Specialist clinics
Counseling Center Pattaya
. Help with all forms of addiction, depression, relationship issues, sex problems, eating disorders, anxiety, compulsive disorders etc. See website for details and lots of information and tips related to counseling, psychotherapy, hypnotherapy and relationship counseling. German and English spoken. By Appointment Only.
Pattaya Royal Beauty Clinic, Plastic Surgery since 1986
. Pattaya's first Plastic Surgery clinic, which always provides free initial consultation at the clinic. Major procedures are performed at a private hospital that it is outsourcing the facilities. Minor procedures, such as nose-job are performed at the clinic. The price is to be told after the consultation, which is pretty much the same to what's listed on the web.
Hospitals
Bangkok Pattaya Hospital
Emergency: +66 3825 9911. Pattaya's largest hospital 210 beds and generally regarded as having the best facilities and highest standards; a bit more expensive than the rest, but still much lower prices than in the West. Many travel insurance policies will cover in-patient care here directly.
Banglamung Hospital
This is the least foreigner-oriented of the major hospitals in Pattaya, and most likely to have the lowest prices.
Pattaya Memorial Hospital
Has the most central location, but not as good a reputation as Bangkok Pattaya Hospital or Pattaya International Hospital.
Thai Airways International
For most people, the most hazardous aspect of visiting Pattaya is the traffic. The top three accident black spots are:
Dolphin Roundabout intersection of Beach Road, Second Road, North Pattaya Road and Naklua Road
junction of Beach Road and Central Pattaya Road
junction of Beach Road / Walking Street and South Pattaya Road
Most accidents in Pattaya involve motorbikes, and are especially common late at night and in the early hours of the morning, when drink-driving is a significant problem. Be careful on the roads, even if you're just crossing one on foot and be equally careful both on and off pedestrian crossings, as Thai drivers generally ignore them, and many foreigners seem to approach them with the hope of scoring double points; be careful on the pavements too - obstacles apparently purpose-engineered to trip up as many people as possible are commonplace, and motorcyclists use footpaths as short cuts with impunity. When riding in the back of an otherwise empty songthaew, it's probably safest to sit directly behind the cab.
In the event of an accident, the injured are usually bundled into the back of the next available songthaew or pickup truck or even onto the back of a motorbike now you know why Pattaya has so many songthaews, why Thailand is the world's biggest pickup truck market, and why so many Thais ride motorbikes.
A completely different genre of traffic-related accident was highlighted by a fatality in January 2006 when a surfacing diver was hit by a speedboat propeller near Ko Laan. Unfortunately, the popularity of Pattaya's beaches combined with a relatively relaxed attitude to safety concerns in general means that swimmers and divers and even sunbathers on the beach! being struck by speedboats and jetskis is not such a rare occurrence.
newspapers and magazines
Pattaya Blatt (http://www.pattayablatt.com) - in German - 25 baht, weekly
Pattaya Mail (http://www.pattayamail.com) - in English - 25 baht, weekly
Pattaya People Pattaya Aktuell (http://www.pattayapeople.com) - mainly in English, some German, a little Thai - 25 baht, weekly
Pattaya Today (http://www.pattayatoday.net) - in English - 20 baht, fortnightly
Pattaya has several foreign language newspapers; most come out weekly. The English newspapers include Pattaya Times, Pattaya Today, Pattaya Mail and Pattaya People Weekly. Additionally, there are French, Norwegian, German, Russian and Japanese publications. There are several English-language cable television programs with news and video reports from Pattaya. There are also several tourist magazines and nightlife, most of them coming out monthly. 96FM Yes2Day is an excellent, British standard radio station. Available both via conventional radio and worldwide internet streaming, a wide variety of music from the 60's through today can be heard. As well, Johnny Diamond hosts an informative and entertaining morning show from Monday through Thursday.
embassies & consulates
American
US Embassy local representatives for emergencies - Gary Hacker: dial 098030388 [email protected] / Glenn Holthaus: dial 038424998 [email protected]British
Soi 5, Jomtien, close to the Immigration Office open 9:00 AM - 11:30 AM, honorary consul Howard Miller: dial 087 747 8555 [email protected]Danish
consulate: 75/128-129 Soi Sukasem, Jomtien Beach Road; dial 038231630 [email protected] (http://www.ambbangkok.um....)French
honorary consul Pierre de Brugerolle de Fraissinette: Espace Francophone La Fontaine, 280/3 Beach Road, South Pattaya southern end of Walking Street; Wed+Fri 14:00-16:00 dial 038710800 /2 (http://www.ambafrance-th....)Hungarian
consulate: 42/15 Sabaijai Village, Sukhumvit Road; dial 038373056Irish
contact British honorary consul, see aboveIndian
Address 46 Prasarnmitr Sukhumvit Soi 23 Bangkok – 10110 Telephone Numbers662 2580300-5 Fax Numbers662 2584627, 2621740
Norwegian
honorary consul for Chonburi, Chantaburi, Rayong and Trat Stig Vagt Andersen: 75/128-29, Moo 12, Jomtien Beach Road; M-F 09.00-11.30 dial 038231630 (http://www.emb-norway.or....)Swedish
honorary consul Dr. Sunya Viravaydia: 391/69 Moo 10, Tabphya Road; M-F 09:00-15:00 dial 038364485 [email protected] (http://www.swedenabroad.c...)
internet
Internet access is widely available in Pattaya, and speed and reliability of the connection is generally good; however, as is the case throughout Thailand, quality varies. The majority of Internet shops tend to open late and close late, but many are open 24/7; prices range from 120 baht/hr down to 20 baht/hr. One baht/min is typical for predominantly tourist-oriented shops, many of which also offer lower rates for pre-paid blocks of time. It's not difficult to find well-equipped, quiet, air-conditioned Internet cafés that charge 30 baht/hr if you shop around a little; likewise shops that can accommodate users who want to hook up their own laptops can easily be found. Printing black/white is usually 10 baht/page 30 baht/page for colour.
Many Internet cafés and photo-processing shops have facilities for off-loading digital photos from memory cards and burning them to a CD, for which the going rate is 100 baht per CD. As always, carefully verify the integrity of the images on the CD before re-formatting the memory card, and consider having two copies burned to CD â one CD to send home by mail, the other CD to take home in your luggage as a backup.
immigration
Pattaya Immigration Office (http://www.pattaya-immigr...) is now housed in new premises near the inland end of Soi 5, Jomtien Beach Road most maps show the old Soi 8, Pattaya Beach Road location, which closed in December 2005. Opening hours are 08:30-16:30 weekdays, 08:30-12:00 extentions/notifications only on Saturdays tel. +66-38252750 / fax. +66-38252751-111 / e-mail [email protected]; casual but smart attire is OK, however entry in swimwear or without a shirt is not permitted.
Entry permit extensions are processed on a same day if applied for before noon - collect after 15:00 or next working day if applied for after noon basis. On Saturdays, previous applications can be collected, and new applications can be submitted for collection next working day. For most nationalities, a 30 day entry permit stamp will usually be extended to 45 days whereas in Bangkok only an additional 10 days will be given and a 60 day entry permit stamp will usually be extended to 90 days further extensions beyond 90 days are also possible. In all cases, the entry permit extension fee is 1900 baht, and two passport photos must be supplied. Photocopies 5 baht and photos 100 baht for two are available from a shop inside the immigration office compound these prices are about four times as much as can easily be found elsewhere. Note that entry permit extensions are discretionary, and must be applied for in person. Shorter extensions are likely to be issued to nationalities who do not qualify for "Visa Free" entry; longer extensions are issued in certain circumstances, such as bereavement, ill health unable to travel, and for hospital patients both inpatients and outpatients.
Pattaya Immigration staff also operate a temporary office at Bangkok Pattaya Hospital on Sukhumvit Road from 13:00-14:00 on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of every month, which can be used by foreigners who meet certain requirements essentially, for inpatients and outpatients and their immediate families and/or carers.
post
Pattaya has several post offices, the most central of which can be found believe it or not halfway along Soi Post Office Soi 13/2. As well as the usual postal services, it handles Western Union transactions and hosts a large number of post/security boxes. On weekdays except public holidays it's open 08:30-16:30, and on Saturday, Sunday and public holidays it's open 09:00-12:00; â +66 38 429-340-1. One-stop-shops that handle DHL, EMS, FedEx, TNT, and UPS are relatively common. Try:
pharmacies
Pharmacies are plentiful and for most medications a prescription is not required but when a prescription is required, it must be issued by a Thai doctor - a prescription from abroad won't do. Viagra etc. is available from most. The international Boots and Watsons chains each have locations at Central Festival Big-C and Royal Garden Plaza malls Boots also have a store in Walking Street, open 12:00-02:00, and their pharmacists tend to have above-average English skills.
Fascino
North Pattaya Road (http://www.fascino.co.th) is a huge store and a good place to try if you're having trouble finding what you need; also stocks some medical equipment e.g. wheelchairs & walkers.
dentists
"Dental Tourism" is a popular reason for choosing to visit Thailand, and like other major tourist destinations such as Bangkok and Phuket, Pattaya has many dentists who advertise in English and are accustomed to treating foreigners.
Bangkok Pattaya Hospital
Sukhumvit Road North Pattaya; tel. +66-38259944 [email protected]Dental Smile Pattaya
313/42-43 Pattaya 3rd. Road near South Pattaya Rd. (http://www.dentalsmilepat...) tel. +66-38723460 [email protected]South Pattaya Dental Clinic
111/68 South Pattaya Rd., Banglamung, Pattaya City, Thailand (http://www.southpattayade...) tel. +66-38-488718 [email protected]Dentist @ Beach
4th Floor Central Festival Pattaya Beach, Beach Road (http://www.dentistbeach.com) tel. +66-38043331 [email protected]Dental for you
111/65-66 Moo 10, South Pattaya RD, Nongprue, Banglamung, Pattaya (http://www.dental4youpatt...) tel. +66-3872-4215 [email protected]Modern Smile Dental Clinic
418/9 Central Pattaya Road Central Pattaya (http://www.modernsmileden...) tel. +66-38720820Pattaya Smile Dental Clinic
111/57-8 South Pattaya Road (http://www.dentalpattayab...) [email protected] tel. +66-38724145Doctor Smile Dentist
111/72 South Pattaya Road Opposite TukCom Building (http://www.dentalpattayat...) tel. +66-38723733Central Pattaya Dental Center
418/19-20 Central Pattaya Road (http://www.centralpattaya...) tel. +66-38720747Pattaya Dental Clinic
(http://www.pdclinic.com) [email protected] has three locations - Buddha Hill: 308/79 Moo 10, Thappraya Road opposite Soi 11 tel: +66-38252670-1 fax: +66-38252671 North Pattaya: 102/4 Moo 9, Beach Road Soi 3 opposite Big C tel: +66-38362374 fax: +66-38252671 South Pattaya: 363/24 Moo 10, Beach Road Soi 16 beside Marine Plaza Hotel tel: +66-38429206 tel+fax: +66-38421156
drinking
The legal minimum age for customers in drinking establishments and discos is 20. In Pattaya this is rarely enforced for foreigners, but is frequently enforced for Thais, including those accompanying foreigners. Pattaya police conduct raids to check for underage employees especially in "indoor" and go-go bars and patrons especially in discos from time to time, and less frequently to enforce closing times. Foreign tourists are not the targets of these raids and are usually asked to produce ID photocopy of photo/ID page of passport will normally suffice and then allowed to leave, but are sometimes tested for drugs via an on-the-spot urine sample.
condoms
Practice Safe Sex!. This is Pattaya, where you can meet thousands of locals and tourists from around the world. So like any other tourist resort it is wise to have good quality condoms, just in case. The prevalence of sexually transmitted diseases is very difficult to measure in somewhere as dynamic as Pattaya. The academic paper "Thailand: Country Survey of Infectious Diseases" Journal of Travel Medicine, March 2006, Vol.8 No.4, pp. 192-203 concluded that for Thailand... "The true incidence of sexually transmitted diseases STDs is not known". The most recent substantial book on the topic with substantial coverage of Pattaya, Working at the bar: sex work and health communication in Thailand 2002 found through in-depth interviews that almost all regular Pattaya bar workers are screened weekly for STDs by the bar mamasans, and sent on an enforced holiday if they contract a disease. The book also reported that the average freelancer in Pattaya will have around 7 clients each two week period. There have been strong sexual health education campaigns in Thailand's resorts since the early 1990s, and most of those who are sexually active are well informed about health issues and practices.
crime
Like most of Thailand, Pattaya is generally safe for tourists and violent crime such as mugging or robbery is unusual, with the exception of jewellery and bag snatching usually with the thieves on motorcycles, and often with the victims on motorcycles too which is endemic.
Beware of lady boys approaching you with questions "Where you from?" and later she and/or her friend try to kiss you just in order to snatch your jewellery. In fact leave all your gold and valuables at the room safe or even at home.
Watch out when doing water sports at the beach areas. There is a common tourist trap where tourists going for jet ski-ing are being forced to pay for equipment damages which are not caused by the tourists amounting up to 100K baht. Even after negotiations and intervention from the related embassies and agencies, a payment of around 10K baht is still required for the damages. Thus, you must exercise extreme caution when doing equipment loans or doing sports on vehicles provided by the shops.
Swindles and pickpocketing are more commonly encountered by tourists. It is very inadvisable to tell anyone that it is your first visit to Thailand, since you will then be marked down as an 'easy touch'.
The nightlife/entertainment areas have a lot of activity and are generally very safe, however pickpockets are a problem, especially on Walking Street when it's crowded, despite the official Tourist Police patrolling the area at night. For this reason, a visitor should not carry a passport and/or credit card with them, especially at night. These should be left in the safe at your hotel along with the bulk of your cash, or if they must be carried then they should be securely concealed. If you have been pick pocketed and then you actually spot the likely pickpocket departing, do not follow. You could be mistaken, and you almost certainly will be accused of being mistaken. Just put it down to experience, and leave the immediate area.
Never ever 'pick a fight' in any circumstance, no matter how much you have had to drink. Never try to intervene, even verbally, in an argument between two or more Thai people.
No matter how much you are being pestered, just smile and walk on. In cash payments, disputes over the value of notes and the amount of change can be avoided by carrying smaller notes and trying to give near enough the exact amount.
The beach side of Beach Road used to be worth avoiding late at night, however the entire length of both the promenade and beach are now floodlit, and although it's still a popular haunt for "freelance" working girls, it's now much busier from dusk through until dawn and by no means a "no-go" area.
Visitors should not visit entertainment venues that do not display a long-standing fixed sign outside, or which appear to be very poorly lit inside. Also, one or two of the hundreds of seemingly bright and established venues may actually be operating as a 'clip joint', offering free admission and then refusing to allow visitors to leave until they have settled a faked bill for non-existent drinks. Again, it is wisest simply pay up, leave and put it down to experience.
As always, travellers should take extra care in all poorly lit or more remote areas, and very late at night. This is especially the case if one has had too much to drink.
Most reputable hotels will require the presentation of ID cards by guests. Throughout Pattaya guests will not be admitted to hotel rooms if they are under the age of 20. This is a useful way for tourists to guarantee that their new-found friend is actually the age he/she says she is, and thus avoid possible police attention.
Drugs: as in all of Thailand, the penalties for possession and/or distribution of drugs are harsh.
Gambling: is illegal in Thailand, and the local press reports Pattaya Police as having a "zero tolerance" policy for gambling offences.