This is Pattaya's ladyboy chill-out spot: a small, cozy lounge style of bar where the girls are beautiful and hassle/drama free. You often see the lovelies of La Bamba hanging out in front of the bar, and they may try to call you over with a good-natured cat-call. Once you are in the bar, however, other than inquiring what you want to drink or if you would like a lady to sit with you, you will be left in peace, should you desire. Don't be afraid to let them know who you have an eye on; if you are sitting with one girl and another strikes your fancy, just let the girl you're with know, and she will call her friend over.




It's a favorite spot for like minded ladyboy lovers to meet up for a quiet drink before going out on the prowl, or a nice place to relax for a late-night drink once the evening's festivities are winding down. Furthermore, it's Pattaya's only ladyboy-owned and operated bar and guesthouse; the bar – which has been in operation for more than five years – now has cheap (500 baht per night) guest rooms upstairs.

Located at the end of the soi near Beach Road, at the opposite end where Stringfellows a-go-go is located.

Obsessions is one of Pattaya's most (in)famous ladyboy a-go-gos. Part of the Penthouse Hotel complex, replete with its hedonistic rooms – stripper poles in the shower and love-swings next to the bed, that sort of thing – Obsessions is paired with the Kitten Club which features GGs (genetic girls), so you have the best of both worlds in one place. The club itself is big, with lots of booths should you like to have an intimate conversation with your chosen lady.

Obsessions is not for the feint of heart, however. It's a typical go-go; be prepared for the hard-sell from the girls from the moment you walk in the door. But they like to have fun here, too; it's not uncommon to see a customer drug up on the stage. Couples are welcome here as well.




You'll also see some of Pattaya's hottest ladyboys dancing here; there are truly ladyboys at Obsessions Pattaya to suit anyone's tastes. Prefer a slim femboy or a voluptuous bombshell of a ladyboy? Maybe somewhere in between? You can find her at Obsessions.

A note of caution though: Riga, the mamasan here, can be a … bit overbearing, shall we say. And the bar has had a number of complaints in the past about bill padding. Those days should be in the past now as bins are printed out electronically after each round you purchase, however, it's always wise to keep an eye on your bin (in any busy bar).

Located in a newly-opened beer-bar complex on south Soi Buakhaow, Sensations is one of the new bars on the Pattaya Ladyboy scene, having recently celebrated its first anniversary. It may have only opened a year ago, but in that time this laid-back bar has rapidly become a favorite with many ladyboy lovers. Not only does it tend to have gorgeous stunners on a staff comprising fresh-faced girls new to the scene as well as long-time veterans (who will rock your world, trust us), but it's another bar known for its epic blow-out parties.




Sensations is also home to the ladyboy world's media darlings, Scott and Paeng, who have been featured on Sky Television's documentary series on Thai ladyboys in the U.K. Paeng is the ladyboy owner of the bar, and Scott is her boyfriend, who can be found in the bar most nights. They've created a easy-going, no hassle, laid-back atmosphere, and this, combined with the beautiful ladyboys, has made it – dare we say it? Yeah, we will – a Sensational success.

Also of note: the pool table is free! But beware, some of the older girls are crackerjack shots, so you better be on top of your game if you put your name up on the board to play.

Stringfellows has been around for a number of years and with good reason, it's perhaps one of Pattaya's naughtiest go-go bars; it's certainly a favorite among ladyboy afficionados that like go-gos. It's a small and intimate venue, and upon first walking in, one might think what's so special about this place? Black lights? Day glo paint? A little seedy? Girls dancing on poles? You can see this at a hundred different bars in Pattaya.




No, what makes Stringfellows a legendary favorite for many are the ladyboys. In this venue where the poles are only an arm's length away from your table, the girls are known to be … how can we put this delicately? Well, the Stringfellows girls are certainly not shy or bashful in the least. It's not uncommon, with just a little bit of encouragement from the audience, for bikini bottoms and/or tops to be doffed and for tumescent naughty bits to be unleashed. Don't say we didn't warn you!

Stringfellows is conveniently located at the opposite end of the soi from La Bamba; many like to stop at both bars: some get their liquid courage up at La Bamba then enter the lions' den of Stringfellows; others stop into La Bamba after their adventures at Stringfellows to wind down. Worried about getting too wound up at Stringies? There are short-time rooms upstairs, accessible from within the bar.

No trip to Pattaya is complete without a visit to the famous Soi 6. In just a few short blocks between Beach Road and Second Road on this legendary soi are a huge number of bars, from go-gos to beer bars to lounges, and of course there are a number of ladyboy bars. One of the favorites among ladyboy lovers is So What! and with good reason.




This intimate, fully-enclosed lounge bar with the classy interior is staffed by both voluptuous ladyboy veterans (if you're feeling adventurous get to know Oa; she's a sweetheart but not recommended for the first timer!) and slender fresh-faced beauties just off the bus from Isaan. It's another low-key, low-hassle establishment where one can get to know a lovely ladyboy in a laid-back atmosphere. Things going well? There are nice, clean short-time rooms upstairs, accessible from within the bar.

And like Famous Bar down at the other end of Pattaya, this is another venue where you'll hear classic rock and hard rock issuing from the speakers when you walk in – a welcome change from most bars, to be sure.

Ask most purveyors of ladyboy flesh in Pattaya and Baby Boom a-go-go will get mixed reviews. In terms of décor it's a standard go-go: a small, somewhat typically seedy interior with black lights and day-glo paint. Unless there is a party marking a special occasion, the bar is rarely busy in terms of customers, and this is a turn-off for some; being the only customer in a go-go bar full of hungry ladyboys can be a daunting experience. On the other hand, the club has been in operation for more than a year now, so it must be doing something right.




In its defense, it does tend to have some great, really wild parties. While in many respects a standard go-go-bar, Baby Boom does feature a shower stall – with glass walls of course – which tends to figure prominently in the bar's parties. Hand-in-hand with the shower stall, another thing one sometimes sees at Baby Boom events which one won't see elsewhere are shaving parties, and we're not talking about shaving the girls' legs. Believe us when we say this is something to see.

Speaking of girls, the ladyboys tend to be on the cute side rather than the voluptuous, silicone-enhanced side of the ladyboy spectrum, but trust us, there are some cuties here.

Linda Bar is an institution for many ladyboy lovers in Pattaya, be they expats or folks on holiday. This little hole-in-the-wall bar has been there for years and is a welcome, low-key respite from the crazy, full-on experience of Walking Street. Just want to have a drink and people watch? Either with company or by yourself? Linda Bar to the rescue.




It's a simple place – although it was just redecorated – a few tables, chairs and a bar. But the drinks are cheap and it's situated smack in the middle of Walking Street, not far from Marine Disco and across the street from one of the Hot Tuna complexes (it's a great place to surreptitiously check out the ladyboy freelancers in front of Hot Tuna, in fact). While there are no ladyboys on staff, per se, there are a number of freelancers who work out of Linda Bar on a regular basis. Most of them have been on the scene a while, and tend to have lots regular customers who hold them in high regard – so it can be hit or miss in terms of girls, especially in low season.

But for most ladyboy lovers, no trip to Walking Street is complete without a stop at Linda Bar. Another plus: Linda Bar almost never closes. At least we've never seen it closed, and we've seen the sun come up in Walking Street more than once.

There are actually several bars/complexes in the Hot Tuna group located on Walking Street; one is a large pool hall and the others feature live music. On any give night, one may find some ladyboy freelancers in any of them. But typically, when ladyboy enthusiasts talk about Hot Tuna, they are talking about the one with the pool tables, which is located down towards the south end of Walking Street, not far from Soi 16. In fact it's almost directly across the street from Linda Bar.




Typically you'll see a bevy of freelancers out front of this Hot Tuna at all hours of the night/early morning. They tend to be the veteran, voluptuous, silicone-enhanced type of Pattaya ladyboy, although occasionally you'll see the skinny femboy mixing in with her big sisters. You'll also see girls from other bars working here after hours if they haven't been barfined before their own bars have closed (of course you'll see that all over Walking Street).

Consequently Hot Tuna tends to be a favorite for experienced ladyboy aficionados looking for some late-night loving; people new to the scene tend to find it a bit daunting. And this being Walking Street there are many drunken tourists who wander in, having seen the voluptuous sirens out front and not realizing that many are packing a surprise under their dresses (although you'll find some post-ops here too). Sometimes it's fun just to sit in Hot Tuna at 3 a.m. and watch this scenario happen.

While there are a number of discos on Walking Street, and it seems like there are more opening all the time, Marine Disco is one of the older ones in operation and it still draws big crowds – as in hundreds of people at any given time. In many ways it's not unlike a huge night club one would find in Europe or North America: a huge dance floor flanked by two bars and a large numbers of tables, big-screen TVs, pool tables in the back, and a sound system that will loosen your fillings.




It's a popular after-hours spot, and on any given night you'll find a number of ladyboys here (in low season pickings may be slim, however), particularly after 2 a.m. Some of them are there just hanging out with their mates and may or may not be looking for a date, but then many are usually bar girls who haven't gotten a barfine that night and have come to Marine Disco in search of custom. These girls are easy to spot: make eye contact and they will probably come up and talk to you before you can make your own move.

As for the club itself, if you like night clubs, you'll be okay with Marine Disco. It's not the hippest night spot one can find, but the local DJs tend to spin a mix of what's popular at the moment, while sneaking in some Thai favorites here and there. The crowd is mostly tourists with a sprinkling of expats and local Thais (aside from the bar girls looking to ply their trade after hours) – you'll see people up dancing on platforms that would never dream of doing such a thing back home – which adds to the fun. It's almost impossible to hold a conversation without shouting though; if you see someone you like and buy her a drink, you may want to head back by the pool tables where the volume isn't quite so loud.