Bangkok
Patpong
Bars, Night MarketPatpong is Bangkok's oldest red-light district and today the most touristy of the three. A night market runs through the middle of it selling the usual fake goods — you'll be dodging shoppers as much as bar touts. The GoGo bars are still there, still running, but the energy is lower than Cowboy or Nana and the overall feel is more casual.
That's not entirely a bad thing. Patpong is the right choice for a first night when you're jet-lagged and want to ease in, or if you're with someone who wants to see the scene without being in the middle of it. The bars on the ground floor are relaxed. The upstairs venues — the ones touts push aggressively with laminated menus of "ping pong shows" — are well-known tourist traps. The shows exist but the pricing is a scam: what starts as a 100 THB cover ends up as a 3,000 THB bill for drinks you didn't order. Don't go upstairs with anyone who approached you on the street.
Patpong is walking distance from BTS Sala Daeng and MRT Silom. It's the easiest of the three to reach from the Silom hotel belt, which makes it popular with package tourists. Peak hours are 8pm to midnight.
Venues in Patpong
King's Castle
GoGo BarsOne of the original GoGo bars on Patpong 1 and a long-standing part of Bangkok's nightlife history. King's Castle predates the tourist boom and has maintained continuous operation through Patpong's peak in the 1980s and 1990s and its gradual decline since. The bar itself is classic Patpong — ground floor, open front, stage visible from the street. A reliable option if you want to experience Patpong as it has always been, rather than hunting for the best venue on the strip.
Shark Bar
Short Time BarsLong-standing Patpong short time bar — one of the originals in Bangkok's adult scene.
SuperPussy
GoGo BarsBangkok's most famous GoGo bar by name recognition alone. SuperPussy has been a Patpong fixture since the 1970s and is one of the few venues from that era still operating. The bar has traded on its notoriety for decades — the name alone stops every first-time visitor on Patpong. Inside it operates like a standard GoGo bar: stage shows, dancers, cover charge with a drink. The quality is middling by current standards but the history is real. If you're doing Patpong, you walk past it regardless.