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| Entrance |
The Night life in Patong Beach Phuket
Phuket Fantasea
Phuket Fantasea is culture night time entertainment theme
park on the Kamala
Beach. The park features
numerous attractions and adventure into Thailand’s ancient culture and
realm of myths. Charming and beautiful classical dances from Thailand’s
various regions play a prominent part in the variety of shows presented.
Phuket Fantasea is the award-winning, Las Vegas-style
production spectacle colorfully blending the beauty of Thai culture with
magical illusions, 4-D effects, aerial ballet, acrobatics, pyrotechnics,
special effects, exciting stunts and elephant performances featuring over 44
elephants, all into one unforgettably unique theatrical experience guaranteed
to delight visitors of all ages.
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| Twin In-Chan at Phuket Fantasea |
Besides the show at the evening, I recommend to allow urself
about 2-3 hours to hang around, and enjoy the area in the park ... Full of
attractions and has a very yummy Seafood Buffet, very worth to pay for it ...
Strongly recommendable
Phuket Simon Cabaret
has been a successful
international attraction for two decades and there is no need to tell you what
makes Simon Cabaret famous; It's not the stage design or the feathers or shiny
costumes, it's not the performance, which by the way is good. No, it is all
about the katoeys phenomenon, and Phuket Simon Cabaret certainly can afford the
prettiest ones. So yes, you should add it to your list of things to do while in
Phuket. It's definitely worth it.
Located just outside Patong Beach
on the way to Karon, Phuket Simon Cabaret large amphitheater can accommodate a
large amount of spectators. Seating is comfortable, like in a movie theater,
but free drinks provided with the entry price are often stale. The stage design
is impressive. When it was first built, Patong was a small village and this
show felt like a shiny pimple. The show starts a bit too grand, the way they
like it over here, but once the first performer enters the stage with these
flamboyant costumes, you soon forget the kitsch narrative voice.
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| Simon Cabaret |
Not all dancers at Phuket Simon Cabaret are Katoey, they
still need men for some of the couple choreographies, but the guys don't get
much attention from visitors... ladyboys steal the whole show. They do have all
the features of women, tall, slim, pretty, great body proportions. Add an
elaborated make up and a good deal of well practiced facial expressions, and
you would fall for it.
The show is divided in cycles: two large performances, then
one in front of the curtain allowing stage set to be changed. All the singing
is of course lip-synched. If you get a seat at the middle of first row, you
might think you are the lucky one... but wait until the big fat transvestite
doing the fun part of the show will rub your face between her fake boobs,
probably rewarding you with a big red lipsticked kiss on the forehead.
Overall, Phuket Simon Cabaret is a fun show, most people
just try to spot any masculinity signs on the dancers, or guess if they would
be fooled if they were to meet one of them in a normal environment. (if you are
worried about this, read '10 Ways to Spot a Katoey"). After an hour the
show ends and the sexy 'girls' will be waiting for you at the entrance of the
building with a big smile on their pretty faces. This is your chance to get a
photo of them or with them, and this is their chance to get some extra cash
from you. In any case, a tip will be required, expect to be asked for a 100
baht.
Tips about Phuket Simon Cabaret:
Taking photos is not allowed inside Simon Cabaret, as well
as stealing mine on this blog :)
If you don't feel like going to a Vegas Style Ladyboy show,
you can go to My Way in Paradise Complex in Patong Beach
and enjoy a more modest show that won't cost you more than a drink.
Phuket Simon Cabaret Prices:
Price depends on where you buy the tickets:
Official Price is 800 baht for a vip seat and 700 for a
regular seat, but you can easily get a VIP seat online for 600 baht per person,
most agents will be able to provide (paying) transfers.
Soi Bangla
in Patong
Beach, Where to Go at Night
in Phuket
Soi Bangla is the heart of all Phuket Nightlife, and the
battle for night supremacy is raging between Soi Seadragon and the new Tiger
complex. Over the years, the center of interest has been moving up and down
Bangla road depending on seasons and popularity but the ever changing face of
Patong nightlife is definitely worth a look.
Of course, wherever you go in
Bangla, friendly girls will call you with a big smile and encourage you to have
a drink and play few silly bar games, everyone is welcome. Soi Bangla in Patong
is not known for scams or rip off as it often happens in Patpong Bangkok. If
someone offer you to see a Ping Pong show, there is in most cases no extra
charge to enter. All you need is to order a drink which costs between 100 - 130
Baht depending on the bar.
Only four known exceptions: 'D-Club' charges 400 to 600
baht, 'Money Night' starts at 200 Baht or 400 baht, based on some unknown
variable, and 'Moulin Rouge' a Russian Go Go (yes) which is more expensive than
usual and not too friendly, and 'The Secret' in soi easy.
In any case, a menu will be presented to you prior to
ordering. Your bill will be placed in front of you or your drink will have to be paid when brought
to you. So no surprise.
Soi Seadragon
Soi Seadragon was always a popular street, probably because
it is where most of the Go Go Bars are located. Recently rebuilt it has become
one of the brightest sois in Patong Beach
and this is where you will find the most popular bars Suzy Wong and Devil's
Playground.
Soi Tiger
as always been very popular, possibly due to its prime
location, fancy design but mostly because of the many sexy girls dancing on
bars. Located in Soi Bangla, just next
to Bangla Shopping Center, Soi Tiger and just
above it Tiger Disco are hard to miss with their Flintstones giant cave look.
It's huge and a bit kitsch but don't hesitate to explore inside... it's always
fun, loud and very colorful. The sexiest girls are close to the entrance for
obvious marketing reasons, but at least it doesn't get too bad once you walk
inside as it does in other Sois.
Beer bars are probably at the origin of the famous
expression 'Same Same but Different': all bars look the same at first, but once
you get to know the place, you probably will get some favorite spot, based on
how much attention you will be given or how much you lost at some silly game
(not even mentioning the possibility of winning).
Prices in Soi Tiger are more or less always the same, 90
baht per beer. Girls tend to speak enough English for a bit of fun
conversation, and you definitely will get more attention if you are kind enough
to ofter a lady drink. Try the Penitentiary Bar if you need to start somewhere.
Soi Eric on Bangla
Road in Patong
Beach
Soi Eric was once popular because it was the only lane in
Soi Bangla playing one single music while other Sois sounded like the battle of
the bands. It still can get busy but it has lost its fun and all bars start to
blend in one long row of similar places.
Each bar has exactly the same design, to the point that you
might not retrieve yours after a visit to the 'Hongnam' (means 'Toilet', write
it down, you'll need it a lot). Staff seems to be affected as well, lacks of
spontaneity and security not very friendly.
Soi Crocodile - Bangla Road - Phuket Nightlife
Soi Crocodile, in the middle part of Soi Bangla, is
always the center of a lot of interest and this for many years... Crowd gather
around the entrance and cameras are flashing. The reason is simple... and odd.
4 or 5 sexy girls are permanently dancing on a stage with extremely short
skirts. Or less. You might think that it is not much different from any other
open bars in Soi
Bangla... but there might be an interesting difference: these 'girls' are
taller, sexier, slimmer with definitely bigger breasts... and they move better
too. In fact, they are Katoeys,
better known as transvestites. I recently learned that Katoeys
were giving dancing lessons to girls...
Past the front stage, it gets a bit less crowded, but recently another Katoeys stage has been added in the middle part of soi crocodile, probably to lure more customers into the soi instead of giving a free show to the by passers. Seems to work. Note that if you plan to take photos (and you will), a tip will be expected, sometimes seriously requested, usually 100 Baht. Up to you to pay or bargain, but remember these are actually guys and they are known to have mood bursts :)
Down the soi are the usual beer bars, girls around there are not as young and sexy as in Soi Tiger or Soi Lion. Usual prices and usual games with a preference for the 'nail in the wood'. If you are looking for a carpenter, most of these girls would show you how many times it really takes to punch an entire 3 inch nail in a block of wood.
Past the front stage, it gets a bit less crowded, but recently another Katoeys stage has been added in the middle part of soi crocodile, probably to lure more customers into the soi instead of giving a free show to the by passers. Seems to work. Note that if you plan to take photos (and you will), a tip will be expected, sometimes seriously requested, usually 100 Baht. Up to you to pay or bargain, but remember these are actually guys and they are known to have mood bursts :)
Down the soi are the usual beer bars, girls around there are not as young and sexy as in Soi Tiger or Soi Lion. Usual prices and usual games with a preference for the 'nail in the wood'. If you are looking for a carpenter, most of these girls would show you how many times it really takes to punch an entire 3 inch nail in a block of wood.
New Tiger on Soi Bangla in Patong Beach
The New Tiger entertainment complex in the famous Soi Bangla
in Patong Beach is about to take a serious bite at
the nightlife scene in Phuket. With three floors dominated by three massive
tigers, much highed ceilings and a lot more room to walk around the new Tiger
is a party monster. A blast of lights and colors are taking this gigantic
Flintstone cave looking venue to a much higher level of party zone.
The original Soi Tiger has been open for more than a decade
and was often used as a Landmark in Patong. It had some ups and downs, but
already, there was no way to miss it. On the ground floor were all the little
beer bars with the girls dancing on the counter for most, and upstair was, and
still is, the popular Tiger Discotheque. The entire building was easy to
recognize with this rocky cave look you will see in several other places in
Patong, such as the Tiger Inn, and the Patong Boxing Stadium in the back of
Jungceylon.
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| Soi Lion |
But lately, this good old the old Tiger is looking very
tired and the crowds, like moths, are attracted by brighter the lights and the
dominating look of the new boss in town. Maybe it is time for this old veteran to get that well deserver retirement.
At the time this story is written, only the ground floor has
been completed and even if only half of the available bars are rented, it
already looks busy and lively. The new Tiger is very ambitious and so vast, it
could easily swallow three times the old one.
Some bar names sounds rather familiar like Stockholm bar and some sound new in town:
Pink Paradise, Mini Cooper Bar. Q Bar and Blix occupy the prime spots just on
the street front.
Anyway, bars come and go and names as well. The new Tiger
will see some ups and down like its elder brother, but the battle for Bangla
supremacy is looking promising for the New Tiger.
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