Best Place To Live In Los

[erco]

Hey what about telling everyone about where you live, this will then help ExPats relocating and New Arrivals to LOS making an educated choice.

Brief Notes to start everyone off.

Bangkok, the city of Angels or the Asian Venice. The city has everything an Expat could want. Shopping or purchasing anything is the main advantage as is the International Airport (soon to be two). Anything official will probably have to be done here also.

Large city with an horrendous traffic problem therefore full of smog, but if you are near the BTS then travelling is a sinch.

Has a bad reputation for crime and the sex industry, but this city is large enough to avoid the latter.

Logistically this is the place to live.

Pattaya, the city probably has the worst reputation in the world for anything to do with sex (depravity is the name of the game). People who live here will do all to avoid admitting they live here and will probably say Jomtien Beach.

Has a beach but very small (width) and you will not enjoy swimming in the sea as it smells of diesel. The diesel comes from the boating side of Pattaya with many boat yards along the coast.

You cannot avoid the sex side of this seedy city, the golf is good with excellent courses and Pattaya Water Park is worth a visit as is the Croc Farm.

Phuket, the largest island of Thailand, fighting hard for tourism. Has some nice beach's and is in the Adaman Sea which is cleaner than the Gulf of Thailand.

Also has a sex image, Patong Beach is known as little Pattaya and there are also envelopes at adjoining beach's.

This is the place for Yaghting and Boat enthusiasts (great mariners), has some spectacular scenery off the coast.

Koh Samui, the most famous island in the world, gives a romantic feel as soon as you step onto it. Has some nice beach's and waterfalls and is packed with tourist almost all year round.

Also has a sex problem but is mainly at Cheawang and Lamai beach's, stay away from these area's and you will not come into contact with the seedier side of Thailand.

If you are into diving then this is the place with numerous destinations including Koh Tao. The full and half moon parties promote this island as the place for ravers and party animals.

Hua Hin and Cha Am, Hua Hin is the oldest seaside resort in Thailand and has royal patronage (Kings Summer Palace and main residence). The crime scene is low due maily to the Summer Palace therefore the large amount of police.

The beach's in Hua Hin and Cha Am are probably the best in Thailand, and at weekends are probably the busiest.

Springfield Golf Coarse was designed by Jack Nicklaus and is the only PGA creditted golf coarse in Asia (not Japan I think), has many other outstanding golf coarses also and is indeed the main attraction for the area.

Also has a sex side in Hua Hin but is regulated in one area only. so if you stay away from this soi then you will have an enjoyable and memories only of the nicer things in life.

Sorry cannot spell Yaghting, looks wrong anyway.

The above is only a generalisation and is not meant to offend, but please give your views about the above and other destinations.

Have not mentioned Chiang Mai as I have never been there.

[davethailand]

i live in pattaya (not jomtien) , with my thai wife who used to work in a nightclub (does that make her a prostitue), apart from the sex trade pattaya is a great place to live.

oh and i'm not embaressed to admit it

[Guest chingy]

Bangkok, god! this city is aweful, but i love it.

[Goat Roper]

live in Bangkok, like the city lots and it will be a great city to live in just as soon as cheerless leader fixes the traffic problem(Chatt Nah?)

[Chaamman]

i live in pattaya (not jomtien) , with my thai wife who used to work in a nightclub (does that make her a prostitue), apart from the sex trade pattaya is a great place to live.

oh and i'm not embaressed to admit it Quote from Davethailand.

These folks from Pattaya seem a little odd, the question is about where to live and hes asking if his wife is a prostitute?

I reckon Pattaya is definetly for the perv or nutters. STAY AWAY unless its a hooker you are looking for.

[elsie]

I reckon Pattaya is definetly for the perv or nutters. STAY AWAY unless its a hooker you are looking for.

IMO, one can only 'see' what one wants to see. If you are looking for a prostitute, you will get only prostitute, regardless of where you are. There are lots of prostitutes and perverts in Pattaya. But it doesn't mean everyone in Pattaya is either a pervert or a prostitute.

PS. I live in Bangkok.

[meadish_sweetball]

IMO, one can only 'see' what one wants to see.

Right on.

Chiang Mai: Lots of tourists, large expat population, most of which live out of town since it is very difficult to get hold of a house or a decent piece of land in the city's beautiful centre. Tourism mainly concentrated on ethnotourism, jungle tours, New Age/meditation, cooking courses and up until quite recently, smoking drugs.

Good atmosphere, locals in general are more relaxed and nice than Bangkok people (excepting many people in the tourist trade).

Some sex tourism, girly bars catering to Westerners concentrated to one small albeit very central area. Apparently there are also quite a few massage institutes/brothels catering mainly to Asian customers as well.

A cheaper city than all the other alternatives. Huge variety in food: over 40 vegetarian restaurants in the city centre, and great Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean, French, Italian, Northeastern Thai, Southern Thai and Central Thai restaurants. Israeli, German, Scandinavian, Indian food also available. One of Thailand's most modern shopping malls, a decent zoo and the omnipresent mountain Doi Suthep. Very inexpensive accommodation, be it hotels or guest houses or condominiums for long-term stay.

Funky university scene with nice, cheap and stylish hangouts to drink and snack at. Good and reasonable priced health care/dental care. Plenty of international schools.

Unlike Bangkok, it is possible to get out of the city by car or bus during the weekend without having to push for space with millions of others at your destination. Fantastic national parks and plenty of waterfalls.

No sea.

[bartender100]

I live in Pattaya,(used to live in Jomtien)and i can think of a lot of places I would rather not be living in.

Dave which is your bar,if you don't mind me asking,I know you said its around walking street,and I go around there 3/4 times a week.

[Duckthai]

Chiang Mai sounds lovely, one of the few places I have not been.

Any Hotel advice in Chiang Mai?

[Chaamman]

Hello All

Cha Am probably has the best beach's in Thailand, certainly the widest and busiest (Weekends and Public Hols). I believe it is also the driest place in Thailand (Although an Expat who also has a home in Kanchanburi says that Kancha is the driest), Ranong is definetly the wettest.

Cha Am is a very busy resort during the weekends and Public Holidays as this is the most popular destination for Thais (2 1/2 hours from Bangkok).

Very laid back with many Restaurants and Hotels, the accomadation is across the board from Fan rooms at 150 baht to 5 star Resorts.

The coast is covered along the majority with Restaurants and Resorts, building/construction is at a fair pace (Hotels and Resorts as well as Housing).

Plenty of Golf many courses to choose from in the Area.

Has 2 Universities Stanford and Websters.

[astral]

It all depends on what you want

You have named most of the main tourist areas.

They can be pure ###### "in the season".

There are many other delightful corners in LOS, travel around and see for yourself before you settle.

[p1p]

Just put in my own ten Satang worth.

I live just outside Chiang Mai for several reasons:

I find the cooler, mountain climate more comfortable.

I can source almost anything I need here, be it Farang specific food, entertainment or whatever.

I am able to get from home in the country to work in city centre in just over ten minutes, and from home to mountain waterfall in less.

Prices, (except fuel) are generally lower than in Bangkok or the seaside resorts.

It has been home for almost thirty years, on and off.

I also spend time in Khon Kaen and find it hotter and much more difficult to find the little Farang luxuries in life.

Horses for courses, but the North fits me fine.

[HinHam]

Agree with the majority.

Hua Hin and Cha Am have the best beach's in Thailand but I find the area very hot and clammy.

Must agree with p1p that Chiang Mai etc is cooler with a climate more suited to us Farrangs.

[Khun Larry]

Hua Hin and Cha Am have the best beach's in Thailand but I find the area very hot and clammy.

I had heard this many times. Hua Hin has a nice beach but nothing spectacular but yes better than Pattaya.

I was quite disappointed with the Cha Am beach. Too many boats and jet skis

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Too many Erco's and alter ego's of the said Erco on this thread. I think it is fast drawing to a close.

[elsie]

Agree with you, Doc. Too pathetic to change names and log in to support his own idea as another person. Just soon enough, he will come back online and bite me back. So, how many people would spell beach's, HinHam?

Doc, you guys can keep banning him and he will get a new ID to come back and say "Hua Hin and Cha Am have the best beach's in Thailand". Haven't we got that enough?

[HinHam]

Not sure what this means???

Little off post me thinks.

How are you LC?

[Khun Larry]

Too many Erco's and alter ego's of the said Erco on this thread.

What's an Erco

[Boon Mee]

Too many Erco's and alter ego's of the said Erco on this thread.

What's an Erco

You really don't want to know. Hint...do a search in the "General" section and you'll find more than you want.