Entertainment

Discos& Dance Clubs
All the major hotels have international -style discos but only a small number - those at the Dusit Thani, the Shangri -La, the Grand Hyatt and the Regent -can really be recommended as attractions in themselves. Cover changes are pretty uniform: around 300B on weekday nights and around 400B on week ends, including two drinks. Most places don't begin filling up until after 11pm.

Bangkok is famous for its huge high-tech discos that hold up to 5000 people and feature mega-watt sound systems, a giant screen video and the latest in light -show technology. The clientele for these dance palaces is mostly young moneyed Thais ex-perimenting with lifestyles of conspicuous affluence, plus the occasional Bangkok celebrity and a sprinkling of bloodshot -eyed expats. Cover charges typically run from 400B to 500B per person and include three drinks on weeknights, two drinks on weekends.

:: Major Discos& Dance Clubs Locations

Narcissus Sukhumvit soi 23 Ph. 02 258 4805 Open 9pm to 2 am. There is a 500B cover (includes three drinks) on weekends. A long-running dance club continues to attract Bangkok's young, rich and beautiful crowd. Killer light and sound system complement a cavernous and opulent interior. DJs spin the latest trance, house and techno.
La Luna Sukhumvit 6 Ph. 02 261 3993 An upscale nightclub with lights, lasers and fog, it features both DJs and live bands, La Luna also has a sushi bar and restaurant. As with Narcisuss, there is a dress code -don't even think of showing up in Khao San road attire.

:: Go-Go Bars

By and large these throwbacks are seedy, expensive and cater to men only, whether straight or gay. Unlike go-go bars in the West, virtually everyone working in these establishments is for sale tags are attached to the dancers' bikinis so that potential customers can discreetly pick and choose without having to point at anybody (pointing at people is considered rude in Thailand). Go-go bars are concentrated along Sukhumvit road (between soi 21-23), off Sukhumvit on Soi Nana and in the world-famous Patpong area, between Silom road and Surawong Road.

Patpong has calmed down a lot over the years and become a general tourist attraction in itself. These days it has more of an open-air market feel as several of the newer bars are literally on the street, and vendors set up shop in the evening hawking everything from roast squid to fake designer watches. On Patpong's two parallel lanes there are around 35 to 40 go-go bars, plus a sprinkling of restaurants, cocktail bars, discos and live music venues. The downstairs clubs feature go-go dancing while upstairs the real ranch is kept behind closed doors. Women and couples are welcome. Avoid bars touting free sex shows as there are usually hidden charges and when you try to ditch the outrageous bill the doors are suddenly blocked by muscles bouncers. The 1am closing law is strictly enforced on Patpong 1 and 2. The gay men's equivalent can be found on nearby Soi Twilight on Surawong road opposite the entrance to the Surawong hotel.

A more direct legacy of the R&R days is Soi Cowboy, a single lane strip of 25 to 30 bars off Sukhumvit Road between soi 21 and 23. By and large it's seedier than Patpong, and you will see far fewer women and couples in crowd.

Nana Entertainment Plaza
off Sukhumvit soi 4, Sukhumvit road
This three-storey complex has surged in popularity among resident and visiting oglers. Nana Plaza comes complete with its own guesthouses in the same complex, used almost exclusively by Nana Plaza's female bar workers for illicit assignations. Once bar consists entirely of Thai transvestites and transsexuals -this is a favourite stop for people visiting Bangkok for sex re-assignment surgery. There are about 18 bars in the whole complex.

:: Gay and Lesbian Venues

If you are looking for gay venues without the element of overt prostitution, head to Silom road. In general, the Soi 2 clubs are more gays than bars on Soi 4.

The Balcony Silom Soi 4 Ph. 02 235 5891 There are more executive gays than other bars on this street.	DJ Station Silom Soi 2 Ph.02 266 4029 This still boasts Soi2's hottest gay dance scene, plus Kathoey (transvestite) cabaret at midnight. There's a 200B cover charge (good for two drinks) on Friday and Saturday.
- Kathoey Cabaret Transvestite cabarets are big in Bangkok.
Calypso Cabaret Payathai road Ph. 02 261 6355 Admission about 600B shows 8.15 pm & 9.45 pm. In the Asia Hotel, this has the largest regularly performing transvestite troupe in town. Although the audience is almost 100% tourists, the show is very good and includes plenty of Thai and Asian themes as well as the usual Broadway camp.	Mambo Washington Theater, Sukhumvit Soi 22 Ph. 02 259 5128, 259 5715 The old-style Broadway theme, rehashed by local transvestites. Mambo is located in the former Washington Theater, close to Phrom Pong BTS Station. Open daily 8.30 pm to 10.00 pm with a ticket cost of 600 or 800 baht. Two shows nightly.