A Farewell To Pattaya: More People To Leave?

[Chaimai]

What I fail to understand, is why the usual Pattaya bashers find it necessary to post on the Pattaya forum.

Maybe it makes them feel better about the sh!thole they're living in.

drive safely

onzestan

Where else would they post ? It is a forum about Pattaya - with good or bad comments.

If I said that the Queen Vic was the best pub in Pattaya and you said "no it's crap Jamesons is far better" that would be fine, it is simply a difference of opinion - chai mai ?

Pattaya itself is a classic for an "I love it" or "I hate it" response. NL is maybe correct - it is a cowpat, but one that is warm and sticks to you

Perhaps we could start a "Pattaya is....." thread "dichotomy" ? "conundrum" ? spring to mind.

[britmaveric]

Patters is a fine place and has everything one needs, full stop. If they ever sort the beaches/surrounding waters out and the traffic issues - Watch Out Patters will explode into a premier tourist destination. Sadly I wouldnt take that wager since the powers that be - haven't a clue.

[plasticpig]

Pattaya is Sex town, that image will never change in the next 20 years.

the powers to be like the money to much.

TIT

[Tolley]

I have lived in Pattaya for the past 12 years, prior to that I lived in Bangkok for 10 years.

Has Pattaya changed that much? not really, its always been a "cowboy" town, its just got bigger, everywhere in the world changes, Pattaya is no different, what spoils it is the infrastructure, they seem incapable of getting on top of it, the new railway road is a good example, started off ok, then..........

I would like to leave Pattaya, not so much for the changes that have occurred, but I have changed and want different things out of life, namely peace and quite! Unfortunately not so easy to leave if you have bought into the property market as near impossible to sell houses at the present time.

Interesting comment about not being able to sell your place.

Many would have you belive that the Pattaya property market is booming.

Personally I know a number of people that have been trying to sell in Pattaya for five years now without success.

I love Pattaya but understand that living in Pattaya full time might be a bit hard to take year in year out.

I don't think i would ever bother to write to a forum and tell everyone how bad Pattaya is.

The truth is the basic essence of Pattaya hasn't changed since i first came over 25 years ago.

The fact is you just grew out of the place and it is time to move on.

[JR Texas]

I have lived in Pattaya for the past 12 years, prior to that I lived in Bangkok for 10 years.

Has Pattaya changed that much? not really, its always been a "cowboy" town, its just got bigger, everywhere in the world changes, Pattaya is no different, what spoils it is the infrastructure, they seem incapable of getting on top of it, the new railway road is a good example, started off ok, then..........

I would like to leave Pattaya, not so much for the changes that have occurred, but I have changed and want different things out of life, namely peace and quite! Unfortunately not so easy to leave if you have bought into the property market as near impossible to sell houses at the present time.

Interesting comment about not being able to sell your place.

Many would have you belive that the Pattaya property market is booming.

Personally I know a number of people that have been trying to sell in Pattaya for five years now without success.

I love Pattaya but understand that living in Pattaya full time might be a bit hard to take year in year out.

I don't think i would ever bother to write to a forum and tell everyone how bad Pattaya is.

The truth is the basic essence of Pattaya hasn't changed since i first came over 25 years ago.

The fact is you just grew out of the place and it is time to move on.

I just spent six months in a desert in the Middle East, so I should be happy to be back in Thailand. But Pattaya-Jomtien has gone downhill......it is too bad.....it used to be a very nice place to visit. In my view, it all went to hel_l when TOXIN came into power and the real estate scum started hyping the place.......it has never been the same since then. Too bad.........but I have good memories when it was a good place to be. And there are still worse places to be......try the freakin' desert (50 degrees C in the shade).

[Lost in LOS]

New story headline: DERANGED GERMAN URINATES IN SHOP BEFORE TRYING TO SLASH HIS NECK AND WRIST

I completely disagree with the posters that claim that this is a wonderful city for legit business and family style living.

We see similar headlines and much worse on a daily basis. This happened in a Family Mart!!, not a bar, gogo, beach, or other seedy type place.

I guess that I won't be calling my grandmother any time soon to make an urgent reservation to take a long holiday in Pattaya She would probally hook up with a young thai guy and love it..., nor would I suggest anyone coming to Pattaya until they clean up the shithle town and all the criminals. good, more girls for me and I wont have to wait in line at the restaurants, not to mention the clubs

oh, and if you ever change your mind and want to come here.......please dont

[ilyushin]

I don't have any problems with Pattaya. I agree the traffic has increased, number of long term visitors high and of course crime comes with the theme and number of sheer number of people.

Still always have a good time though.

[jellymeister]

I tend to agree here. Alot of these dubious sayonara letters all seem like variations on the same theme and I suspect alot of them ain't legit. Seems just like somebody wanting a public forum for gratutitous whingeing.....I am surprised the PM still publishes them. After all if someone is truly leaving, why don't they just exit quietly without having to announce it to the world, lest we respond, don't let the door hit yer butt on the way out!

SOURCE: Pattaya Mail: July 25th-July 31st Edition

With that thought, we say farewell to Thailand and we will cherish the fond memories of our Thai friends and experiences from holidays past.

Goodbye Thailand. Our money is going elsewhere.

Ben and Ruth Martinez

Aren't these the same people in California who write the same letter on an annual basis?

Anyway, what's the point of the letter? Are we all supposed to feel ashamed and saddened that they weren't happy here and are taking their money elsewhere?

10 years ago, during June/July/August the place was a ghost town. Now it seems to be awash in farang 12 months a year. I don't know if that's an improvement. I preferred it when the summer months at least were more quiet.

Sounds like the old joke: " Nobody goes there anymore because it's too crowded."

[barryofthailand]

More and more people are retiring to Thailand, and they end up in Pattaya. When I retired over five years ago, the only cities in Thailand that had facilaties were Bangkok, Phucket, and Pattaya. What I mean by facilaties is super markets etc. Now there are facilaties all over Thailand. I now have moved to Korat and find this area very nice. For me Pattaya is a nice place to visit, but I would rather live where the air is much more cleaner, and the people here actually live here so they tend to take some pride and keep the place clean. Thai people in Pattaya come from all over Thailand for work, and since it's not really their home they don't care about the city.

Barry

[NotNew2You]

I now have moved to Korat...

Moving upcountry is certainly an option. I too would like cleaner air and less traffic. If one has a Thai family and their social life primarily revolves around them, then moving "back home" might be ideal. However, for those still single, or who have no interest in a relationship, living upcountry is a pretty barren place socially I would think. The lack of places to meet, talk, and generally socialize in a farang environment would put off most farangs from moving upcountry...even a larger city in Issan like Korat.

Besides the Western fast food outlets at the malls, how many farang restaurants are there in Korat?

[Tolley]

I have been upcountry many times and usually only last a couple of days.

Absolutely nothing to do.

Heck most Thais would move if they could.

Most of us need to live in a major centre with western facilities.

In Pattaya you can go and play golf and go to the beach or pool,gym, cinema, bars shopping complexes etc.

Pattaya ain't perfect but if you are going to live in Thailand it has plenty going for it.

[Jingthing]

Thai people in Pattaya come from all over Thailand for work, and since it's not really their home they don't care about the city.

I find this very true about many of the Thai people here. Pattaya is still a very new city. I think this problem of Thais not feeling it is their home may improve over time.

[barryofthailand]

More and more people are retiring to Thailand, and they end up in Pattaya. When I retired over five years ago, the only cities in Thailand that had facilaties were Bangkok, Phucket, and Pattaya. What I mean by facilaties is super markets etc. Now there are facilaties all over Thailand. I now have moved to Korat and find this area very nice. For me Pattaya is a nice place to visit, but I would rather live where the air is much more cleaner, and the people here actually live here so they tend to take some pride and keep the place clean. Thai people in Pattaya come from all over Thailand for work, and since it's not really their home they don't care about the city.

Barry

You would really be surprised. Their are plenty of resturaunts in Korat that serve Farrang food. Their are British , Mexican, and just plain western. for the single guys, their are plenty of bars and we even have two Go Go Clubs. For those who like to dance we have disotechs. Living in the city is really not the same as people think when they think of up country. We have a Big C, Macro, Tesco, and Carrefour to come in the future., True no Foodland, Friendship, or Villa Markets.

Barry

[faranglandoz]

I read the letter the op posted and the related one also quoted by someone from the newest Pattaya Mail. While some of the points they make are certainly valid, I think many are also beyond the point. First off, Pattaya is many things to many people. For many, it is and will always be, a holiday destination for "R&R" and nothing more. For others, it's a holiday destination for great and inexpensive courses. It is also a scuba diving destination. Operators have told me that the total takings for dive operators in Pattaya rival the total takings of Phuket! For others, it is a "family" holiday destination, with a healthy dose of Thai spices thrown in...they observe the going's on with amusement. It is also an inexpensive retirement option for many Westerners. The trouble is these disparate groups of visitors/residents often don't notice the other...so their perspectives are skewed. Those who are here for mongering probably don't really realize (and there is no reason they should) that there is a large and vibrant expatriate community here with families and businesses, and hobbies who have no interest in the nitelife. Their dollars support lots of other restaurants, bars [legit], and businesses the monger wouldn't even know about, let alone patronize. So the monger/punter may see a drop in business in the places he frequents...but be totally unawares of the other business that are thriving on the non-monger spending and conclude that Pattaya is in a bad way and that his monger spending is more important than it really is.

For years now, we have all read these letters to the local rags about residents upping, or threatening to, up and leave and of visitors saying they're never coming back. Never seems to happen, or if it does, they seem to be quickly replaced by others. I was out late last nite taking in the WS scene and most places were doing a good trade late into the nite. There were Ruskies and groups of wayward Arab youths (talking-up every ladyboy they could find) a plenty. And the condo and hotel construction boom is still going gangbusters. There is smart money still investing so they must continue to see a bright future for Pattaya. As to one letter's complaint about the lessening of nitelife in Pattaya, there are many clubs, discos, gogos, beer-bars still open till dawn if you know where to look (some of the BBs are 24/7) if that is what you're looking for.

One problem with these letter writers and posters here on TV is that it is mostly a Western perspective, and more specifically, an English reading and writing perspective. Exactly the countries (USA and England) who economies and currencies are taking a pounding. They certainly have reason to complain about "high" prices when they do the conversions with their "weak" currencies. However, we don't get the perspective of the those Arabs, Ruskies, even Chinese, who come here from booming regions with strong currencies. Maybe hotels, food, nitelife seems incredibly cheap for them...that's why they keep coming in droves, while the relatively "poor" English speakers take their shrunken pounds and dollars and go back home or vacation close to home.

So in short, I think the negativity of most of these responses is mostly unjustified. It may be your perspective and true from your vantage point, but it is not the whole story. Pattaya will continue to grow and hopefully thrive whether you choose to stay and enjoy it or return to Blimy.

Well said, feel better for reading your post as I have invested in Na Jom Tien

[faranglandoz]

I have to agree that it seems like the local government has a policy of doing whatever they possibly can to discourage any tourist from coming to Pattaya. from arresting foreigners for no apparent reason, not doing anything about the shady types that opeerate here, no consumer protection, early closing times, garbage on the streets, unsafe streets, not cracking down on dangerous drivers/motorbikes, and on and on.

I have been coming to Pattaya a long time and i have never seen such poor business conditions. Closures all over the place. farangs scared to start businesses, farangs scared to patronize businesses etc.

They have created a recipe for a huge crime rise in the future. And a lot of farangs come to Pattaya to drink and for sex, and the crackdowns will drive people to other more tourist friendly countries.

The only thing that will save Pattaya and Thailand in general is if the large corporations that rely on foreigners for much of their business (big supermarket companies, Homeworks, HomePro, Carrefour, Big C, Tesco, Thai Airways, all hotel companies, etc.), will put pressure, big pressure on the government to tone it down on attacking foreigners that support the economy here.

I think if the sex tourists go somewhere, good for Pattaya. Then maybe the girls that hang around Beach Road will go back home to Bangkok or Issan

[britmaveric]

I think you will be booted before that ever happens!!!!

[Edonista]

only the depraved,alcoholic,and perverted could enjoy some kind of existence there....

I am depraved and perverted (sorry, I don't drink alcohol) and yes, I do enjoy my existence here

[poshthai]

For expatriates in Thailand who are retired (family or single) and don't want to go totally native (moving to the country), there really are only a handful of places to live with an acceptable level of farang comforts (social clubs, good selection of farang restos, good hospitals, etc.):

Bangkok (if you like the big city experience)

Pattaya

Phuket

Chaing Mai

Samui (maybe).

The islands are pretty isolated and have really wet off-season weather. Also, Samui is lacking a top-class hospital.

Pattaya has everything in abundance and is only 2 hr from Bangkok (for city holidays or international travel).

I stick with Pattaya for now.

what about cham am,hua hin,korat,khon kaen,udon tani,nongkai????????

[thaiman]

only the depraved,alcoholic,and perverted could enjoy some kind of existence there....

I am depraved and perverted (sorry, I don't drink alcohol) and yes, I do enjoy my existence here

They've got to go somewhere! Thank God for Pattaya!

[poshthai]

Many things wrong with pattaya but i love the place.many of my friends are in tears when they go home and very envious of me retiring here.Also the rats are much smaller than that big dump up north,bangkok.

[plasticpig]

if the sex tourist goes, so will pattaya.

Pattaya has very little to offer the family tourist.

much better beach resorts around Thailand and the world for that matter.

also remember to get a family of say 4 to fly from Europe to Thailand plus hotel

for two weeks is very expensive.

Keep Pattaya the way it is, Birds, beer and Tabs.

[faranglandoz]

if the sex tourist goes, so will pattaya.

Pattaya has very little to offer the family tourist.

much better beach resorts around Thailand and the world for that matter.

also remember to get a family of say 4 to fly from Europe to Thailand plus hotel

for two weeks is very expensive.

Keep Pattaya the way it is, Birds, beer and Tabs.

There would be more family tourists from Australia coming to Pattaya, rather than Patong, if the sex tourists departed

[britmaveric]

Nice dream, but not even close.

[moo9]

I think if the sex tourists go somewhere, good for Pattaya. Then maybe the girls that hang around Beach Road will go back home to Bangkok or Issan

Stupid. This kind of entertainment you can find everywhere in Thailand and neighboring countries.

Pattaya was built on entertainment and every stupid attempt to turn it into Malibu Beach or Cote d'Azur will kill it. What I like about Pattaya is the fact, that you can do what you want, there are so many choices and if you are not into bars, you got plenty of alternatives! So what?

[thaiman]

if the sex tourist goes, so will pattaya.

Pattaya has very little to offer the family tourist.

much better beach resorts around Thailand and the world for that matter.

also remember to get a family of say 4 to fly from Europe to Thailand plus hotel

for two weeks is very expensive.

Keep Pattaya the way it is, Birds, beer and Tabs.

Very little for families indeed. If you want perverts looking at your daughters then come to pattaya. If you don't, get the hel_l out! keep pattaya the the way it is: sleazy, crude, and real. Go elsewhere family people!

[bangkokdam]

I think if the sex tourists go somewhere, good for Pattaya. Then maybe the girls that hang around Beach Road will go back home to Bangkok or Issan

Stupid. This kind of entertainment you can find everywhere in Thailand and neighboring countries.

Pattaya was built on entertainment and every stupid attempt to turn it into Malibu Beach or Cote d'Azur will kill it. What I like about Pattaya is the fact, that you can do what you want, there are so many choices and if you are not into bars, you got plenty of alternatives! So what?

I agree with Thaiman, Pattaya is what it is,if you dontlike it leave, the Thais have always been good at creating zones, look at Bangkok a few areas where everything was on view and accepted,a few Police to run it and benefit from it, but close it down earlier closing times,less sex and what happens it creeps into every back street. Pattaya is where all the shit collects in one place

[Tammi]

I agree with Thaiman, Pattaya is what it is,if you dontlike it leave, the Thais have always been good at creating zones, look at Bangkok a few areas where everything was on view and accepted,a few Police to run it and benefit from it, but close it down earlier closing times,less sex and what happens it creeps into every back street. Pattaya is where all the shit collects in one place

You obviously don't know Pattaya. I personally know many super kind and wonderful people both Thai and foreign and I am sure there are probably hundreds of thousands more.

[britmaveric]

Good point Tammi - we love you too!!

[bangkokdam]

I agree with Thaiman, Pattaya is what it is,if you dontlike it leave, the Thais have always been good at creating zones, look at Bangkok a few areas where everything was on view and accepted,a few Police to run it and benefit from it, but close it down earlier closing times,less sex and what happens it creeps into every back street. Pattaya is where all the shit collects in one place

You obviously don't know Pattaya. I personally know many super kind and wonderful people both Thai and foreign and I am sure there are probably hundreds of thousands more.

Tammi, I do know Pattaya very well. I too know many kind and wonderul people both Thai and foriegn, if you havent come across any of the type of folks Im talkin about then you don't get out in Pattaya much :-)

[Kerryd]

........After all if someone is truly leaving, why don't they just exit quietly without having to announce it to the world, lest we respond, don't let the door hit yer butt on the way out!

I have a sneaking suspicion that people who write letters like that, are looking for validation of their decision to leave. Secretly or subconsciously, they may be hoping that they will get feedback that they can then look at and say "See, other people think the same way we do, so our decision to move was a good one".

Of course that can backfire if the majority of the feedback is the opposite. Then they would be left feeling that maybe they made a mistake, or they would do like politicians do. Take one positive response, use that as their justification and ignore the 99 other responses that don't match their opinion.