Actually, I compared being a Sugar Baby to being a Geisha. Being a top level provider, in my opinion, is more like being an Oiran.

Geisha lived in "hanamachi" flower districts. And did not sell sex. They were strictly entertainers, who looked for long term benefactors to support them. This is similar to being a sugar baby in that sex is not the primary focus. Actually, being overtly sexual in the sugar bowl is frowned upon and considered "escort behavior". Geisha's were NOT courtesans. The actually sold their time for companionship, NOT sex. it wasn't a cover.

Oiran, were actually courtesans. The highest level of oiran being a Tayuu. The different between these courtesans and prostitutes were that Oiran cultivated entertainment skills, and could become celebrity type figures similar to Geisha. Oiran did NOT Hanamachi. They lived in "Yukaku" or pleasure districts. Strict etiquette governed appropriate behavior. Their speech preserved the formal court standards rather than the common language. Oiran were mostly filled with girls whose families had sold them as prostitutes to brothels, but were taken into mentorship by an older Oiran and taught entertainment skills, elevating them to courtesan.

To those who think "a whore is a whore is a whore", then there is no distinction. But A geisha is not a courtesan, and an Oiran is not a prostitute. Escorts are  not geisha. and not many escorts even seem to be Oiran. but I'm talking about Oiran level escorts. And I've seen a few as I lurk websites.

One of my double majors is in linguistic anthropology, so different words actually have different cultural meanings. That's why when I say I'm going from being a Geisha to being an Oiran, it means more than "i'm going from being one kind of whore, to another".

If it helps at all....Oiran are similar to Korean Kisaeng.

~Rose