Tengotodo

thanks for the advice. I haven't had any luck yet for those two days, but I'll keep trying.

Joiner fee?? Shit. I vowed to NEVER pay that! I tried most other hotels but they all seem booked for 12/29 through 12/31 in BKK. Stayed at Majestic Suites last time and while the room was okay, the breakfast was shit and the lady at the FD gave me a hard time. I will have to keep searching. Thanks.

A bit off topic here, but this seems to be the only hotel in BKK that even HAS availability in late december. Anyone ever been here?

I agree. General rule of thumb is; "if it flys, floats or fucks, it's cheaper to rent"

Enough Said!

Christ! How much per day are they asking? You can get a sutie at the Vault for 2800 per day and that includes MUCH more! Just curious cuz when I stayed at the Areca last december I think they were charging about 2K baht per night.

I haven't actually stayed there yet, but based upon recommendations from our boardmembers I have reserved 2 weeks at The Vault at the end of December. Check out the website www.thevaultpattaya.com and you can judge yourself. Have a good trip!

Is it likely that Areca Lodge is already fully booked for New Years 4-5 months out? Most definitely. Best bet is to try sources like sawadee.com or asiarooms.com as they contract for a block of rooms and may have some left, or there might be a cancellation and you could get lucky. My understanding is you will always be able to find a room even without a reservation, but the nicer, more popular hotels are fully booked several months in advance leading up to Xmas and New Years.

Directly across from Areca is laundry service that is 1/2 the price the hotel charges. Internet cafe on premises (20 baht minimum); Very nice exercise room with private sauna where you can get jiggy with your tilac. Pool in back is MUCH better than front. Food is all-you-can eat and excellent. Lolitas is just a few steps away as is a decent Go-Go bar. Restaurant down the Soi serves great steaks, and Mike's Shopping mall is right there! A few beer-bars on SOI Diana, but nothing really great. All in all, a very nice hotel in a great location.

I can't find this fare anywhere! What dates are you looking at?

Since it's obviously very important to you, I'll take the time...I arrived in Thailand 12/28/05 and in PATTAYA 01/01/06...Although none of this has to do with the fact that I hate those friggin Surcharges. The point to to OP was that Pattaya was PACKED (i.e. not slow and plenty of ladies), contrary to his/her concerns that the place would be desolate.. okay now....

Only 1 chance. Book another hotel with Sawasdee and have them transfer the intitial deposit to the new hotel. They did this for me 2X during the last year. This way, they don't lose the revenue, but you do have to "keep your business with them", so to speak. They always answer emails, so you can contact them first and have them acknowledge what I am telling you before you send another deposit. This will ease your fears of being soaked again. I have found them to be offer excellent service. Good luck!

Both times I've beent here I've been asked for a deposit by Sawasdee.com for that very reason. 1 night in advance and in full about a week before arrival. The only problem is if you don't like the hotel or want to change for any reason during your stay, you probably won't get any money back. Still, I do understand why they do this as I've been told by many inn keepers the cost of no-shows can be substantial. I work part-time in a hotel and we routinely charge no-shows on their mandatory CC. Same Same thailand. As long as you have to stay "somewhere" do your research, make a re

I can't stand that friggin "surcharge" for the "gala event" many places seem to charge for Xmas and New Years! But, my first trip was during these holidays and Pattaya was PACKED with both tourists and Ladies. No worries. Plenty of women to go around.

Can't beat the "with two egg" (no s) deal for under 50B! thanks for the info.

NS Thai from JFK to BKK is arguably the best route to go. Save time, save jetlab, etc.. , although about $300-400 more expensive than 31-39 hour trip. Still, Majestic Suites, IMOP, is NOT a great deal. Rooms are extremely small and breakfast SUCKS!! Worse than that is the FD service staff, who could give a rat's ass about you. I think Nana Hotel is better for several reasons. Other than that, you can find other hotels on suckandvomit that must be better than MS.

You can access it online, but I always seem to get the message "call operator" no matter how many times I change the dates and airports. United Vacations to Asia

Probably I'm confused, but if I remember correctly the Welkom Inn across from Sabai Lodge is a real shit hole. The ONLY good thing about it is the short-time bar attached where attractive ladies can be found as early as 8 am and throughout the day. Breakfast for less than 100b is another plus for WI. But, the Sabaii Inn AND the Sabai Lodge is MUCH MUCH better and in the same location. The few extra Baht will be well worth it. The Welcome Inn DOES have in-room safe, but the overall condition of the hotel is shit. IMOP.

same same me.

I agree. My recent trip demonstrated there were plenty of hotels with vacant rooms, some of which I'm sure could be had at a considerable discount. However, my inquiries for hotels this High season have already come back as, "sorry, hotel fully booked." I think if going between Nov/Jan, then book in advance as early as possible. Other than those months, probably okay not to make reservations and not to pay in advance.

doesn't sound quite right to me. My CC (and I assume all others) offer 100% fraud protection. The seller is required to make positive ID before purchase (though all seldom do this). If you put the charge on your CC you hany many dispute options, including refusal to pay until investigation is complete. Maybe these people paid cash? (in which case the truly ARE scrwed). But if they paid by CC, seems like they should have recoruse.

I booked Penthouse room for high season Dec/Jan 7 months in advance and feel lucky I was able to! Price is a little steep at 2800 baht per day, but shit how often do you get to go to Pattaya and screw? Might as well have the best you can afford. I'll write a review in January.

Once again, Cuntley knows best.

First of all, there are 100s of posts on this board where BMs are having "private conversations", so fuck off with that one. Secondly, I contacted Mr. Toom on this board because after several private emails and no answer, I assumed his email server was down. So I used the board to Public message him. Even someone as stupid as you can see the logic in that? Also, I do not think 95% or even 25% of this board ignores me. If they do, then so be it, but last time I checked you were not named King and few if anyone respects what you have to say. No one likes a whiner or complainer, w