Karaokes in Chiang Mai

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Last edited: July 19, 2018 at 04:35:43

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Disclaimer: This section has been written for a male audience and to serve the needs of our male readers.
It contains information that some (female readers) might find disrespectful. It is by your own choice that you have arrived here.


If you enjoy a drink with a pretty girl next to you, Chiang Mai karaokes are a completely different cup of tea than farang-oriented bars. While for some reason many bar girls are from Isan (some say because it's a large barren province with not much opportunity), girls in karaoke's can be from anywhere but a lot are simply from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai or the north of Thailand. Bar girls in Loikroh are usually full-time "professionals", girls in a karaoke can be part-timers who study in the day time. Bar girls in farang-oriented bars are fluent in English, most girls in karaokes can barely even sing an English song.
In other words, a different breed, and also the concept and prices are quite different.


Girls standing in line for the daily drill by the mama san, often early in the evening before most customers arrive

Many first-time foreigners to Chiang Mai still get ripped off by karaokes at outrageous amounts. Every few months, articles appear in the newspapers about yet another farang being billed for a night out in a karaoke at several ten thousands of baht (!). The lucky ones can negotiate the price down to let's say 10,000 or 20,000 baht, the unlucky ones get beaten up or tasered.

Karaoke girls seen from the road can be very pretty but most of them are covered by layers and layers of make up. And the hidden fees that they often don't tell you before entering are substantial.

Here's the usual fee structure:

  • VIP room: if you consent to having a room by yourself with your mates, you rent the room by the hour. Typical fee 200-300 baht per hour.
  • mama san: mama san is the Japanese word for 'manager of the premises'. Mind you, there can be several mama san's and if they enter your room and sit with you for 5 minutes to check if you're fine, they may charge you their full 'management' price for the hour. Typical mama san fees are around 300 baht per hour per mama san.
  • hostess girl: when you book a room you have to pick a girl to sit and accompany you. You'll have to pay for her company per hour. Typical fee about 300 baht per hour.
  • drinks: finally, you have to buy drinks for yourself and for the girl. Better check prices, even a simple canned orange juice can cost 100 baht (!).

This means that going to a karaoke with a mate for just an hour or so can saddle you up with a bill of at least 1,000 baht.
All you get for that is a few drinks, a girl who puts her hands in your lap, a few old songs on the tv and some fun, but no real action.
To take a girl home, karaokes typically charge 2,000-3,000 baht for short time (1-2 hours) and 4,000 baht up to stay overnight.

Not all girls are for take-away, often two groups of girls are presented: one row is definitely for take-away, the other is officially not going with the customer, but it all depends on the girl and if she likes a customer she may go with him.

Some karaokes have a common area where you can hang out for a drink first, without booking a VIP room and without paying for the mama san. You can watch the girls slowly to see which one you like, and book a girl to sit next to you so you'll save on the overhead costs. That could be a good strategy if you're not so interested in singing American oldies for an hour.

If your main target is to pick up a girl to take her home or to a love hotel, you can find some (very) pretty girls in karaokes, that are worth the price and all the 'foreplay'. There are chances you pick up a nice university girl from a karaoke who might even become your parttime girlfriend, and there are chances you get nothing and spend a lot.

notice of rules for karaokes
Notice of October 2015 by the Chiang Mai Police to karaokes. Karaokes should inform their customers clearly about all prices, and tell them when the bill reaches the amount of THB 5,000. Also, they should refrain from using violence against their customers.

 

Your main concerns when going to a karaoke are:

  1. to make sure you don't get ripped off;
  2. to follow a strategy to maximize your chances of getting a nice girl for one time or longer.

Read more about which karaokes not to go to and how to get most out of your karaoke visit.
 



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Danielle Posted on September 24, 2021 at 23:18:44
The very best advice I can give you, is to avoid and stay out of Kararokes in Chiang Mai and the surrounding areas period. Enter at your own risk because you are headed for an experience you will never ever forget. You had better have two or three arms and legs to pay the price of just looking at the girls. Its not worth the time or money in any Karaokes. The owner charged me 10,995 for just a glass of orange juice and sitting chatting with two of the girls for less than 10 minutes. They had Big Bertha standing at the door so if you wanted to leave you couldn't unless you paid the high price bill. When I told the people I would call the police they were more than happy if I would, then I thought to myself maybe the police own the joint. So I paid the tab, because they wouldn't negotiate. Take my advice STAY OUT OF KARAOKES !!!
Roco Posted on July 20, 2020 at 19:10:26
Hi,

This may sound like advertising, so please remove this comment if necessary.

After being to lots of karaokes (I'm also a regular reviewer of massage places), and having to fight over the bill every single time, I'd like to let readers know about an excellent karaoke called "Pretty Club Xclusive", located around Nimman, next to Infinity.

This karaoke is different than pretty much all others for the following reasons:

1) Absolutely no rip-offs. I was always charged upfront here. One extra hour with the girls, they charge upfront. More beer, they charge upfront. No hidden costs, no drinks being served without authorization, no "ice changing", nothing. You know at all times what you are paying for.

2) Mixers and ice are free. Other karaokes charge for mixers and change the ice every 10 minutes, so after an hour you pay more than 1,000 baht on ice and soda alone. Doesn't happen here, and again, you are always charged upfront anyways, so no one will bring anything you didn't ask for.

3) Girls don't just order drinks. They ask you first when they want something, or tease it out of you. Other karaokes keep bringing drinks for the girls (which they don't even drink) to inflate your bill.

4) No gangsters entering the room when you want to leave. Since in this karaoke you are always charged upfront, once you want to leave, you just leave. Most karaoke places bring you the high, unexpected, full of BS costs bill when you leave, so naturally 3 or 4 guys come to the room with it.

5) No one bothers you. They leave you and your friends alone with the girls to enjoy the time that was paid, and only come when they are called for more drinks (which of course you pay on the spot when they bring them). If nothing else is ordered, no one enters the room.

6) They let you know when the time is up. When the time is up, someone will knock the door to let the girls know. Then the girls will ask if you want more time. Most karaoke places don't tell you anything so they can keep the bill running, keep bringing ice and drinks you didn't order, etc. Again, none of that happens in this karaoke, at least not in my experiences there.

7) Last, but not less important, impressive selection of girls.

Anyways, just wanted to share this. I'm not connected at all to the karaoke I mentioned, I'd just love to see more places like this, and let the ones that rip-off people die as soon as possible.

I would also like to encourage "farangs" that want to test a karaoke go to this one, but of course keep in mind that the way they behave in this karaoke is pretty much unique in Chiang Mai.
Nehreh Posted on November 21, 2019 at 15:50:12
Hi you can show me address ok can't send me phone number