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General information about Pattaya
Pattaya is a popular, world–famous tourist resort city. Located on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand, 160 kilometers southeast of Bangkok, in the province of Chonburi in the so-called Industrial Zone of the east coast Thailand (Pattaya on the map of Thailand).
Pronunciation of the name: The name of the city is also pronounced Pattaya, Phatthaya, Pattaya, Pattaya with emphasis on both the second syllable and the last letter. In dictionaries, as well as by local residents, stress is placed only on the last letter.
Pattaya is famous for its go-go bars, night discos, adult shows, transvestite shows, street prostitution. But, along with these vicious adult entertainment, Pattaya has a lot of entertainment for the whole family, sports and water attractions, beaches, shopping malls, local markets, restaurants. Near the city there is a beautiful orchid park in the botanical garden, crocodile and snake farms, temples, holy places and many more interesting and beautiful places. Pattaya has all the possible entertainment that a tourist can wish for. Travel agencies organize diving, fishing, bungee jumping, island hopping, yachting and much more for you. And anyway, in terms of the variety of excursions from Pattaya, hardly any other Thailand resort. From here you can go on an excursion not only to any corner of Thailand, but also to neighboring countries.
We can safely say that this is one of the most democratic resorts in the world. It is suitable for tourists of any gender, age and nationality, and with any wallet. Any tourist will feel "at ease" here, whether he is elderly or very young. Pattaya is the cheapest among the beach resorts in Thailand.
Pattaya is not very suitable for a purely beach holiday. Radical beach lovers believe that the beaches of Pattaya cannot be called beaches in any way, although the beaches here are quite good for the average taste. The main city beach stretches along the city limits, and in fact is far from being ideal and clean, but the beaches in the north (Naklua district) and south (Jomtien beach) quite clean and cozy.
There are a little more than 104,000 officially registered residents in the city (2010), while the real number of residents always exceeds 500,000 people due to tourists constantly staying there. Every year, Pattaya is visited by about six million tourists, a huge part of whom are Russian tourists, which is why locals and foreigners began to call the city "Pattaya city".
Weather, tourist seasons in Pattaya
Pattaya's climate is tropical, hot all year round. Pattaya is located in a bay, naturally protected from hurricanes and strong winds. The sea here is calm all year round, almost without waves.
There are three seasons: rainy season - from May to October; dry season - from November to February; hot season - from March to May.
The ideal time and peak of the tourist season is considered to be the dry season from November to February, when we have winter. At this time, the amount of precipitation is low, and the temperature, although high, is easily tolerated.
However, it is possible and necessary to visit Pattaya at any time of the year. There are no contraindications to visit her at one time or another. Here you can absolutely always have a great rest and therefore the flow of tourists never runs out.
In the rainy season - from May to October, the rains here, although they are frequent and very abundant, but they are short-lived and rather serve as relief from the heat. Sometimes it may not rain even in this rainy season for several days or even weeks. The sky is almost always clear, but even if it is covered with clouds, you can sunbathe perfectly. At this time (especially from May to July), most of the exotic fruits that cannot be tasted at other times of the year. For many independent tourists, this time is the most favorite time to visit Thailand.
In the hot season - from March to May, it is really very hot. The sun shines mercilessly almost at the zenith, but the air conditioners that are in hotels, in every store or shopping center save from the heat. But in the evening (after 18 hours), when dusk falls, the long-awaited coolness comes.
Seasons in Pattaya by month, when is the best time to go
| Jan | Feb | March | Apr | May | June | July | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
* the best time to visit;
acceptable time to visit;
not recommended time to visit
Current weather in Pattaya and forecast for the near future:
Time in Pattaya
The time difference between Pattaya and Moscow is +4 hours in winter and summer.
| Москва: +4 | Самара: +3 |
| Казань: +4 | Нижний Новгород: +4 |
| Екатеринбург: +2 | Новосибирск: 0 |
| Иркутск: -1 | Владивосток: -3 |
Shopping
This is perhaps one of the most enjoyable pastimes for women in Pattaya. You can buy everything in Pattaya and it's pretty inexpensive. Another question is where exactly? The most popular shopping malls are "Lotus", "Tops", "Big C", "Royal Garden Plaza", "Central Festival Pattaya", "Friendship supermarket", "Mike Shopping Mall", "Outlet Mall", "Carrefour". Here you will find a large assortment of clothes, shoes, various household goods, perfumes and cosmetics, children's goods, etc. branded and locally produced of good quality.
In outdoor pavilions located everywhere on the streets and in local markets, they sell everything from clothes to souvenirs. The prices are low, but the quality sometimes leaves much to be desired.
Among the specialized souvenir shops, I would like to especially mention "Lukdod" and "Otop" - these are wholesale souvenir shops. It is believed that the prices here are much lower than in stores, the assortment is larger, the time to purchase gifts is minimal. Haggling here, unlike other stores, is not accepted, so prices are fixed. You just walk around the supermarket and put your purchases in the basket, and pay at the checkout. To be honest, the prices in these stores are not quite minimal (if you search well and bargain for a long time, then you can buy cheaper on the streets), but here you will find almost the entire range of popular consumer souvenirs and all in one place.
For those who are interested in electronics, there is a direct road to the specialized store "Tuk com", where there is a huge selection of computer equipment, accessories for it, cell phones, photo and video equipment and much more. However, to be honest again, the prices for most goods here are higher than in Russian stores.
And once again the main advice: in Thailand, it is customary to bargain on the street, in markets and even in some stores, and then, as someone joked once, instead of one unnecessary thing, you can buy two :-).