The seedy side of Bangkok's love motels
Some of the city's many hotels are not what they seem
- Published: 2/05/2010 at 02:57 AM
- Newspaper section: Spectrum
They are called "love motels" but have little to do with love. They are also known as short-time hotels, and have been used for a variety of activities, some of which are illegal and highly questionable.
The inside view of two rooms.
PHOTOS: PORNPROM SARTTARBHAYA
Kidnappings, extortion, robberies and even murders have taken place in these establishments.
This was revealed during an investigation by Spectrum into these motels, which are easy recognisable by the curtained-off parking places in the front.
Although love motels are scattered all over Bangkok and have been there for decades, little has been published about their real function - something our investigation discovered. They are used not only by prostitutes and their clients, but also for various criminal activities. Even some law enforcement, security and intelligence agencies have used these places.
Love motels are usually low rise buildings found in side streets, and are often close to entertainment areas, like Ratchadaphisek and Sukhumvit roads.
Spectrum interviewed a number of people connected to the motels, including staff, local and foreign prostitutes, motorcycle taxis riders, taxi drivers, policemen and government officials. They all agreed to talk on a condition of anonymity, which is understandable.
Spectrum also checked in to several love motels, ranging from ``low class'' ones with simple and basic furnishings _ and some which were also very dirty _ to ``high class'' ones that were nicely decorated and furnished, with a massage chair, water-bed, colourful lighting and a variety of other amenities.
DISCREET: Private parking spaces at the love hotels.
Crimes committed behind the curtains include drugging, dealing narcotics, under-age sex offences, theft, illegal detention and interrogations. Even murders have taken place.
One reason why so little is known about the love motels is because their owners will do everything possible to keep them a secret _ any bad publicity could hurt their business. When there is trouble, they always ask the police to conduct their investigations discreetly and without any media present.
Love motels usually receive a lot of publicity just before Valentine's Day every year when the police in Bangkok order their personnel to watch for teenagers using them for extra-curricular activities.
While regular hotels struggle to attract customers, love motels are mostly full, especially from after sundown until the early hours of the morning.
One tourist website also recommends, among others, two notorious love hotels near Sukhumvit Road where many serious crimes have been committed.
``Prostitutes working in this area will bring their foreign clients here. We don't get many Thai men here because they prefer motels in other areas,'' said a hotel attendant who was at first hesitant to talk. But he did describe some incidents that would turn off potential customers had they known what had happened in the room they rented.
``We had several robberies and even murders committed here by foreigners from Middle-Eastern countries. The victims were Thai prostitutes working in the Sukhumvit area. When this kind of crime occurs, my big boss will try to prevent the media from reporting it.''
The attendant also added that ``one room in a love hotel can earn a lot of money because customers change frequently. We get seven to eight, sometimes even more, customers in one day as they will usually pay for three hours but leave earlier''.
A good-looking Thai prostitute waiting for customers in the coffee shop of a nearby hotel said: ``Sometimes I was approached by men who claimed to be from Saudi Arabia or Kuwait offering 3,000 to 4,000 baht for a short time, which any woman in this profession couldn't refuse. However, I did refuse because I don't want to end up dead at the short time hotel like some other girls who accepted.
``I heard that men who committed such crimes were not Saudis or Kuwaiti, but criminals from Iran and Pakistan. Many of them stay in Thailand for a long time with no jobs or money. They go wandering around looking for victims. They look for women who wear gold, jewelry or spend a lot of money and approach them with an offer. Some will even wear their national dress.
``While the woman they pick up is taking a shower in the short time hotel, they search her belongings, steal cash, mobile phones or anything valuable and run away. I heard they also kill them, but this is not very common.
``People say that happens if the girl suddenly leaves the bathroom and tries to stop the thief who, in the ongoing scuffle, kills her. He most probably didn't intend to do so, but had no choice as she would identify him and he'd end up in jail.
``I have also heard that there are some men who actually intend to rob and kill the women, but I don't think that there are many like that. Most of the working women won't now wear jewelry, expensive watches or show off too much. They won't go to sleep with men from those countries no matter how much they offer. They are afraid of them.''
Other crimes commonly occurring at these two motels have been committed by some transvestites, who takes customers to the rooms, order coffee or a soft drink and slip in some white powder which puts the customers to sleep very quickly. After that they steal what they can and leave. This is also done by some female or male prostitutes, but not frequently.
Most of the short time hotels don't have surveillance cameras, as most of the customers don't want to be recognised and the motel owners have steered clear of installing them. This, of course, makes it safe and easy for criminals to leave the rooms without being noticed.
According to a taxi driver who often works with foreign prostitutes along Sukhumvit Road, they contribute a lot to a motel's income. He said very few of the foreign prostitutes steal from their customers. They ask for their full fee in advance to make sure their clients _ who are usually from the Middle-East and have their families staying with them in a hotel _ won't leave without paying.
``I always take all my possessions when I go to the bathroom and I also carry a pepper spray to protect myself from the customer if he tries to harm me,'' said one foreign prostitute.
``I like to go to one motel because it is within walking distance from where I work and no one asks for my passport there. I have one, but my visa has already expired,'' she admitted.
A policeman, who again spoke on the condition that his name not be published, confirmed what the foreign prostitute said.
``Everyone knows and takes advantage of this loophole to commit crimes or illegal activities,'' said the policeman.
Several motorcycle taxi riders who work near the two motels confirmed that the police also make use of these places for a number of reasons.
``Some police, security and intelligence services use these love motels as a safe house for various purposes. They will, for example, interrogate a suspect before deciding whether to charge them or use them as informants,'' the policeman said. He added that some agen cies also use the motels for other purposes which he refused to discuss.
There have been several well publicised cases of people being abducted and held in love hotels.
For example, Saudi Arabian businessman Mohamad al-Ruwaili, who was allegedly murdered by five policemen in February 1990, was kidnapped prior to his murder and held in a love motel in Bangkok. He was beaten in an effort to extract a confession to being involved in the earlier killings of three Saudi embassy officials. This was revealed in an indictment by Thai prosecutors announced last January.
In another case, a British couple claimed they were falsely accused of shoplifting last June and forced to pay an 8,000 bribe to secure their release after being threatened at one love motel where they were held against their will for several days.
To rent a room at a love motel is very easy. In fact, anyone of any age can easily rent a room for one to three hours, or all night. Anyone can check in without showing an ID card, passport or any other identification. This contrasts with normal hotels where customers must fill out a check-in form and produce an ID card or passport.
The Spectrum team checked into several love motels to find out how it works. We drove into a curtained off parking spot, stopped in front of a room, and an attendant soon arrived to close the curtain behind us. We then went into the room, which was unlocked. The attendant knocked on the door and asked how long we wanted to stay.
After paying for the room, we did not see the attendant again. The only time he would have appeared was if we had ordered a drink or an adult video. Customers can leave the rooms, open the curtains and just drive off. All the parking spaces are usually kept dark, so people's cars do not get seen.
The cost of the rooms depend on the class of the hotel and the amount of time a customer wants to stay. Prices range from about 300 baht for three hours in a ``low class'' place to about 500 baht for a ``high class'' hotel's VIP room. Some cheap motels allow customers to stay for one hour at a cost of less than 200 baht.
Rooms in these motels can also be rented for the day and some foreign tourists on budgets do stay there, paying between 600 and 800 baht per day. Some local prostitutes also rent rooms by the day, often sharing with other girls to cut their costs.
According to one government official, the government stopped issuing permits to build new motels a few years ago, but the old ones are still allowed to operate. He said love motels are classified as a place where you can park your car in front of the room.
``These motels in Thailand were originally used by long-distance travellers to take a rest, but this is not the case now,'' he said.
``As it is illegal to construct new motels, there's always a way to avoid the law. For example, applying for a hotel permit and adding the curtains after it has been inspected by authorities. The inspection is done once a year, so before the inspector comes, they will remove the curtains or make other, temporary alterations. After the inspector leaves, they will put the curtains and everything else back as it was before,'' the official said.
They first started to appear in 1935 and there are now about 100 short time hotels in Bangkok, especially around the Ratchadaphisek area. The motels are common not only in Thailand, but also in other Asian countries like Hong Kong, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore and Taiwan. Called ``autohotels'', they are also widespread in South America, especially in Brazil, Chile and Mexico. They also exist in the US and Canada, where they are called no-tell motels.
About the author
- Writer: Maxmilian Wechsler
- Position: Freelance writer
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