Pattaya Beach is situated along the central city in close proximity to shopping, hotels and bars. The over-abundance of jet-skis and speedboats has contributed to the pollution of the water along the beach, as has the practice of dumping sewage in the ocean. The section of beach from Central Road (Pattaya Klang) south to the harbor is adjacent to the core of Pattaya's abundant nightlife area, hence it is less family-oriented than the North Pattaya, Na Klua and Jomtien beaches. Most sections of the beach are covered by rented deckchairs run by local beverage vendors during daylight hours so finding an available spot of sand is rather difficult and also unadvisable due to the poor condition of the beach. (Visitors are advised to avoid the beach after dark. Although the Beach Road itself is busy and brightly lit, some criminal elements find the unlit beach useful as a cover for their activities and the local police target this area in various ongoing clampdowns.). Jomtien Beach is divided from the main part of Pattaya by Pratumnak Hill, just south of the city. In contrast to Pattaya Beach, Jomtien is a popular spot for family vacationers and watersports enthusiasts. Jomtien is essentially a residential area with beachside hotels, bungalow complexes, condominiums and restaurants. A wide array of watersport activities can be found, including jet-skis, para-sailing and small sail boat (Hobie Cat) rental. Dongtan Beach, just past the Avalon Beach Resort in Jomtien, is known as the gay beach, and is busy every day of the year. Jomtien's most visible landmark is the 56-story Pattaya Park tower, part of the Pattaya Park entertainment complex which also features a water park, roller coaster, monorail and children's activities. This may soon be overshadowed by the proposed 91-floor Ocean 1 (O1) Tower. With an overall height of 367 meters, it would be the tallest building in Thailand and one of the tallest residential buildings in the world. The Jomtien district is already home to one of the largest resorts in Asia, the 4000+ room Ambassador City Jomtien.In Jomtien Beach gonna built a tallest building in Thailand is Ocean One Tower. Ko Lan is a small island situated 7.5 km west of Pattaya. Ko Lan is accessible by speedboat and ferry. The ferry departs hourly, and is a 45-minute ride costing just 20 baht each way. Speedboats are more expensive, but can reach the island in less than 15 minutes. Ko Lan has several beaches, which are known for their cleanliness, relaxing atmosphere, soft white sand, and crystal-clear water. Off Pattaya there are two small island groups, the Near Islands (Ko Sak, Ko Krok) located close to the northern shores of Pattaya, very near Ko Lan, and the Far Islands (Ko Rin, Ko Man Wichai, Ko Hua Chang, and Ko Badan), located offshore directly west of Pattaya. These islands, especially the Far Islands, are the primary scuba diving destinations in and around Pattaya. In recent years, new shopping malls, outlet stores and jewelry stores have opened up, which has helped in increasing the length of stay of visitors to the city. Among the shopping malls are: Central Festival, Pattaya Second Road Indoor mall anchored by a BigC; also has a SF Cinema City branch. Carrefour, Pattaya Central Road. Mike Shopping Mall, Beach Road. Royal Garden Plaza, Beach Road Three-story indoor mall with a Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum and an SF Multiplex cinema. Also has a Sizzler restaurant, Au Bon Pain, KFC, McDonald's, Auntie Anne's Pretzels, ZEN Japanese restaurant, Swensen's, Haagen Daz, Pizza Company, Delice de France, and a large food court. The Marriott Hotel is adjacent. Tesco Lotus, Pattaya North Road. TukCom, Pattaya Tai (South) Road, boasts a large computer/IT complex offering reasonable prices. Several new large malls are in various construction stages. Pattaya has many large home improvement stores including Home Mart, HomeWorks, Home Pro, Kanyong and True Value. The closest department store to Pattaya is Robinson's, located about 30 minutes away in Sri Racha. There are several large nightly markets in different parts of town. Pattaya is renowned for its nightlife, which caters primarily to foreigners. While some of this is unrelated to prostitution, the central Pattaya Beach Area is known as a destination for sex tourism (alongside several districts in Bangkok and Phuket). While prostitution is technically illegal in Thailand, it is widely tolerated. The city has literally hundreds of beer bars, go go bars, and night clubs/discotheques. Virtually all of these are venues for meeting working girls. The nature of commercial sex varies widely; the standard system of bar fines is the most common, but there are many exceptions. Most notably, discos and nightclubs are venues for freelancers (independant sex workers unafilliated with a commercial establishment. There are also several large massage parlors. Since the social order crackdown of 2004, there are very few sex shows (such as the ping pong shows) although they can sometimes still be found. Depending on the enforcement climate, go go dancers may be seen fully nude, topless or in bikinis on different days or weeks. Muay Thai (Thai boxing) matches aimed at tourists can be seen at many of the open air beer bar complexes. Another important, but understated aspect of Pattaya are the foreign restaurants. Often run by expats, most offer quality food at prices far below those found in Bangkok, Samui or Phuket. The Boyztown, Sunee Plaza, and the Jomtien Complex areas are famous for their many gay nightclubs, cabarets and go-go clubs. Pattaya probably has the largest concentration of establishments catering to the gay community in Thailand. There are literally hundreds of host and go-go bars. Many specialize in certain types of hosts (slim, muscular, effeminate), while others have a broad range of men available. Pattaya is known for its cabaret revues featuring kathoeys (male-to-female transsexuals), with being the largest and most elaborate. There are a few kathoey bars around Walking St. and nearby (e.g. Jenny Star Bar). Chon Buri Buffalo Race. Chon Buri Buffalo Race is a long-established celebration of this most useful animal of Thai farmers. A fun-filled event, it is held not only in Chon Buri itself but also in Ban Bung and Nong Yai districts. The beasts of burden are dressed outragerously or with admirable creativity by owners depending on their imagination. Assembled in the courtyard in front of the town hall, the buffaloes partake in racing, or take part in physical fitness and fashion contests. Chon Buri Red Cross Fair Chon Buri Red Cross Fair is held about mid-April. There is a Phra Phutthasihing Procession. Also organized are cultural shows, exhibitions and stalls offering various type of products. Source by Wikipedia.org

Pattaya A Travelers Paradise. Pattaya is nestled along a picturesque bay on the East Coast of the Gulf of Thailand, roughly 170 kilometers southeast of Bangkok. From a fishing village in the 1960's, Pattaya has emerged as the favorite Southeast Asian vacation center. A fascinating escape where tourists, holiday makers and vacationers from around the world unfold an incomparable array of possibilities to unwind during an exotic holiday beach vacation. 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 relax. Pattaya's name was originated from the march of Phraya Tak (later known as King Taksin the Great) and his followers from Ayutthaya to Chanthaburi just before the fall of the Ayutthaya Kingdom to the Burmese invaders in 1767. When Phraya Tak's army arrived in the vicinity of what is Pattaya today, he encountered the troops of Nai Klom who tried to intercept him. When the two leaders met face to face, Nai Klom was awed by Phraya Tak's dignified manner and his army's strict discipline, thereby surrendering without a fight. The place where the two armies confronted each other was later called Thap Phraya, which means the Army of the Phraya. This was later changed to Phatthaya, which happens to mean the wind blowing from the southwest to the northeast at the beginning of the rainy season. Today the spelling of the name has been simplified to Pattaya. For centuries, Pattaya was a small fishing village almost cut off from the outside world. But a big change occurred on 29 April 1961 when the first group of about 100 American servicemen who would join the Vietnam War arrived in Pattaya for relaxation. Soon, sleepy Pattaya became Thailand's premier and most successful beach resort, which annually attracts hundreds of thousands of pleasure-seeking visitors. A full range of accommodations from super deluxe hotels to bungalows and mini-pocket guesthouses replaced fishermens huts along the beach. Fishing vessels were adapted to become tourist boats and swimmers and sunbathers from various parts of the world frequented the quiet powdery golden beaches. Places of nighttime entertainment have also sprung up and are popular among international tourists. Pattaya currently integrates the delights of a 1st class beach resort, city-like dining, shopping and night entertainment facilities with more than 300 assorted hotels, thousands of shops, restaurants and bars. In addition, there are an array of sports and recreational activities including beaches, golf courses, tennis courts, go-kart, gyms for working out, weight lifting and Thai-boxing gear. Pattaya offers a broad range of things to do. During the day, one may enjoy riding elephants or driving humble automatic mini-bikes, monstrous motorcycles, or even monster multicolored convertible Jeeps. Others go for shooting firearms, scuba diving and surfing, deep-sea fishing, speed boats, scooters, water-skiing, parasailing, or aerial sports such as gliding ultra-lights and flying motor-propelled gliders. On the other hand, at night, there are restaurants, bars, theaters, cabaret shows, night clubs, bowling halls, billiard snooker clubs, discos, sauna massage parlors, not to cite its absolutely incredible shopping which is available non-stop both day-and-night. This exotic beach resort welcomes approximately 5 million visitors a year. The friendly and hospitable Thai nature boosts its promotion, frequently bringing back the repeat visitors and constantly increasing the number of newcomers. Pattaya city is located on the eastern coast of the country at latitude 13 N and longitude 101 E in the area of Chon Buri province. It is 147 kilometers from Bangkok and lies parallel to Sukhumvit Road on its east and the coastline on its west. Pattaya occupies an area of 208.1 sq. km. that is divided into 53.44 sq. kilometers of land and 154.66 sq. kilometers of islands and sea. Its coastline is 15 kilometers long. Pattaya has a plain on the coast with some high mountains to the south. The area on the east slopes down towards the sea on the west. Pattaya City has been administered under a special autonomous system since 1978. It has a status comparable to that of a municipality and is administered separately by the mayor of Pattaya City, who is responsible for making policies, organizing public services, and supervising all employees of Pattaya City Administration. Other activities include golfing at the area's many golf courses, and there are 21 golf courses within 1 hour of Pattaya, go-cart racing, visiting the construction site of an elaborate private wooden temple known as Sanctuary of Truth, and different theme parks and zoos such as Mini Siam, and Elephant Village. The private Sri Racha Tiger Zoo features several hundred tigers and thousands of alligators as well as some other animals. It has often been criticized for the animals' living conditions, and a worker was killed by tigers in 2004[3]. There was a major bird flu outbreak at the zoo later that year[4]. The Vimantaitalay tourist submarine takes customers underwater to see corals and marine life just a few kilometers offshore. There are many boat trips from an hour to all day trips available, mostly leaving from Bali Hai Pier, near Walking Street. Nong Nooch Tropical Garden is located some 15 kilometers east of Pattaya. The 500-acre site has well maintained botanical gardens and an orchid nursery. Moreover the facility has lively cultural shows in a Thai village setting. In addition trained chimpanzees and elephants are seen at the garden. Other attractions in Pattaya: The Million Years Stone Park and Pattaya Crocodile Farm, Elephant Village, Pattaya Park Beach Resort Water Park and Funny Land Amusement Park, Siriporn Orchid Farm, Underwater World Pattaya (world class aquarium), Alankarn cultural show, Sriracha Tiger Zoo, Bottle Art Museum, Mini Siam, Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum, and Walking Street. Some tourists take daytrips to nearby Rayong for beautiful beaches, as well as Koh Samet island. Source by TourismThailand.org