Not been pattaya since 2005 whats changed

[forreachingme]

Get the taxi at upper floor departure area, a 1000 Thb does it for the ride

[jamiejambos]

^^
All the rides are more expensive.

[Lancelot]

It's not all bad news mate- just got some very good news re the value of my house there.

A house was just valued at 18.5 million, is half the size of mine and stuck in behind Wanasin Markets.

That would mean that mine is worth 30 million but who has the money.

Yes, property values have risen but nobody is buying.

Sweet if you could sell for an amount even near that- and the strong baht would fetch you more Dollars, Pounds or Euros...

[DJ Pat]

Oh I yearn for the days when Pattaya was a whoremongers paradise. The girls were all over you everywhere telling me they'd ''go with me'' and how handsome I was. Then the mobile phone and internet got invented.

[KEVIN2008]

Homeless and stuck: (in Pattaya ) the tourists who never went home

...at 03.05

Homeless and stuck: the tourists who never went home - FRANCE 24


Thailand is a world leader in the tourism industry. The kingdom’s cultural treasures, beautiful landscapes and other charms attract a steady influx of tourists. But for some visitors, this holiday paradise can become a dead-end street. The country is dealing with a growing trend: Westerners who outstay their visas and end up living in poverty on the streets. That's exactly what is happening in Pattaya, a popular beach resort 130 km east of Bangkok.

[DJ Pat]

^Good little report

[KEVIN2008]

Photo Essay: Homeless foreigners living down and out in Pattaya

White sands, radiant sun and warm seas. These are the pictorial associations most of the world holds of Thailand. However the prostitution, organized crime and unreliable justice run in a deep, close parallel. The conflux of these things draws many male foreigners to Pattaya, Thailand’s Sin City, from retirees to sexpats. With enough time, behavior that would be unacceptable in their homes can seem a strange kind of norm here. The less savory aspects of their character unbounded by social convention.

While most visit Pattaya as a vacation escape, others go a step further and make it their home, perhaps hoping to nurse the dream indefinitely. That doesn’t always work out so well. Some, like Steven and Tony, have ended up homeless and alone, cut off from any relationships with family or friends back home. They don't have the money to pay overstay fines if they actually wanted to leave, and live off their own wits and the kindness of others.

READ MORE: Photo Essay: Homeless foreigners living down and out in Pattaya | Coconuts Bangkok

[floppyjack]

surely they knew what los is like ? and knew the traps......im off back there next week for 3 weeks........still need transport from the airport..... guys any referals please.....

[cyrille]

Also does anyone know anyone who does cheap transfers from the airport ?

Get the airport link (train) to PhayaThai get the BTS to Ekamai. The bus terminal is still at Ekamai, get the a/c bus to Pattaya (2hr) it arrives in the same place it did in 2005!

The airport is probably nearer Pattaya than it is to Ekkamai. Madness to go to Ekamai in order to get to Pattaya.

As a previous poster mentioned, just go to departures and negotiate a fare with a taxi there.

They'll quote you something daft to begin with, of course. You should probably be able to get it down to about 250 - 300 baht to the door of your hotel, I'd say.

Not the cheapest method, but who wants to faff around after a long haul flight.

[jamiejambos]

250-300 baht are you kidding?When was the last time you were in L.O.S,a long long time ago i'll'bet.

[jamiejambos]

Starting to smell a rat here with Cyrille's post.

[cyrille]

250-300 baht are you kidding?When was the last time you were in L.O.S,a long long time ago i'll'bet.

About 18 months since I was in Pattaya. ('LOS' would hardly be enough, now would it? )

Aim for 250 - accept 500.

That's the way I do it.

Maybe I just know the proper rates better than you because I lived near there for 4 years. Outside of pattaya and outside the sexpat bubble.

Starting to smell a rat here with Cyrille's post.

What are you talking about, 'rats'?

Do you think it's a better idea to triple the distance and quadruple the time by getting the airport link and BTS to Ekkamai? Then get the bus to Pattaya Bus station and a taxi or song taew to your hotel?

To save what, about 5 quid?

And yet nobody chose to point out the stupidity of that answer.

Hmm ...

[nidhogg]

Have to agree that heading in BK from the airport to get to pattaya is a waste of time and effort. You are a good chunk of the way to pattaya already, and with the upgraded road it is quite a quick trip now.

You might get 500 baht for the trip, but I would have thought nearer to 800 or so (although its a while since i did that trip).

[Dandyhole]

2009 since i was last in Patts, so hopefully a visit next year, and will need to save more cash on the basis of some of these figures.

[cyrille]

Get the taxi at upper floor departure area, a 1000 Thb does it for the ride

I read on panthip that they've blocked off some of the exits people use to do that, and are trying harder to funnel people into the official line.

[grasshopper]

If you get in early enough, take the bloody bus. 134 baht to Patts and Jomtien. If you get there after 8 pm well, taxi is your only option.

[Bower]

Mr T taxis, have an office in BKK and one in Patts, 1000bht BKK to Patts, meet you at arrivals, have never let me down.
Clean car and safe driver.

[Dandyhole]

and safe driver.

Thats the top and bottom of it for me.

Some of the taxi drivers I've had have been lunatics, especially the minibus drivers