Visually, the beaches in Pattaya are not up to much compared to elsewhere in Thailand; it’s a very urban environment with rows of umbrellas and deck-chairs. Although people do swim, the sea is rather polluted, (how much is unclear) they claim to have cleaned up the water a lot in the last few years and have marked out areas for swimmers.

Neighbouring Jomtien beach, about a 15 min bus ride away looks to be more swimmer-friendly but there is the occasional bout of untreated sewerage there from time to time. (This IS Thailand!).

Cosy beach and Sugar beach between Pattaya and Jomtien offer less crowded or urban alternatives. Bear in mind that what is done to monitor pollution on any of the beaches throughout Thailand is not clear. Inevitably, ALL the main holiday beaches in Thailand are subject to pollution from time to time depending on season wind and tides.

At both Pattaya and Jomtien beaches you can hire all sorts of watersports stuff, and it’s all pretty cheap. All beaches have plenty of people selling drinks and snacks etc. Have a fresh coconut and drink the liquid inside through a straw - very refreshing!

Off shore there are one or two islands with much nicer beaches, they are easily accessible for a day trip. If you go to Ko Laan, the main beach is really just a row of restaurants etc, but it’s well worth hiring a moped and driving over to the other side of the island - views from the top are great and there are some very quiet beaches there. Or simply walk along the coast for a bit to get away from the crowds.

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