echster

http://www.flippergroup.com/ Was just quoted 910 baht per night for a deluxe room for my upcoming trip.

I think I'm more of a free-spender than mostbut here's where most of my money goes from BKK-Pattaya-BKK: Thai Limo: 2700 for the roundtrip (you need to get it at the airport or else it's 1500 each way). Hotel: depends where I want to stay. A nice room at Sabai Lodge on Soi 2 runs 750 baht a night. A nice suite at Residence Garden runs 1300 baht a night. The Flipper House and Flipper Lodge on Sois 7 and 8 runs 910 baht a night for a deluxe suite. I name these 3 places as they have pools, and that's fairly important for me. Cost for a two-week stay averages 14,000 baht. Massage: 400 baht for a two hour Thai massage. I need this after the long time traveling from the Atlanta area. I figure on 3 trips over a two-week period. Cost is 1,200 baht. STs: hey, I could get a massage everyday but I prefer to spend my money for more fun. A daily trip to Soi 6 or Nice With Ice over a two-week period runs approximately 8,000 baht. Body Massage: I need one of these every couple of days! At 1,600 baht a trip, it runs me about 11,000 over two weeks. Food: hey, you gotta eat. I run the gamut of Thai food from the carts (35 baht) to a trip to Bruno's (4,000 baht). I guess it's roughly 800 baht a day; about 11,500 baht for two weeks. Beer/Adult Beverages: I like to drink and I don't mind shouting a couple rounds a night. I drop around 8,000 baht a night on drinks for myself, the TGs, and friends. Cost for a two-week period is about 120,000 baht. BFs/Tips: I like mine freaky so I'm more inclined to BF from a GG bar. Costs about 1,500-2,000 per night, or roughly 30,000 for two weeks. Site-seeing: yea right! Shopping: this is the only thing I really budget. I give myself 25,000 baht a trip to buy clothes, suits, etc. Extras (golf, acupuncture, dental, etc.): 25,000 baht So, I spend roughly 210,000 baht/$5250 for a two-week trip.

I was looking into a few jobs overseas and all reported that if you spend 330 days or more outside of the US, you do not have to pay US taxes. On the other hand, if you work for the US government overseas, then you'd have to pay. You may spend up to 29 days - days spent on traveling count - in the US a year without filing the 1040. Not sure of all the intricacies involved, but this should hopefully provide some info.

I've been to the LOS the past 3 Septembers and this year will be the 4th straight. As far as weather and rain goes, it'll be really nice. Last year it rained late at night (after midnight) twice. I can't recall it raining any other days during those trips. At night, it is also comfortable enough to sit at an outdoor beer bar and enjoy a few drinks.

Pattaya is quiet. The weekenders from BKK have come and gone. Tonight was quiet in town. It may be difficult getting plane tickets because folks may be connecting onwards or they may be staying in BKK or other areas. Not everyone who flies in to Thailand visits Pattaya. Phuket is also quite popular. IMHO, Pattaya is probably the 4th destination of most travelers, behind BKK, Phuket, and the northern areas.

Not many folks in town. Shouldn't have a problem getting a place to stay.

No can do, brother. It's the last night in Pattaya for some of the guys who are paying for the party.

banner - the scrolling "Wednesday" is mispelled. :)

I rely strictly on ATMs while in Thailand. I get a better rate using them as opposed to cash/travelers' checks. The Cirrus/Maestro card can be used at 99% of the ATMs in Pattaya. The daily max depends on your bank. Question: What is the charge for cashing travelers' checks? Is it a percentage of the total cashed or is it a per check fee? Should have clarified earlier, but I also bring cash and credit cards, in addition to my ATM card, in case I lose one or the other or there is an emergency.

Chuck, Talk to Pete when you're in town. I'm sure you could pull him aside some night in FLB and have a candid discussion. BTW, it seems the fastest way to become a millionaire in Pattaya is to arrive as a billionaire. Be careful what you sink your money into.

If I start a thread and it is no longer relavent, how would I delete it?

Not sure I follow you. You say the Royal Palace Hotel is on Soi 2. Well, so is the Sabai Lodge. :) If you want closer to Walking Street, check out the Penthouse. It's definitely within walking or staggering distance to both FLB and Misty's. ;D You can also check out The Residence Suites or Residence Gardens. It's closer to FLB than Misty's. You can take advantage of the FLB Members' discount there. Here are some links: www.penthousehotel.com www.theresidencegarden.com www.theresidencesuites.com

Dave, I'd go down the soi a little further and stay at Sabai Lodge. I stayed there last trip and enjoyed it. It's really quiet, now has 2 pools with the opening of the new wing, and a great restaurant. It is inexpensive considering the quality of the hotel. On top of that, there are no problems bringing back guests. They have safe deposit boxes at the counter and are accessible 24-hours a day. Try this link: www.sabaicenter.com You can send an email to Care and she'll email you back with costs. If you are looking for certain features in your room - like a king bed instead of 2 twins pushed together - just ask her.

The differences in room are size (a little bigger) and maybe a feature or two (small gogo stage and pole vs. balcony vs. tub). The VCDs are free - it's already connected to the TV. The safety boxes are good. If you don't want to bring a lock, they'll provide one. I'm not sure if you have to pay for it or not. I don't recall paying for it and they took it back when I checked out. You keep all keys but the hotel's key to the outer door. The bad thing about it, though, is they lock it up from 2200 to 0800. If you need mor emoney at night, better have an ATM or credit card.

Good: Penthouse on Pattayaland 2. It's in the middle of the action when they aren't shut down for some bullshit reason. ::) There are no rules - TGs, katoeys, animals, etc - and NO ID checks. Bad: Marriot at Royal Garden. Is the joiner fee up to 800 baht now? I forget but it's out there.

section of the members' board. Should people be able to reply to those that have been archived? I'm not so sure it's a good idea for people to reply to messages 1-2 years old. We know how things change day-to-day let alone over such a vast time expanse. Just my 2 satang.

I'm in full concurrence with PSP. There are a few factors in determning the costs: # of folks in the bar, time of night, what folks decide to drink (draft is cheaper than a Corona), etc. I figure roughly 100 baht a person. I think the least amount most I ever spent on a bell ring was roughly 1800 baht. It was right around opening time and a few TGs were late to work. :) The most I ever spent on a ring was right about 16,000 baht. Yes, 1-6-0-0-0 baht. It was during a party RICHARD and I were having and the place was packed. The next day, I recall Pete or Ben saying that was the best night they had ever had. I forget but I'm sure that was the night I rang it 5 times. RICHARD rang it another 5 times. It worked out as the TGs got shit-faced and finally took their knickers off during a competition. Ahhhhh, the mamorries.....er, memories. ;D

OK, OK, I'll defer the English lessons to the English so long as you do likewise of the American lessons.

and on the Residence Garden link: 1) Should be "Exclusively" 2) A space between 48% and discount 3) On line should be on-line (IMO)

and am obsessive compulsive so here you go. Members Only Area 1) "Anouncements" mispelled. 2) Should be an apostrophe in members area - member's area. 3) Same for Members Bar - Member's Bar. 4) Same for Old Timers Board - Old Timer's Board. 5) Same for Newbies Corner - Newbie's Corner. 6) Under Newbies Corner, "flamming" should be spelled "flaming". Open Board Area 1) Hotel Section - The "Click Here" is hard to see with the background. Is there a way to make it stand out?? Who really reads those "Please Read Before Posting" things anyways?? ::) 2) Under Beta Testers - you ask a question so there should be a "?" instead of a ".". Anyways, I love the new board and will chip-in my contribution beginning March 15th. :)

Paul, Take this instance: If you stay logged in and a buddy logs in, he assumes you're in becuz he looked at the bottom of the screen and sees you're here. He sends you an instant message but you never reply. Now he's pissed at you for ignoring him when in actuality, you turned off your computer and went to sleep. ::)

Tony, I never knew why you got excluded as I was moving 6,000 miles when it happened. Good to see you return, though. BTW, got any good Barrie jokes?? ;D ROTFLMFAO

I've read all the messages and still have a "NEW" bubble even after refreshing the page so I clicked on "Mark As Read". Nothing happened....or did it?? I still have a few "NEW" bubbles without any new posts to the threads. Signed, Tired of Scrolling Through Read Threads :'(

Hey PSP, Haven't you figured out that in all your travels to the LOS that some of these folks are the "it's gonna be my way or I'm taking my ball and going home" kinda folks. Not all, but there are some. As I previously stated, if they want info on Pattaya, where else are they gonna go? PLB?.....LMFAO

Pete, I hope this isn't nit-picky but in the Hotel and accomodation questions Questions and opinions on hotels in Pattaya in Pattaya. For Hotel Reviews Click Here part, with the color background that's present, the "Click Here" is kind of difficult to see. Can you make it more visible; maybe place the "Click Here" on its own line instead of as part of the the general header. I see the "Hotel" line and skipped the rest of the words as they didn't stick out of the crowd. BTW, love this new board!!