General Info

[MrTran]

G'day,

Been reading this forum for ages.

New to the mongering scene.

Will be off to Bangkok 31/1 to 4/2, then HCM from 4/2-11/2 followed by HK from 11/2 til 26/2.

Will be with family 4th-7th in the country side. Be back in the city to start mongering.

Just curious if anyone wants to meet up and have a few beers before punting.

Australian born Vietnamese, I've studied Vietnamese but I am not as fluent as the locals.

Send me a PM, I'll reply once I subscribe (waiting on this darn debit card to arrive as I've lost mine).

Cheers

I'll be reporting as I monger in return as there is so much information on this thread.

[PinkPearl]

I think you are being more than a little optimistic. The lower end hotels you're seeking won't as honest as you might think. Though, being a newbie, you won't know that. Just keep in mind everyone is out to make a buck here. It doesn't mean they are bad people, that's just the way it is.

It's got nothing to do with me. I just relayed what I read from thousands of hotel reports from Tripadvisor.

The top rated 2 to 3 star hotels in Vietnam often are described exactly as I said by tourists who have been there.

Moreover it's not just one or two people saying that per hotel, but dozens, so there can be no doubt of the veracity of the statements.

But don't take my word for it. Feel free to read the reviews yourself.

[AdHome01]

Moreover in VN they are much more likely to go the extra mile for you, or fulfill your every wish, such as in going out & buying you a SIM card, for example. Or accompanying you to a store or pharmacy to help you get what you need & not be ripped off. Such service seems necessary in VN because of the widespread scams. Ripping off tourists there has been described as their "national sport".

I think you are being more than a little optimistic. The lower end hotels you're seeking won't as honest as you might think. Though, being a newbie, you won't know that. Just keep in mind everyone is out to make a buck here. It doesn't mean they are bad people, that's just the way it is.

[PinkPearl]

Would you be kind enough to suggest / recommend some good hotels in HCM or Hanoi. I have never been there and I am planning a visit early next year.

I've never been there, either, just read many reviews on Tripadvisor. Furthermore my focus is on cheap 2 or 3 star hotels under 50 USD in VN, not the kind you are into. So I don't have any recommendations, although the ISG HCMC Hotels thread may be of assistance.

Recently a poster named Nullnull did a review of some 4 and 5 star hotels in Saigon with gym etc that may be up your alley. For example the Hotel Continental which is listed as in the 2400 to 3100 baht range by the following site which has 525 reviews of the hotel & lists it as number 74 of 338 hotels in the city.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/Hotel_Rev...Minh_City.html

From reviews I've read I get the impression these two cities are quite noisy with all the motorbikes on the streets & horn honking. As you mentioned noise being an issue in your SG hotel, you might want to take that into consideration when choosing a hotel in VN. Higher floors, rooms with no windows, or hotels off of main roads may be quieter.

[Manfield04]

Hi,

Thanks again.

Would you be kind enough to suggest / recommend some good hotels in HCM or Hanoi. I have never been there and I am planning a visit early next year.

I read hotels reviews a lot but mostly in the 2 and 3 star category, at around $50 USD or less. My impressions are that Hong Kong hotel staff attitudes are quite cold compared to Vietnam. Moreover in VN they are much more likely to go the extra mile for you, or fulfill your every wish, such as in going out & buying you a SIM card, for example. Or accompanying you to a store or pharmacy to help you get what you need & not be ripped off. Such service seems necessary in VN because of the widespread scams. Ripping off tourists there has been described as their "national sport".

[PinkPearl]

Well, I don't mind paying US$ 100 or may be up to US$150 provided I can get a reasonably big room with facilities such a pool, fitness club, massage (at extra charge, of course) , etc.

I have already been to Singapore 4 times. However, I would like to try Hong Kong and Macau at least once. Tokyo? I don't know.

Thanks for your sharing your enlightening views.

I have been to LOS a few times and already this year, so I am also planning to visit Vietnam next year. Never been there before. Any recommendations / tips regarding hotels there. You may wish to reply in the VN forum.

Thanks again.

I'd suggest the chances of obtaining the facilities you list at your price range are much better in Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand than in Singapore, Hong Kong or Macau.

I read hotels reviews a lot but mostly in the 2 and 3 star category, at around $50 USD or less. My impressions are that Hong Kong hotel staff attitudes are quite cold compared to Vietnam. Moreover in VN they are much more likely to go the extra mile for you, or fulfill your every wish, such as in going out & buying you a SIM card, for example. Or accompanying you to a store or pharmacy to help you get what you need & not be ripped off. Such service seems necessary in VN because of the widespread scams. Ripping off tourists there has been described as their "national sport".

[PinkPearl]

7-11 is in Vietnam now. I was there last January and they are popping up all over HCMC. There is one right down the street from my in-laws house. Burger King is popping up everywhere too. I've eaten at 2 of them and it tastes just like the US version. I know of 3 of them and not sure where the others are. One at the Airport, one in D1 and one in D10 for sure.

I've seen many websites re convenience stores in Vietnam, but no mention of seven eleven stores, except one that said they were planning to come soon. These appear to have been around for a while:

Shop&Go (80 stores)

Circle K (50 stores)

B's mart (41 stores)

Ministop (17 stores)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_convenience_stores

"Since 2006, there are several chains of convenience stores in Vietnam, mostly seen in Ho Chi Minh City. The 3 most popular ones are Shop & Go, Circle K and Family Mart.

"Shop & Go was first established in 2005 at 74A1 Hai Ba Trung Street, District 1. Until now, it has expanded up to 70 stores nationwide. It offers a wide range of products: alcoholic beverages, confectionery, food, groceries, newspaper, etc. Shop & Go also has other service: phone cards and ATM. There are over 2000 products in each Shop & Go store, both local and imported products. Therefore, if one is seeking some foreign products, they may find Shop & Go suitable.

"List of some Shop & Go stores in Ho Chi Minh City:

http://www.vietnamonline.com/shoppin...minh-city.html

Family Mart in Bangkok is basicly a clone of seven eleven there, from my limited observations.

Some stuff I've read says the above shops have ATM's, but I plan on travelling to Hanoi, so the options may be limited compared to Saigon.

[TomSf]

Fellow Mongers,

I have been mongerin' all over latin america and my home the USA for some time now. Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Colombia, Ecuador (where I was born). I have contributing posts in the respective countries. My fav of all time is Medellin. Been there 4 times. Tryin to do Peru the summer 2014.

But before I go to Peru. I want to hit up a asian country. I do a lot of MP in the states like Dallas TX, California just so I can get my asian fix. Mainly Korean and Thai beauties and some Chinese.

So my questions is which asian country do I go too. My main countries I'm looking at are Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia.

I don't really have a body type that I prefer. I usually like spinners with a little curves and thick girl with Phat booties. My requirements to going to a asian country is:

Price of serivces, GFE, and convenience of going from one place to the other for service. I like to do multiple pops a day...

DCfan,

You an I think alike. Thailand is great and PI girls have no shape. I have been wanting to go to Vietnam based of recommendations from friends. My buddy went and and was getting 2 hours for $30 USD with models. I love viet woman and plan on going this year.

[PinkPearl]

so my questions is which asian country do i go too. my main countries i'm looking at are thailand, philippines, indonesia.

why not try them all by going to just one country?

singapore brings together ladies from all those places, as well as from sri lanka & many from the prc.

some of the hottest viet girls are in singapore for only 25 usd a pop.

singapore is also extremely safe, unlike pi where girls working with corrupt le have falsely accused guys of [CodeWord123].

[Radical Guy]

Fellow Mongers,

I have been mongerin' all over latin america and my home the USA for some time now. Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Colombia, Ecuador (where I was born). I have contributing posts in the respective countries. My fav of all time is Medellin. Been there 4 times. Tryin to do Peru the summer 2014.

But before I go to Peru. I want to hit up a asian country. I do a lot of MP in the states like Dallas TX, California just so I can get my asian fix. Mainly Korean and Thai beauties and some Chinese.

So my questions is which asian country do I go too. My main countries I'm looking at are Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia.

I don't really have a body type that I prefer. I usually like spinners with a little curves and thick girl with Phat booties. My requirements to going to a asian country is:

Price of serivces, GFE, and convenience of going from one place to the other for service. I like to do multiple pops a day. Thats why I like go to Medellin. (go from brothel to brothel then to the centro strip club) Love it!

Where do I get more bang for my buck? Correct me if I'm wrong. Thailand seems to have a lot of MP and bars which I like, but you end up pay $80 US for for an hour so. I might as well stay in the states.

The Philippines has a lot of skinny ladies with no shape. But the appeal of the ladies knowing some english does help.

I don't know what I get with the Indonesian chicks.

I would like to do all-nighters on this trip. Which place is better for this?

Please guys help a fellow mongerer out! Maybe viet has something better

I haven't been to countries other than the Philippines, but I can tell you that it is universally agreed that the girls in the Philippines will give you much more of a GFE than any others. They are very emotional and sentimental, and very possessive, in general. And, depending on where you go, the cost is much lower.

Most girls are very happy with 2000-3000 PhP (like $45 to $65) for an all-nighter, especially if you find college students or others who aren't regular PFP types. You can seek these girls out in advance on free websites like dateinasia. Com, and have them waiting for you.

It is my understanding the girls in other countries see you as just a customer. Filipinas will see you as a boyfriend and potential husband, even if you make it clear that you are making no such commitments. But be careful, it is sooo easy to fall in love with these beauties! Good luck.

RG

[Dcfan77]

Fellow Mongers,

I have been mongerin' all over latin america and my home the USA for some time now. Mexico, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Colombia, Ecuador (where I was born). I have contributing posts in the respective countries. My fav of all time is Medellin. Been there 4 times. Tryin to do Peru the summer 2014.

But before I go to Peru. I want to hit up a asian country. I do a lot of MP in the states like Dallas TX, California just so I can get my asian fix. Mainly Korean and Thai beauties and some Chinese.

So my questions is which asian country do I go too. My main countries I'm looking at are Thailand, Philippines, Indonesia.

I don't really have a body type that I prefer. I usually like spinners with a little curves and thick girl with Phat booties. My requirements to going to a asian country is:

Price of serivces, GFE, and convenience of going from one place to the other for service. I like to do multiple pops a day. Thats why I like go to Medellin. (go from brothel to brothel then to the centro strip club) Love it!

Where do I get more bang for my buck? Correct me if I'm wrong. Thailand seems to have a lot of MP and bars which I like, but you end up pay $80 US for for an hour so. I might as well stay in the states.

The Philippines has a lot of skinny ladies with no shape. But the appeal of the ladies knowing some english does help.

I don't know what I get with the Indonesian chicks.

I would like to do all-nighters on this trip. Which place is better for this?

Please guys help a fellow mongerer out! Maybe viet has something better

[D Cups]

Sweet young thing.

Sorry to ask but what is a SYT?

[PinkPearl]

I don't see Vietnam especially HCMC as being all that hard. Its even more pleasurable than the hard commercial stuff in Bangkok or Pattaya.

The streets and shops of HCMC are full of SYT who want to improve their life and see English (and practising it) and foreigners in hotels as a means to an end. Strike up a conversation and lots of good things happen. Stay in a small hotel (less than $50 = GF) near Dong Khoi and go for a walk and a coffee in the morning and smile and say good morning to every SYT you see.

Remember that there are no 'Freebies' and be generous and all kinds of good things can happen.

It sounds like Hanoi may be even easier in that regard than Saigon, if the following is accurate:

"As you walk along the street, you may find that people start talking to you. It is a cultural norm there to make conversation with strangers. They might ask you where you are from and other general questions. It takes a while to get used to that. However, there are times when you find this friendliness extremely helpful, such as when you are lost or need help."

http://wikitravel.org/en/Hanoi

[GentleBright]

I don't see Vietnam especially HCMC as being all that hard. Its even more pleasurable than the hard commercial stuff in Bangkok or Pattaya.

The streets and shops of HCMC are full of SYT who want to improve their life and see English (and practising it) and foreigners in hotels as a means to an end. Strike up a conversation and lots of good things happen. Stay in a small hotel (less than $50 = GF) near Dong Khoi and go for a walk and a coffee in the morning and smile and say good morning to every SYT you see.

Remember that there are no 'Freebies' and be generous and all kinds of good things can happen.

Sorry to ask but what is a SYT?

[DanangGuy]

Hello guys,

I lost my password to my old VIP account (TopLord) so I have to pay $20 on this account in order to post. I just want to share with you all my knowledge about VN and if you have any question, feel free to ask. I used to visit VN twice every year when I was younger but I haven't been back to VN for about 5 yrs. I will be back to VN next month. Although, price has changed and I don't have exact pricing for each region in VN but I do know roughly since I do talk to my friends in VN a lot. This is my first post on this account so I just want to start out with a more generalize post.

VN has 4 main regions (North, South, Central, Southwest) and understanding each region cultures will help you how to deal with people / business. Please forgive me if you feel I am biasing or discriminating. Take it or not is up to you.

North (such as Hanoi, Hai Phong, Do Son): People here are more civilized than people from other regions in term of interpersonal relation. They treat, talk and do business with you very professionally most of the times. However, when they are mad, they are the meanest people in the country. They are the extreme on both ends (good and bad). When doing business with them, be comfortable to negotiate with them to make any deal. Once the deal is closed, they will keep the promises to the deal most of the times. In Hanoi, some of the places will try to cheat you such as cheating you on Karaoke bill and etc. So, if you want to go to places, have someone (security guards, young guys who work in the hotel you stay in) take you to place you want to go. He don't charge you anything. He just make sure his customer will not get rip off. He will take you there, introduce you to the business and leave. That way, the business won't dare to cheat on you. If you want sex in the North, in my opinion, don't go to places like boss. Girls there are rip off. They wear nice clothes and etc. But they are not as good as you think they are under neon / laser light. I highly recommend you go to Do Son. My favorite location. You can find sex there left and right 24X7. Sex there is very cheap and girls there are not allowed to ask for tip. Girls there never beg for extra money. Price is fix and girls knew that. 5 yrs ago, I paid 130 K for 2 shots / 2hrs and the service was always good, good altitude. You need not to negotiate the price here since it is fixed. One price for all. However, I always tipped them extra because that is my nice nature. Many times, the girls were hesitate to take my tips because that was not normal there. Caution in Do Son: do no buy crab / food from people (girls) selling on the beach. 99.9% of the time they will rip you off. They have their own scale and if you buy 5 kilo, of crab, their scale say 5kg but it actually about 1.5 kg. Trust me on that and their products suck but they advertise very good. Don't fall for it. Girls in Do Son are from 18 to under 25. At night, around midnight, if you stay in one of the hotel and look down, you will see at least 30 girls walking / selling sex below. Like a market selling sex. My no#1 recommendation in VN.

Let me know if you find this info is helpful and I will continue to post for other regions. If you think this is offensive / bias toward a certain region, please let me know and I'll delete the post.