Is Pattaya dead?

[i claudius]

Is it just me or does Pattaya seem far quieter than it has been for years, just came back from Central and the only people around seem to be day trippers ,very few tourists ,

[stoneyboy]

Incase you didn't notice recent terrorist events in Bangkok,failing global economies and the such has led to a significant decrease in tourist numbers in Thailand.

The bombing alone was purported to cause a loss of some 64 billion baht from falling tourist numbers alone.

Oh and it's low season also.

[Ling Kae]

Nah it's not that dead. The bars at around 3 PM from soi 7 to soi 9 (about 10 of them) on the beach front today were all packed with farangs drinking, same in a few regular haunts in Soi Buakhao.If the price for the beer is right the bars will be full.

Went to Hilton for lunch Friday and the buffet was full. Went to 6th floor Ohabushi restaurant last week and people were queuing outside the door with tickets waiting for a seat.

It might be dead in some places but certainly not dead everywhere.

[Don Mega]

A quick look at the window and I can see the lights are on so I assume someone is home.

[steven100]

just drink piss and bang as much as you can, that's what I do. I start at 9 o'clock every morning.

[i claudius]

It might be low season but in 24 years I have not seen it so quiet on beach road,I know the main bars there are busy ,but they always are,always have been ,people watchers sit there

[ttthailand]

Nah it's not that dead. The bars at around 3 PM from soi 7 to soi 9 (about 10 of them) on the beach front today were all packed with farangs drinking, same in a few regular haunts in Soi Buakhao.If the price for the beer is right the bars will be full.

Went to Hilton for lunch Friday and the buffet was full. Went to 6th floor Ohabushi restaurant last week and people were queuing outside the door with tickets waiting for a seat.

It might be dead in some places but certainly not dead everywhere.

everything you said is correct. The problem however is that those places and some others are about 5% or less of the total businesses. You will also find that most of the people there are locals not tourists.

I was in Pattaya on Wednesday and Thursday and must have walked the same path you were taking. Over all I found it to be very slow with, as you pointed out, a few places having people. Another thing, Looking a little closer you see that the staff in some of those busy places make up 50% or more of the people. One beer bar on LK on the corner must have had 50 girls standing around but only about 25 or 30 customers.

[mcfish]

I was there 3 weeks ago for a breather from Bangkok and walking st was d-e-a-d

[SantiSuk]

September was always a good month for being rechristened a hansum man, as I recall.

[Ling Kae]

Nah it's not that dead. The bars at around 3 PM from soi 7 to soi 9 (about 10 of them) on the beach front today were all packed with farangs drinking, same in a few regular haunts in Soi Buakhao.If the price for the beer is right the bars will be full.

Went to Hilton for lunch Friday and the buffet was full. Went to 6th floor Ohabushi restaurant last week and people were queuing outside the door with tickets waiting for a seat.

It might be dead in some places but certainly not dead everywhere.

Another thing, Looking a little closer you see that the staff in some of those busy places make up 50% or more of the people. One beer bar on LK on the corner must have had 50 girls standing around but only about 25 or 30 customers.

Yes I know the place, it's called Billa***g. That place gets girls in on a freelance basis working for ladies drinks. They pay 60 baht per lady drink which is probably one of the highest in Pattaya. Some of the better operators can get 10 drinks a night, that's 600 baht just for turning up a couple of hours. But yes that is the best example of more staff than drinkers. There are several bars in New Plaza who have regular customers every night, mostly expats.

[Ling Kae]

September was always a good month for being rechristened a hansum man, as I recall.

Then it went to Papa

and now..................nothing, I'm heartbroken.

[Flanno]

Who cares it it's dead? I'm sure some posters simply do not know when it's high season or low season in Pattaya or even Thailand. Does it really matter? Everything is still open. It just means sometimes there's less traffic congestion, less 2 week millionaires rolling around the sois drunk as skunks and many bar girls heading back to the village for R&R. But life goes on. Just take it as it comes.

[toenail]

Pattaya is not dead but the various kinds of tourists that visit the city is different than... 8...10 years ago. Less retired folks from Europe are staying in Patts (due to more expensive flights, financial downfall a few years back,and this age group is becoming too old to hassle with airports); the young bucks from the West find it more expensive to get here for a two-week stay and look at the city as a demolished dump; the Russians have quit traveling here due to the devaluation of their currency---but there are plenty of Chinese on the increase which are on packaged tours so they can be seen during the day time in groups but then disappear into their cheap hotels on the dark side of the city. There are expats that live/work in the area which do keep certain businesses alive and if you notice, it will be the restaurants, grocery stores, and pubs that have good customer service. They cannot deal with ting-tong customer service or inferior quality since they are not one-week- only visitors.

Edited September 13, 2015 by toenail

[craigt3365]

I don't go to the bars very often, but can say the "big box" stores all are very quiet. Even Makro seems quiet. I was in a BigC the other day and there were literally only 5-6 shoppers in the entire store, right about 1pm.

I think the crackdown on drinking and driving is taking a toll also. More and more are staying close to home and not risking a drive.

[jacko45k]

Not dead, just sleeping.

Let it lie.

Edited September 14, 2015 by jacko45k

[Anthony5]

Pattaya is not dead but the various kinds of tourists that visit the city is different than... 8...10 years ago. Less retired folks from Europe are staying in Patts (due to more expensive flights, financial downfall a few years back,and this age group is becoming too old to hassle with airports); the young bucks from the West find it more expensive to get here for a two-week stay and look at the city as a demolished dump; the Russians have quit traveling here due to the devaluation of their currency---but there are plenty of Chinese on the increase which are on packaged tours so they can be seen during the day time in groups but then disappear into their cheap hotels on the dark side of the city. There are expats that live/work in the area which do keep certain businesses alive and if you notice, it will be the restaurants, grocery stores, and pubs that have good customer service. They cannot deal with ting-tong customer service or inferior quality since they are not one-week- only visitors.

Less retired folks from Europe are staying in Patts (due to more expensive flights, financial downfall a few years back,and this age group is becoming too old to hassle with airports)

You think there aren't people retiring anymore? Now they go from young to too old to travel?

[nithisa78]

I was there 3 weeks ago for a breather from Bangkok and walking st was d-e-a-d

like those who go there.

[Suradit69]

Incase you didn't notice recent terrorist events in Bangkok,failing global economies and the such has led to a significant decrease in tourist numbers in Thailand.

The bombing alone was purported to cause a loss of some 64 billion baht from falling tourist numbers alone.

Oh and it's low season also.

Yes, it might be a bit slower along the beach that in the past few years, but summer season used to a lot slower in the more distant past.

Whenever we go to places like Big C Extra or Friendship they still seem to be as busy as ever.

[Anthony5]

Incase you didn't notice recent terrorist events in Bangkok,failing global economies and the such has led to a significant decrease in tourist numbers in Thailand.

The bombing alone was purported to cause a loss of some 64 billion baht from falling tourist numbers alone.

Oh and it's low season also.

Yes, it might be a bit slower along the beach that in the past few years, but summer season used to a lot slower in the more distant past.

Whenever we go to places like Big C Extra or Friendship they still seem to be as busy as ever.

You must live in a different Pattaya as Craig3365 and most other posters, but actually we knew that long time already.

craigt3365

Posted Today, 08:14

Even Makro seems quiet. I was in a BigC the other day and there were literally only 5-6 shoppers in the entire store, right about 1pm.

[Kerryd]

Ah the weekly "Is Pattaya Dead" thread. I was getting worried that no one was going to ask the question (again).

There are plenty of tourists but as has been pointed out many times before, most seem to be of the "don't spend money" type. I suspect a lot of them buy packaged tours in their home country, probably haven't travelled much at all on their own (ever) and are reluctant to "stray" from the beaten path. They arrive in Thailand, get bused to their hotel, get escorted to their meals, escorted to the sights included in their package (or added on at the hotel), stay in the hotel afterwards (again - reluctant to go out on their own in a strange land) and then boom ! Back on the bus to the airport and back home.

There are some more well-heeled, experienced travellers from those same countries out and about on their own or in small groups, much like the "Western" tourists, but it seems the majority are the low-spending tour group types. I talk to my friends every week and go down to Walking Street once every week or so as well. Sit in a mostly empty bar (with a couple other expats) and watch hordes of tourists go by, not spending a baht on anything.

(Although rumour has it that some tourists, especially from one country in particular, are quite fond of certain establishments that have "shows" of an "explicit" nature. Those tourists often have to pay a special "membership" fee to get in though, otherwise it is unlikely they'd actually buy anything.)

Same in a lot of the restaurants. I see "Western" tourists/expats, usually with a significant "other" (of the short or long time or married kind) but few of those "other" tourists. That has been going on though for quite awhile before the Bangkok bombing and I doubt has had anything to do with the Red/Yellow problems in the past or the "coup" either.

It's simply that where there used to be throngs of free-spending Euro/Scando/American/Canadian/Australians, there are now throngs of Indians/Chinese/Japanese/Koreans that are somewhat "thriftier". Why ? Poor economies at home. Rising prices. Different mindset of the newer generations. Rising prices (less "spendable" income).

Perhaps the conflicts going on in various places are just making some people wary of travelling anywhere these days.

I've also noticed over the last 20+ years I've been visiting/living in Pattaya that things change all the time. Fads come, fads go. Tourists come, tourists go. 5 years from now the place may be over run by Greeks flush with bail-out money or maybe Libyans/Algerians/Tunisians flush with cash from undisclosed sources. Girls might start getting skinnier again. They might start wearing those ridiculous 6" high platform shoes again (shoes, sandals, boots - everything had at least 6 inches of platform), laser pointers might come back in fashion (lets hope NOT), braces may go out of style along with tramp stamps and boob jobs (let's hope the boob jobs continue) !

Another way to tell Pattaya isn't dead is the TRAFFIC. Frik ! I used to be able to whiz along Sukhumvit, turn up Boonsamphan and zip over the railway crossing at any time of the day/night without hardly any delays. Same for going downtown on a weekend evening. We used to ride the big bikes downtown all the time because there wasn't much traffic.

Nowadays I try and go up Boonsamphan (or along the railway bypass) anytime between 2pm-6pm and it's gridlocked. It's taken me (some days) 25 minutes to do a trip I used to do in 7. We rarely take the big bikes downtown anymore because you end up stuck in traffic and taking 3-4 times longer to get where you are going than if you used a scooter (or moto-taxi).

Weekends are worse and holiday weekends are ridiculous. I almost wish Pattaya was dead just so the traffic would ease off. Another way to tell it isn't dead is the fact the place isn't a deserted ghost town. Think about it. If business was so bad there'd be 10's (hundreds ?) of thousands out of work. They wouldn't be sticking around long as most don't have enough money to survive long without a pay cheque. They'd be packed up and gone to Bangkok, or Chiang Mai or wherever the prospects looked better in a heartbeat.

[AlQaholic]

The F#$%&(%ing Traffic is not dead, I can assure....

[1FinickyOne]

Even in my small city, nowhere near Pattaya, no tourists, it has been quiet the last couple of months… though this Saturday, tesco, Big C which rather busy for the first time in a while.

[i claudius]

Ah the weekly "Is Pattaya Dead" thread. I was getting worried that no one was going to ask the question (again).

There are plenty of tourists but as has been pointed out many times before, most seem to be of the "don't spend money" type. I suspect a lot of them buy packaged tours in their home country, probably haven't travelled much at all on their own (ever) and are reluctant to "stray" from the beaten path. They arrive in Thailand, get bused to their hotel, get escorted to their meals, escorted to the sights included in their package (or added on at the hotel), stay in the hotel afterwards (again - reluctant to go out on their own in a strange land) and then boom ! Back on the bus to the airport and back home.

There are some more well-heeled, experienced travellers from those same countries out and about on their own or in small groups, much like the "Western" tourists, but it seems the majority are the low-spending tour group types. I talk to my friends every week and go down to Walking Street once every week or so as well. Sit in a mostly empty bar (with a couple other expats) and watch hordes of tourists go by, not spending a baht on anything.

(Although rumour has it that some tourists, especially from one country in particular, are quite fond of certain establishments that have "shows" of an "explicit" nature. Those tourists often have to pay a special "membership" fee to get in though, otherwise it is unlikely they'd actually buy anything.)

Same in a lot of the restaurants. I see "Western" tourists/expats, usually with a significant "other" (of the short or long time or married kind) but few of those "other" tourists. That has been going on though for quite awhile before the Bangkok bombing and I doubt has had anything to do with the Red/Yellow problems in the past or the "coup" either.

It's simply that where there used to be throngs of free-spending Euro/Scando/American/Canadian/Australians, there are now throngs of Indians/Chinese/Japanese/Koreans that are somewhat "thriftier". Why ? Poor economies at home. Rising prices. Different mindset of the newer generations. Rising prices (less "spendable" income).

Perhaps the conflicts going on in various places are just making some people wary of travelling anywhere these days.

I've also noticed over the last 20+ years I've been visiting/living in Pattaya that things change all the time. Fads come, fads go. Tourists come, tourists go. 5 years from now the place may be over run by Greeks flush with bail-out money or maybe Libyans/Algerians/Tunisians flush with cash from undisclosed sources. Girls might start getting skinnier again. They might start wearing those ridiculous 6" high platform shoes again (shoes, sandals, boots - everything had at least 6 inches of platform), laser pointers might come back in fashion (lets hope NOT), braces may go out of style along with tramp stamps and boob jobs (let's hope the boob jobs continue) !

Another way to tell Pattaya isn't dead is the TRAFFIC. Frik ! I used to be able to whiz along Sukhumvit, turn up Boonsamphan and zip over the railway crossing at any time of the day/night without hardly any delays. Same for going downtown on a weekend evening. We used to ride the big bikes downtown all the time because there wasn't much traffic.

Nowadays I try and go up Boonsamphan (or along the railway bypass) anytime between 2pm-6pm and it's gridlocked. It's taken me (some days) 25 minutes to do a trip I used to do in 7. We rarely take the big bikes downtown anymore because you end up stuck in traffic and taking 3-4 times longer to get where you are going than if you used a scooter (or moto-taxi).

Weekends are worse and holiday weekends are ridiculous. I almost wish Pattaya was dead just so the traffic would ease off. Another way to tell it isn't dead is the fact the place isn't a deserted ghost town. Think about it. If business was so bad there'd be 10's (hundreds ?) of thousands out of work. They wouldn't be sticking around long as most don't have enough money to survive long without a pay cheque. They'd be packed up and gone to Bangkok, or Chiang Mai or wherever the prospects looked better in a heartbeat.

I dont know if you noticed ,but the reason for the traffic jams is the fact that most of Sukhumvit is blocked due to roadworks , just to let you know .

[akentryan]

The bars I frequent on the Dark Side are extremely quiet and these are bars that rely on local expats. Two bars had one customer and the cashier in one bar said they didn't have a single customer the day before. Ate at Ventienne Restaurant Tuesday night and at 8:00 they had 5 customers. Low season plus something else going on?

[chicowoodduck]

I'm out and about at the 4AM hour seven days a week and believe me, except for last night, the place has been jumping....New Plaza Soi, Made in Thailand, Tim Bar, Kiss restaurant always packed and noisy at that early hour.....and the traffic on 2nd Road is a mess...?

Sort of afraid of the coming HIGH season...could be a ball buster????

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

I don't go to the bars very often, but can say the "big box" stores all are very quiet. Even Makro seems quiet. I was in a BigC the other day and there were literally only 5-6 shoppers in the entire store, right about 1pm.

I think the crackdown on drinking and driving is taking a toll also. More and more are staying close to home and not risking a drive.

^^^ This.

I'm much the same in that I don't drink very much. Last November and December, I remember there was a lot of police/military activity at night among the beach-sde bright lights. I used to have a couple of light beers and maybe a whisky. I stopped the whisky and after while I even stopped drinking alcohol and had soda water when out with the GF. She doesn't drink.

Then I started stopping in at a local pub on Nern Pub Wan where I live. Never used to go in there. They used to be dead most evenings and there'd be maybe one or two other customers, all locals. But as December, turned into January and February, they were getting busier and busier. After while, they were as busy as any Buakhao bar. And it has remained so, with few exceptions. Visitors were even booking their rooms there and staying on the Darkside.

And the horrible construction barrier has largely put a stop to my going across Sukhumvit at night as well as the police activity, although that seems to have slowed a lot.

I think there's been a gradual erosion of interest in the bright lights of Pattaya and expats living over here in the "dark" are finding what they need in the neighbourhood. It could become a more permanent custom.

[FiveStarVagabond]

I'm out and about at the 4AM hour seven days a week and believe me, except for last night, the place has been jumping....New Plaza Soi, Made in Thailand, Tim Bar, Kiss restaurant always packed and noisy at that early hour.....and the traffic on 2nd Road is a mess...?

Sort of afraid of the coming HIGH season...could be a ball buster????

Imagine how much worse 2nd Rd traffic will be once the 1000 condos at Centric Sea are sold, + the huge project adjacent to Soi Honey and last but not least the enormous project opposite Central Festival in 2nd Rd.

Oh! I forgot the huge bulding going up beside View Talay.

[craigt3365]

A good friend went to dinner at one of the better, and long running, restaurants here in town. His comment was it's the worst he's ever seen. Several of the restaurants we use to frequent are now closed.

As I drive around town, I see shop after shop either closed, for rent or for sale. Leo's closed down a long time ago, it's still vacant. I was in that area yesterday for quite some time. Hardly any customers in the bars/restaurants off the main road. Very quiet.

My wife was on WS not long ago and she said it was quite busy. So seems the main tourist areas are doing OK, but those on the fringes are not?????

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

With all that new traffic from the new condos (most Thai owners will have cars/motorbikes) and likely Asian influx (buying up holiday condos), Pattaya could come to a standstill. It's already so bad on weekends and holidays, traffic and pollution will be nightmarish. I'm on the way out this fall.

[fred Kubasa]

Pattaya is not yet dead but, in my 7 years living here, struggling more thenever. Reportedly some 300, essentially Thai owned businesses are for sale

and there are some long time/notable foreigners selling out as well.Other

nations are offering incentives to come live/work there while Thailand

imposes new restrictions aginst doing so. Pattaya may well revert to the

sleepy fishing village it once was !