For me it's Phuket, Similar thread in pattaya forum, Feel free to jump in there and back up ur second home. Please add what's what i missed

Air and climate:

Phuket

Nature and scenary:

Phuket

Beaches:

Phuket

Diving and snorkling:

Phuket

Fight Sports and Gyms:

Pattaya

Golf:

Phuket ( again i'm not sure)

shopping:

pattaya

Rent:

Pattaya

Business:

Depands

Food:

Depands (i guess pattaya)

Nightlife:

Pattaya

Girls beauty:

Phuket

proximity to bkk and elsewhere:

Pattaya

Farangs friendliness:

Phuket

Thais friendliness:

Pattaya

less Crime:

Phuket

Generation Old:

phuket

Generation Young:

Equal

Very close Phuket 9 pattaya 6. so vote goes to phuket

Nicer Hotels in Phuket - To many old sleazy one's in Pattaya.

Family friendly - Phuket

Nicer Hotels in Phuket - To many old sleazy one's in Pattaya.

Family friendly - Phuket

Phuket is still green.

the ocean...

This topic has been done to death in previous threads. It seems that the short answer is 'it depends upon your point of view and what you are looking for'. The 'pros' for one person are the 'cons' for another.

Golf: Pattaya (not that I play the silly game).

Golf: Pattaya (not that I play the silly game).

Nope - Phuket has quality golf courses and you don't have to drive for an hour to get to them.

I prefer Phuket over Pattaya because of the nice people who live here, both Thai & Farang. Whereas in Pattaya well, as the saying goes "Cheap places attract cheap people !"

we arent a bad bunch in phuket.

Generally, if you have a few more "bucks" or "quid" Phuket is a much better place. Much more beautiful, and there are all the amenities you could want. The airfares from Bangkok are damm cheap compared to Koh Samui, so it's a much better choice compared to there. But, it's a hassle to drive and even fly to so, that is the downside.

Pattaya is quickly and easily driveable from Bangkok, and that makes it attractive if you keep up a presence in Bangkok. The beaches suck. The overall "rep" of Pattaya is sh!t, but if you don't care about that...then.. who cares?

Hua Hin sucks. Pure and simple. boring, quiet, floody, expensive, bad beaches, and very old expats. Sorry all you Hua Hin fans, but the truth hurts.

For obvious reasons, I am quite happy with the position that it is a bit more difficult to get to Phuket than Pattaya (for many people). (And those same reasons apply to my being quite comfortable with the fact that Pattaya has more attraction to some tourists than Phuket.)

Plenty of Muay Thai Camps in Phuket BKKDUDE, have you been to Sinbi ?

I prefer Phuket over Pattaya because of the nice people who live here, both Thai & Farang. Whereas in Pattaya well, as the saying goes "Cheap places attract cheap people !"

Agreed.

Plus the crime reports from Pattaya feature the weirdest events like katoey's beating up clients who I don't think want their faces featured prominently in the Pattaya Mail, or johns that rob their escorts of 2000B. I have this fear that if I go to pattaya I will walk into some crime adventure and I too will be featured in the local paper and never hear the end of it from everyone. If you avoid the Bangle zone, Phuket has so many decent locals (and expats) that still have big hearts.

Edited July 19, 200719 yr by geriatrickid

I prefer Phuket over Pattaya because of the nice people who live here, both Thai & Farang. Whereas in Pattaya well, as the saying goes "Cheap places attract cheap people !"

Agreed.

Plus the crime reports from Pattaya feature the weirdest events like katoey's beating up clients who I don't think want their faces featured prominently in the Pattaya Mail, or johns that rob their escorts of 2000B. I have this fear that if I go to pattaya I will walk into some crime adventure and I too will be featured in the local paper and never hear the end of it from everyone. If you avoid the Bangle zone, Phuket has so many decent locals (and expats) that still have big hearts.

whats the bangle zone ??

Soi Bangla, centre of Patong night-life.

Should thinkit is a very easy question to answer to Quote Confucious, Phuket= Very expensive!! Wine , Women and Song Pattaya=Very Cheap !! Rum, Bum and gramaphone records Nignoy

Beaches, a majority of nice folk (I am sure there are some nice folk in Pattaya as well), and... did I mention beaches?

In the golf department I think Pattaya is better. Yes, Phuket has the awsome Blue Canyon, but also awasome prices which means ex-pats on a tight budget struggle to play regulary. In the case of Pattaya: they have much more varieties and numbers of courses at chaep prices and almost anyone on any budget can play.

With Phuket only having four or five courses, they can charge any price they want, unlike in Pattaya where the courses are competing for business against each other, thus cheaper golf.