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| TOURIST INFO............ |
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Pattaya is a popular resort on the North Gulf Coast of Eastern Thailand, 150 km south-east of Bangkok. Most famous for its go-go and beer bars, it's also one of Thailand's best locations for all manner of sports and activities. With its plethora of hotels and guest houses and convenient location with quick and easy access from the capital make Pattaya a popular weekend getaway. Catering for over 5 million tourists yearly, Pattaya is also able to offer an excellent range of eating choices and a wide variety of things to do and see. |
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Pattaya's name was originally "Thap Phraya", meaning Army of the Phraya - commemorating the surrender of Nai Klom's army to that of Phraya Tak (later King Taksin the Great), without a fight. Thap Phraya became Phatthaya (the name of the north-easterly wind at the beginning of the rainy season), and then Phatthaya (the true phonetic spelling). |
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Once a sleepy fishing town, Pattaya first boomed as an R&R spot during the Vietnam War, currently, Pattaya is booming again: TAT claims 5,338,000 visitors for 2007 (up 6.5% from 2006), of which two-thirds were foreigners, and the takeover by the new Suvarnabhumi Airport (located to the east of Bangkok, alongside the expressway to Pattaya) from the more distant Don Muang Airport at the end of September 2006 will undoubtedly make further increases in tourism revenues inevitable. |
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Pattaya is popular not only as a beach resort and for its entertainment, nightlife and shopping, but also for the broad selection of pastimes it caters for, from golf and horseback riding to bungee jumping, karting and shooting - not to mention a wide variety of watersports such as scuba diving, jet-skiing, sailing, water skiing, windsurfing and kitesurfing, and a whole lot more. Pattaya is also very popular as a conference, convention and seminar venue, and the grapevine hosts rumours of future developments of varying degrees of plausibility, such as a horse racing track, casinos, and a tram system. |
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| Things to see: |
| Animals & zoos |
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Underwater World Pattaya: Aquarium full of tropical creatures. Open 09:00-18:00, last admission 17:30
feeding times 10:00, 10:30, 11:00, 14:00, 14:30, 15:00.
Different prices for Thais (180 baht/adult, 120 baht/child) and foreigners (360 baht/adult, 180 baht/child). |
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There are two submarines (yellow ones, of course!) with tour operators in Pattaya:Hynix of the Sea - main ticket office at the Second Road end of Tipp Plaza (near Soi 10)Vimantaitalay contact any Pattaya travel agency |
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Elephant Village: Offers shows, elephant trekking and jungle tours (including a four-day/three-night tour in Phrae Province). |
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Monkey Training Centre: Features monkeys trained to harvest coconuts and undertake other tasks. Also stages cockfighting (a traditional Thai bloodsport) and a snake show.
Open daily,
shows 09:00, 11:00, 12:00, 14:00, 17:00 admission 250 baht. |
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| Gardens |
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Nong Nooch Tropical Garden: Beautiful gardens with waterfalls, elephant shows, "Cultural Extravaganza" performances 4 times a day, restaurants etc. - enough to fill an entire day. |
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| Museums |
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Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum : is located on the third floor of Royal Garden Plaza. Access from both Second Road (you can't miss this side - there's a large aeroplane protruding from the upper floors) and from Beach Road. Different prices for Thais (280 baht/adult, 230 baht/child) and foreigners (380 baht/adult, 280 baht/child); at the same location there's also a "Haunted Experience" show, a 4D movie theatre and "Infinity Maze" game. Various combination tickets available, all dual-priced - for Thais (480 baht/adult, 380 baht/child) and foreigners (580 baht/adult, 480 baht/child) to enter all four. Open daily 11:00-23:00. |
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| Sacred places |
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Buddha Hill: (between Thappraya Road and Phratamnak Road; 5-10 minutes by songthaew) is one of the highest points in Pattaya. At the summit is the biggest Buddha statue in Pattaya, and nearby is a beautiful Chinese-style sacred area dedicated to Confucius and Lao-zi. The next hill, just across the Phratamnak Road, has the best Pattaya Bay coastline viewpoint and is also worth a visit, especially for sunset. |
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| Sanctuary of Truth: An unfinished project, but worth a visit even now. The main attraction is a huge ancient-style wooden temple; nearby is a small dolphinarium with dolphin shows at 11:30 and 15:30. |
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| Theme parks |
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Million Years Stone Park & Pattaya Crocodile Farm :
(15 minute drive from central Pattaya) [23]. Features an exotic zoo, and crocodile, fire-swallowing and magic shows, as well as the garden and stone park. Open 08:00-18:30. |
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| Mini Siam: [24] is located on Sukhumvit Road, surrounded by Soi 33, and features miniature replicas of iconic structures from Thailand and all over the world. |
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Three Kingdoms Theme Park: Adjacent to Horseshoe Point (20 minutes fro m Pattaya), this is a Chinese-style garden filled with pagodas, murals and figures from the Chinese epic San Guo Zhi, and more an expression of filial piety than a theme park. Perhaps worth a quick look on a slow day, but unlikely to offer much to visitors not familiar with the story. 60 baht/adult, 30 baht/child. |
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