Review: The Strip in Bangkok, Thailand

The Strip is a go go bar located in the world famous Patpong nightlife section of Silom in Bangkok, Thailand. In a city filled with go go bars, The Strip sets itself apart with the fantastic options it offers in the club. While Bangkok (along with Thailand in general) is home to countless blowjob bars and many other kinds of shops where you can get action on premises, it’s exceedingly rare to find a go go bar proper where you can get served right on the main floor. That’s exactly what is available at The Strip.

Go go bars have existed in Thailand for quite some time. The usual mode of operation is the same. Customers sit around the bar where they are brought drinks by the wait staff. A number of girls dance on stage in varying degrees of clothing. They are often marked by a number badge. If a customer likes a girl, he can ask her to join him for a drink. The drinks for women on staff are a little more expensive than normal drinks, with the overage going to the girls the drinks are purchased for. If a customer and a staff member hit it off or at least come to an agreement, the customer can pay a barfine to the bar to take her out for anywhere from a few hours to a few days. The customer makes payment for anything he and the gal he has chosen directly to the women, after services are rendered.

Agogos then aren’t are straight forward as brothels or massage parlors. What they offer is a chance to check out a woman before trying to pursue further fun. In a brothel the customer is often given whoever is next on line. At massage parlors a customer may be given a lineup, but the women are usually fully dressed and the amount of time he has to make a choice is limited. Besides that, customers can’t make conversation with the women in the line up. For that reason, and the chance to look at some ladies and kick back a few drinks in general, a number of guys love the go go scene.

From the outside The Strip looks a lot like all of the other go go bars you might see when walking down Patpong 1 or 2. Early in the evening, the doors are opened wide to the street, revealing to passersby nothing more than a stage with a few women in shorts and bikini tops or something similar doing the old two step. When you step inside you still might not notice anything special… that is, until your eyes are drawn to the far wall which is lined with large round booths with ceiling-to-floor curtains closing them off to prying eyes. These booths are circular, with padded seating around the walls and a round metal table in the middle.

What goes on in those booths? You can use your imagination, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to figure out given the nature of the place and its location. Pretty much anything you could expect from a short time session is up for grabs if the price is right. And what about the price? Surprisingly rates at The Strip aren’t really any higher than they are at other go go bars around town.

As to be expected, there is no cover charge. Drinks go for the normal number of Baht and barfines are also right on par. What’s different at The Strip are the booths, and those run 300 Baht ($9.75) per short time session. How long is a short time session? However long it takes to get the job done. What you give to the girl is between you and her, but it should be on par with what you would pay if you took a girl away from another go go, or more likely even a little less. It’s not going to be as cheap as Mike’s Place, which is only steps away, but for the same kind of action it won’t be much more either.

Any go go gal that spends some time with you will probably want a drink or two as well, but that’s not too big of a deal. Seeing a waitress’s hand come through a slit in the curtain while you engage in some fun can only add to the thrill.

How about the staff? The first time I visited it was very early in the evening and there were only three women working. Even from that group two were quite attractive. They weren’t the best I’d ever seen but they were nothing to balk at either. As the only customer in the place I got very good treatment. Later I checked in again and there was a full field of women on the main stage and dancing on the bar in back. These late comers contained a good number of younger, even hotter women mixed in with the usual mid-to-late 20’s bunch. The staff at every go go bar varies but those who work at The Strip tend toward the better looking. Combine that with the fun to be had and you end up with a pretty good place.

As a rather unique go go bar with decently priced private booths and a generally attractive staff, I give The Strip a solid three and a half stars. I really give the ownership credit for trying to make the bar a good place to be and making sure to do things like maintaining a website (which sounds simple enough yet is not practiced by a number of establishments). I can’t really come up with any complaints about the place, though square booths would be more workable than the circular variety they have installed. That’s not much of a issue though, is it?

On this, January 1st, I’d like to wish all of my readers a Happy New Year and wish a pleasant and safe 2014. Stay tuned to this website to see all the new things that are to come.

The Strip. Patpong Soi 2, Bangkok, Thailand. Click here for a map. Open every day from 7:00 PM until 2:00 AM. Website: http://strip-bangkok.com