Thailand is one of the best places to enjoy an exciting night life. There are numerous bars and clubs where one can enjoy live bands playing, perfect for an amazing night out. Here are the top five places in Bangkok to enjoy live bands:
o Tokyo Joe's - located at the 25/9 Sukhumvit Soi, right at the opposite side of the Tara Hotel. Tokyo Joe's is called the Mecca of Blues. The bar opens at around 9.30 every night. Lots of talented local musicians crowd up the club with amazing music. The Tokyo Joe's musicians occasionally play R&B, soul and jazz music. Their specials are the Flamenco Nights on Mondays, and the jam sessions on Sundays which are the people's favorite. Visitors and guests can enjoy the soul siren music of Tokyo Joe's bar. With relaxing comfortable atmosphere, everyone will definitely have a good time.
o Ad Here the 13th - located at 13 Samsen Rd, Banglumphu in Bangkok. The club is open daily from 5pm until midnight. Ad Here the 13th is an inconspicuous and strange, but offers cool and exciting hangout with friends. Young Thais, expats and the tourists, frequently visit the place. During weekends, the bar is crowded over to the sidewalks. The club bands play a mixture of cool blues, Motown and a little Janis Joplin. Here one can get to meet people coming from all over the world One may also have the choice of different cocktails and the Thai-style Whiskey-soda-ice. This place also serves inexpensive foods to go along with the drinks.
o Brown Sugar - located in Sarasin Rd, Bangkok. Brown Sugar club is opened during Mon-Sat at 11am-1am and during Sundays at Sun 5pm-1am. The old jazz club is found on the road bordering Lumpini Park. It has an old feel with a small stage with tight benches. It is crowded every night and for one to grab a seat must come early enough. The Brown Sugar serves strong drinks and bar food, but it is a little bit expensive than what the others offer. Sunday nights at the Brown Sugar bring bar singers from other hotels, as it is their day off.
o Saxophone Bar - located at 3/8 Phyathai, Bangkok. The bar is open daily from 6pm until 2am. Saxophone bar is well known for its live jazz and cool blues music. The bar serves both Thai and Western food. The club's low-ceilinged, wooden floors are crowded with fun-loving youth every night.
o Titanium - located at Sukhumvit Soi, Bangkok. The bar opens daily from 6pm until 1:30am. Titanium is a fun-filled and exciting club with welcoming hostesses clad in Bangkok which is theZeitgeist ao dai. The club also features an all-female rock and roll band playing here every night. Titanium club has a total of 90 exotic varieties of vodkas to choose from.
These are just five of the many bars that offer live bands in Bangkok, Thailand. There are many other bars here, which every visitor can have an amazing night out.
Thailand - Enjoy the Top 5 Best Places to Enjoy Live Bands and Nightlife in BangkokBeing experienced on the Bangkok to Malaysia Train heading to the Penang side, seemed mellower compared to the Perhentian islands side. The train was scheduled to leave Bangkok in the early afternoon and it is a good idea to be there on time, as my experience with Thai trains is that they run on schedule out of the main Bangkok station. A good bit of advice is to stock up on munchies before you get to the train station especially if you like fresh fruit. The train does have a restaurant car that serves mostly Thai dish's that if you like Thai food are ok. The restaurant car can get a little rowdy at night as all of the train police, employees and regular riders all sit around and drink Mekong & Chang and unwind after a hard day at the office, which for many travelers is part of the charm and excitement of the trip, as you can be a fly on the wall and observe the locals with out feeling out of place or intruding.
The train is cheap, around for a 2nd class air-con berth which is comfortable, be sure to get lower bunks as the upper bunks will sway more so you don't get as good a sleep. You can also get 1st class air con seats where there are only 2 people in the cabin. The cabin is fairly small yet they managed to fit in a sink and a mirror which are the only real upgrades to the seats - berths. The biggest benefits is the ability to lock the door from the inside, so if you are traveling with your significant other you can have some "Risky Business" type nocturnal entertainment, not quite the same as the mile high club but something that will I am sure make the trip more memorable.
The first class trains also have a shower which is a nice feature on long trips, the bathrooms otherwise are the same. They don't really check tickets to see what car you are suppose to be in after the first check so if you go from 2nd to 1st you can get away with a shower as well. In both the first class and 2nd class cars you can get electricity. For the 1st class cars the location of the sockets is apparent. For the 2nd class cars you need to look a little bit, on one of the pillars in the middle of the car about half way up is a covered 2 plug socket. You will also find connections in the bathroom areas where the conductors sit and where the hot water containers are. In Asia most airports and train stations have hot water available so it is a good idea to carry some Nescafe packets or tea and Cup of Soup or noodles, which are great budget stretchers when on the road regardless of flights or trains, as the terminals always zap you with a convenience premium.
The trains in Thailand for the 2nd class have seats during the day and then normally right after dark they start to make up the beds. The beds in the lower are generally a little wider. Both the lowers and the uppers have curtains that close off the entire sleeping area. A good idea is to sleep on your valuables, I have never had a problem or actually meet anyone that has had a problem but it always pays to play it safe. Something that the Thai train company should consider is lock boxes while they are at it some sort of internet connection would be a good idea as well.
Most passengers will find that there are no real surprises and the trip is straight forward and you can figure out what you need to know on your own. The only part that causes some agitation for most travelers on the trip is the border crossing, if you take the train to Malaysia Butterworth station you first get off the train for Thai customs with out your luggage, then get back on they move the train forward a bit and then you clear Malaysia customs where you need to bring all of your luggage, which is usually a mad dash to get off at the same time as everyone else and cue up. This should be straight forward, but the customs mouse trap that they setup on the Malaysia side is fluid so there can be some confusion on where you should stand to get in line. Lucky me I got behind the family that had some difficulty and was stuck in the line for nearly 30 minutes while they got the mess sorted and then back on to the train where now you have twice as many people as you had before and the seats are confused with new numbers and new passengers that are loaded at the Butterworth station, so beware of this, as it will cause agitation and confusion as you get it sorted out.
Next De Tour of Detours in Malaysia.
Bangkok to Bali on the South Bound TrainPatpong in Bangkok, not to be confused with Patong in Phuket, has one of the wildest night life scenes in Southeast Asia. Patpong was the starting point of sin and debauchery during the days of the Vietnam war when soldiers from the US came to Thailand for rest and recreation. Forty years later the hordes of boot wearing soldiers have been replaced by the sandals of backpackers, single males, honeymooners and families from all over the world.
Yes, you heard correctly, I mentioned families. There are three major red light districts in Bangkok, Patpong being one of them of course. As raunchy and seedy as Patpong can be, it has a whole different atmosphere then Nana and Soi Cowboy, the other two red light districts.
Patpong's Night Market is the sole reason why Patpong has the most mixture of tourist, not only children and teens accompanied by parents, but females out on the town to party. You'll never find them in the other two red light districts.
Even though Patpong's Night Market has played a pivotal role in making the area seem more tourist friendly, there is still the seedy underbelly of sex and cheap booze for sale. Patpong runs on two lanes parallel to each other, conveniently named Patpong 1 and Patpong 2.
Patpong 1 is definitely more popular, mainly because of the Night Market which opens at 6pm and closes at 1am when the go go bars shut down as well. Walking down Patpong 1 is like taking a trip through a kaleidoscope, bursting with color. Neon lights with naked women adorn the entrance above the many go go bars and below are the army of touts employed to promise you a great time once you step through their doors. And it's always a funny sight to see curious onlookers ogling at the go go dancers on stage.
Patpong 2 is less crowded and the tourist who frequent here are single males who hang out at the various open bar areas where women are lined up to keep them company.
There are other miscellaneous parts of Patpong such as Soi Thaniya, which as an area catering to Japanese clientele. And hidden away on Patpong Soi 4 is a dead end street called Boy's Town where gay men from all over the world go to party.
Patpong is definitely a sight that can't be missed in Bangkok. Even though it's considered a red light district, when you're there you just don't feel it at all. It's totally commercialized, there's a McDonald's on the corner of Patpong 1, a Starbucks right across and a couple of 4 star hotels in the area. Patpong is definitely a place where you can go without feeling dirty, yet able to if you're looking for it.
Patpong Bangkok - Red Light District Guide