Alk

Not sure why you got jacked around by Cathay. That has never been their style, which is why they are consistently rated one of the world's very best airline. They have about 3-4 discounted economy fares that qualify for FULL Asia Miles. The one thing about Cathay Pacific is that their Deal of the Month no longer gives you Asia miles. You need to pay about $60 above that rate for the miles. I do not have 350,000 miles on them, but fly them 3 times a year, as I just switched from the AA program 2 years ago. I currently have a 6-figure Asia Miles balance. They always give me choice s

I've done the Welcome Inn route. The other trick is to simply hire a baht bus (60 baht from South Pattaya), and have them drop you and your honey off in front of the Sabia Inn/Lodge. Sometimes it's worth the extra 40 baht. That works well since the girls rarely look inside a passing bus. Have you seen the Studio Apartments at the Sunshine? Sounds like something to look into. If the girls near Soi 3 get to know you, you can always reverse your recommendation and get to your hotel via the Welcome Inn route. I'll be there the first week of June.

How does the Sunshine Vista compare with the Sabai Inn/Lodge? I'm thinking about trying it out, but only if it's a better value than the Sabai's. costs are about the same ~1000B. My thought right now is to stay at the Sabai Inn and when I become too well known with the Beer Bar girls at the top of Soi 2, to move over to the Sunshine Vista on Soi 3.

Like you, I have things down to a science. Only my last trip, I was sitting in Business Class(NW FF miles), and was literally the first person off the plane. I knew exactly where to stand on the bus to immigration. I was first off the bus at immigration, first in line to get my passport stamped, was waved through customs with my carry-on luggage, walked up to a money changer where there was no line and exchanged two $100 bills for baht, and got into a waiting taxi. From the time I walked off the bus till the time I got in a taxi was about 7 minutes. I submitted this feat to the Gu

I'm leaving on the 28th and I was the one who posted this deal.... UNFORTUNATELY, I had just booked a Northwest Flight a few hours before I saw this. I couldn't believe my luck, but I'm glad others got in on it. I won't be arriving until later that night. too bad I couldn't share a cab with you. Since I'm coming in late, I'll probably end up staying in Bangkok for a night or two.

I just saw it on Expedia, leaving May 28th. You have to travel on Cathay Pacific through Hong Kong however. CP is a great airline, and you will probably have most of the plane to yourself. Anyone willing to take a chance on this??

It's waayyyyy too good to pass up. My usual airline is Cathay Pacific, which is tremendous even in coach, but with SARS, there's no way I'm going through Hong Kong. Getting a ticket for $445, and getting almost enough FF miles for a free R/T ticket anywhere in the USA is a great deal. The arrival and departure times suck, and the service isn't quite up to some of their Asian competitors, but for the money, they is no way to beat this. I'm booked for the 28th.

Nice gesture. It's good to see Brits and Americans getting along.

The only negative I can really give about the Sabai Lodge is that if you are given a room backing up against Soi 2, a loud motorcycle without a muffler can jolt you awake from a sound sleep. Better to get a room on the other side of the hotel if possible. The only other potential problem is once you barfine a girl from a bar like the flamingo on Soi 2, you inevitably have to walk your next night's barfine past her, which can be uncomfortable if you are thin-skinned.

SF, Thanks for the link. After reading it, I still think that there is some merit in checking out the link I posted. The cheapest price quoted to anyone previously was 1100B not inlcuding breakfast. Others were paying 1320B via Asiatravel. This website offers a room for 1000B including breakfast, and if you pay for 6 nights you get the 7th night free. Not bad for a new hotel in what I consider a good location.

As the attached link indicates, this new hotel (Serviced Apartment) looks very very nice. Good location on Soi 3 near the Big C. Rooms look good, nice pool and Breakfast for around 1000B during the low season. Has anyone stayed there? I may give it a shot. It's only one Soi over from my usual hotel, the Sabai Inn, and is probably more descrete since it's difficult to walk your date of the evening back to the Sabai after you have barfined a girl from any of the bars in the Soi 2 beer bar complex. Check it out... http://www.r24.org/2bangkok.com/pattaya/sunshinevista/