Gay Hua Hin

[Tonycheston]

Hello, maybe some of you read my previous post about opening a gay sauna in Krabi. Well, the more I think about it the more it seems that Krabi may not be the best place. The people of Krabi is so widely distributed, I see a problem for people to travel using public transport especially at night. I still haven't ruled out the idea completely, but..........

I have now been thinking about Hua Hin. What do you think? Is there an active gay scene or a need for a meeting place for gays in Hua Hin? Your thoughts would be most welcome.

[PeaceBlondie]

I only lived in HHin for a year. Met very few gay folks. I was surprised when a straight guy told me a few weeks ago that he was walking in some soi near downtown and found a few gay bars. There are gays in HHin, but I doubt enough to operate a sauna.

[Tonycheston]

I only lived in HHin for a year. Met very few gay folks. I was surprised when a straight guy told me a few weeks ago that he was walking in some soi near downtown and found a few gay bars. There are gays in HHin, but I doubt enough to operate a sauna.

Thanks PB. I think you are looking only at "Farang" gays. In Bangkok most of the saunas have regular Thai customers. I am enquiring about gay generally not just "Farang" Do you have any contact to gay people in the area? If so I would love to meet up with some, especially Thai's who can speak English. I will be visiting the area after Songkran for a week or so.

[Ijustwannateach]

Chances are you will succeed in opening a sauna if you have enough money, but you will probably not retain ownership of it for long. Not recommended.

[Tonycheston]

Chances are you will succeed in opening a sauna if you have enough money, but you will probably not retain ownership of it for long. Not recommended.

Can you explain why you think that?

Thanks

[dukkha]

Google Gay Thailand, some entries for Hua Hin...also there are pocket sized gay guides in Bangkok which list all the Hua Hin gay bars and massage places....lived there for two years like some others on this forum....it is not a large gay scene...depends what you want I guess..I found after my beach walks and swims there is not much else to do in Hua Hin...

[Ijustwannateach]

Chances are you will succeed in opening a sauna if you have enough money, but you will probably not retain ownership of it for long. Not recommended.

Can you explain why you think that?

Thanks

Most of the gay nightlife places are owned or 'protected' by the official and/or unofficial mafias... If you're not successful, you'll lose money and won't want to keep it. If you're successful, it will be easy to push you (a foreigner) out of the business by either overcharging you for protection or, literally, pushing you out. For you to succeed at this, you need to have very savvy, very resourceful Thai partners who either like you or need you a lot. Good luck and let us know how it works out.

[PeaceBlondie]

Unlike dukkha, I do not speak Thai. If you have to rely on gay Thais in the area who speak English well, there are not many, and they may not have the connections you need. They may not have the Thai-culture-specific skills that are needed to make a success of any business here. But there may be hundreds of gay Thais in HHin and Cha-Am willing to pay 120 baht for an evening of cavorting in a sauna. It works in a few gay saunas in the big cities.

[Deadcert]

Put simply it won't work. Hua Hin is far to provincial and not specifically a destination for gay people. There are a couple of very sad knocking shops and absolutely nothing else. In my experience gay Thais go to Bangkok and have no interest in Hua Hin based entertainment unless they themselves are the paid recipients ...

It is a real shame a good bar would be a great addition to HH but one that would be domed to fail IMHO ...

[Tonycheston]

Thanks for the replies.

Thanks "dukkha". Unfortunately my Thai language is still very poor. Most sites on "Google" are either in Thai or English (for tourists) It is clear that success cannot be based on the number of gay tourists visiting HH.

IJWT - Mafia is a big problem all over Thailand, starting from the small beer bars to the big hotels. You may be correct that the gay scene is even more vulnerable. This is also the case I think everywhere in the world. Whether in London, Berlin, HK or HH. It is a case of making friends with these people (if possible) and working with them and not to fight against them. I know that the "police protection" in Bangkok are people who listen, A sauna I visit regularly has just reduced the amount of tea money they pay monthly due to less customers. The police accepted that.

All enterprises contain risk. Thanks for your good luck wishes and sure I will keep you posted.

PB - I am in the same boat as you. I am hoping that I will meet some Thais who do have a business type mind and are strong enough to help me find solutions to the many problems that I will face. I agree that there are probably more than enough locals who will use the premises.

Dc - "not specifically a destination for gay people" you are talking about tourists, I guess. They are important but not the main range of customers I expect. As for going to Bangkok - They go to Bangkok because there is no place in HH. I think many would be happy if they didn't have to travel such distances. I had messages stating this point about people in Krabi having to travel to Phuket.

[Guest]

Running any business in Thailand is complex for a foreigner.You must have a Thai partner(s) with a majority stake (51%). The rules governing foreigners working here, and company shareholdings etc, are complex and change quite often. Then there's the aspect, mention above a few times, of the major risk in getting ripped off by your partner or forced out by mafia style interests. One other aspect is the unique status of Hua Hin (if you follow my meaning). The city fathers may not want to issue a license for this type of business. Huahin has plenty of gays living in and around, but the existing bars are not very busy, and after an initial surge of interest in your new sauna, customer numbers will drift off.