Oil Massage in Bangkok--A Walk on the Mild Side

[poorjudge]

Oil massage in Bangkok--A Walk on the Mild Side

 

Newbies, infrequent tourists, and even some grizzled veterans will no doubt have seen some of the hundreds of shophouse massage parlors. The following questions may have occurred to some readers of this forum:

 

What the Hell is that place?

Can I get a massage there?

What are the facilities like?

What will it cost?

What are the women like?

Are there extras?

What will it cost?

 

I hope to answer these questions in a non-scientific way over the course of what may become a number of reports. Comments or additional reports from others in the field are most welcome.

 

N.B. Almost all of this material was gathered first-hand (so to speak). I hope that theories and opinions will be obvious as such and not as statements of absolute truth. When I'm relying on someone else's information I'll make a note of it.

 

 

GENERALITIES

 

The Facilities

 

In the vast majority of these places you will find that the ground floor consists of an open area equipped with chairs for foot or head/shoulder massages. Occasionally there will be a small bar or a big cooler for drinks.

 

The upper floors (note how I neatly avoided the raging first floor/second floor controversy : are where the action is and can consist of separate rooms, a large area divided by curtains, or some combination of flimsy walls and curtains which create a bunch of cubicles.

 

The beds can be a mattress on the floor or a raised platform, a real bed, or a massage table (least common).

 

Shower/bathing facilities are usually pretty poor. These places aren't soapies or full time P4P, so cleanup can be a bit of an afterthought.

 

The Women

 

Before I get a rash of responses deriding the attractiveness of the average oily massage girl, I'll note that on the surface we're talking Soi Zero beer bar quality here. If you want 'em young and cute hit the go-gos and the clubs. Many of the women are older (almost all 30+), a bit heavier, or just not all that gorgeous.

 

On the other hand, I've not met a nicer, sweeter, non-scamming group of women in Bangkok. I've very seldom had the experience of being hustled or lied to at the oilies. Many of the women would never consider the regular P4P scene, although they know they could make more money. In all, it's relatively easy to find a very nice, reasonably attractive woman who is very enthusiastic and happy to show you a good time.

 

SPECIFICS

 

The Good and the Bad

 

Grace Hotel Massage (Sukhumvit Soi 3)

 

Famous for its Middle Eastern clientele and the hefty ladies who follow them, the Grace has a massage parlor in the basement which is well-known for its extended hours. Out of sheer curiousity (damnable curiousity ) I ventured in one day and found the following:

 

There is a fishbowl containing (at that time) about 10-12 older, heavier, heavily made up ladies in "fetching" dresses. No uniforms. No very busty women, despite the Grace's reputation. Prices listed were 500B for oil massage and 1000B for body massage. Covering my eyes I made my choice and paid the 500B.

 

The room had a mattress on a raised platform in one corner and a tub on the other side. The room was enclosed, walls were nbot flimsy and had a real door which locked. Cleanliness was o.k.

 

The masseuse wanted 1000B (plus tip, ha, ha) for whatever I wanted for the hour, to be followed by a bath. Yes, the Grace is a full-on P4P place. I wasn't interested in the full service, so we negotiated endlessly before getting down to the massage and extras. Massage was sub-par, extras o.k., bath o.k.

 

My verdict: Straight P4P, women not that attractive, prices on the high side. I won't be going back, but its not so bad I'd actively warn people away.

 

Oops, gotta go. More reports forthcoming.

 

A Poor Judge of Character.

 

 

 

 

[Guest]

Thank you for the update. As I use the Oilies on a daily basis, I would be happy to hear about new places too. For daily pleasure, my fav places are t barber (Soi 4) and Hair design (Soi 11/1). Extras are always on the menue (THB 300 - THB 500, depending on negotiation), rooms are better at t barber (private rooms with private shower). Massage goes for approx. THB 300 / THB 400 per 60 minutes. For the harder stuff, try Baron's.

[buffalo_bill]

Poorjudge,

 

to diversify your thread by giving it a socio-economic drift : tha girls in the oil-massah places receive about 40/50 baht per hour and have around 3 customers per shift. and because that is not an awful lot of money in the end , they offer the famous extras. in other words : without the extras the job is not very attractive. Whenever I meet a really nice one I buy her out for the day and we go shopping. Sometimes this leads into amazingly interesting adventures and is far more challenging than renting a working lady from a bar beer.

 

Says Buffalo Bill

[poorjudge]

Thanks for the responses so far.

 

Nice idea about buying her out, Buffalo Bill. Easier for the visitor than the resident, though. As to your other figures, I won't dispute the Baht amount without doing a bit more research, though I tend to think it's actually a bit (just a bit) higher. Your point about the extras being necessary for a decent living is still absolutely correct.

 

As to the number of customers, I think you're on the high side; either that, or you go to better, more popular places than I do ::. A lot of these places don't get a lot of customers. Many women may have only 3-4 customers per week. I'm basing this figure on discussions with the women themselves (always a plus or minus factor there) and my own observation--a lot of these places are dead in the water business-wise.

 

In my last post I went from general to specific. To spare you a little boredom I'll do the reports first and then add the generalities, which you may skip at your peril.

 

Excellency Massage (Sukhumvit Soi 15)

 

Yes, this is the place which advertises in the Bangkok Post. The downstairs is sort of a barbershop set up. The women either lounge around here, or sit outside at a small table discussing particle physics. The women are often in street clothes, though I believe I've seen a uniformish outfit and at least one girl wearing a quasi-Soi 33 gown (was this a hallucination? Parched traveler staggers off Sukhumvit only to see...).

 

Upstairs are about three curtained off cubicles, apparently for Thai massage. At any given time these will be occupied by sleeping employees. The oil massage room is an actual room with a locking door and two single beds (Bring a friend! A wife! An audience!). The odd thing about this room is that there is a large glass window in one wall covered by a somewhat sheer curtain. Perhaps this is so that they can pretend things won't go too far.

 

A couple decent to good looking women, a couple with nice bodies and unfortunate faces. The massage itself (600B for two hours) was o.k., and the extra was standard but pretty well done.

 

The cleanup facilities weren't too bad. There's a small shower/toilet room upstairs where the water isn't too cold. Better than some.

 

One additional note: Excellency and its neighbor (I don't remember the name, but the women wear uniforms) are right next to two Indian-run "we sell everything" stores. This is in no way intended as a slam against Indians, but the proprietors of these stores are unbelievably annoying. They will absolutely not let up. This adds an unnecessarily irritating aspect to visiting these places.

 

The verdict: Not bad, worth a try.

 

 

Healthy Massage (Sukhumvit Soi 13)

 

God only knows how many "Healthy Massage" places there are. They're not a chain though, so you can be assured of vastly varying service, administered apparently at random.

 

This joint is a fair way up Soi 13 on the left-hand side, past the Ambassador Hotel in a multi-use building along with various "legit" tenants. There is an entrance on the first floor with a large window and an upstairs facility. I chose the upstairs.

 

Upstairs there's no chance to scope things out, just a mamasan/manager at a desk who takes your order. The massage area is a large room curtained off into cubicles in a kind of new-agey musliny sort of way. The bed is a mattress on the floor.

 

The masseuse wasn't that cute, and also talked on her cell phone for a good 15-20 minutes during the masage. The massage itself was average at best and the extra (yes, fool that I am) was o.k. There is no cleanup facility whatsoever. My masseuse further endeared herself to me at the end when she cadged an extra 100B off me by not having change.

 

The verdict: I won't be back, and wouldn't recommend it to others.

 

 

 

P.S. Barber and Massage (Sukhumvit Soi 24, in the same alley as Baron's back entrance)

 

In my lifelong search for a naughty barbershop I stopped here. The barbershop is actually located in a basement and a spiral staircase leads one down. I actually needed a haircut, so I was shown into a cubicle with a reasonably attractive barber (hubba-hubba). What followed was a haircut, no naughtiness. The haircut was o.k., by the way.

 

After the haircut, I was offered a massage option, 2 hour oil massage for 600B (normally 700B, but since I was such a good customer...). I accepted and was led up ot of the barbershop and across the alley up a flight of stairs. There you will find a desk for your transaction, a couch where the women lounge, and several curtained-off cubicles.

 

There are also two actual rooms (both with windows onto the hallway, if memory serves) with real walls and doors. The doors don't lock, though. I was assigned a reasonably attractive older woman who gave a good massage and was very affectionate and enthusiastic about extras. I also noticed a couple more attractive younger women lounging around. I was a repeater here, and if you go at least a cople times you may well be offered "extra" extras, if you know what I mean.

 

The cleanup facilites are o.k., the usual toilet/shower room combo. The only problem is that you have to walk past all the lounging women and any other customers (clad in a towel, gleaming with oil and rude good health) to reach it .

 

Note: Depending on the woman, the attitude here can be a bit mercenary.

 

The verdict: Not bad, I may be back, could be worth a look.

 

 

Generalities: Basic Costs, Extras, and Tipping

 

Most of the shophouse massage places will offer a 2 hour oil massage for 500-600B. I don't think 700B is entirely unreasonable, but at 800B+ I begin to question the value. Often (but not always) the higher cost places are for tourists (often women) who don't know better, or like slightly fancier facilities. Either that, or the higher charge is a hint that the extras are the main point. This is my opinion only, I'm sure that board members will have had different experiences.

 

The usual extra is a HJ. The masseuse can be fully-clothed, topless, panties only, or completely naked. Some of this is "up to you", but mostly its up to her. Trying to get her to do something she is uncomfortable with isn't going to make either of you happy. The next level is body-rubbing/TF. Somewhat less frequent is BJ (not all that uncommon, though). FS is fairly unusual, but not unheard of, in these places. A lot will depend on whether you're a regular customer. If so, you get better treatment, often at no additional cost. As a first-time visitor you should only expect the HJ. This shouldn't come as a surprise, but speaking Thai, being nice, complimenting and chatting pleasantly with your masseuse will often improve the service.

 

Tipping had got to be the hardest thing to figure. I tip at least 500B, especially if I'm thinking of returning. This may be slightly on the high end initially (though I think it's average), but it gets me very good service, and often better extras, on repeat visits. There are women who seem to have a price list: 500B for HJ, 500B more for topless, God knows what for anything more. I try to avoid these.

 

A Poor Judge of Character

 

 

 

 

 

[mongatu]

Thanks for the detailed reports on this aspect of the scene. Very interesting.

[buffalo_bill]

Poorjudge,

 

absolutely phantastic, what would sex be without a structured system . I am as yourself a believer in oily massage places where you do not know what to expect , I fully agree with your findings. My figures about ladies' salaries and customer frequency result from a visit at Sabai massage, I forgot the Soi, uneven number . Very pleasant experience which I did duly report to the board but fucked it up when pasting.

 

Rgds

 

Bbill

[bigal]

GOOD JOB. There also sabi sabi on the left hand site of soi 11 past the ambasador its in a little u shaped alley. it has an upstairs w/o ac, not much of a shower 400/hr, it's a 50/50 deal. i'm going to try T BARBER ON SOI 4, is it on the left or right and how far down the soi??

Thank you very much.

big al

[Guest]

When coming from sukh it is on the left, approx. 400 m - 500 m.

 

ps: Ever tried Hair design on sukh 11/1? They have a small bar too. Nice idea to get comfortable with the girls and making your selection before going upstairs. While being more basic than t barber, I rate it over it though.

[Massagemob]

Thanks a lot. keep up the good work.

 

MM

[poorjudge]

First, sorry for the occasional typo (although I really like "nbot" for "not").

 

Again, thanks for the responses. Buffalo Bill and I seem to be on the same wavelength: the unexpected is one of the delights of oil massage. That said, your reference to Sabai Sabai puts your figures in a better context. My knowledge of Sabai Sabai (branches on Soi 11 in that odd soilet, and waaay up Soi 20) is purely hearsay, but here goes: cute girls (among the best of the oil massage places--you can check their website), high prices (1000B for HJ), and the girls have a tendency to play games. Sorry if this contradicts actual board member experience; I'll be happy to stand corrected. That said, I'm not surprised that Sabai Sabai girls have an above average number of clients. I'm also not surprised they say they don't make much money .

 

Back to the reports.

 

Hair Design (Sukumvit Soi 11/1)

 

This has to be the most popular oil massage parlor in town and references to it abound on every board. I've only been once, but here goes. The ground floor has a reception area and a bar. You can hang out with the ladies and then go upstairs, if you wish. The ladies are dressed in attractive street clothes, not too slutty. The 2 hour oil massage wa 600b, if I remember correctly. I went directly upstairs. My masseuse was very cute and quite young (20). Please note that I do not believe that Hair Design uses underage girls, and that if you go there looking for that you will be disappointed. My masseuse changed from her regular clothes into very short shorts and a little tank top. Did I say very cute?

 

The massage area consisted of small cubicles. Mine had flimsy partitions at either end (head and foot) and a curtain which covered the side. I'm a bit over six feet (For the Brits, that's 17 stone, Continental Europeans, 126 hectares, and for Middle Easterners, 2 cubits and 1 rod--I think those are the correct conversions ) and the cubicle was too small; I couldn't stretch out comfortably.

 

The massage was nice and sensual, a bit on the soft side. Extra was nice, performed without negotiation. There are actual showers at this place, and though they're not deluxe, they are among the best available at the oilies.

 

The verdict: A good place, solid service. Recommended, especially to first-timers.

 

Blue Sky Massage (Sukhumvit Soi 18)

 

This is the first of the many massage places on Soi 18. It's huge, with a restaurant (Thai and Italian) attached. The girls hang out downstairs or in front of the parlor, wearing blue shirts and black pants. The 2 hour oil massage was 600B, and I went up with an o.k. looking girl in her mid-20s (assigned to me). The rooms here are a bit off putting: two massage tables in a Spartan room. Real walls and door, though. I don't think the door locks (more on this in a moment) and there is a small window in the door, presumably so management can make sure everything is o.k.

 

The massage was pretty good, and when time for the extra came, my masseuse carefully put her shoes outside the door, undoubtedly as a sign for others to keep out (no need for the lock). The extra was o.k., after a bit of not unpleasant negotiation. Showers here are not bad.

 

The verdict: Not bad, I'm not in a hurry to go back, but it's worth a look.

 

A Poor Judge of Character