There are many popular tourist destinations in the province, including Ko Samet, Ko Mun and Ko Kodi. All of these islands feature stretches of golden sand, beach bars and a variety of western and Thai food.

Naturally, snorkeling and scuba diving are major activities in this province, whilst many people like to go on a boat tour of the islands. Other smaller sun kissed islands which are just waiting to be explored include Ko Man Klang, Ko Man Nok and the often overlooked Ko Man Nai.

While in the area, pay a visit to the Khao Chamao/Khao Wong National Park. Here you will find several pretty waterfalls where you can swim amongst the fish, as well as seeing tigers, wild elephants and bears.

Nearby is the Rayong Turtle Conservation Centre, which cares for the area’s endangered sea turtles with a view to releasing them back into the wild. You can learn more about the now rare and beautiful turtles at the visitors’ centre, which contains pictures of the turtles and shells from their eggs.

Suan Son ‘Pine Park’ is situated just 5 kilometers from the pretty port of Ban Phe. This is a great place to spend a couple of hours walking when you need a break from the beach. Incidentally, Ban Phe is the port from which to catch the ferry to the large and beautiful island of Ko Samet.

11 kilometers east at Suan Wang Keaw you will find yet more sandy beaches and the island of Ko Thalu, which is particularly good for diving as the waters are home to some pretty colourful coral and shoals of exotic fish. This is also a great place to hang out if you happen to arrive on the weekend and want to avoid the crowds that tend to congregate on many of the other islands and beaches at the end of the working week.

The city of Pattaya is certainly not well known for its beaches, but for its red light district and staying in a right hotel, is a key to experiencing the vacation of life a time. So if planning a trip to Pattaya’s red light district, or sex district as most would call it, you should choose a hotel that doesn’t charge their guests a fee for inviting a Thai bar girl, boy or lady- boy back to your room. This is called a joiner fee and in Pattaya, it is usually between 300 Baht to 1300 Baht depending on the hotel’s policy. Always before you book a room or make a reservation if you are not traveling with a partner and hope to have some fun, make sure that the hotel has a girl, boy and lady-boy friendly policy or otherwise it will cost more than you have planned for.

Pattaya’s girl friendly hotels are cheaper, affordable and in some cases, very modern, you get what you have paid for. You will find these hotels in the areas of Second road and some parts of third road, they are close enough to walking street yet far enough for seclusion and a quiet for peaceful relaxation and fun you are looking for. I can recommend Sabai Inn, LK Metro pole, LK Renaissance, Sunshine hotel, A Residence, Areca Lodge, Tim Boutique hotel, just to name a few.

Since Pattaya is Disneyland for adults, it is been upgraded significantly and it is on it’s way to establish itself as a multi-faceted beach resort suitable for tourists from all walks of life because of it’s notorious nightlife and adult entertainment industry which includes hundreds of bars, night clubs, discos, thousands of Thai bar girls, Go-go

dancers and lady-boys.

A rough estimate of about over 2000 entertainment venues from open- air hostess bars, international pubs and live music venues, to ultramodern discos and night clubs; from Go-go bars with table or sexy show performances, to world-renowned transvestite cabaret shows.

-       A Bombo: – is a bar with a large central dancing stage, dancers circulate abit or sit on cushions around the stage and try to catch your eye, but not in a pushy way.

-       Boyz Boyz, Boyz:- One of the best known bars on Boyztown- part of the ambiance group, a large bar with central stage, high  tech décor, a lot dancers and a bar at the back which is alternative for those who don’t like go-go.

-       Carter :- New ( since Oct 2006), a go-go and cabaret show bar, a bit of the beaten track, the Soi runs between Soi Buakhow and Pattaya 3^rd road near  Xzyte disco.

-       Classical Boys Club: – Has now moved to a new bar upstairs, above Soho and Lucky Boys. Smaller than it used to be, but comfortable booth seating around the central dancing stage.

-       Copa Show Bar: - Used to be Throb/ Splash, now it is completely resigned with larger water tank surrounding the stage and more comfortable seating. It has a go-go dancing all night long and special under water shows at 10.30pm, cabaret show at 11.30pm.

-       Cupidol: - Where Tai boys used to be now re-vamped with larger central stage, tiered seating, lots of enthusiastic dancers.

-       Dream Boys: - A modern style bar with a large staff, effective lighting, a smoke free atmosphere and comfortable seating around the large central stage.

-       Dynamite Boys Club: - Located upstairs above Sawatdee, large stage, comfortable seating, have show at mid night daily.

-       Four Season; - Where Vibes used to be, now small enclosed go-go bar, two small stages. Same friendly service, small but reasonable collection of dancers.

There are so many restaurants in Pattaya that I can not write them all down, I am just going to outline my favorites below though one thing I have to mention, is that in Pattaya, you can possibly get a Thai meal for 20 Baht and ordering is very easy as the food is usually on display in cooking spots or trays.

My best Thai Cuisines:-

- Lang Thong: - (Royal Cliff Grand Hotel) – Famous for it’s authentic the

Cuisine

-       Baan Thai: – (Central Road) – Excellent but pricey Thai food and a wine list.

-       Adam & Eve :- ( Sabai Jai Village, Sukhumvit Road) – Inexpensive Thai food

and Cabaret show.

-       Somsak: – (Soi 1) – Quality Thai food at reasonable prices in a nice ambience.

-       South Side Rest :- ( 2^nd Road, S. Pattaya) – Thai food and steak pizzas

My favorite Belgium cuisines:-

-       Ann’s Place:- ( Soi day Night 2) – Belgian Waffles, Pancakes and desserts;

Daily specials, English and European b/ fast.

-       Klein Vlaanderen: – (2nd Road, Opp Soi 7) – Full Menu and friendly service.

-    New Buffalo: – (Soi Buakhow, Chaiyapoon) – Excellent Steaks & pork chops,

12.00-14.00 & 18.00- 23.30hrs.

My favorite English Cuisines:-

-       Greg’s Kitchen:- ( 2^nd , opp Soi 6) -  Air Con or Beer garden; quality English

And Thai food, Pricey but large servings:

Full “Monty” all day.

-       The Sportsman :- ( Soi 13) – Extensive menu, English and Thai 129 Baht

Specials.

-       Queen Victoria:- ( Soi 6) – Pub and restaurant, ploughman’s lunch, shepherd’s

Pie and Cumberland sausages.

My favorite French:-

-       Aubon Coin : ( Soi 5) -  Maybe the best French restaurant in Pattaya, daily

Specials, charcoaled steaks.

-       Chez Maman :- ( central road) – Daily three course special 180 Baht.

-       Mon Ami Pierrot :- ( Walking street) – Medium priced with a extensive, a la

-                                                                      carte selections, chef’s daily

-                                                                      Specials, take out.

Pattaya has simply many restaurants offering a wide range of cuisines which I haven’t mentioned, from German, to Indian, to Italian, to Japanese, to Mexican, to Scandinavian, to Sea food, to Vegetarian and some restaurants advertise themselves as international and to say that I have been to all of them, will be a lie. My best advice is that you wonder around the area where you are staying till you find the best restaurant for you, or if you are looking for a specific cuisine, just check the internet.

1. CABARET SHOWS: Pattaya is well known for the beautiful lady boys and the two                                                   main cabaret shows by lady boys are.

-       Tiffany: great shows from this old establishment, usually shows are available

3 times a day at 7.00pm, 8.30pm and 10.30pm. For more information,

You can call (038)421 700-5, 429 642.

-       ALCAZAR: Beautiful shows in a huge hall. Shows are available 3 times a day

At 6.30pm, 8.00pm and 9.30pm and an extra show on Saturdays

At 11.00pm. For more information, you can call (038) 410 225-7

2. RIPLEY’S BELIEVE IT OR NOT: It is located inside the Royal garden plaza on beach road. Here are more than 300of extraordinary items from all over the world that are guaranteed to amaze you.

3. MINI SIAM: located on the outskirt of Pattaya in Sukhumvit road. Here you can find many small creations (mock up model) of famous places like various temples in Thailand, statue of liberty, Eiffel tower and many more.

4. BOTTLES MUSEUM: My guess, this is the only bottle museum in the world. It is located in Sukhumvit 6.  Here you will find miniature artwork such as, Thai temples, palaces, both in Thai and foreign artwork in bottles.

5. NONG NOOCH (pronounced Nong Noot) GARDEN: This is a garden for seeing scenery of the tropical garden. It has an artificial waterfall and a lake, you can go canoeing. It is a good place for relaxing; you can watch bird species, animals, cock fighting and many more. The garden has accommodation facilities for over stays.

6 SRI RACHA TIGER ZOO: is a small zoo located about 30 minutes drive from Pattaya. You will find lots of wild animals, mainly tigers. It is open from 9.30am -6.00pm every day.

7. WANASIN FARM: which exhibits traditional Thai handcraft and art together with museums and a floating market.

8. MILLION YEARS STONE PARK- CROCODILE FARM: The place has both a park (rock garden) and a zoo. You can watch Thai martial arts, magical shows, and elephant riding and also have your picture taken with a tamed tiger, lion or even a bear. Monkey training and cobra shows.

9. ELEPHANT VILLAGE: Mainly for those who are interested in feeding the elephants and riding them.

10. Last but not least, the beaches in Pattaya are also a major attraction mainly the Pattaya beach, Naklua beach and Jomtein beach.

Thai massage and foot massage are among the many options you do at night including shopping as shopping malls and night markets don’t close till late.

The evening in Pattaya starts early and many people start eating between 8:00pm- 10:00pm because the fast pace of Pattaya doesn’t start till around 10:00pm.

If it is your first time in Pattaya, below are some of places you should visit.

-       Walking Street: is at the southern end of beach road and it is a neon extravaganza with bars and restaurants, the sea food ones often being perched on stilts over the sea.

-       You can see Thai boxing almost every night at several venues and these are generally advertised by flyers and posters. Street life is part of Thailand’s culture and that is the first timers to Thailand are amazed by the food stalls, souvenirs sellers, market traders with different items to sell, artists and performers, you will find all these in Pattaya in the small sois( smaller streets) mainly the ones off beach road.

-       There are many other areas of Pattaya which are just as alive at night, mainly soi 7 and 8 which feature many bars and live entertainment.

-       Hollywood disco on south Pattaya road is a favorite because it is in easy walking distance of walking street.

-       For lady boy shows, Tiffany and Alcazar have effusive shows three or four times per evening and the shows are particularly popular with far eastern tourists.

-       Pattaya land is a good place to go for gay people; there are many good western eateries and girly bars in the area, which is only a few hundred meters from walking street.

-       And lastly, for people in north Pattaya and Jomtein, don’t worry, there are many bars, restaurants, go-go bars and entertainment, which means that you don’t have to come to the town centre.

The festival, which will run from the 10th to the 17th of March, has been established in order to celebrate the ancient art of Muay Thai boxing. I’ve been to see a few Muay Thai fights during my time in Thailand, and although I was aware that it was a very popular sport here, I didn’t realised that it crossed borders to any larger extent than the odd western bloke giving it a go on his holidays. This, of course, was a very naive attitude and I have since learned that Muay Thai is now one of the world’s most popular martial arts.

So for anyone who really does know what they’re talking about when it comes to Muay Thai, the Ayutthaya Stadium will be the venue for the festival, where traditional ceremonies will be performed before a bout of matches and tournaments. There will even be training workshops on offer to the novices, so maybe I should give it a go and see what all the fuss is about.

The now annual event attracted petrol heads from all over Thailand and the world, and plenty of rubber has been burnt on the streets of Pattaya over the last few days.

Festivities started with the bikers’ parade around the city before a good, old-fashioned knees-up at the Hardrock Hotel.

The after-party was held at the stadium in Soi Chaiyapruek, and although many did, I’m not sure anyone was in a fit state to ride home afterwards.

Continuous shows and drinks flowed throughout the night and the festival atmosphere was helped along by the vast amounts of visitors choosing to camp out around the stadium for the night.

I’ve never ridden more than the most modest scooters myself, but I must admit that even I feel a surge of adrenaline when I hear those big motors roaring.

But while I will always be a little envious of the guys and gals who ride these monsters with such style, I just don’t think I could handle the leathers in this heat!

 Hot off the press is news that on February 13^th(that’s the day before Valentine’s Day for all you useless men out there), Pattaya will play host to what is scheduled to be the world’s biggest speed dating event.

 The current record, which was set in 2008 by Germany’s Dating Cafe GMBH, stands at 252 participants, but I think we can beat it.

While there may be a lot of single people living it up in Pattaya, those who have been here for a while often feel the need for something a little more meaningful.

 If you want to register for the event, which is being organised by Sanook online dating service and Ripley’s World of Entertainment Pattaya, you can do so free of charge on the Sanook website.

And while everyone knows that you can’t hurry love, this could be your chance to speed it up just a little. If all else fails, it will at least give you the opportunity to catch up with all your exes!

A German tourist, believed to have been drunk, crashed into and killed an Italian tourist who was also riding a motorcycle in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The 29-year-old, Davide Tomast, died of head injuries in a soi off South Pattaya Road at around 5:30 in the morning. It is believed that Norbet ran into to side of Tomast’s motorcycle at high speed as the Italian was riding away from the soi.

The German, 38-year-old Raimund Norbet, was also severely injured and was sent to Pattaya Memorial Hospital. Police are preparing to arrest Norbet as soon as he is released.

Once you have lived in Thailand for a while, drunk driving and motorcycle crashes become part of the fabric of life and everyone knows someone who has experienced a loss due to a combination of these factors.

While the police might not be here to breathalyse you as soon as you step out of the bar, be assured that they will be there the moment you get out of hospital.