Absolute (also spelt ABSolute) was a gay sauna which was located on level 2, 32A Pagoda Street, Singapore 059191. Its telephone number was 6423-1632 and email address info@absolute.sg. Established in 2005, it occupied exactly the same shophouse unit that the now-defunct gay disco, Niche, used to operate in.
Chinatown MRT station was the closest. Visitors emerged via Exit A and walked along a sheltered path all the way along Pagoda Street to Absolute's entrance which was on the left.
Buses headed there were services number 2, 12, 33, 54, 63, 124, 143, 147, 190, 851, 961 and 970.
Absolute was Singapore's first sauna to serve alcohol and had a spectacular rooftop bar with gorgeous views of surrounding Chinatown. Protected from weather and prying eyes on their fully nude nights, it was certainly the city's loftiest vantage for spotting new friends. The 5-floor facility was thoroughly modern with contemporary design touches and plenty of spaces to play in. Level 2 contained the reception area, lockers, two Internet stations, TV and reading lounge, plus steam room and showers. The floors above featured plenty of private cabins, dark corners, and a maze, all well-stocked with safety supplies and cleaned at regular intervals.
Its website published its operating hours and creative special theme nights with fanciful names including come-as-you-are martini nights, nude nights and free entry nights for youth. It published more graphics to advertise its themed nights than any other gay sauna in Singapore. It also uploaded many photos of sexy, muscular Asian men to its Facebook page to keep its fan base entertained. It catered to a clientele of mixed ages and races. It was open until dawn on Fridays, Saturday nights and the eve of public holidays. The entrance fee at $26 was the steepest for any gay sauna in Singapore except for its predecessor, Rairua, but it also had the most good-looking crowd.
In May 2014, it revised its charges and introduced earlier opening hours to cater to its early crowd.
It closed down on 1 July 2014. It posted the following message on its Facebook page:
"Dear Members, please take note that Absolute will cease operation with effect from 01 July 2014 (Tuesday).
The Absolute Team would like to thank all members for your past support. We are glad to inform that a new management will be taking over the operation of this premise. Renovation work will be carried out during the closure.
The new sauna will be operating from August 2014.
If you have any queries, please write in to our Facebook page or email us at absolutesg.ipad@gmail.com
From The Absolute Team"
Its premises were taken over by another gay sauna, Ten Mens Club.
See also[]
- Ten Mens Club
- Shogun
- Keybox
- Cruise Club
- Club One Seven
- Singapore gay venues: historical
- Singapore gay saunas
References[]
- Absolute's website:[1] (content taken offline after closure).
- Absolute's Facebook page:[2].
- Absolute Dungeon, Absolute's closed Facebook discussion group:[3]. Its administrators were Justin Wong, Wayne Heng and Andrew Lu.
- Blowing Wind discussion, "Absolute Sauna @ Chinatown (Closed Since 1St July 2014)", 15 May 2013[4].
Acknowledgements[]
This article was written by Roy Tan.