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Located 147 kilometers southeast of Bangkok or only about two-hour drive,
Pattaya is Thailand's premier beach resort and annually attracts hundreds of
thousand of pleasure-seeking tourist from all over the world. Visitors can
windsurf, water ski, swim, sunbath, snorkel, sail, or take trips to offshore
coral islands. They can rent water scooters to explore Pattaya bay, and
motorcycles and jeeps to explore neighboring-beaches.
Pattaya boasts an incredible choice of accommodation to suit every
pocket. Facilities range from air conditioned opulence to basic simplicity.
Essentially, the visitor has the choice of luxury hotels with
private-beaches; bayside hotels and bungalow; and "inland" economy-class
hotels and guest houses.
Pattaya offers some of Thailand's choicest seafood in several specialty
restaurants. Steak houses and fast-food outlets provide attractive
alternatives and gourmets and gourmands alike find satisfaction in
restaurants featuring French, Italian, Swiss, German, Hungarian,
Scandinavian, English, Indian, Moslem, Japanese, Chinese and Thai Cuisines.
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From families to individual visitors, Pattaya offers something for
everyone and all the ingredients for a truly memorable holiday.
Also worth a look is close by Jomtien beach about 3 kms south. This is a
rapidly developing area with emphasis on beach life rather than sleaze.
There are several excellent golf courses within 15 minutes taxi ride
including the 27 hole Phoenix, and the excellent Pattaya Country Club. Further south (30 mins) is the Navy course near Sattahip, this is beautiful
and still cheap (18 holes for 25 dollars).
The best way to see Pattaya is by hopping on a local taxi. Because
Pattaya city is modern, it has none of the sights of ancient interest that
many other Thai major tourist destinations can boast. Except for the Korean,
Japanese and Chinese tourists who are ferried rapidly round the city in a
couple of hours, there are very few tour guides as such in Pattaya.
The easiest way to get your bearings and to see the centre of the city is
to jump on a taxi on 2nd Road or Beach Road, both of which are one way, and
go round the circuit. The taxi will take you all the way to Soi 2, opposite
‘Big C’ where it will turn down towards the sea and then go back along Beach
Road where it will turn left and up to, then along 2nd Road again. You will
go past many of the best hotels, see the shopping malls, see the back-roads
to the beach, and go along the length of Pattaya Beach. This city tour will
cost you 10 baht and will take between 20 and 30 minutes.
Apart from the beach and the sea, the main attraction of Pattaya is
shopping. Many people only spend a short time in Pattaya, and the numerous
shops catering for foreign tastes bring shoppers and other people to the
centre of Pattaya to get their holiday bargains to take home. More on
Shopping in Pattaya.
Walking around Pattaya is by far the best way to see the town, as long as
you watch the potholes and multifarious obstructions above and below. During
the day, the favourite walks are along the beach and along the sois (lanes)
leading off Beach Road. They are full of shops and bars to cater for every
taste and activity. The mobile food stalls abound in the busy sois, and most
Thais in this area do not bother to cook for themselves, as the good cheap
and various foods will come to them, but of course there is no hurry in
Thailand.
At night Pattaya looks and is totally different. The quiet soi you walked
down during the day now has been transformed into a bustling, neon-signed
maze of bars, music blaring from each door, and often in competition with
each other, and lots of high-heeled ladies. Many Europeans head for Sois 7
and 8, where there is a party atmosphere all year round.
Most people though, at least once during their stay, and often most
nights, take a stroll down Walking Street, particularly between 10.00 pm and
1.00 am. Here is the heart of Pattaya nightlife for many visitors. You can
watch Thai boxing whilst listening to reggae from the next door bar, or
listen to live music at any number of bars for the price of a drink. You are
able to get a very decent meal from the street vendors for 25 baht, or
alternatively 20 metres away you can sit in a restaurant over the sea and
eat oysters and lobster and drink champagne without too much damage to your
credit card. Bars, music, girls, shows, discos and lots more are to be found
here and in the surrounding sois.
In the early morning the walk up to Lookout Point is a lovely one, with a
spectacular view as a result. You can, however, get a taxi between South
Pattaya and Jomtien (10 baht), stop it at the Police Box and walk the last
200 metres, or even go to the opposite side of the roundabout to the
spectacular Wat (and its other buildings) on Chinese Hill. Plenty of taxis
will be around for you to get back down again.
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Jomtien
Thani Hotel Pattaya
