Here in Pattaya I see plenty of older farangs with tattoos but not so much with the older Thais. Could be a generational thing, not sure. There are lots of young thais (even the women) with them which also makes me wonder if they're using lasers to help their chances of employment into more regular career paths once they get out of the entertainment industry.

 

Is tattoo removal a big thing with the Thais or do they tend to keep them into old age?

Simple answer I think is tattoos for most Thais are still seen as a low class / criminal thing and many older Thais would have never have considered or approved of them. For younger Thais particularly around bar areas they have become more popular. As for older falangs I see many here with new ink so maybe have decided later in life that they are suddenly edgy or cool or hard especially in Pattaya. As for tattoo removal it is generally prohibitively expensive and extremely painful. Looking at some of the tatts on some of these Thai tarts you can tell zero thought went into it initially so I imagine mai ba lai will be the response when considering tattoo removal.

I see a lot of tattoo removal places around, thought it could be done for less than 5,000 or so (counting all sessions). Then again 5k isn't a small sum to many

1 hour ago, Hal65 said:

I see a lot of tattoo removal places around, thought it could be done for less than 5,000 or so (counting all sessions). Then again 5k isn't a small sum to many

Mate like a lot of things in Thailand I'm sure there is a cheaper option. You can get a boob job at bumrungrad for 250k or some backyard clinic in Pattaya for about 40. To my knowledge tattoo removal requires pretty specific lasers with the accompanying knowledge to use it correctly seen some horrible results from El cheapo tattoo removal but the option is there. Why not put a disfiguring scar over a shit tattoo can't get much worse 555

A word about tattoo removal: I foolishly got a simple black ink tattoo on Koh Chang almost 5 years ago. It was at the encouragement of my then fiance. At the time I didn't think it was a big deal because it was only 3" square and ASSumed that simple laser treatment would take it off if I changed my mind (or found a new wife!). I have been going to a state of the art laser removal facility in LA (Picoway laser) for almost 1 1/2 years now! Every 8 weeks. Even with this small tattoo it is painful as hell (can't imagine if I had a big color tattoo). And wait until you see everyone's expression when they see your nuclear radiation blood blister bubbles after the treatment! Priceless! I still have 2-3 more treatments until it is almost completely gone. They say it most likely will have some minor residue for the rest of my life unless I get a camouflage tattoo. No thank you!

 

Word to wise. Consider your tattoo permanent and make your decision based on that before you go under the needle.

My wife has a whale tattooed on her arse.

...It used to be a dolphin.  ....