Hi
In case anyone is interested, this could be useful if you are planning to do a trip through the region on a budget
Sunday, April 20, 2014
Friday, April 11, 2014
Patong Food Court Chicken Rice and Coconut Meal
Hi,
Here is an example of some food court food from Jungceylon in Patong beach.
Here is an example of some food court food from Jungceylon in Patong beach.
Kata Beach
Hi,
If you want to visit a scenic beach in Phuket, I recommend Kata. Great looking each, like a postcard, and the water was warm. Simply amazing.
If you want to visit a scenic beach in Phuket, I recommend Kata. Great looking each, like a postcard, and the water was warm. Simply amazing.
Online jobs you can do in Thailand
Hi,
The question gets thrown around a lot, but what are some examples of jobs available to foreigners living in Thailand that can be done online?
The question gets thrown around a lot, but what are some examples of jobs available to foreigners living in Thailand that can be done online?
Tai Pan Club Patong Beach Phuket Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review on the Tai Pan club in Patong Beach, Phuket. I visited Tai Pan in February 2014.
I highly recommend Tai Pan as a club. They had dancers on stage and the club was packed. It was a bit hard to dance because it was so busy but I guess that gave it a better atmosphere.
It seemed to be one of the most popular places in Patong. I guess for that reason I would have to recommend that you check it out. I didn't stay that long during my visit but would recommend going there and will likely visit again.
I was there around 1am I believe and would recommend going as long as it isn't too congested.
I would rate Tai Pan a 7.5/10- a local favourite worth checking out.
Thank you for reading!
Today I am writing a review on the Tai Pan club in Patong Beach, Phuket. I visited Tai Pan in February 2014.
I highly recommend Tai Pan as a club. They had dancers on stage and the club was packed. It was a bit hard to dance because it was so busy but I guess that gave it a better atmosphere.
It seemed to be one of the most popular places in Patong. I guess for that reason I would have to recommend that you check it out. I didn't stay that long during my visit but would recommend going there and will likely visit again.
I was there around 1am I believe and would recommend going as long as it isn't too congested.
I would rate Tai Pan a 7.5/10- a local favourite worth checking out.
Thank you for reading!
Cost of Living in Patong Beach Phuket
Hi,
In my latest trip to Patong in January/February 2014, I took closer observations of prices to estimate the actual cost of living in Phuket.
I spoke to people and believe you should be able to rent a basic clean (barely) room in a guesthouse for approximately 15,000 THB per month but don't expect it to be fancy. For an apartment, you can probably get a much better deal. I am sure you can find guesthouses much cheaper than this but I would expect them to be very dirty/noisy/have many issues.
For food, in Jungceylon for example, it cost approximately 150 THB for the average dish e.g. chicken and cashews with rice or Pad Thai. At an outdoor food court it cost 150 THB for pad thai. Food prices varied wildly however.
You could order a smallish serving of chicken and basil with price at strike bowling in Jungceylon for 75 THB. I am sure street food was very cheap but I did not order it during my time on that holiday aside from the outdoor food court at the beginning as I have a sensitive stomach.
If you are like me and are used to buying most of your meals, we will need to factor in approximately 400 - 1000 THB per day for food.
Going out is the real cost. Back in the west, you probably don't go out as much as you do in Thailand, so even though Thailand is cheaper you are spending much more overall. You probably need to factor in 500-4000 THB a day for entertainment which would only be a few beers a night at a bar or one really decent night a week. You probably need about 3000 THB minimum a day to party properly.
Visa runs will likely cost you 4000 THB per month.
You may need to factor in a few thousand baht a month also just for random stuff from the pharmacy, phone, internet etc.
Baseline:
10-15,000 Accommodation (if you imagine getting maybe a decent apartment for 10k)
12,000 Food (if you cook for yourself often or eat lots of street food this could be a lot lower)
15,000 Entertainment (this is very lean however so you might need to take from the food budget and give to this)
4000 Visa
3000 Other
= 52,000 THB / month
This is going out only once a week properly or only lightly a few nights a week- but it would be possible to live on this.
Party Lifestyle:
I would say to properly have a decent night you need say 3000-4000 THB, if you went out 3x a week lets say 10k THB, 2x a week lightly lets say 1000 THB each time and 2x a week you stayed in, I estimate you would spend approximately 12,000 THB a week so around 50k a month alone in entertainment. You probably couldn't keep that pace up forever though so maybe we can adjust it down to 30-50k.
15,000 Accomodation
15,000 Food
30-50,000 Entertainment
4000 Visa
3000 Other
= 67,000-87,000 THB / month and I imagine you would live a great party lifestyle.
High End Lifestyle:
If you want a new apartment and to go out every night and only eat at restaurants lets say then lets say:
30,000 Accommodation
30,000 Food
50-100,000 Entertainment
4000 Visa
3000 Other
=117,000-167,000 THB / month and I imagine you would live a life of relative luxury.
As you can see, the cost of living may be higher than expected. If you are a person who is relatively content to stay home and watch TV and cook for yourself then you will be able to reduce a lot from the budgets specified above obviously but keep in mind these do not factor in expenses such as flights home, buying new electronics equipment, motorbikes, clothes, insurance etc, this is a 'getting by' allowance I am looking to calculate here.
Thank you for reading!
In my latest trip to Patong in January/February 2014, I took closer observations of prices to estimate the actual cost of living in Phuket.
I spoke to people and believe you should be able to rent a basic clean (barely) room in a guesthouse for approximately 15,000 THB per month but don't expect it to be fancy. For an apartment, you can probably get a much better deal. I am sure you can find guesthouses much cheaper than this but I would expect them to be very dirty/noisy/have many issues.
For food, in Jungceylon for example, it cost approximately 150 THB for the average dish e.g. chicken and cashews with rice or Pad Thai. At an outdoor food court it cost 150 THB for pad thai. Food prices varied wildly however.
You could order a smallish serving of chicken and basil with price at strike bowling in Jungceylon for 75 THB. I am sure street food was very cheap but I did not order it during my time on that holiday aside from the outdoor food court at the beginning as I have a sensitive stomach.
If you are like me and are used to buying most of your meals, we will need to factor in approximately 400 - 1000 THB per day for food.
Going out is the real cost. Back in the west, you probably don't go out as much as you do in Thailand, so even though Thailand is cheaper you are spending much more overall. You probably need to factor in 500-4000 THB a day for entertainment which would only be a few beers a night at a bar or one really decent night a week. You probably need about 3000 THB minimum a day to party properly.
Visa runs will likely cost you 4000 THB per month.
You may need to factor in a few thousand baht a month also just for random stuff from the pharmacy, phone, internet etc.
Baseline:
10-15,000 Accommodation (if you imagine getting maybe a decent apartment for 10k)
12,000 Food (if you cook for yourself often or eat lots of street food this could be a lot lower)
15,000 Entertainment (this is very lean however so you might need to take from the food budget and give to this)
4000 Visa
3000 Other
= 52,000 THB / month
This is going out only once a week properly or only lightly a few nights a week- but it would be possible to live on this.
Party Lifestyle:
I would say to properly have a decent night you need say 3000-4000 THB, if you went out 3x a week lets say 10k THB, 2x a week lightly lets say 1000 THB each time and 2x a week you stayed in, I estimate you would spend approximately 12,000 THB a week so around 50k a month alone in entertainment. You probably couldn't keep that pace up forever though so maybe we can adjust it down to 30-50k.
15,000 Accomodation
15,000 Food
30-50,000 Entertainment
4000 Visa
3000 Other
= 67,000-87,000 THB / month and I imagine you would live a great party lifestyle.
High End Lifestyle:
If you want a new apartment and to go out every night and only eat at restaurants lets say then lets say:
30,000 Accommodation
30,000 Food
50-100,000 Entertainment
4000 Visa
3000 Other
=117,000-167,000 THB / month and I imagine you would live a life of relative luxury.
As you can see, the cost of living may be higher than expected. If you are a person who is relatively content to stay home and watch TV and cook for yourself then you will be able to reduce a lot from the budgets specified above obviously but keep in mind these do not factor in expenses such as flights home, buying new electronics equipment, motorbikes, clothes, insurance etc, this is a 'getting by' allowance I am looking to calculate here.
Thank you for reading!
Phuket Gym Patong Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review on Patong Gym in Patong Beach, Phuket. I visited between January and February 2014.
The equipment here is old and basic; but it contains all of the weights required for a proper bodybuilding workout.
The issue in the day was heat. It was 30 degrees outside and even higher inside for sure, there was no air conditioning. The gym said that it turned on at 5pm each day but I never trained at that time or later, I prefer to train in the day.
The gym was never too busy and the staff were always really friendly. They sold protein shakes at the front counter also, it was expensive but convenient.
I liked it as a gym. The lack of air conditioning was a pretty big issue but I grew to like training in the heat. The equipment was quite old but it was all sufficient.
I would rate Phuket Gym Patong overall 7/10 with the issues being heat and old equipment. The upsides were the price and that they had everything you really needed and also sold protein shakes.
Thank you for reading!
Today I am writing a review on Patong Gym in Patong Beach, Phuket. I visited between January and February 2014.
The equipment here is old and basic; but it contains all of the weights required for a proper bodybuilding workout.
The issue in the day was heat. It was 30 degrees outside and even higher inside for sure, there was no air conditioning. The gym said that it turned on at 5pm each day but I never trained at that time or later, I prefer to train in the day.
The gym was never too busy and the staff were always really friendly. They sold protein shakes at the front counter also, it was expensive but convenient.
I liked it as a gym. The lack of air conditioning was a pretty big issue but I grew to like training in the heat. The equipment was quite old but it was all sufficient.
I would rate Phuket Gym Patong overall 7/10 with the issues being heat and old equipment. The upsides were the price and that they had everything you really needed and also sold protein shakes.
Thank you for reading!
Banana Discotheque Patong Beach Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review about Banana disco in Patong Beach, Phuket. I visited in February 2014.
There is a decent dance floor and people were dancing when I was there. It was a decent little club.
I didn't hate Banana and it had something I thought was good - they had an air conditioned inside area and also a separate smoking lounge.
With that said, there were many better venues to attend. With that said, if you had good company, it wouldn't be bad to hang out there. The cocktail I had was decent too.
I would rate Banana a 6.5/10 overall.
Thank you for reading!
Today I am writing a review about Banana disco in Patong Beach, Phuket. I visited in February 2014.
There is a decent dance floor and people were dancing when I was there. It was a decent little club.
I didn't hate Banana and it had something I thought was good - they had an air conditioned inside area and also a separate smoking lounge.
With that said, there were many better venues to attend. With that said, if you had good company, it wouldn't be bad to hang out there. The cocktail I had was decent too.
I would rate Banana a 6.5/10 overall.
Thank you for reading!
Tiger Discotheque Patong Beach Phuket Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review on Tiger Discotheque in Patong beach, Phuket.
I would highly recommend Tiger disco if you are looking to party. It is a very popular venue (along with Hollywood and Seduction) and gets busy, it is also very easy to meet people.
The staff were professional and offered drinks service at the tables when I was there.
I recall prices being slightly higher than other places but for a disco it wasn't too unreasonable.
I would recommend visiting if you are looking to party and meet new people and would give it an 8/10.
Thank you for reading!
Today I am writing a review on Tiger Discotheque in Patong beach, Phuket.
I would highly recommend Tiger disco if you are looking to party. It is a very popular venue (along with Hollywood and Seduction) and gets busy, it is also very easy to meet people.
The staff were professional and offered drinks service at the tables when I was there.
I recall prices being slightly higher than other places but for a disco it wasn't too unreasonable.
I would recommend visiting if you are looking to party and meet new people and would give it an 8/10.
Thank you for reading!
Rock City Patong Phuket Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review on the Rock City club in Patong Phuket. I visited in February 2014.
Rock city plays rock music (lots of 90s stuff when I was there), so if you are a fan, you will love this place. It's a decent enough place and the music was great. The band playing really put their all into it and it was a great experience.
I would highly recommend rock city if you are a rock music fan. It isn't much of a place to meet people but if you're with a partner or in a group it's worth checking out.
I recall drink prices being reasonable but can not verify 100%.
I would give rock city an 8/10 overall.
Thank you for reading!
Today I am writing a review on the Rock City club in Patong Phuket. I visited in February 2014.
Rock city plays rock music (lots of 90s stuff when I was there), so if you are a fan, you will love this place. It's a decent enough place and the music was great. The band playing really put their all into it and it was a great experience.
I would highly recommend rock city if you are a rock music fan. It isn't much of a place to meet people but if you're with a partner or in a group it's worth checking out.
I recall drink prices being reasonable but can not verify 100%.
Thank you for reading!
Seduction Discotheque Patong Beach Phuket Review
Hi,
Today I will write a review about Seduction Discotheque. I visited in February 2014.
An entry discount was available if you took a coupon from the hawkers on the street. Everyone in Patong described this to me as a "Euro" style club, I found it to be more of a Western style club with lots of Western tourists.
There were proper dj's playing sets so the quality of music was good.
There was a decent crowd dancing when I went at around 11:30pm. Pretty nice club overall, especially in contrast to many of the other local venues!
It could do with a bit more ventilation. I personally prefer open air venues in Thailand.
I would rate Seduction as a 7.5/10, worth a visit if you want a more upmarket clubbing location.
Thank you for reading!
Today I will write a review about Seduction Discotheque. I visited in February 2014.
An entry discount was available if you took a coupon from the hawkers on the street. Everyone in Patong described this to me as a "Euro" style club, I found it to be more of a Western style club with lots of Western tourists.
There were proper dj's playing sets so the quality of music was good.
There was a decent crowd dancing when I went at around 11:30pm. Pretty nice club overall, especially in contrast to many of the other local venues!
It could do with a bit more ventilation. I personally prefer open air venues in Thailand.
I would rate Seduction as a 7.5/10, worth a visit if you want a more upmarket clubbing location.
Thank you for reading!
Intercontinental Bangkok Review
Hi all,
I am writring a review from my trip to Bangkok in October 2010.
The location is quite good. You can walk to the shopping centres (will get hot though) or walk to the main parts of Sukhumvit rd..
Service was impeccable. I would highly recommend staying there if you have the means!
The room service food was decent; not excellent however and it was very expensive.
In fact, everything was very expensive, including getting laundry washed. It was a top notch establishment however and everything was high end.
The TV in the room was amazing and the buffet breakfast was the best I have ever encountered (been to many high end places in search of the perfect buffet). It had many cuisines - Western, Thai and Japanese I think it was.
All in all, recommended, but you may want to consider something closer to Sukhumvit rd if you go out every night.
The room cost approximately 5500 THB per night.
Overall I would rate it 8.5/10
I am writring a review from my trip to Bangkok in October 2010.
The location is quite good. You can walk to the shopping centres (will get hot though) or walk to the main parts of Sukhumvit rd..
Service was impeccable. I would highly recommend staying there if you have the means!
The room service food was decent; not excellent however and it was very expensive.
In fact, everything was very expensive, including getting laundry washed. It was a top notch establishment however and everything was high end.
The TV in the room was amazing and the buffet breakfast was the best I have ever encountered (been to many high end places in search of the perfect buffet). It had many cuisines - Western, Thai and Japanese I think it was.
All in all, recommended, but you may want to consider something closer to Sukhumvit rd if you go out every night.
The room cost approximately 5500 THB per night.
Overall I would rate it 8.5/10
 |
Thank you for reading!
KEE Sky Lounge Patong Phuket Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review about the KEE Sky Lounge in Patong Phuket. I visited in January 2014.
I found this to be a pleasant experience, however the views were very underwhelming.
There was live music and a circular bar however, reminiscent of the sky bar seen in the Hangover (Lebua), and it was a very pleasant atmosphere. There drink prices were surprisingly reasonable too. I recall basic cocktails being available for approximately 200 baht (similar to most other live music venues).
I would highly recommend visiting during your stay. It is very cheap compared to what I was expecting.
Overall, I would give it a 7/10. The issue is the lack of view. If it had a great view, it would have received a 9.5
There is no party atmosphere here though!
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Thank you
Today I am writing a review about the KEE Sky Lounge in Patong Phuket. I visited in January 2014.
I found this to be a pleasant experience, however the views were very underwhelming.
There was live music and a circular bar however, reminiscent of the sky bar seen in the Hangover (Lebua), and it was a very pleasant atmosphere. There drink prices were surprisingly reasonable too. I recall basic cocktails being available for approximately 200 baht (similar to most other live music venues).
I would highly recommend visiting during your stay. It is very cheap compared to what I was expecting.
Overall, I would give it a 7/10. The issue is the lack of view. If it had a great view, it would have received a 9.5
There is no party atmosphere here though!
Thank you
T-Terrace Guesthouse Patong Phuket Review
Hi,
Today I am writing a review about T-Terrace guesthouse.
T-Terrace was pleasant with good staff members, they were as patient was was reasonable to be.
The upside was the price, reasonably tidy room, daily cleaning on time and trustworthy staff etc.
The downside was the bathroom could have been cleaner, and there was quite a lot of noise until 2am every night. There was a bar across the road that stayed open really late so it was difficult to sleep before 2am if you were near the front of the building. There was no room service or anything just a fridge down stairs if you ran out of food in your bar fridge, but you could walk to Burger King at Jungceylon 24 hours.
The guesthouse is difficult to find initially, you need to go down to the end of a soi that has a big yellow 'Casa Jip' sign atop of the entrance.
The cost was 1000 THB per night in January 2014.
It was only a few minutes walk from Jungceylon shopping centre and about 10 minutes from the beach, but Patong beach is not that nice, you want to go to Kata most likely but you will be in for a few hundred baht in a taxi at least for that.
All in all considering the price I give it 7.5/10, would stay there again if on a tight budget, but I am sure better deals could be had.
Thank you for reading!
Today I am writing a review about T-Terrace guesthouse.
T-Terrace was pleasant with good staff members, they were as patient was was reasonable to be.
The upside was the price, reasonably tidy room, daily cleaning on time and trustworthy staff etc.
The downside was the bathroom could have been cleaner, and there was quite a lot of noise until 2am every night. There was a bar across the road that stayed open really late so it was difficult to sleep before 2am if you were near the front of the building. There was no room service or anything just a fridge down stairs if you ran out of food in your bar fridge, but you could walk to Burger King at Jungceylon 24 hours.
The guesthouse is difficult to find initially, you need to go down to the end of a soi that has a big yellow 'Casa Jip' sign atop of the entrance.
The cost was 1000 THB per night in January 2014.
It was only a few minutes walk from Jungceylon shopping centre and about 10 minutes from the beach, but Patong beach is not that nice, you want to go to Kata most likely but you will be in for a few hundred baht in a taxi at least for that.
All in all considering the price I give it 7.5/10, would stay there again if on a tight budget, but I am sure better deals could be had.
Thank you for reading!
Thailand Cost of Living Resources
Hi,
We all know there are many people interested in retiring in Thailand- myself included. I personally am looking at an early retirement there but Thailand is particularly popular with pensioners as your dollar goes a lot further.
I wanted to steer you in the direction of a few resources here today.
Cost of living surveys:
www.ajarn.com
Price comparisons:
http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?country=Thailand
Videos on retiring in Thailand from JC (funny guy to watch)
www.retirecheap.asia
Any questions or comments please ask.
Thank you for reading!
We all know there are many people interested in retiring in Thailand- myself included. I personally am looking at an early retirement there but Thailand is particularly popular with pensioners as your dollar goes a lot further.
I wanted to steer you in the direction of a few resources here today.
Cost of living surveys:
www.ajarn.com
Price comparisons:
http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/country_result.jsp?country=Thailand
Videos on retiring in Thailand from JC (funny guy to watch)
www.retirecheap.asia
Any questions or comments please ask.
Thank you for reading!
New Blog
The blog will cover a number of topics generally relating to our beloved Thailand.
Any questions, please leave comments.
Thank you
Any questions, please leave comments.
Thank you
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