mikel

Absolutely agree about the review (no fucking socks annoys the hell out of me). I put it up for the footage of a new (now kaput) hotel and thought some bms might like the lbs.
He's annoying and full of himself but so many Bkk (and Pattaya) videos are piss poor amateur efforts that insult the audience with their lack of preparation and effort and at least this looks like they tried.

You tube channel HeyBigMango review Novotel Suites soi 34 and interview 3 lbs. (A second longer interview with two of them is better).
'Luxury hotel' is an overreach but it looks ok for the money.
NB just checked on Agoda and in red is the phrase of the covid era....Permanently Closed.
 

Good news!!!

Another diet myth is being debunked.
The low fat or fat-free range of foods. I have seen reports that some of the fat-free foods in the shops are really not that good for you. (yes even more food that's bad for you ) 
Now and then do I a sort of homemade semi keto diet with higher fat and protein and lower carbs. So not a strict "clean" keto but I find the extra fat makes me feel better and sex drive improves.
 
 

I made a test and go reservation at Novatel BKK airport hotel for upcoming December trip. Novotel is 5 minutes from the airport. The reservation process itself was just like any other hotel reservation - just make sure you select the "Wellness" package per below. It costs 4900 baht and the breakfast buffet option is another 500 baht. They didn't ask for passport info or anything else except airline arrival time for their shuttle service. They told me they have testing available 24 hours a day and will have results 6 hours later. Because I am arriving near midnight, I will be getting the test and hopefully will have the results when I wake up the next morning. If there are any hitches or hassles, I will be reporting them here. 

 

Phuket's LB scene is small (and smaller than it once was); the scene in Koh Samui is minuscule. Samui is a lovely place for some R&R but a lousy place for chasing LBs, IMHO.
That said, both Phuket and Samui are lovely places to hang out on relatively uncrowded and unpolluted beaches (unlike Pattaya), so if you want a little time to de-stress and just chill, both are fine options.

There's a lot of bigoted bullshit and as you say 'old man yelling at cloud' stuff but some solid info to be had outside of that - I found the ignore button to be invaluable. You can soon spot which  thread will degenerate.

There's a lot of bigoted bullshit and as you say 'old man yelling at cloud' stuff but some solid info to be had outside of that - I found the ignore button to be invaluable. You can soon spot which  thread will degenerate.

Funnily I actually started there first- my account on there is from 2010 (shit that's 10 years ago).
Much busier than here but the bitching that goes on between a few long-timers that derails every other thread is annoying, plus the general "old man yells at cloud" feel of the place- like ThaiVisa forums if you've ever had the misfortune of visiting. Not that there's anything wrong with the experienced crowd but a few seem to miss the irony of the whole "young people are ruining everything, anyway I wanna fuck this young person"

Considering what's going on in the LOS at the moment, the likelihood of them removing the ASQ requirement by March 2021 is somewhere between snowfall on Sukhumvit and free drinks and BFs at NEP.
I don't want to come across as a pessimist, but reality says no chance!
SAG
 

I don't think you can assume this, the only time the ban gets lifted is when us and the Thai's have vaccinated enough of the people.
Thailand can be extremely stubborn and often dig there heels in further the more pressure is put on them...to relent is to lose face.
Best chance of a visit with minimum restrictions looks like Q4....providing of course you are able to purchase an overly priced highly sought airline ticket.

Can't imagine Peter Dutton looking kindly on "because I want to fuck ladyboys" as reason to travel.

Stayed one night in Sept 2019. Drove up late morning (try and get a lb out the door early!) and had an uneventful and pretty easy run. Booked through Agoda for a little over $100aud. Room was a deluxe 32sqm and had everything you need except a view. Our balcony faced a wall so natural light wasn't great. Bathroom was good - plenty of constant hot water & - a rarity on this trip - the bed was not as hard as concrete.
There's a pool but we didn't use it. 
We headed out soon after arrival and spent the afternoon wandering the temples. Had dinner at an open air market by the river. 
Breakfast was standard fare and ok but nothing special. Did its' job. (Hotel pics from internet ).
Overall a perfectly ok overnight stop. If you need an 'I go for the culture' story for the cynics back home I'd recommend a short side trip to Ayutthaya. The temples etc are worth seeing  - it wasn't crowded - and it's beautifully kept.
 

I stayed in Kameo many times. That (along with Kantary on the other side of the road) was really great for happy ending massages in the night. Dialling the lobby and asking for a 2 hours oil massage and find a skilled "therapist" called from outside at your door was a matter of minutes. Then (I don't remember when, think about 2016) they opened their own in house SPA and since then you had only their old and ugly staff doing a standard no happy ending massage. What a waste  

Stayed one night in Sept 2019. Drove up late morning (try and get a lb out the door early!) and had an uneventful and pretty easy run. Booked through Agoda for a little over $100aud. Room was a deluxe 32sqm and had everything you need except a view. Our balcony faced a wall so natural light wasn't great. Bathroom was good - plenty of constant hot water & - a rarity on this trip - the bed was not as hard as concrete.
There's a pool but we didn't use it. 
We headed out soon after arrival and spent the afternoon wandering the temples. Had dinner at an open air market by the river. 
Breakfast was standard fare and ok but nothing special. Did its' job. (Hotel pics from internet ).
Overall a perfectly ok overnight stop. If you need an 'I go for the culture' story for the cynics back home I'd recommend a short side trip to Ayutthaya. The temples etc are worth seeing  - it wasn't crowded - and it's beautifully kept.
 

Spent one night here on the way back from Prachuap to Bangkok in late September 2019. 
Booked a Zen Jacuzzi pool suite for $209aud. The pool was a shallow outdoor pool surrounded by greenery and seemingly unheated with little sun. The bed was the most comfortable on this trip and the dark quasi traditional decor made it instantly comfortable and quite intimate. The bathroom included a large shower cubicle with a decent sized bath. Constant hot water and pressure. 
Didn't try the restaurant deciding to eat out at the  night market and stocked up on snacks and beer from the nearby 7-11 (what a surprise!) Missed breakfast by, erm, sleeping in late and found a food place that was quick & cheap. 
The hotel has a bar at the back overlooking the sea and was pretty chilled place for a sunset beer as a dj played (at a reasonable volume) Cafe Del Mar-style tunes. 

Spent one night here on the way back from Prachuap to Bangkok in late September 2019. 
Booked a Zen Jacuzzi pool suite for $209aud. The pool was a shallow outdoor pool surrounded by greenery and seemingly unheated with little sun. The bed was the most comfortable on this trip and the dark quasi traditional decor made it instantly comfortable and quite intimate. The bathroom included a large shower cubicle with a decent sized bath. Constant hot water and pressure. 
Didn't try the restaurant deciding to eat out at the  night market and stocked up on snacks and beer from the nearby 7-11 (what a surprise!) Missed breakfast by, erm, sleeping in late and found a food place that was quick & cheap. 
The hotel has a bar at the back overlooking the sea and was pretty chilled place for a sunset beer as a dj played (at a reasonable volume) Cafe Del Mar-style tunes. 

Spent one night here on the way back from Prachuap to Bangkok in late September 2019. 
Booked a Zen Jacuzzi pool suite for $209aud. The pool was a shallow outdoor pool surrounded by greenery and seemingly unheated with little sun. The bed was the most comfortable on this trip and the dark quasi traditional decor made it instantly comfortable and quite intimate. The bathroom included a large shower cubicle with a decent sized bath. Constant hot water and pressure. 
Didn't try the restaurant deciding to eat out at the  night market and stocked up on snacks and beer from the nearby 7-11 (what a surprise!) Missed breakfast by, erm, sleeping in late and found a food place that was quick & cheap. 
The hotel has a bar at the back overlooking the sea and was pretty chilled place for a sunset beer as a dj played (at a reasonable volume) Cafe Del Mar-style tunes. 

Don't forget the bloody $3000 you gotta fork out to do quarantine on return. Plus they're denying three out of four requests to leave anyway.

Stayed one night in Sept 2019. Drove up late morning (try and get a lb out the door early!) and had an uneventful and pretty easy run. Booked through Agoda for a little over $100aud. Room was a deluxe 32sqm and had everything you need except a view. Our balcony faced a wall so natural light wasn't great. Bathroom was good - plenty of constant hot water & - a rarity on this trip - the bed was not as hard as concrete.
There's a pool but we didn't use it. 
We headed out soon after arrival and spent the afternoon wandering the temples. Had dinner at an open air market by the river. 
Breakfast was standard fare and ok but nothing special. Did its' job. (Hotel pics from internet ).
Overall a perfectly ok overnight stop. If you need an 'I go for the culture' story for the cynics back home I'd recommend a short side trip to Ayutthaya. The temples etc are worth seeing  - it wasn't crowded - and it's beautifully kept.
 

Spent one night here on the way back from Prachuap to Bangkok in late September 2019. 
Booked a Zen Jacuzzi pool suite for $209aud. The pool was a shallow outdoor pool surrounded by greenery and seemingly unheated with little sun. The bed was the most comfortable on this trip and the dark quasi traditional decor made it instantly comfortable and quite intimate. The bathroom included a large shower cubicle with a decent sized bath. Constant hot water and pressure. 
Didn't try the restaurant deciding to eat out at the  night market and stocked up on snacks and beer from the nearby 7-11 (what a surprise!) Missed breakfast by, erm, sleeping in late and found a food place that was quick & cheap. 
The hotel has a bar at the back overlooking the sea and was pretty chilled place for a sunset beer as a dj played (at a reasonable volume) Cafe Del Mar-style tunes. 

Stayed one night in Sept 2019. Drove up late morning (try and get a lb out the door early!) and had an uneventful and pretty easy run. Booked through Agoda for a little over $100aud. Room was a deluxe 32sqm and had everything you need except a view. Our balcony faced a wall so natural light wasn't great. Bathroom was good - plenty of constant hot water & - a rarity on this trip - the bed was not as hard as concrete.
There's a pool but we didn't use it. 
We headed out soon after arrival and spent the afternoon wandering the temples. Had dinner at an open air market by the river. 
Breakfast was standard fare and ok but nothing special. Did its' job. (Hotel pics from internet ).
Overall a perfectly ok overnight stop. If you need an 'I go for the culture' story for the cynics back home I'd recommend a short side trip to Ayutthaya. The temples etc are worth seeing  - it wasn't crowded - and it's beautifully kept.
 

Stayed one night in Sept 2019. Drove up late morning (try and get a lb out the door early!) and had an uneventful and pretty easy run. Booked through Agoda for a little over $100aud. Room was a deluxe 32sqm and had everything you need except a view. Our balcony faced a wall so natural light wasn't great. Bathroom was good - plenty of constant hot water & - a rarity on this trip - the bed was not as hard as concrete.
There's a pool but we didn't use it. 
We headed out soon after arrival and spent the afternoon wandering the temples. Had dinner at an open air market by the river. 
Breakfast was standard fare and ok but nothing special. Did its' job. (Hotel pics from internet ).
Overall a perfectly ok overnight stop. If you need an 'I go for the culture' story for the cynics back home I'd recommend a short side trip to Ayutthaya. The temples etc are worth seeing  - it wasn't crowded - and it's beautifully kept.
 

Unfortunately doesn't always go this way. A few years ago, hopped in a Taxi heading towards Asoke and was head in my phone, scrolling through work emails on the way. Not so deep mind that I didn't notice the driver come off well before Rama IX and avoid both toll-gates. Anyway, arrived at the hotel and he's sticking an extra B125 on the meter for the Airport Fee and both tolls. Told him no way, we didn't go through any tolls. He then gets out of the taxi screaming and hollering , trying to shame me into paying him. I jumped out, told the hotel staff to take my bags to the exec lounge (was checking in upstairs), stood there while he kept shouting and screaming, he even offered to drive me "to a police station to talk with them!". Not a fcking chance my son. At this point the bell-boys are getting embarrassed saying I should just pay him, but I stood my ground and the driver shouted again, "we drive through both gates, you pay me now!". So I politely asked one of the bell-boys to loudly ask him in Thai, so everyone there could hear, "If we came through both gates, we would drive to this hotel along Sukhumvit road. So why did you exit the highway near Rama IX and drive down Asoke?". Quietness followed, I paid the man what he was owed and not a cent more. 

Thai government,  not that f#@Ken smart