Is Pattaya Sin City?

The first time I ever visited Pattaya it came as a shock. I had already been living in Thailand about a year, but dismissed the claims that people made about this city by the sea as being exaggerated. I knew about the adult entertainment areas in Bangkok, but also realised that this was only a tiny part of what the city was all about. I assumed the same would be true for Pattaya. What I saw on my first visit changed all that.

Pattaya really does earn the reputation for being sin city. There are many who would like to change this reputation, but the words 'sex' and 'Pattaya' are too closely related to change the minds of most visitors to Thailand. Prior to visiting the city I had often heard people moan about how disgusting it was to see old western men with young Thai women. I would see this occasionally in Bangkok, but never saw it as any of my business and so just ignored it. In Pattaya it was still none of my business, but it was a lot harder to ignore; it was everywhere. My first impression of Sin City was that it was the largest open air brothel in the world.

I also thought it was heaven but not so much because of the sex. As well as having hundreds and hundreds of girly bars Pattaya has lots of every type of bar. If you are a drunk, like I was, there is probably nowhere better to be on the planet. It would take a lifetime to get barred from all the drinking establishments in the city, and even better the drink is relatively cheap. It became my favorite place in Thailand because of this.

As the years have gone by I have been to Pattaya many times and my views about the place have changed. It certainly does still deserve its reputation for sleaziness, but there is also a lot more to it than just this. There are some nice resorts and it is possible to have a family holiday and more or less completely avoid the other side of the city. There are some great restaurants and shopping available, and there is a unique feel to the city that is appealing.