Pattaya - The Fun Town in Thailand

Pattaya is a seaside resort on the Eastern Gulf Coast of Thailand, about 150 km (around 2 hrs.) southeast of Bangkok. Until some time ago, Pattaya was only known as a place for its neon lights wild parties, go go bars and the coastal beach. More than 500 bars are in the “The Walking Street”, the place that put Pattaya on its map the half-mile stretch that’s filled with bright lights, loud music, night clubs, street performers and shows. However, the local authorities have made a lot of success efforts to provide more family-friendly attractions and activities. The sex industry is still going strong and sex tourism remains the most important source of income for Pattaya.

But now, Pattaya also attracts local families and holidaymakers from around the world. Pattaya now appeals to a much wider audience for couples, families, tour groups and even business travelers.

Pattaya's coastal side is divided longitudinally into fife contiguous sub-districts. Each one is named after the section of beach or headland at its seaboard.

1. North Pattaya (Pattaya Nua) - not the northern-most part of Pattaya (as Naklua lies further north), but the section of Pattaya adjacent to the northern end of Pattaya Beach and extending inland to both the north and south of North Pattaya Road. Does not include Naklua.
2. South Pattaya (Pattaya Tai) - not the southern-most part of Pattaya (as the Buddha Hill headland, and then Jomtien, lie further south), but the section of Pattaya adjacent to the southern end of Pattaya Beach and extending inland to both the north and south of South Pattaya Road. Includes Pattayaland and Walking Street. Does not include Buddha Hill or Jomtien.
3.  Central Pattaya (Pattaya Klang) - not the dead center of Pattaya, but the section of Pattaya adjacent to the middle of Pattaya Beach and extending inland to both the north and south of Central Pattaya Road. Some maps/guides disregard the Central Pattaya convention, and instead extend North Pattaya and South Pattaya to meet each other along Central Pattaya Road; sometimes, Beach Road is described with a similar division, and the respective halves given "North Beach Road" and "South Beach Road" monikers.
4.  Naklua - immediately north of North Pattaya, and with quick, frequent, and inexpensive transport to and from the rest of Pattaya; Naklua is popular with visitors whose native language is German. In terms of tourism-related locations, it's the smallest and least significant sub-district, the main attractions being the beaches (which are quieter than Pattaya Beach) and the Sanctuary of Truth.
5. Buddha Hill (Pratumnak Hill) - named after the Buddha Hill landmark and sandwiched between South Pattaya (to the north) and Jomtien (to the south); to the east, South Pattaya and Jomtien meet directly.

Note: Where the individual sub-districts begin and end is very difficult to recognize, as none of the boundaries lie along major roads. There is no map with the details of the boundaries. Further inland, the sub-district names are used less, and locality/road names take precedence - for example, an address might state "Sukhumvit, Naklua" which is useful in that it makes it clear the location is to the north of the Sukhumvit / North Pattaya Road intersection, however the exact same place would not normally be described simply as being "in Naklua" as that would give the misleading impression of it being in the main beachside/tourism area further west.

Further immediately south of Pattaya lies Jomtien and, practically speaking, they form one municipality. Jomtien, like Pattaya, is very popular with tourists, but has a significant population of permanent expats and some workers. This fact makes Jomtien a bit sedate despite many bars and night life scene.

One problem in Thailand is the spelling character of street or places. Sometimes it is spelled Chom Tien or Chom Thian while shops and businesses use Jomtien.