Do's and Don'ts for Rio Suanas

[Guest Tomcal_]

I have gotten alot of emails and messages from guys planning on going to Rio in the near future and asking varying questions regarding how, when, what, etc. in the suanas. All of these questions have been answered in posts going back to last year, but have been buried in the archieves so I have decided to do a quick list here for guys to read, that will hopefully answer most of the common questions.

The three that are safe, both in terms of where they are located and inside as well, are Roger's and Estacio in Copa, about 4 blocks apart, and Club 117 in Gloria about a 12 min. cab ride from Copa.

 

1)When you enter:you give your name to the desk person at the suana and they give you a wrist band key with your locker number, everything you do that costs money is charged to that number, drinks, rooms, food, and you pay when you leave. I recommend charging, they accept Visa and Mastercard, that way you get the correct exchange rate and it appears on your statement under some inconspicuos name(in case anyone reads your mail at home!)

2) Bring only $50. Reyas bills and a couple of $5.(for the towel boy/bartender) with you, that what you pay the boys, you don't have to fumble around in your locker for bills and count them out., One bill takes care of it. Also, ever if you think you are only going to do one guy, bring extra, i guarantee you will do more:P LAShowbiz, who posted our exploints on a previous post, swore to us the first day, quote" I am not goin gto be like you guys i may just watch or do one guy when you guys are there....well that lasted about 5 mins. and then it was off to the races with him, he was like a tornado running up to the rooms with boys!!

3)Best time to arrive is around 5:00 (unless you have something pre-arranged)While they open at 3:00 , most boys show up at 5:00, i know at 117 and maybe the others, there is a reduced rate for boys if they come in before 5:00, they try to make it close to that, but will usually keep showing up until 6:00 to 6:30

4)If it's your first time there, you will find boys hanging around the desk/locker area, while you may think they are really hot, take your time, get changed, go sit at the bar for a few minutes and look around, they will approach you, but the first ones you see, are usually the most desperate(not that they are not cute, but they have learned to jump on the newbies right away, cause they don't get alot of repeat business!)

4)Carry with you only a Xerox copy of your passport and the amount of money you think you will need for that night, and one credit card, leave everything else locked up in your room safe. When I had guys back to the room, everything was in the safe, and only one $50. reyas bill was in my pocket. I would usually arrange for one of the guys who I had gotten to know to come in the afternoon before they went to the saunas, you get them "fresh" and they seem to like being in a nice hotel room. (several really like the bubble bath and spent 1/2 hours soaking in the tub.)

5) Dress code, "T's" and jeans for everywhere, sandles or sneakers Shorts during the day, That was fine in all the restuarants we went to, but remember my agenda was not fine dining but sex, as i can do fine dining here, if you want to go to upscale restaurants and a nice shirt and slacks is aporopriate. but we usually went to one of the many patio type restaurants that line copacabana along Atlantica Ave. and you can even wear your "speado" there.

6)If you are in a restaurant or walking along a sidewalk and a boy looks at you, smile, it's amazing how many are available, this last trip at least 6 of the boys i went with, were picked up in restaurants and/or near the beach walkways. So be observant, return the glances.

7) Always offer to buy the boy a drink after your encounter! it's the polite thing to do, they will usually accept and sit with you(your ging to need at least 15 mins to recuperate before the next one anyway and it's nice to have company, I have found it's also a good way to get a recommendation on your next boy. Point and ask, "how about him is ne fun?" I found you usually get a honest answer,

there are a few more points, but have to stop for tonight, will continue tomorrow.

[+ Axiom2001]

Your guidelines are most appreciated; I shall definitely use. (...was wondering about the process but was somewhat reluctant to ask; I don't know why!)

[+ Axiom2001]

Your guidelines are most appreciative! I'd wondered about the exact procedures but was reluctant to inquire; I don't know why! Guess my inhibitions were at play! Thanks, Tom! ...very, very helpful for us neophytes or newbies or newbees!!:9

[Guest AustinMarc]

Are the boys actually employees of the suanas, that is, are they free to come and go as they please? If you do want to see one outside of the sauna (and I've read the warnings), do they have to do it outside of their "shift"?

[Guest Tomcal_]

The boys are "free agents", they can come and go as they please, some that have other jobs during the week and only come on weekends, others only come one night a week(I think the twins at Estacio only come on Thursdays from what my friend who was with them said) They are willing to come to your room whenever you want, I usually met them at my room either before the suanas open, or after 11:00 p.m., this way I didn't hamper their income producing time!! As far as the warnings about bringing boys back to your hotel, I have done it often and never had a problem, BUT...they have always been boys I know, who I have been with at the suanas, 4 or 5 have spent the night and have had at least another dozen to the room without a problem, all were either from Roger's or 117 hope this helps

[trilingual]

For the most part, the escorts aren't employees of the saunas. If you pay them directly, it means they work for themselves. The masseurs do work for the sauna; you pay the sauna for a massage and they pay the masseurs. (However, if there's extra hanky-panky with the masseur, you usually pay him for that directly, on top of the cost of the massage.) I think there are still some saunas (not in Rio) where you pay the sauna for the escort services and they, in turn, pay the guys. Roger's used to be that way, but it ended, mainly because there were delays in paying the guys and they wouldn't put up with that.

 

Even though the guys don't work for the saunas, they have to be screened (at least at the better places) and agree to a regular schedule, because the sauna owners want to be sure that there are plenty of guys available when a client comes in (even on the slower days of the week). It's not just a matter of some unattractive/problematic guy just deciding on the spur of the moment that he's going to hang out at the sauna that night, because that's not good for business. The owners control who works at the saunas, at least in that respect.

 

The guys often get reduced admission fees to encourage their presence. In most cases they have to pay something, because that encourages them to actually work in order to at least earn back the price of their admission. When admission is free, there's the temptation just to use the sauna as a hang out without having to do anything, and that's not what's going to attract customers to a place like Lagoa or Club 117. Fortunately there's an inexhaustible supply of hot, hung Brazilian guys who are more than ready, willing and able to play, especially if pay is part of the program!

[BillyZ]

Puzzled by the credit card recommendation!

 

I don't understand the original post urging we use

credit cards in saunas. His advantages were:

 

(1) "you get the correct exchange rate" and

 

(2) "you don't have to fumble around in your locker

for bills and count them out"

 

These puzzle me. If you already have local currency

from an ATM or elsewhere, you'd not need to worry

at all about exchange rates.

 

As for "fumbling" and having to count bills, I've

never found that daunting. Never had any problem

retrieving Thai baht at my lockers in the massage

saunas in Bangkok and Pattaya.

 

Moreoever, even if saunas bill using a name that

is "inconspicuos" and even if other guys have had

smooth credit card transactions in the past, I'd

still like the peace-of-mind of not wondering

exactly what amounts are going to appear on my

statements when I return home! Nor would I relish

the hassle of disputing any duplicate charges or

overcharges! ("No, Ms. MasterCard Lady, I only

had three massages that evening, not five.")

 

I usually get *much better* exchange rates with

ATMs and AmEx than with credit cards. (See below.)

And since veterans here say that locker theft is

not a problem -- and since I won't exchange US$

at the saunas or am not worried about fumbling

at the locker -- is there any other reason why I

should want to pay with credit cards? Am I miss-

ing something important?

 

Thanks for the original summary posting, and for

any further illumination on credit cards!

 

Cheers for my first trip to Brazil on December 7-27.

______________________________

 

p.s. PAYMENT TRANSACTION COSTS

 

Two months ago in Thailand, I closely analyzed the

exchange costs of my options for paying for things,

using Oanda.com's InterBank rate for the day I ran

my tests. Results from best to worst (credit cards):

 

:-) ATMs - 1.2% to 1.7% cost if I withdrew $400 in

baht and lower cost per $100 if I withdrew more.

 

:-) Cash/Cheques - Net cost at Thai banks were 1.2%

for a $100 American Express cheque (no fee at my bank

to get them) and 1.6% for a crisp $100 bill.

 

:-( Credit cards -- Statements on both MasterCards

(issued by major banks) were 3.7% above the Inter-

Bank rate! (One admits adding 3% and the other

claims only 2% above the exchange rate, and both

reserve the right to calculate the conversion at

anytime before the statement goes out!) I was

shocked and annoyed to see the magnitude of the

credit card ripoff, but they claim they must off-

set all the overseas fraud.

 

So, you see another reason I'd opt instead for

paying in Brazilian currency from the ATM or AmEx.

 

I will do a comparable test in Brazil, but my

presumption is that cash from the ATM or AmEx will

get me a far better exchange rate that the markup

that credit cards add for all foreign purchases.

[trilingual]

RE: Puzzled by the credit card recommendation!

 

Why use credit cards? It's a matter of personal choice and convenience. Not all credit cards tack on ridiculous foreign surcharges. If your card does, shop around for one that doesn't!

 

Another reason for using cards is to avoid having to walk around with lots of money on you. I certainly hope nobody experiences any problems while they're in Brazil, but there is such a thing as street crime, so it's a lot safer to be walking around with plastic than with wads of cash. Also, ATMs have daily limits. Depending on what you plan on doing that day, you want to be sure you won't run out of money for activities that you can only pay for in cash (like cabs and guys at the baths). You might want to save the cash for those things and use plastic to pay for the rest.

 

Yet another reason is that the exchange rate is fluctuating considerably on a daily basis. You don't want to withdraw a lot of cash only to find out that the real has crashed overnight and next day's rate is much more favorable. Also, it's a hassle changing reais back into dollars and you don't want to be stuck with lots of left over Brazilian currency at the end of your trip. Using your credit cards can help you manage your money so you don't end up in that situation.

 

For what it's worth, I've never had billing problems using a card at the baths in Brazil. If there's any issue, you'll know about it as you're checking out of the sauna, because that's when you'll see the itemized charges to your locker number. If there are meals/drinks/cabin rentals that aren't yours, you can raise the matter there and then.

[Guest Tomcal_]

RE: Puzzled by the credit card recommendation!

 

Thanks Tri!! you said everything I was going to say, only Better!

I have never had any extra charges by my CC company. What I spend at the saunas is detirmined by how long I stay there(usually longer then i intended when i got there!!) So I take enough $50. bills to cover the number of encounters I am expecting to do, plus 2 addtional, i usually have anywhere from 65. to 130 reyas bill at the suanas if I am there for any length of time, this includes rooms(3,4 or 5..) drinks, and food if I am at 117. As I have said many many times in these posts, this is what works for me and everyone can do what they want. the guys I have been with on each of these trips all did their transactions this way and it worked well for us,

[+ Axiom2001]

RE: Puzzled by the credit card recommendation!

 

The advice that I have gleaned here has been salient; it should work for me. Thanks, fellows!!

[IamI2002]

Did you give your real name? I never do.

[Guest Jake]

One word of caution that I posted earlier - Lagoa in Sao Paulo is now billing under their own name rather than the innocuous names used by others should you have any concerns in your credit card billings. They do, by the way, accept Amex but not all saunas do. As I do a little legitimate business in Brazil along with all my monkey business, I can comfortably use a business credit card for most of my escapades but was left having my Lagoa expenses switched to my personal account and telling everyone about the wonderful and relaxing "spa" I'd found!

I have never had a problem using my own name in saunas and, invariably, if I have seen a boy a couple of times and he happens to use an alias (which only the "part-timers" seem to do) he volunteers his real name and starts telling me all about himself. For the most part, again, these are very open and charming people with only a very few questionable characters.

BUT PLAY SAFE IN AND OUT OF THE SACK1

[Guest Tomcal_]

they only ask for your first name at the saunas for your bill, they keep track of your charges by locker number, so you can give any name you want , they don't check I.D.'s, although if you pay by credit card they would have your full name, but I don't see what the big deal is about that, anywhere you go and use a credit card they have your name! Unless you are in the closet and afraid that they might "out" you from Rio or look you up if they ever leave Brazil! Highly unlikely, since once you leave the cabin, they are much more interested in the next customer they can get!

[IamI2002]

Sincerely appreciate all the advice from those who experienced the saunas recently.