Anyone Lived In Patts/chonburi Province For 5+ Years ?

[Spoonman]

just shy of 7 years for me, first 18 months in Naklua and the rest over on the Darkside, currently in a rented house for the 3rd year and for intents and purposes I could be living back home in surburbia.

The traffic has increased ten fold but luckily I rarely have to venture to the bright side, If I feel the need to go bar hopping there is plenty over this side.

[somtampet]

Been living in Pattaya for nearly 10 years and have no problem adjusting to a normal retirement.Got many friends here and a lovely gf and her son,life cant get much better.

[somtampet]

10 years Pattaya, before 2 years Bangkok, miss sometimes the cultural activities available in Bangkok.

The heavy traffic now in Pattaya is a real problem, don't expect it will improve. Lived in the Dark Side before but

stay now here since a few years : http://maxxcentral.com/ ; quite quiet and not that far from the madding crowd, not perfect but

according to me, a very good value, I don't like to live in a huge building.

Does the karaoke bar keep u awake,its open till about 5am

[luckyluke]

^

No problem at all for me, and I have no concept from complain from other residents, awful a few years ago when there were many, now a little noise from the people who play Futsal early morning.

[black fox]

i first came to pattaya 26yrs ago, been retired here 12yrs i first lived in my condo then bought a house on the dark side lived there for 9yrs now back in my condo i dont drink (Used to) so i only go in bars to watch sports i have a car but hate the traffic so i mostly use my bicycle for exercise and around town, i have to say i dont have any major problems with pattaya only a few small niggles which i would probably get anywhere.

[MrWorldwide]

black fox. don't you find it dangerous on a cycle ? Even here in Oz, with road rules and cops aplenty, I've been bullied by dickheads in cars who think it's funny to push bike riders right out onto the shoulder. Even Olympic riders have been hammered by dickheads here, including at least one high profile fatality - shudder to think what it must be like in Thailand. I'd want a Hummer, complete with a .50 cal mounted on the roof

[properperson]

bloke down our way has lived here for4 1/2 years - does his opinion count ??

[luudee]

I moved to Pattaya a bit over 12 years ago. Lived in Bkk for 4 years before that. Even 12

years ago "the dark side" was my choice for residence. If I could I would now probably go

more south. But not so easy once you've established your roots. May be when the kids

get bigger ...

luudee

[bri1guy]

I stayed way out on the otherside of Sukumvit called Siam Countryclub & there we some days when I didn't go into Pattaya at all. Its way cheaper & you mingle with local but there are lots of expats who stay in area too.. After 5 months I always had to travel but it was my home away from home.. I am thinking if I stayed there a long time straight again I might try Jomtiem next time..

[MrWorldwide]

bloke down our way has lived here for4 1/2 years - does his opinion count ??

No

Oh, alright - what is his opinion ?

[MrWorldwide]

I stayed way out on the otherside of Sukumvit called Siam Countryclub & there we some days when I didn't go into Pattaya at all. Its way cheaper & you mingle with local but there are lots of expats who stay in area too.. After 5 months I always had to travel but it was my home away from home.. I am thinking if I stayed there a long time straight again I might try Jomtiem next time..

I have to commend you re that post - it's not often that I see 'straight' and Jomtien in the same sentence

[properperson]

bloke down our way has lived here for4 1/2 years - does his opinion count ??

No

Oh, alright - what is his opinion ?

he's on holiday in Clacton - will ask him when he gets back.......

his wife is here though - what about her opinion ??

[MrWorldwide]

Let me guess - his wife is a deaf/mute, but you know some sign language and you'll get back to me when you can work out her opinion of the place ?

[Naam]

9 years Pattaya, location small village a few minutes east of Sukhumvit. no traffic noise, no bars, no pollution, no problems.

[whiteman]

My partner and I are in a place called Sriracha by the sea which is 30 mins out of central Phattaya. We drive in for villa or foodlands shoping or the lunch at the Hilton. Then drive back to quiteness and clean air in the Merc love it.

Best of both worlds.

[ROBINPATTAYA]

I have lived on the darkside in a village for 5 years, I have always loved it but must admit I feel like hanging the for sale sign over the gate somedays.

Then I think about it, the best of Pattaya is better than anywhere else & the worst is equal to anywhere else.

Just pick & choose your likes & avoid the rest.

My pet hates are, traffic, Thai drivers that don't know the road rules, boof heads & know alls in some bars, the general attempt to rip off farangs.

Cheers

[Naam]

unfortunatelyPattaya has a lot of shortcomings such as unpleasant weather (hardly any sun), the icy roads from november till early march, the scarcity and high price of heating oil...

[piston broke]

unfortunatelyPattaya has a lot of shortcomings such as unpleasant weather (hardly any sun), the icy roads from november till early march, the scarcity and high price of heating oil...

yep and our local 7/11 had ran out of rock salt by 8am......

[MrWorldwide]

Weather frivolities aside, I just spent some time this morning catching up on my Indonesia forum, and its increasingly clear that expats living in Jakarta have to plan their lives around the traffic - even if it means that a location just a few km further away from work/schools etc might be quieter / rents cheaper / whatever. So much of their lives is dictated by the desire to minimise the amount of time they need to spend in that hideous traffic each day - as crazy as Pattaya has become, I don't think it has reached that point yet (unless you start work on Walking St at 8pm, but I wont go there !).

As several have pointed out in this thread, get a few km away from the centre of the madness in Pattaya and you can live a normal life - I question how 'normal' it would be for Bule kids to grow up in a rat race like Jakarta. I guess the upside is that it should prepare them for anything the 21st century has in store, but staring out into the traffic for hours each day isnt my idea of a childhood.

[toenail]

Try the Markland Condotel. Large (45+ sqm) studio with big balcony right on Beach Road/Soi 1. High rise, 27 floors with cheap baht bus (10 baht) to Walking Street. Super market/mall opening soon attached to the condo. Short walk to Big C on 2nd road. Cheap, start about 14k. Quiet neighborhood out of the bar district. Good restaurants. Safe and secure. Parking. Room service, Great view and breeze. Best value in Pattaya.

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I have a friend that bought a studio there a few years ago. The first 7 floors is a 2-3 star hotel which now caters to first time budget travelers out of India or China. Unfortunately they do not know how to use the elevators correctly or what proper attire to wear in the swimming pool. Unfortunately the owners/renters of the condos have to share the elevators, swimming pool, and other facilties with the first time hotel guests. -Something to think about. True, it is in a good location but to buy a condo there one would have to think about the company that runs it, where the maintenance money goes (stolen last year by one of the office woman) and how good the electric wiring and drainage is.

[OMGImInPattaya]

Try the Markland Condotel. Large (45+ sqm) studio with big balcony right on Beach Road/Soi 1. High rise, 27 floors with cheap baht bus (10 baht) to Walking Street. Super market/mall opening soon attached to the condo. Short walk to Big C on 2nd road. Cheap, start about 14k. Quiet neighborhood out of the bar district. Good restaurants. Safe and secure. Parking. Room service, Great view and breeze. Best value in Pattaya.

***********************************

I have a friend that bought a studio there a few years ago. The first 7 floors is a 2-3 star hotel which now caters to first time budget travelers out of India or China. Unfortunately they do not know how to use the elevators correctly or what proper attire to wear in the swimming pool. Unfortunately the owners/renters of the condos have to share the elevators, swimming pool, and other facilties with the first time hotel guests. -Something to think about. True, it is in a good location but to buy a condo there one would have to think about the company that runs it, where the maintenance money goes (stolen last year by one of the office woman) and how good the electric wiring and drainage is.

This is so true...great location, some variety in unit sizes, superb views, not too noisy (internally or externally), secure parking, etc. The Markland is great for singles/couples looking to live right in town. However, what's with the I would say 1-Star hotel on the lower floors (and it's actually two separate hotels with separate check-in areas in the lobby). I heard that they couldn't sell all the rooms as condos so made half the place a hotel. Seems to me it wouldn't be a problem to sell them as condos...maybe just more profit as a hotel. I would imagine too that if they ever did sell-off those floors as condos, the parking situation would take a major turn for the worse (few, if any, of the indians/chinese tourists I see there appear to rent motos/cars so basically half the rooms don't use the parking garage).

Also, it's about 30 years old now and that's the time when major systems, like the plumbing tree and electrical system start to need major and expensive work. On the plus side, except for the mentioned case of theft, the place seems to be decently managed and they appear to keep things up to date. They are currently in the middle of refurbishing the mechanical innards and the interior cages of all the elevators.