Pattaya Nightlife Guide for Men

Start where your budget and mood point. Walking Street is the big-night option, with the most gogos and clubs, the highest prices and the most touts. Soi 6 is the most direct: small bars with rooms upstairs and women calling from the doorways. LK Metro is the regulars' choice, cheaper and friendlier than Walking Street, with gogos and beer bars on one L-shaped soi. Many visitors do Soi 6 by day and one of the others at night.

In the afternoon, and it runs later than Bangkok. Soi 6 and the Soi 7 and Soi 8 beer bars are open from early afternoon. Walking Street closes to traffic in the evening, its gogos open around 8pm and it gets busy after about 10pm. Because Walking Street is an entertainment zone, its clubs stay open later than bars elsewhere in town, and after-hours clubs such as Insomnia keep going until close to dawn.

By road, in about two hours from Suvarnabhumi or central Bangkok, longer on Friday evenings and holiday weekends. Coaches run from Suvarnabhumi and the Ekkamai and Mo Chit bus terminals to Pattaya's North Road terminal and Jomtien; they are the cheapest option, but you still need a ride to your hotel. A private driver, a Grab or Bolt car, or a taxi at an agreed price goes door to door. U-Tapao airport, south of Pattaya, has some domestic flights.

Usually, yes. Drinks, bar fines and hotel rooms in Pattaya generally cost less than on lower Sukhumvit, and the bars are closer together, so you spend less on taxis. Walking Street is the most expensive part of town; the beer bars on Soi Buakhao and in Tree Town are among the cheapest. Prices rise in high season, from roughly November to February.

By baht bus, the shared pickup trucks that loop the center for a small flat fare. They run one way, north along Beach Road and south along Second Road, so plan your route around the loop. Flag one down, press the buzzer to stop and pay the driver through the window. An empty truck may try to charge you as a charter, so agree the fare first for Jomtien or anything off the loop. Grab and Bolt fill the gaps late.

Mostly money tricks, not violence. Photograph a jet ski from every angle before you ride, or skip it, as Pattaya's beaches are known for damage claims. Never leave your passport as a deposit for a jet ski or a scooter; leave cash instead. On Beach Road after dark, agree terms with a freelancer before you walk anywhere, and keep your phone out of your back pocket. On Walking Street, where drinks cost the most, check every bill.

Central Pattaya, around Soi 6, Second Road and Soi Buakhao, is the best all-round base, with LK Metro and Tree Town a short walk away. Stay near Walking Street if the big clubs and gogos are your main plan. Pratumnak Hill and Jomtien are quieter and suit longer stays, a baht bus or Grab ride from the bars. VIP members see our reviews of each area's hotels, including which ones welcome your guest without a fee.

Take the ferry from Bali Hai Pier, at the end of Walking Street, to Koh Larn, which has cleaner beaches than the town. The Sanctuary of Truth, a huge carved-wood temple in Naklua, is worth an hour. Pratumnak Hill has the Big Buddha and a viewpoint over the bay, Jomtien is the quieter beach to the south, and there are plenty of golf courses around the city. Soi 6 and the Soi 7 beer bars are open by the afternoon anyway.