Thailand Beaches
Pattaya

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Pattaya view. 1 of 4 pages.

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Plus: Pattaya's raison d'être is partners for hire, short or long term, male or female - the selection is huge, the attitude is relaxed and prices are not expensive. But there are also good water sports, shopping and nearby theme parks - so families come here too [amazingly]. The corniche is pretty and yields endless entertainment of the "Jeez, did you see that?" variety, as does the 'Walking Street' after 7pm.
Only 2/3 hours by road from Bangkok and about 2 hours to lovely Ko Samet[d] via Ban Phe port and a short boat ride.

Minus: The main beach is small, the sand is coarse and the water is murky and unattractive, though reasonably clean. A much bigger beach, Jomtien, is farther south and will require a very long walk or a taxi/bike ride to reach. It's a primo windsurfing spot but the sand is still coarse, the water unnattractive and high-rises line the shore. Gays line the north end of Jomtien as well as parts of the town.
Pattaya town is an overdeveloped jumble of pink-lit girlie/boy bars, half finished construction and monster hotels. This is not a serious beach destination.

Pattaya is, however, a surprisingly inoffensive haven for the love-dispossessed - wrinklies, plug uglies and handicapped mix it with arabs, military personnel and stressed love refugees who have three things in common: they have money to spend, they are hot for sleek young Asians and they have all the fashion sense of a third-degree burn.
Interestingly Thai men mostly don't seem bothered that many of their prettiest girls/boys are running around with butt-ugly foreigners.
The hired hands too appear relaxed and tolerant and often spend a couple of weeks travelling around Thailand - especially to proper beach resorts - with men who treat them like princesses and pay them enough to support their families for a year.
Love and/or marriage are not uncommon results of these liaisons.

Thailand Beaches © Julian Loader

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