Thailand has a large number of ladyboys, also known as “Kathoeys” or by the more polite name of “Phet Thi Sam”, meaning, “Third Sex”. The beauty and increasing social acceptance of ladyboys in Thailand has become a fascinating aspect of many visitors’ trip to Thailand. Many people will attend a ladyboy cabaret show, and some will visit nightlife areas where there are a number of bars where you can find them and have a drink together, as well as other activities if you are so inclined. During the daytime many can be spotted working at makeup and beauty counters in department stores in Bangkok.

Whether you are looking for, or looking to avoid a ladyboy, keeping an eye out for the following telltale signs might help.

Height: One of the first indications and one that is easy to spot from a distance is a girl’s height. Most Thai girls are quite short, rarely being taller than 160cm. While of course there are tall girls in Thailand, if she is taller than 170cm (5”6’) this would be a good hint that you may need to take a closer look.

Body Shape: Generally speaking, a woman’s body can roughly resemble a pyramid shape, with small shoulders and wider hips, while men are usually the opposite with wide shoulders and narrower hips. If the girl has broad shoulders and no butt, this could be another indication.

Also hand and feet size is another giveaway. Most girls have petite hands and smaller feet and this is one of the more difficult, if not impossible things for a ladyboy to disguise.

A classic telltale sign has been the presence of a protruding Adam’s Apple, which only males possess. This has become a less reliable factor however as more and more ladyboys who can afford it, opt for a chondrolaryngoplasty procedure, commonly known as a tracheal shave. This involves shaving down the thyroid cartilage through and incision in the throat, which reduces the size of the Adam’s Apple. Therefore the absence of an Adam’s Apple is not a reliable sign that the girl in front of you is a genetic girl (or G.G as they are referred to in ladyboy admirer circles.)

Voice: The above mentioned tracheal shave does not affect the tone or pitch of voice. While ladyboys will practice and become quite adept at speaking with a softer and more ladylike voice, it can be quite a telltale sign if you think that something is a bit strange, or “gruff” about her voice. Also, loving flamboyancy, a lot of ladyboys have a distinctly unladylike guffaw when they laugh.

Her Friends: Ladyboys tend to hang around in groups so you will often see them with other transsexual friends. Not all ladyboys are totally convincing so if she is hanging around with a lot of friends and some of them are quite obviously transsexuals (they may be in various stages of their transformation), this would be another good sign that she is probably a ladyboy.

Obsessive Grooming: Ladyboys are obsessed with their appearance and are constantly checking themselves in the mirror, re-applying makeup and brushing their hair. They love attention and always want to look their best, and I’m sure that they are also a little afraid that something might be out of place and the façade will be broken.

The Walk: As mentioned above, ladyboys love attention. One way they draw attention to themselves is with the way they walk- like they are on a fashion show runway. They sashay and work their hips from side to side, perhaps also in an attempt to make up for their narrow hips. Of course, like most of the points illustrated here, this doesn’t apply to all ladyboys, but it is certainly something you will see in Thailand, especially at night.

The Eyes. This next one may be specific to ladyboys who work in the “entertainment”, or pay for play business, but I have noticed if you see a ladyboy walking around the streets of Patpong or other areas of Bangkok at night, her eyes will be constantly shifting from side to side surveying the landscape. This could be because she is on the lookout for a potential customer, but if this was all there was to it, there are plenty of “regular” girls in the business who don’t do this with their eyes- at least not that I have noticed. I think that this might also be a defensive mechanism as they may encounter drunk dickheads who may want to mess with them so they need to be on the lookout for potential danger. This one is purely my own observation so if anyone has any theories or ideas on this one, please leave a comment and share below.

Tongue: Again, this may vary from person to person, as kissing styles vary greatly, but you may find that if you progress to the kissing stage, a ladyboy may have a stronger tongue than you may be used to from kissing girls. Never having scientifically studied the matter, I can’t tell you whether or not men have stronger or bigger tongues than women, however this is something that some men have noticed when kissing a ladyboy. It may even just come down to a more aggressive kissing style.

Too Beautiful: Ladyboys go to a lot of trouble to make themselves beautiful and the ones who can afford it will have surgery to augment their nose, chin, eyes and other parts of their face, often modeled on western ideas of beauty. If you see a girl working in a bar with model-like features who is not working as a model, she may very well be a ladyboy.

When in doubt, you can always ask. Asking straight out will get you answer one way or the other, and if she is not a ladyboy, she may be flattered because ladyboys are well known for their beauty.

As stated above, like making generalizations about any group of people, these are just that- generalizations. Not all points will apply to all ladyboys, and not all ladyboys will display the above mentioned traits. Please keep in mind that ladyboys are just people like you and me, and should be treated with respect and decency, just like everybody else.

Take these tips and pre-arm yourself whether you are looking for a ladyboy or looking to avoid a ladyboy next time you are in Thailand.

If you have any other tips not mentioned or have any comments on the observations I have made, please feel free to comment below.

Check out the picture to the right, and the video below of a famous all ladyboy Thai pop group called Venus Flytrap. If I didn't tell you they were ladyboys, I bet you wouldn't have been able to tell.

You can also watch a full length music video of their single "Visa for love" on Youtube. I couldn't post it here because embedding is disabled.

All five girls in the picture in the middle of the text above are ladyboys.