Chang Phuek area:
The Chang Phuek area is the major gay area of Chiang Mai where all of the larger gay venues are located. All of the places mentioned below are close together within walking distance or a short Tuk Tuk ride.
Power Boys Chiang Mai
6 Bunnuengrit Road inside Lavender Lanna Hotel
Phone: 053-211-100
Website: www.powerboyscm.com
This is one of Thailand’s largest and most upscale gay bars and is located in the bottom of the Lavender Lanna Hotel and open every night from 8pm to 2am. The bar offers three shows every night at 9:30, 10:30, and 11:30, and the shows are a mix of a fun but highly professional cabaret with great costumes and choreography and offers lots of beautiful lady boy and cute guy dancers in the show and cute dancers on stage the rest of the time the bar is open. The bar also has a separate very stylish VIP area that is free to everyone and an outdoor waterfall patio. The staff here are very professional, the bar offers a full range of cocktails (including wine, sake, champagne, and bottle service), and they even give out free tequila shots after every show. This is a great place to start your evening as the bar opens at 8pm and offers a free shuttle to other area gay bars at 9:45 and 10:45. The hotel also has an air-con 24-hour restaurant on the floor above the bar which offers great patio seating above the bar entrance.
Soho
20/3 Huay Kaew Road
Phone: (0) 86743 - 8202
Website: www.sohochiangmai.com
This bar is within a short walk of Lavender Lanna Hotel and is open every day at 6pm with the coffee bar open from noon. This is a smaller more intimate bar with cute bartenders and an upscale, comfortable décor. They also offer food service and have three stylish hotel rooms above the bar. This is a favorite bar for the Chiang Mai expat community and offers a true neighborhood bar feel. This bar is a staff favorite.
There are three bars off of Chang Puek next to Tanin Market which are within steps of each other, and this area offers a great place to bar hop especially as the Spirit House restaurant is also located here.
Lotus Garden Bar
2/25 Soi Viangbua, Chotana Rd. (adjacent to Lotus Hotel)
Phone: (0) 5321 - 5376
Website: www.lotus-hotel.com
This is an outdoor beer bar and garden located at the famous Lotus Hotel. They serve food in the evenings and offer a quiet and serene garden atmosphere. The bar staff here is very friendly and know all the information about Chiang Mai.
Metro Bar
121-22 Soi Viangbua, Chotana Rd, Chang Phuek
(Opposite Garden bar - downstairs in the Adams Apple building)
Website: www.adamsappleclub.com
This is one of the most upscale and stylish gay bars in all of Asia and offers a beautiful setting for a night out with friends. The owners have spared no expense with this bar, and they offer a range of cocktails, wine, and import beer not found at other gay bars in Chiang Mai. It is owned by the same owners as the famed Adam’s Apple Club.
Adam’s Apple Club
121-22 Soi Viangbua, Chotana Rd, Chang Phuek
Website: www.adamsappleclub.com
This has long been one of Chiang Mai’s most famous gay nightclubs and has recently reopened under new ownership. This stylish bar offers a fun and entertaining show every night at 10pm and is open from 8:30pm to 12:30pm daily. No trip to Chiang Mai is complete without a visit to this famous bar and nightclub.
There are three famous bars near one another off Chang Pheuk and Huay Kaew roads. All three offer fun, no-holds-barred shows, and all three have been in business in Chiang Mai for many years. These bars all deserve a visit as they consistently offer some of the cutest staff in all of Thailand. The bars mostly are busy during the show times, and there are no guys on stage except during the shows.
Free Guy Club
181/40-41 Chang Phuak Rd
Phone: (0) 5321 - 2805
Website: http://www.freeguy-club.com
This bar is located in next soi near the Mecure hotel when heading away from the city. They offer a show every night at 10:30 and the guys here are usually smaller boy-next-door types. This bar is within an easy walk of Circle Pub and also within walking distance of the Adam’s Apple Club area.
New My Way
3/5-6 Hatsadisawee Rd, Soi 3, Chang Phuek
Phone: (0) 5340 - 4361
This bar is located in small Soi off Hatsadisawee Rd and it is best to take a tuk-tuk to reach this bar. They offer a very fun show every night at 10:00 which is a mix of cabaret and exciting male dancer performances. The guys here are a nice mix of mostly Burmese and Hill Tribe and there are always many stunners in the mix. The service is very friendly. This is one of the staff’s favorite bars in all of Thailand.
Circle Pub
161/7-8 Soi Erawan, Chang Phuek Rd.
Phone: (0) 5321 - 4996
This bar has two shows a night at 10pm and 11:30pm and is a busy bar and popular with Thai customers. The bar is the most upscale of the three in this area and offers very hunky guys. The show is much like the show at New My Way with a mix of cabaret and exciting male dance performances.
There are two small gay bars in the Santitham Plaza bar strip and this strip of mostly straight bars is a popular hangout for local University students.
Fit Bar
Santitham Plaza
Located in the Sattitham Plaza bar strip next to Yum Boi Boi. This is a karaoke bar with a few cute hosts. This bar can be loud, but fun.
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Yum Boi Boi
Santitham Plaza
Website: www.yum-boi-boi.com
This is a cute, Polynesian-themed bar with some cute wait staff and bartenders. The owner has been running businesses in the Santitham Plaza for many years and knows everything about Chiang Mai.
There are a couple of popular local bars in the Huay Kaew/Nimmanhaemin Road Area.
La Vie en Rose
22 Huay Keow Rd, opposite Hillside 4 Condotel
Phone: (0) 5389 - 5199
Website: http://la-vie-en-rose.110mb.com
This bar is owned by the same owners as Nimman Kitchen and is a pretty bar offering a quiet and relaxing place for drinks and dinner.
Glass Onion
Room 1, Project, 61, Nimmanhaemin Rd
Phone: (0) 5321 – 8479
Website: www.glassonion-chiangmai.com
This very stylish bar is located opposite to Warm Up Café, and while not a gay bar, it is very gay-friendly and is popular with local gay and lesbian expats.
Night Bazaar Area:
The Night Bazaar area has two groupings of open-air beer bars with the main cluster of eight bars right behind the D2 Hotel and next to the Foxy Lady bar and two others a few steps down the street. This is a fun area and is great for people watching, and our staff has spent many nights at CU bar watching the interesting parade of people. There are a large number of freelance guys who work here, and you should be careful to ask for ID. These bars open around 8pm and some will stay open until the last customers leave. We think no visit to CM is complete without a visit to this area (you can stop by for a drink after visiting the Night Bazaar or having dinner at D2).
These two bars are next to each other a short distance down the street from the main grouping of bars. The owner of MTV bar speaks great English and knows everything about gay CM. (MTVEE Bar and Friendship Bar have been close permanently and the area is part of a construction project)
Cream Bar
CU Bar (our favorite bar in this area)
Secrets
Jungle Juice
Gay Discos and Karaoke in Chiang Mai
There are several discos in Chiang Mai which are popular with gays but have a mixed crowd. These bars are open late and usually get started after midnight.
Bubble
Basement of Porn Ping Hotel, 46 Charoen Prathet Rd (near Night Bazaar)
This usually has a big crowd of Westerners and is comfortable for most visitors.
Mandalay
Moon Muang Rd, Soi 2
(inside of Eastern Moat)
This huge bar complex has several dance and karaoke areas, and the main bar is without question the biggest “gay bar” in Chiang Mai as it is always packed with gay Thais, especially on Thursday night which is the official gay night. There is a great show that includes lots of cute guys and a famous lady boy performer. The downside is that Westerners have to pay a 300 baht entry.
The gay karaoke scene in CM is always changing so it is best to ask around. Karaoke’s usually open late and stay open even later. Currently, there are four gay karaoke’s in CM and all offer a number of cute male hosts who can sit with you although some establishments charge a fee for this (about 300 baht for the evening with a tip expected for the host).
Club M Chiang Mai Karaoke
Huaykeaw Rd in the same area as Nimman Kitchen
Phone: 080-0332082
Relax
Kwangsing 4 Junction near CM building
Classic Boys
Arak Rd., opposite Wattanothaipayup School
Barocco Club
Soi Erawan, Chang Phuek Road near Circle Pub
Famous hangouts for local Thais
These four bars are all very popular and usually have a large number of young Thais and many gay Thais in the crowd as well as a fair number of Western expats and tourists.
The Riverside
Charoenrat Road.
Open daily from 5p.m. - 1 a.m.
A high energy place with a live band, next to the river ping.
The Good View
Charoenrat Road.
Open daily from 5p.m. - 1 a.m.
Right next to The Riverside, this place has a more mature crowd.
Monkey Club
Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 9.
Open daily from 5 p.m.-1 a.m.
Warm Up Café
40 Nimmanhaemin Rd.
Phone: (0) 5330 - 6253, (0) 81993 – 2985
Open daily from 6 p.m.-1a.m.
A great place which caters mostly to uni students and hi-so Thais, a great place to meet new interesting people.
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