‘Wife for hire’: Inside Thailand’s shocking rental marriage trend

[PomPolo]

A rental would be quieter than my misses so not sure what the issue is here?  I'd rent her out but they would probably end up charging me!

[WDSmart]

Nothing new here. It's just prostitution. When I read the title, I thought it was a short-term marriage to a Thai woman to enable the foreign man to more easily obtain a long-term visa. I'm sure that goes on, too. 

[khunJam]

Plenty of rent a wives in the cities if that’s your thing.

[Walker88]

1 hour ago, koolkarl said:

For losers.

You 'winners' can cash in your celestial credits upon expiration and claim your eternal reward.

 

What men and women choose to do is not my business. I guess that's just my view. I also know that 50-100 years from now, neither the players nor their critics will be above ground, so none of what folks do or refrain from doing out of some personal moral code means diddly squat. Some people will have had happy memories or earned a little dosh, while curmudgeons and the morality police would have been properly outraged and could pat themselves on the back for their ethical superiority. Everybody wins. You'll feel better about yourself if you can feel negative about someone else.

 

Back home, if I asked a woman to a dinner date, I would invariably pay the tab. Does that make her a hooker and me a loser? And if after dinner, we went to my place or hers, and engaged in a little intimacy, does THAT make her a hooker? If I pay the meal tab, but not extra for the intimacy, I guess that's okay. If I send her flowers or chocolates tomorrow, is that whore-ifying? If she schtupps me because she's horny, rather than doing it for cash to feed her family, she's a good girl, right? Horny sex is okay, but compensated sex is wrong, correct? I'm just guessing here, but since you seem to know the rules, perhaps you will offer righteous judgement.

 

 

[sandyf]

3 hours ago, BTB1977 said:

Any time money is paid to have a relationship with another person it is called prostitution.  You can sugar coat it with another name. But a financial transaction for a  girlfriend or wife is just that for the female involved.  She's in it for the money. In what western countries do men pay their wives or girlfriends to be with them?

In every country.

Surprised you are not aware that very little in this life is ever free. The "headache syndrome" is nothing more than prostitution in disguise.

 

[Mitkof Island]

BIG HINT ! The majority of foreigners who do not speak Thai have rentals. Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly rates. You think they met them at a temple or market place?  It is very obvious where they meet them . Not that hard to notice.

[Homburg]

6 hours ago, Patong2021 said:

The photo from Travel Mermaid looks to be circa 1975

 

Lol!  But that is a far more recent pic.  Thai ladies were much slimmer in 1975.

[Mitkof Island]

31 minutes ago, WDSmart said:

Nothing new here. It's just prostitution. When I read the title, I thought it was a short-term marriage to a Thai woman to enable the foreign man to more easily obtain a long-term visa. I'm sure that goes on, too. 

Yea I think Thai Immigration would be shocked how many there are in Pattaya alone.

[Myran]

"Prostitution – a new trend sweeping the nation"

[Homburg]

Rent v Buy? 

 

Just some of the advantages of renting that I have discovered:

 

With a rental you can break the contract cheaply.

 

With a rental you can always get the latest product

 

If you have a problem with a rental then it is easy to rent a different item.

 

A rental contract can be as long or as short as you want.

 

In the long run, renting is far cheaper than buying.

 

 

I shall always rent.  I do not intend to ever buy a car.

[AlexRich]

I'm all for it, and live by the mantra:

 

"If it f*cks, flies or floats, rent, don't buy"

[diveasia666]

just the old LLT

[khunjeff]

5 hours ago, khunpin said:

Nothing else than prostitution. 🤷🏼‍♂️ 

 

What is described in the article certainly sounds like nothing more than garden variety prostitution. The real rental wives were a major phenomenon back during the days of the US military bases in Thailand during the 1970s, when soldiers might arrange for a woman to live with them for six months or a year. There are still popular Isaan songs about "mia chow" (rental wives).

[Scouse123]

Age old tradition with a new trendy name

[BangkokReady]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

The practice, often called “temporary marriage,” sees women from impoverished rural areas become companions to tourists, offering services ranging from casual companionship to acting as tour guides.

 

Isn't it called "holiday girlfriend" or "girlfriend experience"?  I've never heard temporary marriage.

[Hummin]

3 hours ago, Paul52 said:

I couldn’t agree more.  

One size fits all 😁

[BangkokReady]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

drawn by Thailand’s reputation for hospitality

 

[BangkokReady]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

Thailand’s relatively liberal attitude towards relationships

 

Isn't it more the huge importance placed on money, making whatever you can do to get it justified?

[BangkokReady]

5 hours ago, Jonathan Swift said:

"the rental wife industry". Industry, eh? So girls are now a product of industry. Factories cranking em out, executive offices, stockholders, and board meetings. So get me an industrial strength Thai girl. 

 

You've got the wrong meaning of industry.  It's industry as in "a distinct group of productive or profit-making enterprises".

[Ralf001]

1 hour ago, PomPolo said:

A rental would be quieter than my misses so not sure what the issue is here?  I'd rent her out but they would probably end up charging me!

 

pics ?

hourly rate ?

[Hummin]

2 hours ago, khunPer said:

From about 50,000 baht up in the neighbourhood of 4 million baht – of course depending of the duration – if that's the going rate for a "guide", it seems to be an OK win-win situation instead of previous going "long time" rates, but of course higher demand causes inflation...

Spent around 20mill since I met my wife 8 years back, and everything have been about her, not me

[baansgr]

They are all rentals, even those with hi-so Bangkokian Chinese ones...right down to the dirt farmer. Nowt wrong with it as long as you accept it and don't start saying she's a cashier or a normal girl

[Jenkins9039]

8 hours ago, webfact said:

Photo courtesy of Hidden Compass

 

by Puntid Tantivangphaisal

Thailand’s notorious “rental wife” trend is turning heads and sparking heated debates. Dubbed the “black pearl” phenomenon, this controversial practice is thriving in Pattaya’s red-light districts, offering foreign tourists a temporary taste of companionship for a fee.

 

The practice, often called “temporary marriage,” sees women from impoverished rural areas become companions to tourists, offering services ranging from casual companionship to acting as tour guides. Contracts last anywhere from a few days to several months, with fees varying based on the woman’s looks, age, and education—ranging from US$1,600 to an eye-watering US$116,000.

 

Lavert A. Emmanuel’s new book, Thai Taboo: The Rise of Wife Rental in Modern Society, dives into this shadowy world, describing how the practice, once hidden, has now become a significant income source for young people struggling to make ends meet.

 

“This isn’t just a transactional arrangement. Some women end up marrying their clients, while others maintain long-term paid relationships.”

Inspired by similar services in Japan and South Korea, Thailand’s rental wife trend caters to the loneliness that comes with urbanisation and demanding lifestyles. Tourists, drawn by Thailand’s reputation for hospitality, often initiate arrangements in bars, restaurants, or nightclubs, negotiating terms directly with the women.

 

Despite its prevalence, the practice operates in a legal grey area. While the Thai government acknowledges its existence, there are no laws regulating it. Critics argue that this lack of oversight leaves women vulnerable to exploitation.

 

Cultural factors also play a role. Thailand’s relatively liberal attitude towards relationships means these arrangements face less stigma than they might elsewhere. For some, the rental wife industry represents a way to bridge economic gaps, but for others, it’s a troubling reflection of societal inequality, reported News18.

 

Photo courtesy of Travel Mermaid

 

Source: The Thaiger 

-- 2024-11-30

 

 

Somewhat confused, this isn't new - plebs come from all across the globe to experience the Thai smile and Singapore Twist for shekels and then leave, some win the lottery and marry the pleb.

[baansgr]

1 hour ago, Mitkof Island said:

BIG HINT ! The majority of foreigners who do not speak Thai have rentals. Daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly rates. You think they met them at a temple or market place?  It is very obvious where they meet them . Not that hard to notice.

Yep, all the real estate agents....from Surin, Buriram or some other backwater Issan province...all mutton dressed as lamb but the fool punters or hubby's can't see it. 

[NanLaew]

7 hours ago, Callmeishmael said:

One problem with these rental wives (or so I have heard 😜) is that they are often from the deepest, darkest, depths of Issan and don't know their way around Bangkok or other parts of Thailand that a tourist would want to visit!

 

But the tourist doesn't know that.

[NanLaew]

29 minutes ago, BangkokReady said:

 

Isn't it called "holiday girlfriend" or "girlfriend experience"?  I've never heard temporary marriage.

 

I think that someone's been messing with Google gemini.

[Wrwest]

my now Thai Wife of several years had a hair salon in Bangkok for a few years before we met and I lured her to join me in Chiang Mai. We consider ourselves quite fortunate to have found each other but after five years together, she said she did not want to be a "rented wife". This I could appreciate and although I was happy with our unmarried state, I agreed. We have continued to be quite happy without any issues.

[black tabby12345]

Is it that shocking?

Some women do that spontaneously for money.

Falsely claiming being single while really married.

And playing the role of Wife of the old first world foreigner.

And such people often go home to see their Real Family during Songkran holidays.

 

I have heard of it for many years.

[Jabberwocky]

Who the hell pays 1600 USD to stay with a Thai for a month?

[Ralf001]

31 minutes ago, baansgr said:

They are all rentals, even those with hi-so Bangkokian Chinese ones...right down to the dirt farmer. Nowt wrong with it as long as you accept it and don't start saying she's a cashier or a normal girl

 

Hummin has dumped 20mil on his rental !