It was boyfriend number 2 who first introduced me to the pleasures of massage therapy. Now, before any of you lot out there start thinking that I mean "pleasures", I should make it clear that I am just talking about massage! Not massage with extras, or massage with a happy ending, or whatever else you want to call paying for sex with a masseur. [I should also point out that I started having fun with my gorgeous Japanese masseur before I ever paid for his massage expertise!]My problem, though, is that high quality spa hotels don't tend to employ many (if any) male masseurs. Take any good spa hotel, e.g. one from the Leading Spas association of hotels although there are loads of examples. When you walk into the spa reception of such a hotel, hopefully in some exotic holiday destination, the conversation is very likely to be along the following lines:
"Good morning sir :-)". The receptionist sitting behind the counter is always a pretty young girl."Hi :-). I'm staying here for a couple of nights, do you have any male massage therapists?"
"Errr ...?" she replies with a look of confusion, after all English isn't her first language. But then suddenly she thinks she understands, "yes, we can do massage for men, no problem :-)"
"But do you have any male masseurs? I prefer to have a man massage me!"
"Errr, hang on sir," she says looking confused again, "let me check."
She'll disappear into an office or something, before coming back to say that unfortunately a male masseur 'isn't available at the moment'.
I guess I prefer having male masseurs for the same reason that heterosexual guys prefer female masseurs. It's not because I want 'extras' or anything, it's simply that I much prefer the company and the touch of another guy, in the same way that straight guys like to have women around them. I think my preference is quite natural for a gay man.
Actually I'm the same with doctors, dentists, physiotherapists, and anything where there's the possibility of physical contact. For some reason I just can't relax when a woman needs to touch me, so I'm not going to pay for a massage from a female therapist. Of course some gay guys have loads of female friends, but I'm not that type of gay man.
Surely it's not only gay guys who'll prefer male therapists though, what about all the affluent straight women out there? Surely with the two groups combined, there's enough demand to make it worth catering for? Money talks, so if enough straight women and gay guys keep asking for male therapists when we go traveling, maybe one day we'll eventually be able to get the services we want!
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I simply prefer having a masseur to a masseuse because their hands are so much stronger and -- spare me the innuendo -- I really like a good pounding when I'm on the slab.
Deep tissue massage isn't about dainty tip-toeing over my muscles, especially since I distance run and tighten up a lot; some women are excellent at it, but the chaps more reliably so.
Interesting comments, as usual.
I've had massages from both masseurs and masseuses, but more often from the latter. I've been to a health farm on a number of occasions and must say their masseurs (both sexes) were all excellent, and the female ones there certainly didn't lack muscle; put me in mind of an East German 'female' shot-putter kind of thing, quite frankly! Apart from that I've had massages in a few 5* hotels around the world, mainly in the Middle East and Asia and they were mostly female, but a few in places like Malaysia were male and they were OK.
Actually the best dentist I ever had was a woman in Paris - she was very 'pricey', but was absolutely first-rate and I used her for about three of the years I was there. I am 100 per cent gay, lol, but I don't mind being touched by a woman - in a strictly professional way (and there are no quotes around professional!). I've had rectal examinations (re prostate, etc) from both male and female doctors and 1,000 times prefer the female doctor who attended to me; the male doctor was himself so self-conscious that the whole thing was a nightmare!
Mind you I also find certain actresses incredibly attractive and alluring, but not in a sexual way at all, so although 100 per cent gay I appreciate beauty in both genders (that's a little off topic I know).
GB, come to Sydney - plenty of masseurs here! As you have read on my blog, my hunky masseur does not do extras/happy endings, though it does appear that many gay masseurs in Sydney do (anecdotally anyway).
Demand is all well and good but since you pointed out that massage is frequently associated with sex, not many men aspire to pseudo rentboy status. I expect that the status of the job restricts supply.
Still there are lots of men who do provide massage services only and who advertise in the smutty end of the gay press. Buy the massage and state clearly the limits of the treatment... or does your distaste for buying sex extend to all services advertised on the back pages? :-)
Or is this about convenience? Male masseurs not being available at short notice a few floors from your hotel room.
Whilst I prefer a male to massage me, I must much prefer female dentists, doctors etc...
Very good point Alastair, on the one occasion I did have a female masseur it was far too dainty for my liking.
It's not only convenience, Sir Wobin, it's also about quality. Even if they're not fulfilling my requirements in this respect, top end hotels do strive for quality, and the male masseurs that I have occasionally found at such hotels have been excellent. I wouldn't go to a guy who advertises at the smutty end of the gay press because they're probably an expert at the extras rather than the massage, and in any case I'd resent paying their high fees which incorporate the extras charge, even though money isn't the concern here.
GB xxx
I agree.. pressure is better from a guy. I was in the Evason in Vietnam and I am sure they went and found me a male masseur.. cos I had to wait 2 days! And he then said "what muscled shoulders" ...
very interesting topic, and I couldn't agree more. I've always preferred a male doc, dentist, or a masseur. It's just that I feel more relax with men, and I must admit I feel a little intimidated by women when there's a physical contact.
it's hard to find a male masseur in malaysia too. perhaps due to the fact that massage service is often linked with sexual workers. another problem that I encoutered in Bangkok was there are simply too many young boys claiming themselves as masseurs while people like me am actully looking for a professional and decent massuer. though I wouldn't mind if he happens to be good looking haha.
I recommend www.tennenttechnique.co.uk and unfortunately no happy endings – though I wish he would!
I am a receptionist at a 5* spa in South-Africa. As far as my knowlege goes, (for South-Africans) the majority of clients prefers female therapists agianst male therapists. I guess the reason for that is that men in general are more sexual than woman - not that I'm saying that all male therapists wants to have sex with their clients... Even if the therapist is a professional, our clients still prefer the female therapists...
Another reason for this - I guess - is that most men are uncomfortable when it comes to other men touching them... As a gay man, I would feel more uncomfortable with a male therapist than a female therapist...for obvious reasons...
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