samuibeachcomber

well i guess we see what we want to see,but if i was wanting 5 star luxury and family fun there gotta be more suitable places than pattaya surely.

I can't agree more, the promanade along Pattaya's beach road has the makings of something to be enjoyed by all - sad that it is awash with the detritus that gets washed up in Pattaya.

If you build it, they will come. As the old saying goes.

These were my first views of Pattaya, has it changed so much?? Nignoy

In 1969 my father would rent me a horse on Pattaya beach for 5 baht an hour and I'd ride it all over, alone and across the street to our little bungalow 2 blocks from the beach - at he age of 8 .

Imagine doing that now.

Right. I cannot understand this fixation with that place. I often find that many say they 'go to Thailand' when in fact they just go to Pattaya. For the obvious.

They also fit a particular profile.

the fixation for the place is as you say,possible not another place quite like it in the world.its a sex city pure and simple and thats what people go there for.i really like the place,lived there for 6 months but had enough after that,but still enjoy a re visit.i believe it grew from a fishing village and burgeoned into what it is today from the vietman war days as a place for the GI's to have Rand R.Personally i hope it stays the way it is and for what it is intended..........an ATM machine that supports Isaan.

Hmmm just tell them you are single, mate told a english bird customs officer and she just laffed. Off he went. Must admit bit odd before you go, but oh well.

Actually had my first secondary check when I came back to yankland - only assumption, I was flagged because of my trip to Cambodia. Can't see it was thailand? Prob should of asked - actually felt sorry for the agent, bags packed to brim - prob shaking his head why did he choose him? Actually did a pretty shi**y job if the truth be told. Even had a look at my piccies on my notebook, but think he got bored after rummaging through 1000 Angkor Wat piccies. Only assumption - looking for pedo(s).

yes i guess so and if they found anything undesirable they'd still let you on the flight but inform thai immigration who would pick you up quick smart.cant blame them doing it,a sign of the times we live in.when returning to OZ after going through immigration and taking bags to customs check its then you see officers roaming all over the place asking questions of where have you come from what are you doing there etc etc,just pays to be polite and cooperative..........just big brother,1984 is now here.

just more police state tactics,cant see the point of asking those kind of questions,different upon arrival in BKK,then those type of questions would be more valid,and anyway what would you reply to the UK cops,yes officer am going on a sh-gging holiday!

Tao people are generally to busy doing nothing or moaning that they are to busy with there 3hr a day work ethic or having fun.Its a small island big on attitude has great nightlife that includes sunrise style opening hours.Has very few girlie bars and hence very few sexpats.Lots of Swedish chicks in season and is a million miles away from samui.

Tao has some awesome bays and lots of eagles, clear blue water most of the year resident sharks in some bays and bigger boys further out at Chumporn pinnacles.

Interestingly Tao has its own unique species of squirrel found no where else,Unfortunately no one has told the workers /builders that enjoy there taste and use there tails as keyrings.

Island life can be a bit groundhog day but who cares if everyday is on the rock.

first interesting reply from someone who lives on the island.thanks.so are most non thais there in diving industry/bar/restuarant owners are there many retired farang there who are not related to these businesses?so would guess most people visiting on holiday are there for the diving and or couples.somewhere someone said or thought that koh tao was very busy right now,is that the case?cos right now samui is very quiet.

pattaya,pilchard ,is a one off and long may it remain so,i like the place but would n't wish it on samui..............IMO samui just needs to be cleaned up.people always have this image when coming to an island as being idyllic,and are often disappointed................thailand is perceived to be a cheap destination and often is the case that it is not.

well i guess the proof of the pudding will be dec.25-jan.1 so everyone will have to wait and see.I hope for all the local thai workers in hotels,resorts,bars,the massage ladies,the bar girls etc.that it will indeed be a good time.no one likes to see a tourist destination devoid of tourists.

You could get a Taxi, pay between B1000 & B1200 then put the toll on top, be driven to the Airport with a maniac in 45minutes. Your choice I'll take Bells.

I can get a brand new car driven carefully by the owner for only 800 baht plus 60 for tolls. 1000 including tolls on the way back to Pattaya. I've even had to ask some drivers to please speed up!

I pay for 2 if I take the bus, so it's no longer really worth it to take the bus to save only 460 considering I have to coordinate with the bus timetable and then wait at the bus station, and then also wait longer for my flight.

sure but for the single traveller good value,have used them many times great service and pleasant staff,good to see so many positive replies.

marklamai,i do agree with what you say and i dont see it as samui bashing.what can be done,i dont know.have only been here 2 years so i dont have the history to know what it may have been like say 10-15 years ago.but i do know that the building is relentless and not very good,that the beaches are only average.i come from australia where the beaches there leave thailand for dead.the unending piles of rubbish everywhere thats sore to the eye.the terrible state of the roads.i dont see samui as necessarily expensive,food and drink etc. although compared to pattaya it certainly is.land and hence price of property is certainly over valued and not value for money.

the only thing that could make the people that run samui change are the big owners of tourist developments like hyatt,conrad hilton etc who poor money into samui and will expect the returns.how they get those returns in the current climate is anyone's guess.has to be a new airport and direct charter flights for them to recoup there investments.so money has to be spent on infrastructure like rubbish collection and disposal,water,drainage,roads etc.

when i travelled to phuket and krabi i noticed a huge difference in all the above mentioned infrastucture and it was a pleasure to be in both places.they were clean.

i stay here on samui cos inspite of all that we have said about the place i enjoy living here..........i enjoy the island lifestyle.

Well I'm coming to BKK from Oz - my third trip this year. Tourism may be down but nothing is going to stop us. BUT it is osting us a lot more to do it so we will spend less and less time. In fact although there are discounts to be had they are no greater than last year but the $A is now worth about 22BHT compared with this time last year when we were getting 31BHT

still worth coming even at 22 bht to the dollar,enjoy pattaya!!!!!!!!

I agree and next time i take the lomprayah cat. to chumpon i will drop off and take a look.I think its the old story of not visiting places in your own backyard.My point was that no one actually replied to the post and said what koh tao was like to live on.

Phuket is not packed and feeling the same pain as everywhere else in thailand .

did n't say phuket was packed,just that Kata beach was.Would be interested though to find out how patong was doing.Simon43 said his place was booked up for the next 2 weeks.

never ceases to amaze me how a simple topic question can degenerate into defenses of where one lives,..............a simple answer to the question would be to tell us all what it is like.There, end of story but everyone happy!

I like the lifestyle here,very easy going,the weather for me is perfect,and above all i like the thais cos they always say hello and smile and that makes me feel good,cost of living too is important,i wanted somewhere cheaper than the westernised counties,and thais dont worry about tomorrow and i see them helping each other out all the time,not selfish like the west..............these points are just generalised,its just an overall feeling about the place and i like it all very much.

i think the 500baht in soi green mango and soi reggae refers to the ladies.............short time or all night?

spoke to mate today who has just returned from phuket,stayed at kata beach for a sailing regatta,said the place was packed...............did n't go to patong so could n't say if that place was busy too.I think all this is sad for Samui.As everyone has said its so much cheaper to get to places like phuket and krabi,and particularly in phuket the place has a lot more to offer in way of tourist attractions,events etc,plus their beaches are far superior and the infrastructure better too.I really think those that run the island(samui)will have to wake up to the obvious that samui will not recover unless some serious money is spent on infrastructure,and air travel is made cheaper too.

good question,are they all divers going to koh tao or geniune holiday makers?good to know someone's busy though.Went into chaweng last night,first time for a long time and it was dead,no traffic along beach road,very depressing and i could get the ense that the locals are p-ssed off too.Soi grenn mango looked like a war zone with redevelopment going on and a couple or more bar closures too...............just no customers,hope by next week it picks up a bit.

i called easyway and they said they dont do kota bharu.heberts no. is0818933859,hope this helps.

well from a post of "did anyone here about shooting at supersub lamai" to which i dont think anyone has heard,its turned into a "i hate samui" discussion................lets face it jasreeve17 just does n't like it here and he's determined to make his point....................no win argument,each to their own!

I wouldn't say you're out of line with your questions....

have only now read this post and thought it was great,reminded me of things i had forgotten about when first arriving here,reading it now is like a refresher course,thanks very much.

thanks boater,how time marches on.back to 2008 can you recommend a small guest house with a/c close to the bars and beach?

another question re multi entry non 0.for example if during the 1st 90day stamp,say i wanted to do a trip to cambodia when returning would that shorten those 1 st 90days,or would i need to get a re entry stamp at immigration to keep the 1st 90 days intact?am currently on samui and have a retirement visa due to expire jan 2009,i forgot to season the 800,000 baht 3 months before expiry,hence the interest in the multi entry non o.

thanks ubonjoe and kennkate for reply.

A multiple entry is best and will work out to about the same cost. Plus no trips to immigration and only 1 quick border run.

why no trips to immigration on a multi entry tourist visa?

Because he is not getting a tourist visa.

can you explain please how a multi entry non o works and what are the qualifications?

A multiple entry is best and will work out to about the same cost. Plus no trips to immigration and only 1 quick border run.

why no trips to immigration on a multi entry tourist visa?