Phuket Vs. Pattaya

[moo9]

Just coming back from Phuket I noticed that people down there are much more friendly. I could give many examples.

Why?

[bratpack]

I am Pattaya and i am a REALY nice person.

[thaiclan]

Phuket is nice for a holiday but the weather is far too wet to live year round for me.

[plasticpig]

Just coming back from Phuket I noticed that people down there are much more friendly. I could give many examples.

Why?

Name them?

But for me, a few more people with real money in Phuket.

But I Love Pattaya.

[NanLaew]

Just coming back from Phuket I noticed that people down there are much more friendly. I could give many examples.

Why?

You mean why could you give many examples? Because you can? Or you want to? Maybe you like to? I don't know.

Why?

[BugJackBaron]

I didn't see much difference when I went down a year ago;

some friendly, some not so friendly, like anywhere.

[madmitch]

Just coming back from Phuket I noticed that people down there are much more friendly. I could give many examples.

Why?

Are you talking Thais or farangs?

[moo9]

I am talking about Thai's.

1.) needed to put some air into my tires of the motorcyc. Stopped at a small shop, the guys checked and refilled. I wanted to tip him 20 Baht, he rejected and insisted that it is for free. I tried again, but he firmly rejected the tip. Hard to imagine in Pattaya.

2.) Sales persons in the shopping center were very friendly, a completely opposite from Pattaya (in most cases)

3.) Had to pay 100 Baht and 50 Satang in a 7/11. I did not take any coins with me, so the sales person said mai pen rai and took 100 Bht only.

Those are small things, but my impression of Pattaya is now, that because of rising costs of living, the life for most people gets tougher and tougher and it is low season as well.

But as somebody mentioned before, for the life I prefer Pattaya anyway.

[Ungabunga]

I've seen many instances here where foreigners treat Thais like dogsh*t and speak with them in a terrible way. Perhaps it's starting to rub off in Pattaya. But there's good and bad everywhere I suppose.

[bratpack]

If you are right about more people in phuket have big money,how does this make them more friendly?????

Not being flaming but normaly the people i meet who have big money are real assoles.Also i have met many many wonderful thai people in pattaya,so sorry moo9 i think you are totaly and utterly wrong my friend.Nothing against you having your view though.

[sotsira]

Havn't been to Phuket for a while, so can't compare, but in the last 5 yrs that i've been living in Pattaya i have noticed that on a general note the Thais do seem to frown more than smile.

It doesn't help though that some farlungs also do test their patience with their behaviour and attitude towards them, so its a two way problem thats developing im afraid.

[anothertorres]

this thread is absolutely silly.

[moo9]

this thread is absolutely silly.

What is silly about?

[cali4995]

There's a lot of truth to what you say. Everywhere in Thailand seems to fall at a different point on the

friendliness index. Some of the locals in Pattaya do seem to be a bit on the mean side and whether that's

from too many negative experiences with foreigners or maybe they've just been here too long I don't know.

In any tourist town around the world you will have a little animosity with the locals vs. the visitors. I try very

hard to be sweet to the locals who are honest and hard working and try to be pleasant, going out of my way

to leave them tips and try and let them know they are appreciated and not all farangs are rude and drunk.

And Yes, even make friends. I'm often stunned how many locals work here for years but can't even claim

to have one farang friend? Isn't that just a little odd? We're not all bad are we?

However, the other side of the coin with the locals who have developed the nasty habit of insulting foreigners

to their face thinking it's a joke because they don't understand or constantly attempting to cheat at every turn

I really wish they would leave and I tell them so. Go back to your province. You're not doing any good here.

[anothertorres]

this thread is absolutely silly.

What is silly about?

generalizations are naturally silly and prone to one persons experience. you'd really have to poll all of Phuket and all of Pattaya to really narrow down what citizens are 'friendlier'. just seems silly to even come close to wrapping our heads around the reality of your topic. i don't mean to offend, just keeping the discussion going. and i think BugJackBaron summed it up well when he said "some friendly, some not so friendly, like anywhere.".

[kurgen]

Phuket ?

What I want to know is who added the h and the t ?

[bratpack]

Over a period of time living in Pattaya i have found many thai friends,even the big policeman next door lol.When i go out for a drink i have motorbike drivers shouting me and saying hello and many thai bar owners speaking with me,not that i frequent bars that often lol.

some of my regular haunts cannot make money off me as they(thai) keep giving me drinks and are very very nice to me.So my view is that most thais are nice to me,and i dont live in a tight security prison estate.

[bratpack]

After hearing all the stories about phuket it seems that there are many bad thais robbing people and violently too.

[moo9]

Never mind. It's kind of normal. Look at 50% + farangs coming to Pattaya.....

I would not like to be friend with them and they are just the stereotype for farangs in Pattaya.

At the end I do not care. I have to say, that I have more Thai than Farang friends here and that's fine with me!

As for Phuket, people surely are not different, they are just used to some kind of different visitors in general.

Anyway I like to stay in Pattaya, Phuket is very nice for a 3 nights break or so.

[dotcom]

Maybe 1 or 2% of Thai's in Pattaya were born there. The national sport is separating falang from their money. Our sleepy little fishing village is unrecognizable. Mid seventies it was heaven.

I don't know Phuket well but I'll bet they are more relaxed & friendly.

[britmaveric]

People are the same everywhere, nice and not so nice. I found Phuket no less friendly than Pattaya as far as Thai people go. I think if one is receiving not so friendly behaviour than perhaps they should look at themselves.

Edited June 22, 2008 by britmaveric

[saorsa]

People are the same everywhere, nice and not so nice. I found Phuket no less friendly than Pattaya as far as Thai people go. I think if one is receiving not so friendly behaviour than perhaps they should look at themselves.

I found the bar girls in Phuket to be very friendly indeed...come to think of it, the ones in Pattay were rather friendly too...

[Tyke]

Just coming back from Phuket I noticed that people down there are much more friendly. I could give many examples.

Why?

Only been to Phuket a couple of times and can't say much about it except I did encounter one unfriendly hassler. Just bought a condo in Pattaya and so been down quite a few times but don't and won't live there. I like to walk places for exercise and views, but Pattaya is horrible for that - the Thais hassle all the time wherever u go there, especially at night time, assuming you are cruising for sex etc. It might seem OK if u drive around the place but as soon as you walk there is a torrent of hassle. And if u reject it in a way that seems unfriendly or offhand, through sheer frustration, the Thais become very rude sometimes, almost as if they have a right to hassle you without impunity.

[Tyke]

Just coming back from Phuket I noticed that people down there are much more friendly. I could give many examples.

Why?

Only been to Phuket a couple of times and can't say much about it except I did encounter one unfriendly hassler. Just bought a condo in Pattaya and so been down quite a few times but don't and won't live there. I like to walk places for exercise and views, but Pattaya is horrible for that - the Thais hassle all the time wherever u go there, especially at night time, assuming you are cruising for sex etc. It might seem OK if u drive around the place but as soon as you walk there is a torrent of hassle. And if u reject it in a way that seems unfriendly or offhand, through sheer frustration, the Thais become very rude sometimes, almost as if they have a right to hassle you without impunity.

I also like the way some of them wake you up when you are snoozing on the beach to sell you something. They don't understand what is the problem when you get irritated by it!

[cali4995]

Their is also a big difference because Phuket is somewhat isolated, you don't have that large

secondary population of Thais who aren't business owners or working in the service industry

but are what? Holidaying themselves? Or trying to holiday while looking for things to steal?

Walking around is tough, I'll never understand why some of the taxi stands insist on yelling

TAXI,TAXI,TAXI every time a farang approaches, even if they're obviously disinterested? If

you walk down the street with a big smile on your face every hawker in sight will stop you.

[moo9]

Their is also a big difference because Phuket is somewhat isolated, you don't have that large

secondary population of Thais who aren't business owners or working in the service industry

but are what? Holidaying themselves? Or trying to holiday while looking for things to steal?

Walking around is tough, I'll never understand why some of the taxi stands insist on yelling

TAXI,TAXI,TAXI every time a farang approaches, even if they're obviously disinterested? If

you walk down the street with a big smile on your face every hawker in sight will stop you.

Transportation in Phuket is definitely worse than in Pattaya. I never get in those mini songthaews...they are ridiculous.

Otherwise I got the impression that Phuket itself has percentage wise more local inhabitants compared with Pattaya, where maybe 70% are not really Pattayians.

[tropo]

I try very

hard to be sweet to the locals who are honest and hard working and try to be pleasant, going out of my way

to leave them tips and try and let them know they are appreciated and not all farangs are rude and drunk.

You've taken on a very tough job as the goodwill ambassador for all Farangs in Pattaya. Personally I think you're wasting your time.