- Where to stay at the resort
- Traveling around the city
- Money for food
- Entertainment and excursions in Pattaya
- Gifts and souvenirs
One of the most famous and fashionable resorts in Asia - Thai Pattaya - is located on the shores of the Gulf of Thailand. Currently, the city is visited by more than 2 million tourists every year. In especially "fruitful" years, this figure increases threefold. The high popularity and development of the resort is facilitated by the presence of an airport located between Bangkok and Pattaya, and a variety of entertainment for adults, for which many tourists come here. How much money to take to Pattaya so as not to sit at the hotel all the time and see all the wonders of the resort?
The Thais themselves are convinced that Pattaya is the most economical resort in their country. There are very low prices for food, excursions, travel in transport. However, any self-respecting tourist will always find where to spend money.
The Thai Baht is considered the national currency of Thailand. According to the 2018 exchange rate, 1 dollar in exchange offices and banks in Pattaya is exchanged for 33 Thai baht. Experienced travelers recommend taking dollars or euros with you on a trip, which can be easily exchanged for local money. Rubles are also accepted for exchange in Pattaya, which is better to change not in banks where the rate is too low, but in exchange offices in tourist places.
Where to stay at the resort
If you plan to live in Pattaya for more than a month, it will be cheaper to rent an apartment. The cost of living per month will start at 8,000 baht ($ 242). For two weeks, the same apartment will be rented for 12,000 baht ($ 363).
The most budget accommodation option in Pattaya is guesthouses (guest houses), a room in which you can rent a minimum of 300 baht ($ 9) per night. The room will have a fan, shower and TV. A room in a guesthouse equipped with air conditioning, refrigerator and satellite TV is more valuable. It can be rented for 500 baht ($ 15) per day. When choosing a guesthouse, be guided by its proximity to the coast, because the price of the rooms will directly depend on this. Near the sea - pay more. To the sea 4 km - rent a room for a penny.
There are also comfortable hotels in Pattaya. Accommodation in a three-star hotel in Pattaya will cost about $ 40 per day, in a four-star hotel - $ 65-70. Rooms in boutique hotels are priced at $ 150 or more. Among the resort's five-star hotels, the top rated are Intercontinental Resort, Royal Cliff Grand Hotel and Wave Hotel Pattaya.
How to get around the city
Thailand is a country where locals are used to living off tourists. This state of affairs often leads to unpleasant situations. For example, many Thais willingly take advantage of the fact that an ordinary tourist is unfamiliar with the country, its customs and prices. Therefore, at every step in Pattaya and other resort cities, there are people who offer various products and tickets "at a bargain price." You can often run into scammers selling tickets for a comfortable bus, which must be paid for in advance. When the would-be tourist comes to the desired vehicle, it turns out that he has to go in a dilapidated bus.
Modes of transport running around Pattaya;
- tuk-tuki. The price is calculated depending on the distance, each kilometer is taken into account. Therefore, in order not to pay more, find out the exact opening hours of tourist facilities where you want to go, and only then hire a tuk-tuk. The fare in it will be from 100 baht (about 3 dollars) and more;
- songteo - local minibuses. A ticket for a trip around the city will be 10 baht (30 cents), in the vicinity of Pattaya - 20 baht (60 cents);
- bus. Large buses run to the airport or to neighboring towns. The trip to the airport will cost 120-250 baht;
- motorcycle taxis and taxis. Meters are not available everywhere, the price for the trip should be agreed in advance. A motorcycle taxi costs half the price of a regular taxi. The minimum bill from a taxi driver is 200 baht ($ 6).
Money for food
In Pattaya there is a rule: the closer the cafe is to the sea, the higher the prices in it. If you want to save money, walk a couple of blocks away from the sea. The same dishes will be 20% cheaper there.
So where is it safer and more profitable to eat in Pattaya? For example:
- makashnits. A large motor-van with food trays. The choice of food is small here. Most likely, there will be chicken and rice dishes. The cost of food is low: Tom Yam soup will cost 70 baht (about $ 2), meat broth - 40 baht ($ 1.2), noodles with shrimps - 65 baht (just under $ 2), shrimp without garnish - 100 baht (3 dollars). It is possible and necessary to eat in makashnits if little money is allocated for food. Many Europeans believe that these street food vans are not hygienic. But you can get poisoned with food from makashnits with the same probability as with dishes from a normal Thai restaurant;
- cafes in the markets. Prices in them are about the same as in makashnits. But there is one significant difference: in market cafes, for a small fee, they can prepare everything that you yourself buy in the shopping arcade. Fish, seafood, meat - everything is fresh, personally chosen by you;
- cooking in hypermarkets. Ready meals are heated here for each client. In the shopping center "Big C" you can cook fish bought on the spot at no additional cost;
- food courts in shopping malls, where you can eat hearty for 200 baht ($ 6);
- budget cafes, where the average bill will be about 300 baht ($ 9);
- restaurants. A three-course lunch in them will cost about 500 baht ($ 15).
All snacks, water, bread can be bought in supermarkets. The cost of a liter bottle of water is 1 baht (3 cents), a five-liter bottle is 25 baht (75 cents). Fruit prices start at 20-35 baht (0.75-1 dollar). Imported (European or American) alcohol in Thailand is expensive, for example, a bottle of Johnny Walker whiskey will cost 900 baht ($ 27). Local spirits are 50% cheaper.
Entertainment and excursions in Pattaya
Pattaya is famous for its vibrant nightlife. There is everything that a foreigner wants to see far away from his home: nightclubs, peep shows, massage parlors, karaoke, etc. You don’t take money to enter discos in Pattaya. True, each visitor should order a drink at a local bar, which will cost at least 100 baht ($ 3). Spicy shows featuring half-naked girls and transvestites will cost 300-500 baht ($ 9-15) per ticket and about the same amount for drinks.
The most famous area for relaxation and adventure is the Beach Road. The prices here, due to the large number of visitors, are set an order of magnitude higher than on the neighboring streets. For a glass of juice in local bars they ask from 30 to 300 baht (1-9 dollars). The massage is priced at 200 baht ($ 6). By the way, massages are done here on every corner. You can arrange 10 massage sessions for about $ 100.
Excursions will be a significant part of the expenses during your stay in Pattaya. Trips in the company of a Russian-speaking guide are quite expensive. For a reasonable fee, you can negotiate with one of the local guides who know English. Set aside around 9,000-10,000 baht ($ 270-300) for all excursions.
The most popular route is considered to be a day trip to Bangkok. Travel agencies ask for a tour of the capital of Thailand 2,000 baht ($ 60). For 700 baht ($ 21), a tourist as part of an organized group is offered to be taken to the Khao Kheo Zoo, where shows with tigers, otters and other animals are held. A trip to the Nong Nooch botanical garden, where guests are entertained by aborigines in national clothes and learned elephants, will also be interesting. The tour also includes a visit to the snake farm. This tour is priced at 1,350 baht ($ 40).
A six-hour boat trip to the nearest islands will cost 1,800 baht ($ 54). Lunch, snacks and fishing are available on board.
Gifts and souvenirs
Before going to Pattaya, many tourists are faced with the question: what to bring as a gift from Thailand, what unusual and interesting things you can spend money on. The main shopping malls are large shopping malls (Festival Center, Mike Shopping Mall, Royal Garden Plaza). Everything is sold here: from clothing to electronics. Branded clothing is quite high quality, but costs almost the same as in stores in Russia. Unknown brand clothing is sold in numerous markets. Its cost varies from 100 to 300 baht (3-10 dollars), and this figure can be significantly reduced by bargaining with the seller.
Experienced tourists bring original souvenirs from Pattaya, for example, strong liqueurs with snakes, which can be bought at souvenir shops and shops at crocodile farms. They say that this drink is good for your health. It is not cheap - about $ 60-70. An unusual gift will be a jar of durian jam - a fruit with a pungent smell, which not every tourist dares to try in Thailand, and there is no question of bringing it on a plane at all. But jam is allowed to be exported in unlimited quantities. A small jar of this delicacy will cost $ 15.
Expensive (from $ 20 to $ 100 apiece) latex pillows, which are intended for snoring people, are also brought from Pattaya. Incense and various means of Thai medicine are also very popular. The cost of such drugs starts from $ 5-10.
The amount you should take with you to Pattaya depends entirely on your interests and needs. On average, they spend about $ 50-70 per day here. For a week, $ 500-600 should be enough for one person. Many tourists traveling together charge about $ 1,000 to Thailand for 7 days. These funds will be enough for massages, dinners in restaurants, several interesting excursions and shopping.
