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What ever your personal opinion of the Bar Girl scene or Sex Tourism, it exists, its part of Thai Culture and its here to stay, who are we to judge, condemn or criticise. So its with respect that we include an article on what to expect and how to behave when looking for your source of entertainment.

This article is the result of months of research, many hours have been spent talking to Barany girls, Bar Managers and Owners, this has given us an insight into the thinking behind the bar girl and how they live there lives.

So you are off for a night out in Bangkok, Pattaya or Phuket in search a few beers, a bit of fun and maybe the company of a good looking lady for the night or for a few hours, the choice is yours.

The majority of bar girls are sweet, polite and fun loving young ladies, who can come from all walks of life, its true to say many come to the sex hotspots of Bangkok, Pattaya and Phuket from the poorest area’s of Isaan in the north, looking to make money and help support their families, but these days many professionally trained teachers, nurses, or even law students, often enter the sex trade for short periods to help pay education costs, or loans.

Don’t be fooled, your average Bar girl is not necessary under educated or dishonest by nature, but their motivation is Money, their main aim is to make as much money as possible, in the shortest time possible.

Which ever City your are staying, the format is the same, as you walk around you will be continually greeted by groups of sexy dressed beautiful girls, who will try hard to persuade you into their bar, listening to their banter and comical comments is often entertainment in itself, they want to encourage you into the bar, to buy drinks, and of course, as a potential customer, remember, to the Thai Bar Girl you are a walking ATM.

Once in the venue, you are very likely to by joined by a couple of the bar girls, its their job to sell you drinks and look after you, they will be polite and great fun to be with, if you are not interested in their company, you can either change bar, or attract the attention of other ladies, your present company will not be offended. At some point the girls will enquire if you will buy them a drink, called A Lady Drink.

Lady drinks for your bar girl companion are more expensive, averaging 120baht, the girls are paid commission, and must reach a monthly quota, Lady drinks are often watered down sprits, mainly to stop the girls becoming too drunk every night. In a way the purchase of the lady drink forms part of the customer- Bar girl ritual, if she is interested in you she will ask for a drink/s, if you agree or offer you are indicating your own intentions, try to avoid getting into conversations with too many girls at any one time, 3 or 4 lady drinks at time, can run up your bar bill, but don’t be a “cheap Charlie” either.

The bar fine is paid to the bar, as a form of compensation, for taking the girl away from the bar, the fine can vary from venue to venue, and for the girls themselves, girls who perform shows etc can demand high fines, the average bar fines ranges from 300baht – 600baht, if you intend taking your lady for longer periods of a week or more, the daily fine can be negotiated with the Mamason.

Many consider the bar fine, a rip-off, maybe this is a valid opinion, but it is part and parcel of Thai night life, its not advisable to try to avoid paying bar fines, as normally its the girl who would get into trouble, not you the customer.

There is nothing seedy about paying the bar fine, its conveniently added to your final bar bill, for the first night out, once the fine is paid your lady is free to leave the bar, if you decided to spend longer with your lady, you will need to return to bar and pay the following days bar fine.

Basically, there are two ways to approach this delicate subject, a before, or after, approach, if you feel more comfortable discussing this subject with your lady before you leave the bar, have a diplomatic attitude and try not to make your discussions obvious to those around you, but remember, in the first instance she is with you because she needs and wants the money, she will try to get as much as she can, she may like you a lot, but you are on a visit, its in her best interest, not to get emotionally involved, but to harvest a reward.

When paying after the event, you do tend to have more control, the amount you offer is down to you, some may well try to get away cheaply, but this is neither fair, nor at all respectful, considering what the girls are putting themselves through, do not try to be clever,by not paying your way, the local police will protect their own and the last thing you need is a visit to your hotel room.,

As guide line only, on average, the girls we spoke to would expect to receive between 1000 – 1500 baht, for staying the full night, if she stays with you for longer periods, then you would adjust the total amount accordingly, there are no hard and fast rules, some girls would be happy to get 4000baht for a full seven days, but expect to pay for everything, from food, taxi fee’s, and hair-do’s, as well as the odd shopping trip for new cloths.

The girls do not walk around with a tag, detailing what they will or won’t do, nor do they have a performance grading, If you have any special tastes, maybe its wise to discuss the matter tactfully before you leave the bar or pay the fine, thus sparing any embarrassing situations later, New girls to the scene will be inexperienced so don’t expect to much, the more seasoned bar girl will have the experience, but also know all the tricks to extract more money or gifts from you, gold is a Bar girls favourite gift, as it can be easily sold.

Although problems are very rare, it can happen, communication problems and minor mis-understanding are the main reason, if you experience a problem with a girl, you can always return to bar she works for, and talk to the Mamasonn, most problems will be sorted out diplomatically.

Always take logical security precautions, don’t leave valuables laying around and use your safe if you have one, In general the girls are not thieves, but use common sense.

With “Long Time”, she will generally stay over night, although some girls prefer to sneak away in the early hours, a question of safety and security, as they could be nervous about staying and sleeping with someone they do not really know well. If a girl does indicate her intention to leave, don’t feel aggrieved, just offer payment accordingly.

you will find that the most attractive girls in the bar, will only be interested in short time in the early evenings, so they can return to the bar and find another customer.

But it happens to the best of us, and its a mine field, there is many a happy ending love story between Farang and Bar girl, but for each happy tale, there seems to be ten horror stories, most involve the monthly transfer of money to the girl who has promised faithfully not to work the bar ever again, but this clever lady could be collecting 3 or 4 such monthly sums, from different “boyfriends” and yet still works the bar, waiting for their return.

It works both ways too. Many bar managers informed us they spend half their working time consoling broken hearted young ladies, whose boyfriends have fail to phone or email, or spend them the money promised.

Long term relationships are not unheard of, there is proof of many a successful Thai-Farang marriage, but how do you know you have met and fallen in love with a good-un……One who also loves you for “Real”…. sorry, we have NO genuine good advise available!!!!!.. just beware of the down falls, and use your common sense.