Memories of Pattaya Beach

by Kevin Butters
(Chiang Mai, Thailand)

We visited Pattaya in the Spring of 2007, it was not a long planned affair.It turned out to be a good decision to just pack our bags and leave simply because we felt like it!.

Having made the decision early in the day, I then went straight onto the internet to find lodgings in both Pattaya & Bangkok as the journey from Chiang Mai cannot really be done in a single days drive!.So a few clicks on a few travel sites later and we were booked.

Pattaya is nestled along a picturesque bay on the East Coast of the Gulf of Thailand, roughly 170 kilometers southeast of Bangkok. From its roots as a small fishing village in the 1960’s, Pattaya has emerged as a favorite Southeast Asian vacation center.

Unlike other beach resorts, where natural surroundings are used as magnets to attract tourists, Pattaya makes an all-out attempt to provide the best of everything.

Here, everything means everything a tourist can imagine while on holiday: recreation, entertainment, sports, sightseeing and fun.

To put it simply, Pattaya is a paradise for everyone, as it has a variety of attractions suitable for all types of visitors. This is the place where you can fill your day, from dusk to dawn, with endless activities, or you may choose to do nothing at all and just relax.

We found Pattaya a little too much "in your face" for our liking, but were amply rewarded by a little local research that turned up the Lan Islands, which are located just a few kilometres off the coast at South Pattaya Beach. We travelled there by local ferry, and had a great time on the pure white sands, swimming & snorkelling, and eating simple but delicious meals, it was great.

There really is something for everyone in Pattaya, you just have to find it !!.