Pattaya is 147 kilometes south-east of Bangkok, and faces the Gulf of Thailand.

Fifty years ago Pattaya was a sleepy little fishing village, dwarfed by her neighbors-to the North, Naklua, to the South, Rayong. Its only claim to fame being that it had, in the 13th century, been a resting place for the battle forces of the great King Narai during his campaign to oust the Burmese invaders. From that overnight bivouac, Pattaya derives its name. Then came the Vietnam war and incursion of more benign foreign troops. Thailand supported the Americans efforts in the area by providing bases, manned by thousands of young Americans requiring rest and recreation. This can be considered as the birth of Pattaya as a tourist resort. After the GIs had left, Pattaya continued to grow in popularity at such a rate with both Thai and foreign tourists and thus, with and ever-increasing influx of visitors and residents from the burgeoning surrounding industrial estates, she developed into what she is today.

Although branded by occidentals with an infamous reputation because of prostitution, which brought a for a while a decrease in tourist frequentation, to the benefit of Phuket and Koh Samui, Pattaya is now regaining its popularity, first because of its cheap hotel prices, compared to Phuket and Samui, but also because people realized that there is much more to it. It is a very pleasant and friendly city, with well organized beaches. Theme and amusement parks, offbeat museums and lush botanical gardens offer numerous forms of leisure activities and cultural entertainment for all family members. And after dark, Pattaya offers all the allure and magic of a truly vibrant nightlife with a spectacular variety of restaurants, night clubs, bars, discotheques, cocktail lounges and cabarets. Pattaya can be brash, bold, beautiful and bucolic, and offers everything an authentic international beach resort can.

For those who like discotheques, we recommend the "STAR DICE", next to Pattaya Garden hotel (see below). This is a typical Thai discotheque, which means it does not have a big dance-floor, since people dance around the tables. It has a good clientele, mostly Thai, but also tourists, and excellent live bands and singers, some of them local stars. Besides getting in the real modern Thai way of life, you will discover and really enjoy the dynamism and quality of these amazing young Thai artists.

EXCURSIONS

nong nooch village

It is a Thai-village-style park.The village is set in a 600 acre beautifully landscaped park about 15 kilometers from South Pattaya. It features orchid nurseries, a cactus garden and a man made lake. They have daily cultural shows that include numerous folk dances, traditional ceremonies, sword fighting, cock fighting, elephant show and Thai boxing demonstrations. The village has 2 restaurants and sells crafts from Northern Thailand.

Koh Larn - Coral Island

Koh Larn is situated to the West of Pattaya Strait, about 7.7 Kilometres from the shore, covering an area of about 4 square kilometres. There are beautiful beaches, clear water, and an abundance of coral. Visitors can view the coral either from a glass-bottom boat or by diving down directly.