Sports, Shopping & Sight-Seeing Are Only the Beginning

When you’re done diving, the day is only just beginning in Pattaya. Neon-lit streets await you with nightlife famous around the world for four decades. Go-go bars, multiplex cinema, live music houses, late-night street markets, discos, open air restaurants, dinner cruise boats and bowling alleys are just some of the attractions that fuel “ Fun Town.”

But what many don’t realize is that there’s more to Pattaya than just what happens after dark. Golfers call the area paradise, with 28 internationally PGA-rated golf courses within an hour’s drive. It’s also a haven for watersports lovers, with jet-skiing, surfing, windsurfing, parasailing and, of course, scuba diving. There’s bungee jumping, go-kart racing, lawn and 10-pin bowling, world famous traditional Thai massage and day spas, a full-scale amusement park, lush tropical gardens, a walk-through aquarium and a number of wild animal parks. If you can think of it, you can probably do it in or around Pattaya.

I Love the Nightlife, I Gotta Boogie . . .

Pattaya’s nightlife is what put the city on the map. And while the city is continually adding family-friendly attractions to enjoy by day, millions of visitors a year flock to Pattaya’s entertainment districts for a rollicking night out.

The heart and soul of Pattaya’s nightlife district is Walking Street, located at the south end of Beach Road. Closed to traffic from 7 p.m. to 2 a.m., this wide avenue paved with decorative brick offers just about anything you might want from a night on the town.

You can dance the night away at your choice of four no cover-charge discotheques or draft beer for about $1 at Walking Street’s many go-go bars. Do some shopping and have an Italian-style gelato or have a two-hour traditional Thai massage for $15. Or maybe enjoy a Thai meal for two at an open-air restaurant for $4 or take in a concert at one of several quality live music houses for only the price of drinks.

Nightlife in Pattaya doesn’t exclusively center around its many watering holes, however. The city has two multiplex cinemas showing the latest Hollywood and Thai movies, many of the latter with English subtitles. You can try your hand at two different indoor shooting ranges, throw strikes at an all-night bowling alley or take in one of Pattaya’s world famous cabaret shows. Or for those looking for an even quieter outing, you can take a moonlit stroll along a well-lit path running alongside the beach.

The Sporting Life

While the night owls may not believe it, many people come and enjoy Pattaya without ever seeing the lights of Walking Street. For them, Pattaya is about sports and, in particular, golf.

Golf in Pattaya can totally spoil you. You can play a different course every day for two weeks and still not play all the international standard courses within an hour’s drive of town. Many of Pattaya's courses are country clubs designed by such names as Nicklaus, Faldo, Thompson, Wolderidge, Dye and Trent Jones. Expect manicured greens, raked traps and real live caddies. Courses in the Kingdom, especially on weekdays, tend to be much less crowded that what one sees in the West and greens fees for world-class courses – which include cart and caddy -- cost less than you’d pay at a humble municipal course in the U.S. or U.K.

Golf not your thing? Well, Pattaya probably has what you’re looking for. How about water skiing, paintball, Thai boxing, yachting, bowling, bungee jumping, jet skiing, parasailing, darts, sky-diving, swimming, shooting, trekking, fishing, billiards, snooker, shuffle board, softball, badminton, go kart racing, tennis, cycling, motorcycle racing, polo, squash, football, or wind surfing? There are clubs, organized leagues or venues available for all of these. And, again, the prices are unbelievable. Here’s a few examples:

• Laem Chabang International Country Club – Designed by Jack Nicklaus, this course is the No. 1 rated course in Thailand and one of the finest in all of Asia. Greens fees? $21.
• Full day deep sea fishing charter with all the equipment, bait and supplies, plus two meals -- $25
• Pattaya Water & Amusement Park – All day pass: $2.50
• Lakeland Water Cable Ski -- Cable ski around an enormous freshwater lake for $7.50 for about 2 hours.

Things to Do, Places to See . . .

You don’t have to work up a sweat to have a great time in Pattaya, however. There a more attractions and activities than you can tackle in a year here. Some examples:

• Nong Nooch Village of Gardens, Orchids and Elephants --One of Pattaya's most outstanding tourist attractions. In addition to gardens featuring orchids and many tropical plants and snakes, the park features monkeys climbing trees to harvest coconuts, an outdoor elephant show, an indoor cultural show which includes numerous folk dances, a war-like re-enactment of wars fought on elephant back, traditional ceremonies, and Thai boxing.
• Khao Kheow Open Zoo -- About 30 kilometers from Pattaya, Khao Kheow Open Zoo is a huge zoo with animals in a natural setting, including bears, elephants, buffalo, snakes, monkeys, deer and many other interesting wild animals free to roam.
• Pattaya Elephant Village -- Elephants display their traditional working skills in logging and forestry work, as well as elephants playing football, participating in a parade, and reenactment of elephants in wartime.
• Million Years Stone & Crocodile Farm -- Featuring a bonsai garden with rock formations from ancient times, the park offers a zoo and crocodile breeding, with more than 1,000 crocodiles "in residence" at any time.
• Bottle Museum --Features famous architecture of the world as well as boats finely crafted in miniature in glass bottles by a Dutch craftsman, Mr. Pieter, which are on display.
• Wat Yan Sangwararam --A large temple complex under the patronage of the King, the temple features modern Thai architecture combined with a truly rural, relaxed setting. Courses in meditation are offered daily for laymen.
• Buddha Mountain --An immense gold outline of an immense Buddha image is on view as part of a small park. From the roadside and from the park, a visitor may view the huge outline of Buddha in the scarred rock face of a mountainside not far from Wat Yan Sangwararam is known as Khao Chee Chan.
• Panarak Park -- A well stocked fishing pond with fishing gear available for use by visitors is found at Panarak Park on the road leading to Siam Country Club.