Pattaya (พัทยา) Thailand

Pattaya (พัทยา) or Phattaya is a city on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand in the province of Chonburi, distance about 170 km southeast of Bangkok. It is one of the major centers of tourism in Thailand, with several million of visitors visit here for each year. Tourists visit Pattaya for many reasons including luxury hotels, beautiful beaches, attraction activities, friendly people, shopping, reasonable living cost, and a wide variety of nearby tourist attractions. Others come for the world renowned nightlife.

Pattaya Beaches
Thailand has some of the world's most beautiful beaches, Pattaya Beach is situated along the central city in close proximity to shopping, hotels and bars. The over-abundance of jet-skis and speedboats has contributed to the pollution of the water along Pattaya Beach, as has the sewage outlet at the end of the pier. The section of beach from Central Road (Pattaya Klang พัทยากลาง) south to the harbor is adjacent to the core of Pattaya's abundant nightlife area, hence it is less family-oriented than the North Pattaya and Jomtien beaches.
Most sections of the beach are covered by rented deckchairs run by local beverage vendors during daylight hours so finding an available spot of sand is rather difficult and also unadvisable due to the poor condition of the beach. Visitors are advised to avoid the beach after dark. Although the Beach Road itself is busy and brightly lit, some criminal elements find the unlit beach useful as a cover for their activities. The local police have started to target this area in various ongoing clampdowns.

Jomtien Beach
Jomtien Beach is divided from the main part of Pattaya by Pratumnak Hill, just south of the city. In contrast to Pattaya Beach, Jomtien is a popular spot for family vacationers and watersports enthusiasts. Jomtien is essentially a residential area with beachside hotels, bungalow complexes, condominiums and restaurants. A wide array of watersport activities can be found, including jet-skis, para-sailing and scuba diving. Dongtan beach, in Jomtien, is known as the gay beach, and is busy every day of the year.
Jomtien's most visible landmark is the 56-story Pattaya Park tower, part of the Pattaya Park entertainment complex which also features a water park, roller coaster, monorail and children's activities.

This may soon be overshadowed by the proposed 91-floor Ocean 1 Tower construction of which is due to start "in late 2006", with completion scheduled for 2010. With an overall height of 367 meters, it would be the tallest building in Thailand and one of the tallest residential buildings in the world. The Jomtien district is already home to one of the largest resorts in Asia, the 4000+ room Ambassador City Jomtien.