Thailand forum

It's going to likely rain close to daily BUT, those could easily be short showers. Of course, you could have a front come in and it rains for three or four days without break. No way to predict that.

Longbeach - November through Feb it's not humid at all where I live. Just FYI.

"Just wanted to know"
All you can do is be prepared for some rain - either a little or a lot. July is usually fairly rainy, but sometimes just late afternoon showers, sometimes mornings, but also sometimes all day, otherwise it's just hot and humid. Dec-Feb is usually the driest, but it's still the tropics so no guarantees.

Thaiexplorer - Bangkok to Pattaya is 2 hours tops. Not hardly a "travel day". Leave at ten in the morning, you can be there by noon and on the beach or chillin' at a bar by one.

I do concede there is some sense in killing Hua Hin , that would eat a travel day. And maybe head a bit further east along the coast. But Hua Hin does have it's own appeal.

Longbeach
I am not a fan of Pattaya either. BUT, Pattaya was built as a mecca for hedonism. I stayed with my family there at a five star hotel for three nights for 80 bucks a night. It had a magnificent infinity pool, it had a private beach that was clean as a whistle, and the city itself has every kind of cuisine you can imagine. It's cheaper than Bangkok by a wide margin.

There is a basic line of thought on travelfish that disparages main line tourist destinations that are hedonistic. Pattaya is number one on the list, Phuket is number two. But millions of people go to these destinations for a reason. If Bangkok had it all over Pattaya, everyone would just stay there. I am assuming the OP has done his homework and decided he wants to go there for whatever hedonistic pursuit interests him.

Pattaya is much cheaper than HH or Bangkok. Much. And if offers WAY more diversity than HH. Like I said, if hundreds of thousands of tourists go somewhere every year, there's a good reason for it. The top flight hotels in Pattaya are cheap and really nice. In Khon Kaen I stayed at the Pullman, which is probably the nicest hotel in Issan, and it wasn't half as nice as the place I stayed at in Pattaya and the cost was the same. It might not be your cup of tea - like I said it really isn't mine either - but for a lot of people it's a great place (and not just mongers).

http://pattayabound.blogspot.com.au/2009/06/pattaya-beach-photos_14.html
http://www.pattayaunlimited.com/2012/03/pattaya-naklua-beach.html


and it's even worse back towards the street with trash lying around

The beach at Jomtien doesn't cut it - I agree. But North Pattaya's private hotel beaches, that's a different story. Hotel staff keeps those pretty clean and manicured. At least the one I stayed in. And the reason the top end hotels are cheaper is volume of customers. And you'd be surprised how many famlies are there. I only saw two guys with girls that were obviously in the game. Tons of Chinese, Russian and Korean famlies. I mean a lot. Issan can't hope to compete with that. Like I said, if it was crappy value, people wouldn't go anymore. Pattaya is a place of extremes for sure, but it's got it's plusses.

And we didn't. There was a group of Koreans, but they were all on another wing. In my wing it was almost all Russians, and they were quiet families who did not socialize with others. My daughter played with one of the little Russian boys in the pool, but the mom and dad had ZERO desire to engage socially with my mother, my wife or I. They weren't friendly, but they didn't bother anyone either.

But the hotel was the best deal for the money I have ever seen - anywhere - ever. The room had a huge picture window about eight meters across by two high looking out over the ocean. Beautiful wood floors. Just a magnificant place. With continental breakfast - less than 80 bucks a night for four of us.

And we ate in an Indian restaraunt on beach road and the food and service were first class for less than ten bucks a meal. And I don't mean some crappy roadside stand either. Nice place with sit down dining, nice ambience...

Pattaya is an ugly city from an architectural standpoint, and a dirty one as you pointed out. But it has some things going for it. Did I mention there's a nice little salsa dance scene there being run by Jojo and Jean from the PI?

It is kind of funny that here this guy is asking about the weather and most of the commentary has been about the destination.

I can't for the life of me remmember the name of it. It's in North Pattaya, and I booked it through Agoda. I wish I could, cause I'd like to go back there. My daughter loved the pool and I loved the room.

I found it - the Garden Cliff Resort and Spa. We had the executive suite booked through Agoda. It could not have been better. Fantastic deal. This was about 18 months ago.

Yeah, you've got to book through Agoda, and do it during the week... I had the executive suite for I think was 86 (it 80 something) a night. Couldn't beat it. Great place too, as long as you aren't looking for companionship with the other guests.

Thanks guys,
I have decided to cancel out pattaya and add one more day to huahin. Hope that the rain gods help me.

Thank you MADMAC, no i shall be going with friends so i wont be looking for any companions surely:) just a comfortable clean decent hotel is what i am looking for, the rest i will be out exploring thailand anyways How many days did you go for? what places did you visit? And What is Huahin famous for?

Oh lucky you! you get Thai food whenever:D i love Thai food anytime, as much, anywhere but i suppose you wouldn't know of any Thai eatery there? Have you seen Phuket nightlife? i have heard of that too as being popular

How about recommendations for excellent Italian cuisine, especially baked chicken cheese pastas, Alferado or alike ? What are the top attraction in Bangkok you have come across?

Hey, many congrats on your home you building:) Oh my God you saw a crocodile! how far was it from you people? what a thrilling and frightening moment! tell me about it! were you people boating?

Hi guys,

All my tickets are booked and my hotel reservations confirmed.I hope to have a wonderful trip.

It wasn't a tour, so there was no guy supervising it. There was just a boat driver, and we didn't ask him if crocs were common. People swim in the canals abutting the river (which is where we saw the croc by the way) so if crocs were much of an issue, I don't think they'd be in the water. The boats are large, so even were there large crocs (and I think their presence around Bangkok is pretty rare) they would not be a concern. But I don't think they are common. It wasn't scary at all. You needn't be concerned.

Yes, I have done some kayaking in the States, but not over here.

I don't know. I would think probably. I think Crocs used to be indigenous to the river (I read that somewhere) but where erradicated by hunting. At any rate, I think they are rare there now and it's not something to be concerned about from a safety standpoint.