13 years since my last visit

[Harrisfan]

Most nightlife areas lose appeal. You get older. Trends change. My idea of nightlife is live music or night market.

[Maxbkkcm]

11 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

The important thing to consider is that the whole world has changed so dramatically in the last decade. Thailand has changed a lot in the last 10 years, if you're a single man there's far less to work with than there used to be. In the bars and the massage shops the women are 15 kilos heavier and 20 years older than they used to be. And in this day and age the really hot young ones have too many options, and there are plenty of desperados with money, that are offering them way too much cash. 

 

Specifically Phuket, and Samui are very very pale shadows of their former selves. The nightlife is a mere fraction of what it used to be, however if you're patient and you're a good prospector there is some talent to be found, though in my opinion that doesn't really apply to Samui or Phuket anymore, they're both pretty much wastelands as far as talent goes. Pattaya still has some talent, and so does Bangkok. You can find a cute girl here and there in Hua Hin, but nothing like in the past. 

 

Otherwise Thailand's still pretty great, it's just a bit more expensive than it used to be, but it's still a great place to spend time. 

How do you explain that the world changed radically like that? What are the causes in your opinion? 

[Maxbkkcm]

14 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

The important thing to consider is that the whole world has changed so dramatically in the last decade. Thailand has changed a lot in the last 10 years, if you're a single man there's far less to work with than there used to be. In the bars and the massage shops the women are 15 kilos heavier and 20 years older than they used to be. And in this day and age the really hot young ones have too many options, and there are plenty of desperados with money, that are offering them way too much cash. 

 

Specifically Phuket, and Samui are very very pale shadows of their former selves. The nightlife is a mere fraction of what it used to be, however if you're patient and you're a good prospector there is some talent to be found, though in my opinion that doesn't really apply to Samui or Phuket anymore, they're both pretty much wastelands as far as talent goes. Pattaya still has some talent, and so does Bangkok. You can find a cute girl here and there in Hua Hin, but nothing like in the past. 

 

Otherwise Thailand's still pretty great, it's just a bit more expensive than it used to be, but it's still a great place to spend time. 

You mean you cannot date a girl for free? Even a chubby one? 

[jimn]

18 hours ago, connda said:

Me an Pattaya.  Visited in 1986. Came back in 2007.  Spent one night and left. Never been back.

Don't worry, no one missed you.

[jimn]

11 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

All points accurate except walking street, very busy with lots of new agogos and nightclubs, maybe all premises that were closed for years have opened

Although there are many new gogo's and Indian clubs with fantastic LED frontage. Walking Street has lost its soul. I live here and went there just before Christmas, not now going again. I prefer the Soi Baukau and LK area and also now Jomtien.

[scubascuba3]

44 minutes ago, jimn said:

Although there are many new gogo's and Indian clubs with fantastic LED frontage. Walking Street has lost its soul. I live here and went there just before Christmas, not now going again. I prefer the Soi Baukau and LK area and also now Jomtien.

Go to to the Windmills you'll find some soul

[kwaiYai]

When I first went to Pattaya 90% of the girls were very slim but shapely and beautiful. I’d only have to walk around the corner to 7/11 and I’d see half a dozen absolutely stunning, gorgeous girls. But gradually over the years they have got fatter, and beautiful girls new quite rare. 
That’s the most noticeable and sad change to me. 
There are others : the once beautiful, natural and peaceful beaches on the Navy bases at Bang Sare and Sattahip have been tragically ruined by mass tourism of extremely loud and obnoxious people. Miles of noisy beaches in Pattaya and Jomtien but they had to ruin these once pristine beaches and make them the same. 

[spidermike007]

There seem to be a lot of mentions of the fact that the women are not as beautiful as they used to be, the reality is that women have gotten bigger and they have gotten older when it comes to the massage parlors and the bars. But there are still a ridiculous number of super fine women in Thailand. The big difference is that nowadays the 9's that we used to pick up in the bars are working as escorts making 20,000 to 70,000 baht for a few hours of their time, when they used to earn 1,500 baht for an evening. They now have infinitely more options if they're young and super fine than they used to have, and they're no longer selling themselves for paltry amounts of money. 

 

In general there are more wealthy guys out there and I've talked to guys who travel the world and are accustomed to spending $2,000 every time they hire an escorts, whether it's New York, Paris, London or Bangkok. 

 

So, things have changed alot. For us, and for the really fine gals. 

[kwaiYai]

What I forgot to say in my post above was my first visit to Pattaya was a holiday in 1997. I returned frequently and then lived there from 2004 for about 14 years. 
I particularly remember a visit in November 2001 when there were very few tourists and the girls were quite desperate. The go-go bars in Walking Street would be empty at times or just a few punters. The girls were extremely ‘friendly’, would want to stay all night and ‘go the extra mile’ to ensure satisfaction and that I’d go back for more. Their cunning tactics certainly worked and I went back for a month several times a year. (After 11 flights Thai Airways gave me a free one, plus upgrade to Business)

I recall walking down Soi 7 which was lined deeply with girls. I was the only foreigner there l, and as I continued down the street a roar went up of the girls shouts ‘Whoaaaaa’, this followed me all the way down the street accompanied by the ‘sexy man’ shouts and girls grabbing me and trying to drag me in. 
Everything was very cheap and with the high exchange rates I needn’t consider the price, and had the most wonderful times. 
Those were the days!

[Colabamumbai]

22 hours ago, lungbing said:

I've just returned from a week's holiday in Pattaya.  It was my first visit in 13 years.
And boy has it changed!  Here are some observations in no particular order.

 

1.  Far, far less bars. Up on my old stomping ground on Second Rd about soi 2-4 the
bars are not only closed, but gone and built over.  That includes the former Carlton Hotel
at the top of soi 4 where I used to stay.  Now they're just anonymous offices.
Most bars along Beach Rd gone.

 

2.  Far, far more massage parlours.  Not the soapy sort, the open to the street ones.
    All appeared to be doing no business at all.

 

3.  Far, far more Indian restaurants, all appearing empty.  
    13 years ago you'd have been hard pressed to find one.

 

4   Far more families.

 

5.  Far more Russians.

 

6.  Far, far more Indian people, including a large proportion of the shop owners.
   
7.  Ganja shops.  They just didn't exist 13 years ago.  

 

8.  Walking Street and soi 8 now mere shadows of their former selves.

 

9.  A much cleaner beach.

 

10.  Ladies of the night standing on their own patch all along the Beach Rd were from every nationality   under the sun.  I've never seen African women there before.

 

11.  Far less ladymen on Beach Rd.

 

12.  Speedboats getting far too close to the beach and swimmers.

 

I can recommend the buffet breakfast at the LK Empress Hotel.  350 baht per person and very good it is too.  Fill up there and you won't need lunch.

 

Finally, can any tell me what is the sailing ship in the bay down towards Nahklua?  I was half excpecting  Captain Jack Sparrow to appear.

 

 

Was a place in the 70s. Now a dump. 

[jts-khorat]

19 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

Well this stuff never made any sense to begin with, how do you explain around that same time, everyone suddenly owned a condo, had a brand new car, the latest iphone, was always going out and having fun, while they earned way less than me.

I never understood how these money printers kept going for so long, then they squeezed the easy credit and all people stuck repaying. Hence you see them smile less / outside too. As of no new suckers, the economy then eventually tanks.

Is like all these grab drivers with new cars on a 10-20 year payment plan while they drive like a taxi AKA the car won't even last 5 years.

 

It is a vicious cycle, and for those that are here longer, it has been seen before.

 

The early 2010s-2020s where similar to the mid-1990s, where everybody was just surfing an endless wave of credit in the drive to become rich. Then 1997 happened.

 

I think Covid marked the end of the last cycle, and things are sorting itself out naturally right now. I know a lot of Thais who have lost everything: house, farmland, small business, etc.

 

In the end, there are always those profiting from this down-event, buying things for Satang on the Baht, thereby fueling the next bubble cycle. It will be interesting to see on which fantasy that one will be based.

[NoshowJones]

On 3/26/2025 at 10:54 PM, rattlesnake said:

 

Covid was definitely a pivotal event. Thailand as a whole still hasn't recovered from it.

That's true, there used to be four buses every day passing my village/small town to the city, about 50 Ks, before the Chinese Virus, now there is only one.

[NoshowJones]

20 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

That is simply not true, it applies to to a lesser extent on Phuket and Samui and areas where the locals are jaded and deal with a lot of butthead foreigners (Pattaya), but for the most part I find the Thai people as delightful as ever, they're still very light-hearted, it's very easy to get them to smile and laugh, and they're great fun. 

 

People, please don't listen to this nonsense. The other aspect of this is that the Thai people are fairly intuitive so what you get back is often times a reflection of what you bring to the table. If you're grouchy and ornery and overly serious, they're not going to respond to you. But if you're lighthearted with a nice smile, kind-hearted and respectful, you get all of that back in abundance. Most Thai people are quite lovely. And I love to be around them, and I love it here. 

I agree with everything you have written here Mike, it's just a great pity about their road behaviour though.

[Maxbkkcm]

22 hours ago, Colabamumbai said:

Was a place in the 70s. Now a dump. 

what make it a dump now?

[EVENKEEL]

On 3/26/2025 at 10:13 AM, connda said:

Me an Pattaya.  Visited in 1986. Came back in 2007.  Spent one night and left. Never been back.

Thank you for sharing. 

[balo]

I hate the ganja shops, just too many of them.  And Indian food everywhere.  

[jacko45k]

13 hours ago, Maxbkkcm said:

what make it a dump now?

All those buildings from back then are 50 years older, like the girls!

[norsurin]

About 13 years since i go to Pattaya.I dont like that place.I prefer Bangkok and hua-hin.

Im NOT A SEXY HANDSOME GUY anymore.

[scubascuba3]

1 hour ago, balo said:

I hate the ganja shops, just too many of them.  And Indian food everywhere.  

they've got to close eventually 

[SAFETY FIRST]

On 3/26/2025 at 8:41 PM, lungbing said:

I've just returned from a week's holiday in Pattaya.  It was my first visit in 13 years.
And boy has it changed!  Here are some observations in no particular order.

 

1.  Far, far less bars. Up on my old stomping ground on Second Rd about soi 2-4 the
bars are not only closed, but gone and built over.  That includes the former Carlton Hotel
at the top of soi 4 where I used to stay.  Now they're just anonymous offices.
Most bars along Beach Rd gone.

 

2.  Far, far more massage parlours.  Not the soapy sort, the open to the street ones.
    All appeared to be doing no business at all.

 

3.  Far, far more Indian restaurants, all appearing empty.  
    13 years ago you'd have been hard pressed to find one.

 

4   Far more families.

 

5.  Far more Russians.

 

6.  Far, far more Indian people, including a large proportion of the shop owners.
   
7.  Ganja shops.  They just didn't exist 13 years ago.  

 

8.  Walking Street and soi 8 now mere shadows of their former selves.

 

9.  A much cleaner beach.

 

10.  Ladies of the night standing on their own patch all along the Beach Rd were from every nationality   under the sun.  I've never seen African women there before.

 

11.  Far less ladymen on Beach Rd.

 

12.  Speedboats getting far too close to the beach and swimmers.

 

I can recommend the buffet breakfast at the LK Empress Hotel.  350 baht per person and very good it is too.  Fill up there and you won't need lunch.

 

Finally, can any tell me what is the sailing ship in the bay down towards Nahklua?  I was half excpecting  Captain Jack Sparrow to appear.

 

 

13. Far far more foreigners arriving with mental health issues. 

 

[jacko45k]

22 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

they've got to close eventually 

Have you seen much evidence of that yet......?

I have been expecting it, but it doesn't seem to be happening yet. Pattaya seems to support many businesses that on the surface appear to be doing very little. 

[scubascuba3]

6 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Have you seen much evidence of that yet......?

I have been expecting it, but it doesn't seem to be happening yet. Pattaya seems to support many businesses that on the surface appear to be doing very little. 

It's a kind of relay going on, one owner passes the baton to the next, money runs out, repeat