thats the difference between puke-et and bkk, bkk its 40baht everywhere, you dont have to "look". or walk 10mintues away from the beach.


I really dont know why were discussing that PHK is not more expensive then BKK, its like arguing that BKK has cleaner air then PHK, just alot of PHK fanboys here, posted several different forum topics were everyone says PHK cost more.
eieieie

This is incorrect. If u are renting direct from the owner (ie. condo as opposed to apartment) you should generally be paying govt rates of about 4 in BKK.

I can just imagine your rage on reading this knowing you are paying 50% more PE

As for Phuket, even the chain places like au bon pain and mcds are more expensive in patong if i'm not mistaken. No idea about phuket town, but patong is just an excuse to gouge tourists

patong is the central hell hole for tourism and sex trade in phuket. they've also got a good mall and the only proper pool hall (like hustlers in bkk but a bit worse). other than those 2 places i don't have any reasons to visit patong.

but yea bkk wins hands down when it comes to girls/nightlife (need an "imo" here?)

there are bars in patpong (that's in bangkok for those of you who don't know) where beers cost 800 baht. that doesn't mean that BKK is more expensive.

patong is a big part of phuket for most so when u talk about phuket u obv need to include patong and beach areas which is pushing up the average.

If u say phuket town isn't more than BKK well I could believe that, but not phuket overall.

this is actually the first thread where i've seen multiple people say otherwise. The general consensus is certainly that it is more...

i'm sure some people would spend much the same (the posters in this thread?) For example, if u r happy to get langers drunk and race home on your scooter u will be doing a lot better than the person that elects for some scum bag taxi. But I'm talking averages here.

btw I saw some 600+ drinks in patong as well

lennois and lessu are telling it how it right correct info. If anyone other poster said what I said it would not have escalated into thsi chit fest. all along the beaches, stuff costs more then the average also, because of tourists etc

800 baht for a beer, the place is obviously a tourist trap, I mean a taxi driver told me it was 400baht for a taxi to kata beach to patong, obviously he was having me on.....

You don't need an IMO there. That's fact. Also Phuket in General IS more expensive in terms of groceries, transportation and probably cheaper in terms of rent. But the biggest problem for someone who prefers BKK is probably the limited availability of items and normal girls in Phuket rather than the price. I guess if you wanna live cheap in Phuket it will cost you the same as if you wanted to live cheap in BKK. You might have a bit more room to go even cheaper in BKK if you are willing to give in quality even more. There are some real ****holes to live in here and some real dirt cheap food options here.

I agree that on average Phuket is probably more expensive. But since "average" includes some OBVIOUS tourist traps, I dont think going by that number is relevant. Just because there´s resorts in Phuket selling pad thai at 380b/plate, Phuket doesnt have to be more expensive for "normal" people.

And yes, food and drinks costs more at the beach. But then just don´t go to the beach. Boom, you got the same prices as in BKK, problem solved.....

isn't the whole idea of phuket to be near the beach though??

Just had a 200b massage, dropped a hundo tip on the bitch. Am i is baller?

Not if she pulled you off as part of the deal

Sadly she did not

Second time heading to thailand this time heading to pattaya for a few weeks with some non poker mates if anyone one wants to meet up and get on it and show us about as we don't really know the places to go. 4 of us 24-26 year olds london lads.
From the info on the web we just head to soi 6 right? what about these 200 baht mountain blowjobs I read about are the girls proper filth? worth checking out just for an experience? we arrive november 6th

Indeed. Was just trying to point out, that going to Phuket in order to get something you cant get in BKK (beach), and then complain why things (in this case food and drinks) associated with the beach, is more expensive, compared to beach-less BKK, is a bit silly.

Firefly have started flying to Penang again now from Samui, 4500 baht return trip, pretty good option for a visa run. I did mine about 3 weeks ago and only paid 3k baht, but that was a special promo offer for when they reopened the route.

But yes, the biggest disadvantage of Samui is transport to and from the island. It's a big hassle for those who have to do visa runs, not so much for people who are staying long term and therefore likely on an ED visa.

Samui, unlike Phuket, does actually have public transport in the form of Songthaews, to get from Lamai to Chaweng (20 minute trip) or Nathan (30 minutes) costs 60 baht in the daytime and about 100 baht at night.

lol I've heard about the BJ's you can get in the bushes for 200 Baht somewhere but never done it. There is a BJ bar on Soi Lk Metro where you can get a BJ for 700, also Bliss lounge but I haven't been in there.

Soi 6 is a degen street for quick daytime action, once again not done it as its not my bag but many do.

Walking Street is the main street with a lot of action, but in all honestly there is different stuff spread all over town.

Where u staying? Will try and tell you what's in your immediate area to do.

Regarding housing in Phuket,

I'm looking for a studio appartment there, starting from now and for 3 months, but on the internet classifieds it seems like they double the price for this season .

Is it still possible to get decent rental prices in November? Basically I'm looking for something in Rawai aera, with a commun swimming pool, close to restaurant and shops, I didn't find anything under 30k. Is it easy to bargain the prices? How much should I pay for that?

Also how long does it take to get a personal internet access?

Oh **** off, we're sick of your trolling on here under your different guises.

Maybe one of the regs on here needs mods privileges to sift out wankers like this guy faster every time they sign up?

I far prefer him to PE.

My mate booked this hotel http://www.agoda.com/asia/thailand/p...s_pattaya.html
we left it down to him to do all the planning it looks nicer enough.
Think we all prefer the places to get a short time girl to be honest 3/4 dif ones a day is the plan and just have banter between us 4 on holiday instead of being all luved up with some ramdom freelancer like the first time we went to bangkok hahaa.
Is walking street/beach road/soi 6 basically all the same? if you can recomend bars/clubs/bj bars whatever you think is worth checking out that would be great.

Ok so your kind half way up second road.

Hmm, its not quite really all the same place, its spread out a bit, but its all very close to get around.

WS is down one end of beach road and that is where is the biggest cluster of bars/gogo's etc is found and a few clubs to go to.

For short time action deffo do soi 6 and you will find girls on beach road all the way along, the quality can be a bit iffy though. Other than that all the girls in the bars will do short time in the evenings.

Its worth having a soapy massage if you have never done it before. There are 3 of them up by Soi 1 on second road.

I already mentioned the BJ bar on Soi LK Metro, there is also Devils den which specialises in threesomes worth a go if you have never done it before http://devilsdenthailand.com/

For clubs at night just go to WS. I-bar is a nice bar and they have Insomnia club upstairs. Lucifer's is also ok and you have candyshop which I like but can be hit and miss depending on how busy.

Don't over think it too hard, just wing it a bit and have fun!

Coming from someone who lived 2 months in Phuket and 1 in BKK this summer:

Value
The main difference is that in Phuket, people will treat you as a white (or indianogreekopersian) person. In many cases, they have the expectation of ripping you off or overcharging. Hence, while it is possible to live cheaply and get good value in both areas, it is easier to do so in BKK.

In Phuket, you will tend to learn from your mistakes and find more and more good value options as time goes by. As people see you more often, they will begin to treat you differently. It's kinda obvious for both locals and for people who have been there longer to identify who's more of a tourist/has just arrived/can be taken advantage off. The more thai you learn and the more you get comfortable with fair prices, the lesser you get taken advantage of.

People will commonly expect tips.

In BKK (apart from Khaosan Road/Royal Palace), locals are less accustomed to seeing with people/ have the expectation that white people in non-touristy areas are residents, hence in general they will not have the reflex to try to take advantage of you financially. Generally speaking you will pay the same price as locals for most things. One thing that comes into play is the fact that there are more rich thai's in BKK than in Phuket, hence the luxury/high-end industries/services will be priced to cater to that segment of the population. Rich thai's I would assume do not necessarily like to be taken advantage of hence higher-end goods will be priced more competitively and wont include as much as of premium meant to take advantage of price insensitive tourists.

People will often refuse tips.

Cliff: There's good value everywhere, but in general finding it in BKK is more straightforward and less time consuming.

Sports
As far as sports are concerned, they are widely available in both places and affordable. Basket ball was free in Phuket, because schools would let us play after school hours, that was nice.
Low season in Phuket can be extremely quiet/vacant, hence although games might continue to run, they will tend to run less often. In some cases, some sports will even stop running (within the poker/expat community) for a little while.
People in BKK will tend to be there for longer periods, the community is more stable and games run regularly year round.

Transportation
Means of transport are different, but their pros and cons will tend to even out.

In BKK, public transportation is widely available. For non-residents it is not cheap contrary to the idea that is spread around. For highstake players it might seem insignificant, but the costs do add up. Take a few BTS rides in a day and one two cab rides, plus one taxibike and you might end up spending 200-300 bath a day. It doesnt seem like much, but in the end, on a monthly basis your spending 6-10k a month on transportation alone, which is somewhat significant for someone playing 25-100NL.

During the day, cabs are usually a nightmare because of traffic. It's often advisible to just stick to bts/motorbikes that can zigzag through traffic.

At night, the bts does close early, but this is more than made up by the fact that cabs are dirt cheap and no traffic at all means you can go anywhere in no time. It also means everyone can go out and drink, without having to plan for the return trip.

Other cons, it didnt stop me from taking them, but motorbikes do represent a significant safety hazard. You'll be riding on a motorbike, without a helmet, with a driver that is more or less qualified and more often then not reckless, amidst' BKK chaotic traffic. Any time you take one of them, you should realize that you are exposing yourself to serious injuries/death.

You should also be careful of the taxi drivers. A quick 2 seconds look at their eyes will often suffice to let you know if they have the crazy factor going on. Taxi drivers work long hours and to withstand the long hours in traffic and fatigue, alot of them will be high on amphetamines etc. If you see that the driver looks agitated, eyes red eyes or is ever so slightly aggressive, just apologize, close the door, and wait for the next one to pass by within the next 30 seconds. Also be wary of drivers that zig zag next to you to see if you need a cab, asking you repeatedly and insisting. It's kinda like a sampling bias: If you ask someone in the library to check your laptop while you go to the washroom, your less likely to fall on a thief than if a random person comes and offers you to check your stuff while you go to the washrooms.

Always pay the fare, even if the cabdriver is in the wrong. Honor and saving face is of utmost importance to thais, and taxi drivers seem particularly prone to pulling out switchblade as a means of settling any argument. I've had a knife pulled on me, and also saw a taxi driver pullout a knife on a tourist he had just beat up right in the middle of an intersection as people gathered.

In Phuket, taxis are obviously aids. However, most people will get themselves a scooter. They can be rented for 1.5-4k a month ~. Gas is cheap. They are fun. It gives you the freedom to go anywhere at anytime, not having to plan in advance. It's fast and convenient.

Meanwhile, inexperienced drivers will be most at risk of having an accident. Almost everybody in Phuket that's been there for some amount of time has had a bike accident. Myself included. It can be because your bad. It can because most thais are awful drivers and driving lessons are inexistant and your implicated without being responsible. Alot of people are surprised at how slippery bikes get on wet surfaces, sand in curves etc.

Motorbikes obviously suck when it rains, and at times it can sorta contribute to staying inside more than you would if you had easy access to a car/subway.

The other major drawback of transportation on Phuket is going out at night. Cars are expensive on the islands. Few falangs have them. So that means you either have to cut for a 400-600thb taxi fare when you go out (not that bad if you split it). The other option is people drive their bikes and drink, which is unfortunate but doesnt surprise you that much after a while. That obviously exposes you to legal, health and security risks but im sure I dont need to explain that.

Cliffs: Transportation in both place have their pros and cons. Expenses will amount to similar values.

Y= 2k thb + B(usage)
Y= 60(per trip)

Higher fixed cost + lower marginal costs in one Phuket vs
lower fixed cost + higher marginal costs in BKK

awesome post vomit next can you compare drinking and girls if you dont mind as they are the main reasons most of us come to thailand :P

Nice to see a balanced post. Most people just like to blindly insist wherever they are is the nuts.