Udon Thani...advice for single bloke

[jacksam]

Maybe wrong forum but I'm one of the expats living here in bkk. Often visit pattaya, hua hin, koh Chang, etc etc.

Can anyone give me some info about Udon.....yes I like a beer and bars. (Don't waste time with comments about sexpats etc)

Like to hire bike go for spin etc. Any opinions about Udon Than I welcome. Thankyou in advance.

[craigt3365]

Probably best to put this in the Issan forum, but let's run it here for a bit...we can always move it over later!

[jacksam]

Your right Craig ...I didn't even notice the Issan forum. Would do better there maybe.

[tonika]

Udon Thani, nothing special here. Regarding bars, bring plenty of money with you, cause you'll need it.

[thehelmsman]

Udon Thani, nothing special here. Regarding bars, bring plenty of money with you, cause you'll need it.

You'll have to elaborate.....I've stayed a few times, rooms are good priced. Enough beer bars to keep one satisfied, large market with various food courts, big mall....not a bad place to hang out.

[jacksam]

Helsman , I was going to ask same thing. I drink in soi 4 where beers are minimum 80 baht. Pattaya cheaper in the back bars etc

AU is 240 baht so im happy. I dont mind paying here in thailand. Just got back from AU. Hotel minimum 3600baht.

Dont go for eggs on toast with couple of coffees. Need cheque book. How quickly we get too used to Asian pricing

PS...return flight airasia bkk/Udon.....1500BAHT

[craigt3365]

OK. Let's move this over to the Issan forum. A link will also be left here in the Travel forum.

Best of luck!

[coxo]

Jacksam you will have fun there, stay at 'Top Mansion' right in the zone, good clean rooms, A/C, TV for about 400 baht a night, look up Rob at the Aussie sports bar in Nutty Park, he will point you in the right direction, he has good food also.

[brain1]

for a list of things to do other than beer bars try http://asia-backpackers.com/udon/things-to-do-and-see/

[DerkMR]

It depends on what you are after, but I think Udon has some area for everyone.

From the already mentioned Top Mansion you are within minutes in the nightlife as it is placed just within. For higher accomodation standard the Pannarai Hotel in the same Soi is an option.

Also very close is the Central Plaza.

Bye,

Derk

[jacksam]

Thanks Coxo, I will take your advice. Also just got an email from mate in AU whose best mate runs Ned Kelly bar ( if that makes sense) anyway will check em both out.

Beer is good if its cold and girls are good if there girls!

[SNGLIFE]

If staying long-term, there are plenty of nice places to rent near Nong Prajak Park if you prefer NOT to play where you lay. Plenty of short time apartments/rooms near the bar areas. Leave her there and ride your motorbike solo to your quite "home".

Most punters in-the-know prefer to stay at the Aek Udon Hospital apartments. Close to everything. No noise. Decent rooms. Good prices. Medical needs right there. I stayed for a few months while building my house awhile back. I recommend it.

[georgemandm]

Hi I love the place was there last year and will go again soon I come from Issan , just not like all the other place in thailand were all the bars are it has bars to but not a lot and not a lot of western go there so go you will love the place .

[slipperylobster]

Mr Tong's....by the train station. 11 pm is the earliest you want to show up.

Lots of cubicle bars with ladies on Soi Posam pan (soi sampan) and nutty park, where you can play pool, chat and hang out with the gals. That's about it.... You might be disappointed on the quantity, compared to Pattaya.

Good news is, lots of cuties at central mall. Udon has some good points, it is friendly, and up close. Not a tourist town. Chances are pretty good just asking girls with "normal" jobs out on dates.

[jdlancaster]

I loved udon... easy to meet regular girls. I liked aek udon but you can definitely do cheaper if a long stayer. I like tawan daeng and yellow bird. Lots of good thai bars/clubs.

[jdlancaster]

A good night could start at a beer bar to warm up and eat... then head to mr. Thongs/model 59 (not sure if still there as the owner was murdered)..or maybe tawan daeng/yellow bird etc... then finish in the wee hours of the morning at a karaoke bar... such as sisters or the one next to it. Then stumble home at 0800.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Most punters in-the-know prefer to stay at the Aek Udon Hospital apartments. Close to everything. No noise. Decent rooms. Good prices. Medical needs right there. I stayed for a few months while building my house awhile back. I recommend it.

My wife and I looked at the Aek Udon apartments some months back, as a living place, not a tourist visit place.

Frankly, we found the apartments there to be old, not particularly well furnished, and not any kind of bargain price-wise for what they're providing.

But from a short-term tourist perspective, we liked several of the hotel places on the same street as Tops Mansion and the Pannarai Hotel, and the Irish Clock pub and restaurant.

But for nice places at a bargain price, our two favorites were:

--Udon Perfect Mansion on Adulyadej Road at 400 baht per night. A pretty much brand new place, very clean, quite, friendly staff and wifi included. To get there, go out the back exit of the Central Mall, walk past the Centara Hotel, and then walk on the roadway through the Buddhist temple there that takes you out to Adulyadej Rd. The hotel is about one block down the road to the right on the right hand side of the street. All in all, a 5-10 minute walk to the mall. I don't think you can reserve with them thru Agoda or similar. But you can find their contact info direct on the Internet

--Or, a bit higher priced, The One Residence on Prajak Road, a couple of blocks up from the mall near the big gas station there. About 550 baht per night, again, newer, modern, clean rooms and facilities, with wifi included. About a 5 minute walk to/from the mall. I believe The One Residence can be booked online in some places, but again, we always contacted them directly.

I should mention, neither of those places include or offer breakfast in their room rates. But the Pannarai Hotel does offer their pretty good breakfast buffet to non-hotel-guests for something like 150 baht or a bit more. It's one of the better hotel breakfasts we had anywhere in Udon. And the Irish Clock is good for breakfast as well, just almost nextdoor to the Pannarai.

Edited October 17, 2014 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

A good night could start at a beer bar to warm up and eat... then head to mr. Thongs/model 59 (not sure if still there as the owner was murdered)..or maybe tawan daeng/yellow bird etc... then finish in the wee hours of the morning at a karaoke bar... such as sisters or the one next to it. Then stumble home at 0800.

I quite like the Tawandaeng pubs, both in Udon and its sister locations in BKK. The Udon location is one block up the side street alongside the mall.

But for the uninitiated, IMHO, they're not really places a single farang guy is best to go by himself. They're Thai pubs with live music and table dancing, and beer and food. Thais go there in groups. So for farangs, I'd suggest to go there with some mates, or, find a Thai girl ahead of time and go together as a couple. A very fun night to be had.

Edited October 17, 2014 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[recycler]

Do you want to stay single or not?

[craigt3365]

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Also as one of the removed posts mentioned, there are some cheaper bars in Udon, however they're often not really "Farang bars", and so as a visitor you might not find them.

In general, Udon has a "tourist area", with a lot of foreign pubs/bars, the area is between Central Plaza and the night market, with lots of guest houses & hotels crowded around the area.

[jdlancaster]

id say for udon.... you can start in the farang area.... meet some people then go to the thai areas together. ... cheap for a bottle and some mixers.... I was friends with a bar owner or two and some girls and did the same.... and we shared the tab..... though a large bottle and mixers isnt much between 6-7 people.

[jacksam]

Hells bells. This OP thanks you all so much. Some forums on TV members seem to like to be negative. Even down to grammar etc....

Thanks for all the advice. I'm going to udon.

[Liamsimo99]

Really mate.. Cheap nights, lot of girls... 1 of the best places in thailand considering these two thing... Any more advice give me a private message, I'll show you the way if needed

[bouph12]

It's a nice place to live but I wouldn't want to visit there.

[CapFarmer]

I have always liked Udon. I usually stay at Charoen Hotel and have since 25 years. I have also stayed at AEK Udon, but only when using the hospital. As far as I know, the Charoen hotel hasn't been remodeled in all these years, but still has a pool and we think the restaurants are excellent. It is easy to get around the city and there is plenty for me to do until the late hours.

[NeverSure]

Jacksam, Are you considering moving to Udon, or just visiting? If visiting it's a no-brainer. You should see as much of Thailand as you can.

I would live in Udon. It's not nearly the spoiled tourist areas of some places, it's big enough to have what you seek, and I found rents to be cheaper there than even Chiang Mai. YMMV.

I found the people to be less jaded about farangs, and the women to be more interested in me. As one member of this forum said when asked about how you find a Thai girlfriend, "You don't find them. They find you." He is also not in a tourist area and also in a large town and he's been in Thailand for a long time.

If you want something that's more like the "real" Thailand than some of the major tourist and expat places, I'd give it a good look.

Cheers

[Tigger01]

I've stayed at the Charoen, and I often stay at the President, a little out of town but easy to get to the airport, get a samlaw to town, both cost around 1000 bt a night and are good hotels. Good food in the market area near the station UD town!

[NowImEasy]

I've stayed at the Charoen, and I often stay at the President, a little out of town but easy to get to the airport, get a samlaw to town, both cost around 1000 bt a night and are good hotels. Good food in the market area near the station UD town!

The Charoen has the best buffet in Udon. It's around 200, but worth it.

For those who don't know, Aek Udon is an apartment building attached to a hospital of the same name. Across from Aek is the UD Town. It's a new

place, lots of shops and western restaurants. Walk through UD Town and you arrive at the Night Market with many excellent Thai food stalls.

From the Night Market, you can walk past Mr. T's bar, and see if it's for you. Keep walking and you'll pass the Soi (forget name) with the Farang bars.

On this Soi is a shop that rents motorbikes. It's run by a German dude, and would recommend it. The Deutchers that hang there are super nice guys. One drove me to the airport and wouldn't accept a satang. (I offered 100 bt, but "take a penny" is American slang for not accepting any pay.)

Then if you keep walking, you'll get to the Central Mall. It's a great place to meet locals, and the food is very good on the 3rd floor restaurant in Robinson's.

Nong Prajak is a beautiful lake with a walking path all around it, maybe 3 km. There's a string of outdoor Thai massage places there for an authentic Thai massage,

reasonably priced. A golf course is on a military base not too far from town.

Udon girls are tall and lovely. Not many are interested in a Farang as it's a prosperous area. But I'm sure a single bloke can find company, either as a date or a short time rental. The short, pretty and well endowed ladies are probably Laotian.

So enjoy Udon. It's changing rapidly like all of Issan, but still has tons of charm.

[kinmaew]

Helsman , I was going to ask same thing. I drink in soi 4 where beers are minimum 80 baht. Pattaya cheaper in the back bars etc

AU is 240 baht so im happy. I dont mind paying here in thailand. Just got back from AU. Hotel minimum 3600baht.

Dont go for eggs on toast with couple of coffees. Need cheque book. How quickly we get too used to Asian pricing

PS...return flight airasia bkk/Udon.....1500BAHT

I hear you brother about Oz that is. I just received a small bonus payment from my company 40% tax goes to the government. I just think of Bronwyn Bishop sitting there in Parliament house saying "Order" all day and achieving nothing and getting paid 400k pa plus huge perks that's what we are paying for. I will be moving back to some Asia paradise in the near future getting impossible to live here. Rates are now 4 digit just to collect my rubbish which I only leave out once a month. Insane.

Pint of decent local beer $12 welcome to Australia.