Any first hand experience of having eyes tested and reading glasses ordered in Pattaya? Is there a difference in quality and cost having it done in pattaya vs. in the USA. 

 

And, any recommendations of a good place in Pattaya or Rayong area for an optometrist. 

Not for Pattaya especially but Thailand overall. I highly recommend to visit a hospital and get the eyes tested by a professional. My experiences with the shops selling glasses have not been

very convincing. Let a doctor give you a prescription and order the glasses outside the hospital.

5 minutes ago, msbkk said:

Not for Pattaya especially but Thailand overall. I highly recommend to visit a hospital and get the eyes tested by a professional. My experiences with the shops selling glasses have not been

very convincing. Let a doctor give you a prescription and order the glasses outside the hospital.

Sounds like solid advice. 

Top Charoen in Lotus Banchang. My Wife and daughter have both been tested and prescriped glasses which have proven to be accurate in improving their eye sight. 

 

9 minutes ago, Sierra Tango said:

Top Charoen in Lotus Banchang. My Wife and daughter have both been tested and prescriped glasses which have proven to be accurate in improving their eye sight. 

 

How much for everything?

 

1 minute ago, EVENKEEL said:

How much for everything?

 

It was a while ago ( 5 years ish) now but I think around 6 -7 K for the test and 2 frames with the prescribed lens.

Get the Rx from a doctor, order online from Zenni.

1 hour ago, EVENKEEL said:

Is there a difference in quality and cost having it done in pattaya vs. in the USA. 

No.  Any qualified optometrist can do it.  You may want to try the type you can buy in any convenience store or Big C first.  They may work for you right off the rack.  If you go to an optometrist/optician, they'll cost more but they'll be made exactly for your eyes.  I've bought them for my wife.  The frame and lens package was maybe 1000 THB.  Wife's happy.  Happy wife, happy life.

1 hour ago, msbkk said:

Not for Pattaya especially but Thailand overall. I highly recommend to visit a hospital and get the eyes tested by a professional. My experiences with the shops selling glasses have not been

very convincing. Let a doctor give you a prescription and order the glasses outside the hospital.

You don't need to go to a ophthalmologist (eye doctor) in order to get a standard refraction for a pair of reading glasses. However, if the OP is older, and has never had an eye workup by a doctor, it's not a bad idea to get checked for things like glaucoma and retina issues.  But if he isn't having any other issues other than problems reading, an ophthalmologist is sorta over-kill and they don't normally do refraction, although some hospitals will.  They'll dilate your eyes and check for structural issue. For a pair of glasses he at most needs a optometrist (a person who measures eye refraction and prescribes glasses), and in Thailand optometrists generally work in a partnership with an optician.  OP - on oddity about Thailand though.  They probably will not give you your refraction and instead will insist on making your glasses.  If you want a refraction and then order your glasses online, have it done in  the US.  Less of a hassle.

23 minutes ago, NoDisplayName said:

Get the Rx from a doctor, order online from Zenni.

Easier said then done.  IF you can get a prescription, then Zenni is definitely a good way to go.  Getting an Rx from a Thai optician can be a PITA though.
https://www.zennioptical.com/

 

1 hour ago, NoDisplayName said:

Get the Rx from a doctor, order online from Zenni.

 

Fully agree, I do exactly the same. In my experience, you’ll never get a completely accurate prescription from any of the shops. Any Eye Department in a hospital should be able to give you a proper one. If you’re in Bangkok and on a budget, Bangkok Christian Hospital is a good option, not expensive. Then you can order your glasses online from Zenni. They get it right every time.

 

One other thing to keep in mind when testing for reading glasses, make sure that whatever you’re reading from is held at a distance of about 30 centimetres from your eyes. The person conducting the test might not pay much attention to that, but it’s really important because that’s the standard reading distance used to determine the correct prescription. You can use a book, phone screen or anything similar, just make sure the print is relatively small and held at 30 centimetres. That should give you a reliable result.

1 hour ago, connda said:

No.  Any qualified optometrist can do it.  You may want to try the type you can buy in any convenience store or Big C first.  They may work for you right off the rack.  If you go to an optometrist/optician, they'll cost more but they'll be made exactly for your eyes.  I've bought them for my wife.  The frame and lens package was maybe 1000 THB.  Wife's happy.  Happy wife, happy life.

Been buying mine at a 20 baht store for a good while. Probably better for eyes to have a prescribed pair.

I used an old prescription and ordered online, 100 baht Lazada, work fine

17 hours ago, connda said:

You don't need to go to a ophthalmologist (eye doctor) in order to get a standard refraction for a pair of reading glasses.

This is right.

 

You can buy reading glasses at stalls in TukCom, at least that's where I got mine. Just keep trying them on until you get a pair you can read with.

Just back from UK where I got a test at Specsavers who gave me the progressive prescription, quite a bit different from Top Charoen the month before. Sent off to Zenni. Left eye perfect, right eye blurred. Don't know if it is S'Savers or Zenni who have messed up. Told Zenni my problem = full refund immediately, no questions. 

On 4/8/2025 at 12:42 AM, EVENKEEL said:

Been buying mine at a 20 baht store for a good while. Probably better for eyes to have a prescribed pair.

I have reading glasses bought from Villamart.  But originally 40 years ago when I first needed glasses for reading I paid for the prescription and glasses in the US and it was a tad expensive.  Then I learned about macular degeneration and what Lutein can do for that - after taking it for 2 months, I didn't need my glasses for reading anymore.  I do realize right now that both my eyes are not equal so if I need reading glasses again i will go get a prescription and glasses made for my two different eyes.  At 78, I can still read some without glasses, depending completely on the lighting but for computer use with a lot of reading I do wear reading glasses.  I know I could increase the size of text on the computer but would rather just keep it like it is.

Can get them at 20฿ shop for said price. Have something written to look at (self test) and Bob’s your uncle!

10 minutes ago, AustinRacing said:

Can get them at 20฿ shop for said price. Have something written to look at (self test) and Bob’s your uncle!

Only to be used for short term use. You will damage your eyes in the long term. And most people do have different eye strength for both eyes which no cheap glasses can cover. 

On 4/7/2025 at 10:02 PM, Sierra Tango said:

Top Charoen in Lotus Banchang. My Wife and daughter have both been tested and prescriped glasses which have proven to be accurate in improving their eye sight. 

 

They gave the wrong prescription, it’s a very basic eye test as well.

I wouldn’t recommend buying from a market stall, the vision in both eyes might be different like mine is,. I use Pattaya Optical on Pattaya Klang who have an Optometrist, not the cheapest but a proper eye test.,Eye test is free if you buy  spec,s great selection of frames. I have also used Euro Optics in Royal Garden Plaza, she is also an Optometrist, not a great selection of frames though.

38 minutes ago, Jumbo1968 said:

I wouldn’t recommend buying from a market stall, the vision in both eyes might be different like mine is,. I use Pattaya Optical on Pattaya Klang who have an Optometrist, not the cheapest but a proper eye test.,Eye test is free if you buy  spec,s great selection of frames. I have also used Euro Optics in Royal Garden Plaza, she is also an Optometrist, not a great selection of frames though.

Just get two identical pairs of cheapo glasses, one with the specs for the right eye and the other with specs for the left eye.  Swap out one of the lenses into the other pair and you have "prescription" glasses!

Euro Optics with Maria

ZENNI OPTICAL is where I have been getting mine for 20 years; they are great. Delivered to your door. All you need is to go to any optometrist and get a script, Some may say that you need to buy their glasses; tell them that you just need a script for your measurements and you will pay 100 or 200 baht for their services. Go to their site, pick your frames, and if you want Bifocal or multifocal, progressive, and anything else. Takes about 9 days for delivery. Half the price of any joint in Thailand. Go luck

On 4/7/2025 at 10:16 PM, Sierra Tango said:

It was a while ago ( 5 years ish) now but I think around 6 -7 K for the test and 2 frames with the prescribed lens.

I thought the test was free and you just paid for the specs.

9 minutes ago, NoshowJones said:

I thought the test was free and you just paid for the specs.

Yes, you could be right. It was a while ago. I do know that the actual prescriptions were on point.