Bangkok Massage Parlor Reviews: Happy Endings, Nuru and Soapy

Traditional shops look the part: open fronts, foot-massage chairs by the window, staff in uniform and a price board for Thai, foot and oil massage. Extras shops tend to have tinted windows, dim lighting, dressed-up staff calling from the doorway and vague price lists. Never ask for extras at a traditional shop. It embarrasses the staff and can get you thrown out.

An oil massage with a happy ending is the simplest: a massage, then a hand finish for a tip. Nuru is a slippery body-to-body massage using a special gel on a mat. Soapy massage takes place in large parlors with a bath and an air mattress, with the full service usually included. Each costs progressively more.

A traditional Thai massage at a street shop costs roughly 250 to 500 baht an hour, and an oil massage around 350 to 700 baht. At extras shops, a happy ending is usually a tip of about 500 to 1,500 baht agreed with the masseuse on top. Nuru and body-to-body sessions typically run 2,000 to 5,000 baht, and a soapy about 2,000 to 6,000 baht or more, all in. VIP members get shop-by-shop reviews and current prices.

Bangkok's big soapy parlors line Ratchadaphisek Road around Huai Khwang, on the MRT, with more on New Petchburi Road. Oil, nuru and body-to-body shops cluster on Sukhumvit Soi 33 and the sois around Asok and Phrom Phong, and small oil massage shops fill lower Sukhumvit around Soi 11 to 13 and parts of Silom. In Pattaya, look along Second Road, Soi Buakhao and the sois off Beach Road; in Phuket, around Patong.

At the big soapy parlors, the ladies sit behind glass wearing numbered badges, and you tell the floor staff which number you'd like. Prices differ by section and badge color, so ask before you choose. You pay at the desk, and she takes you to a private room. Don't stare, point or take photos. If you're unsure, ask the host for a recommendation; they know who is popular.

Yes. Masseuses earn much of their income from tips. At a traditional shop, 50 to 100 baht per hour of massage, handed to her directly, is normal. At an extras shop, the 'tip' is effectively the price of the extra service and is agreed with her in the room, so settle it before anything starts. Never leave tips at the counter, where they may not reach her.

Usually at the turnover, when she asks you to roll onto your back partway through an oil massage. That's when you'll hear 'you want special?' or a quiet question about a tip. Agree the price and what it covers then, before anything starts. If you'd rather not, a polite 'no thanks' is enough and the massage carries on. At an extras shop you don't need to raise it first; she will.

Not at most shops. Traditional and oil massage shops take walk-ins, and outside the evening rush you'll usually be on a mattress within minutes. Booking helps if you want a particular masseuse, a nuru or body-to-body session at a busy shop, or a weekend evening slot, and many shops take bookings through LINE. The big soapy parlors are walk-in and keep daytime hours from around noon, so you can turn up.