Party Cruisers

Bangkok has long been home to massive gay circuit parties packed with visiting guys from Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong. This year, why don’t you pay them a return visit.

“Last year, around 12,000 tickets were sold and 70-80% of them were from abroad. That represents a big growth from 3,000 when we started out in 2007,” says Sumet Srimuang, the owner of gCircuit, the organizer of one of Asia’s most famous gay circuit parties, gCircuit Songkran, now in its seventh year (Apr 12-14). That means that last Songkran, 10,000 tourists came to Bangkok for a gay weekend, bringing with them a vast amount of pink dollars. The party business is getting bigger elsewhere in Asia, too. In Taipei, G5 has been organizing circuit parties since 2001 and its latest, the year-end Mega G5 attracted several thousand guys and girls. Meanwhile in Singapore, ZoukOut started in 2000 and has since become Asia’s largest beach party. The newest gay circuit party will be hosted at Boracay in the Philippines in February.

Hopping between parties in different cities might be common in Europe, but the trend is only now picking up in Asia. Jimme Seechompoo, a Thai hospitality executive based in Sydney, has been flying around the region to join big dance music events for the past three years. “So far, I’ve been to gCircuit Songkran for three consecutive years, Sensation in Bangkok, and further afield, to the Madonna concert with an after party in Chicago, and I am definitely going to Ibiza.”

Jimme explains that, on top of location, music and friends play a big part in a good party. “Top DJs draw the best crowds, and it’s really important to travel with a good group of friends. Without them, I wouldn’t go. I attend parties to catch up with friends and meet new ones. Well, hooking up, too, sometimes. And when we’re not partying, we do some shopping and make short trips to nearby areas.”

“But remember you don’t always have to travel for parties alone. And not all cities have good parties.”

Next Parties/Music events

gCircuit Songkran

Feb 28-Mar 4

BORACAY, PHILIPPINES Gcircus. Don’t confuse it with the original gCircuit, Gcircus is a party put on by organizers called Poseidon and a club called BED Manila (not to be mistaken for Bangkok’s BED either). Held in Boracay, the Philippines’ premier beach destination, it features two parties at two different places: a sailor party on-board a boat and the Gcircus party at Club Paraw. Honestly, we have no idea what’s it going to be like, as the Pinoy gay scene is quite beyond our network. Anyway, our nightlife editor will be there this year to check it out for you. www.facebook.com/events/555306437817776

April 12-14.

BANGKOK gCircuit Songkran 7. This year, Asia’s premier gay circuit party features five parties at four different venues: Zen Event Gallery, Renaissance Hotel, Imperial Queen’s Park and Sofitel So Bangkok. Music will be headlined by seven circuit DJs, including Head, Louis T and Preeda. Early-bird tickets for Thais are B3,200 for a super combo (three main parties and one choice of wet party); B2,600 for three main parties; and B600 for each wet party. www.gcircuit.com

Jun 8, Jul 6

ST PETERSBURG, RUSSIA; AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS Sensation. The massive white-themed party is back, with St. Petersburg seemingly the closest host city to Bangkok. But if there was ever a time to visit the event’s birthplace it’s now, with all forms of travel media, from Lonely Planet to New York Times, trumpeting Amsterdam as a must-visit destination. www.sensation.com

First Weekend of Dec (dates TBA)

SINGAPORE ZoukOut. One of Asia’s largest beach music festivals, ZoukOut has been the stage for most of the world’s top DJs since its inception in 2000. Think Paul Van Dyke, Armin Vaan Buren and Calvin Harris. Dates for 2013 are not confirmed yet but should fall on the first weekend of December like in previous years. www.zoukout.com 

Year End (dates TBA)

TAIPEI, TAIWAN Mega G5. Last time around, organizers G5 claimed this was Asia’s biggest gay New Year’s event with four parties spread over four days featuring thousands of shirtless boys. The DJ lineup was a bit like gCicuit’s, featuring DJ Head, Alex Acosta and Tony Moran, for instance. Details for this year have yet to be released, but judging from last year’s pictures, you should start looking for good air ticket deals now. www.g5-taipei.com

Where to Start

As DJs are essential to a good party, it might be wise to brush up on your knowledge of the biggest headliners. Personal taste aside, one good way to do so is by checking the various DJ world rankings. There are quite a few, but the most reliable are probably DJ Magazine (www.djmag.com), whose current top five consists of Armin Von Buuren, Tiesto, Avicii, David Guetta and Deadmau5, and DJ Rankings (dj-rankings.com), who list David Guetta, Tiesto, Von Buuren, Skrillex and Avicii as their top five.

Runs, Marathons and Triathlons in Thailand 2013

Voluntourism in Thailand and Around