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TRAVEL AGENCIES

Travel agencies all over town offer activities and accommodation around Thailand.

Ko Chang Business Centre (Map; 0 3871 0145; Soi Post Office; 9am-midnight) Specialises in trips to Ko Chang and Ko Samet, but does it all.

Dangers & Annoyances

Remember sex tourism is a booming industry in Pattaya and large sections of the city are chock full of go-go bars and strip clubs. This seedier side of Pattaya is hard to avoid, especially at night, and if you are travelling with young children prepare yourself for some awkward questions.

Late-night Pattaya can get a little wild, and though it’s not necessarily dangerous, we witnessed more than one brawl between drunken Westerners. If you find yourself caught in the middle of an uncomfortable situation, walk away (or, in our case, push the button on the srng·ta·ou and get off). The police are prompt.

Sights & Activities

BEACHES

Hat Pattaya is the city’s showcase stretch of sand, sporting sunbathers, souvenir sellers, and buzzing jet skis and speedboats. The sand is reasonably clean and the water is calm. If you get bored there’s good shopping over the road.

Hat Jomtien, about 1km south of Pattaya, stretches for 6km and is quieter than its northern neighbour. It’s a better base for backpackers: you’re relatively removed from Pattaya’s sex scene but still just a short srng·ta·ou ride away from the really wild nightlife. At the northern end of the beach, Hat Dongtan is a hub for gay travellers.

Hat Naklua, a smaller beach north of Pattaya, is quiet and a good choice for families.

The islands of Ko Lan, Ko Krok and Ko Sak are around 7km offshore and have some popular beaches – especially Hat Ta Waen on Ko Lan. Boats leave Pattaya’s South Pier (Map) every two hours between 8am and 4.30pm (30B). The last boat back from Ko Lan is at 5pm. A daytrip including viewing from a glass-bottom boat costs around 150B.

WATER SPORTS

Though not home to Thailand’s best dive sites, Pattaya’s proximity to Bangkok makes it a popular spot to get some underwater action. However, overfishing and heavy boat traffic mean the sites closest to Pattaya can be barren, with poor visibility. Nearby Ko Lan, Ko Sak and Ko Krok are good for beginners, while accomplished divers may prefer the outer islands of Ko Man Wichai and Ko Rin, which have better visibility and marine life. In most places expect 3m to 9m of visibility under good conditions, or in more remote sites 5m to 12m.

Further south, the shipwrecks Petchburi Bremen, off Sattahip, and Hardeep, off Samae, have created artificial reefs. The scuttled Thai navy vessel HMS Khram sits in 30m of water off Ko Phai, and many operators offer excursions around the sunken hulk.

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PATTAYA VICE

Pattaya’s notoriety for sex tourism revolves around the agglomeration of discos, outdoor ‘beer bars’ and go-go clubs making up Pattaya’s red-light district at the southern end of the beach. Known as ‘the village’, the area attracts a large number of prostitutes, including gà·teu·i (transvestites), who pose as female hookers and ply their trade among the droves of fa·ràng (Western) sex tourists. There is also a prominent gay sex-for-sale scene in Pattaya, especially at nearby Hat Dongtan. This activity is obvious to any visitor, but less overt is the shadowy child-sex trade, although sadly it is not uncommon to see Western men walking with young Thai boys and girls. Click here for more information on stopping child-sex tourism in Thailand.

Traditionally the sex scene was focussed around Walking St, but every year a batch of new beer bars opens. A sign at the entrance to Walking St proclaims ‘International Meeting Place’, and they’re not kidding. White prostitutes come from Romania and Moldova (favourites with male Asian sex tourists), and black male prostitutes from Nigeria (primarily servicing female sex tourists from Japan) can all be had in Pattaya. Globalisation is all too evident with the growing influence of organised