known short cut. Cheers SAG

Maybe Josephpot has been over indulging on the 'wacky tabaccy'?

I have been legitimately using 2 UK passports for 20+ years. Jimmi is correct, you just need to send a letter with the second application advising that you travel a lot to countries which require visas.