dcfc2007

i dont even think sex tourism comes into the debate as to why tourism in the los is down, i go to pattaya every year with my friends, and we go to walking street the odd time to go to the lobster pot, apart from that we are almost oblivious to the sex trade and im sure many other people are the same.

when a thai person asks me where im from and i say ireland im usually greeted with "huuuuhhhhhhh, oooooo, icalend" so infuriating they even registered me in bangkok pattaya hospital as being from iceland which cuase a furore with my insurance company.

nothing against iceland btw.

hi guys, looking to get a tattoo whilst in pattaya, where is the cleanest and safest place to go and could anyone translate FREEDOM into thai.

do any bars in pattaya show gaelic or hurling?

i am flying out to thailand on the 25th of june and im flying with thai air, i was hoping to change my flights to maybe someday next week.

has anyone ever done this before?

can it be done?

how much does it cost?

sadly for all parties i see this marriage ending very ugly, there wasnt 1 point in the film at which i seen mee and the father having a loving embrace.

IMO it is not only Patts , but many Tourist Destinations are 'dead' at this time. But, things seem to be back on the way up in a lot of places & with all the price rises going on in Thailand when neighbouring Countries are lowering them to encourage more visitors it may take a big re-think to get back on track..

We still go back to Patts a few months every year , but, we have visited a few other destinations lately that make us think about value for our $$

Fingers crossed the season starts up healthy.

not all, belfast city is thronged with tourists at the minute.

why do some people have such a disgusting one dimensional view of thai people.

i cant believe people are complaining about 40bht per hour parking fees for crying out loud its nearly £2 an hour here in belfast or 3 euro in dublin.

as long as the likes of bars like sheannigans and molly malones stay ill be ok, i have never been to a beer bar or go-go bar and i dont intend to so wether they are there or not it means little to me. but there would be a sinister knock on effect if these bars were to be eradicated many of the poor bar workers would probably be forced out on to the streets were they would be the subject of pimps and gangs. cinemas and bowling alleys in and around the likes of pattaya area would see a drastic reduction in numbers and would be forced to close.

the op is clearly in love with himself. if he was a mars bar i think he would eat himself.

i have never ever been short changed while in the los, i geniuenly feel sorry for those who have been purposely short changed/robbed.

me and my friends are nearly always polite and give a reasonable tip i think this is why it has never happened to us, we give the lady who runs a street kitchen in central pattaya a 300bht tip because the food and drinks ( milkshakes ) were delicious and the service was brilliant considering she was there on her own, she was so delighted going round us ( must of been 10 or 11 of us ) giving us all a very respectful wai.

i go to thailand each july for a full month and i usually bring around 25,000bht with me.

my hotel works out at 13,000bht for the month but i pay for this seperate from my 25,000bht.

i dont drink that much, i dont smoke and i dont go to go-go or beer bars but i do go to molly malones or shennaigans the odd time maybe 1ce or 2ce a week. am not to keen on thai food so i would eat out quite alot at the likes of kfc, carrefour food court and the odd restraunt or local bar.

i would go to the cinema out there quite regurlarly maybe 10 times in the month and i go to pattaya park as well. so for me 25,000bht is more than enough to do all this including goin on day trips to koh larn and other places and bringing home souvenirs and not living like a pauper.

i got picked at my school to get the chance to volunteer at the fr.ray foundation in july 2007 loved it so much went back out the following july and i am going back out this july as well, although im only 19 im looking at ways to try and reloacte myself to thailand.

its a toughy.

qatar - my first trip to thailand was with qatar airways and a good return trip it was. the food was excellent 2 meals per each leg of the journey and the odd snack and drink which i thought was good for economy. the inflight entertainment was brilliant with up to date films and t.v programmes like friends and family guy, the cabin crew were excellent and everything was done with a smile. the only bad thing was the stopover in doha, i like getting off a plane at where im supposed to be not half way there

e.v.a - their planes were very spacious and the inflight entertainment was brilliant especially the documentaries and films. the cabin crew were the best on any airline i have ever flew with. but the food was bog standard and i had to wait 6hrs inbetween each meal without a snack which i thought was rough.

i would say e.v.a is the best.

really nervous about flying with thai airways with all the bad comments i have seen on here about them.

I flew EVA once but in Elite. Modern cabins with ptv in economy. I'd fly them in preference to Thai if they went to Sydney. If you can change to the day flight, it might be on an a340 which does have a modern cabin. Gets in really early though.

e.v.a's inflight entertainment was great, but for me no company can match up to the standards of qatar airways although i prefer direct flights they were a brilliant company to fly with.

I flew EVA once but in Elite. Modern cabins with ptv in economy. I'd fly them in preference to Thai if they went to Sydney. If you can change to the day flight, it might be on an a340 which does have a modern cabin. Gets in really early though.

i thought e.v.a had great inflight entertainment but the food wasnt great we had to wait at least 6hrs in between meals, qatar airways now thats an airline.

thailand is a beautiful country. it has beautiful food, beautiful scenery, beautiful architecture, beautiful sights and it is an assault on the senses, for me it was a massive culture shock. but it is not unlike any other country it has its problems especially to do with politics and the economy and coming from the north of ireland i know this all to well. getting away to thailand is a real godsend for me.

leave lhr on 25th of june at 21:05 bst. and i get in to bangkok at 15:20 thai time.

i cant really complain though seeing i got it at 475 return, relatively unheard of for thai airways.

have you ever flew with eva air or qatar air?

aw jesus what am i going to do for 12 hours, is it any wonder they are going bust its now 2009 and theyre long haul planes dont even have individual screens.

im going on a 747 from london heathrow to bangkok direct, what is the odds of there be individual screens, i thought they were near enough complusory for all long haul flights.

If you mean their awards from Skytrax etc, no, but they're ok if you plan well and avoid their old cabins. In economy, you may get a 747 with no inflight entertainment screen, but the also have some A340s on the route at the moment. They do have more room than BA though and are generous with drink..

They are part of Star Alliance, so it's easy to accrue miles. If ff miles don't matter to you, I would say EVA were the better airline on LHR-BKK direct. I've never had anything happen that would put me off them (other than an unexpected night in Pakistan in 1985..).

im flying on a 747, although it says on their website that all theyre long haul flights have in-flight entertainment systems

are they as good as theyre reputation?

i am will be in thailand for 38 days, being from ireland i qualify for the 30 day visa on arrival, i have been told that if you can prove you are leaving thailand within 45 days of arrival you will be given an extra 15 day stamp, is this true?

1) sort out the visa system and make sure there is a clear and coherent set of guidelines

2) comabat sex tourism

3) improve health and saftey particurlarly on roads

4) limit the urban sprawl and perhaps have nice parks in city areas

5) sort out the government and politics of thailand once and for all