Living in Pattaya 2024, this is my 13th year in this layback seaside city on the gulf of Thailand. Recently things have been much quieter than usual due to the world’s overreaction to the so called Covid-19 crisis.
The excellent photo above is owned by Robert Cameron, I hope he does not mind me using it.
The Space building
Located on Naklua Rd adjacent to the Dolphin roundabout.
Living with Covid crisis 2022 has really not inconvinienced me at all, in fact I really enjoy the peace & quiet in Pattaya. I’m of the opinion the danger is grossly overrated, after all it’s just another form of influenza.
This photo blog covers the first 6 months of 2022.
North Pattaya beach
April 5th & the work continues.
Playa Bistro
Located on the ground floor of Markland Condo on the corner of Beach Rd & Soi 1.
Cost of living Thailand compared to Australia is is quite surprising. As a rough estimate it is around 35% lower in Pattaya which is a beachside city 90 minutes south of Bangkok. I will highlight some examples including services which I would not be able to afford in Australia, such as pedicures & massages. 🙂
Cheap Charlies is a good example, breakfast starts at B89 or $4.84 AUD including tea or coffee.
Diagonally across the road from Cheap Charlies & opposite Sutris Court Hotel, a hot coffee latte is only B40, or $1.68 AUD.
I love a foot massage
Normal price in Pattaya is B200 for 1 hour, or $8.40 AUD, I usually leave a B60 tip.
Some parlours in Pattaya Klang have slashed their price to B100, or $4.20 AUD.
The Covid crisis has forced may to close their doors or offer a discount. This is one of them located near 3rd Rd. The average price in Australia is around $70 as opposed to $8.40.
If you want to spend a little more on breakfast
This is B175 or $7.36 AUD, naturally the 1/2 avocado & the smoked salmon is the reason at Robin Hood Tavern.
If you have trouble reaching your toes…..
A pedicure is definitely the answer for B150 or $6.30 AUD + tip.
The view from my studio apartment
Rent is B4,150 or $175 AUD per week, for a view like this in Sydney or the Gold Coast you would pay $500 t0 $600 per week.
Now an example of low cost living close the the action of Soi Buakhao
Air conditioned room with a sports bar & restaurant downstairs. B4,500 per month or $190 AUD.
Only 2 minutes walk to Cheap Charlies. 🙂
Great location for $44 AUD per week.
Low cost lunch in Pattaya Klang
One of the many Chinese restaurants in Pattaya Klang or Central Road. Total cost including a bottle of water B240 or $10.90 AUD.
Massaman chicken curry at Robin Hood Tavern
Only B185 or $7.80 AUD, not only was it delicious I ordered take-away & got two full meals.
Transport in Pattaya
These Songthaews or Baht busses are a fantastic method of transport in Pattaya, there are hundreds of them, you rarely have to wait more than a minute. It’s hard to believe the cost of each ride is only B10, or 42 cents Australian. 🙂
Great value at Jasmine’s Cafe in Pattaya Klang.
Breakfast, lunch & dinner, excellent good low cost food.
Prawn & broccoli at Jasmine.
Only B140 or $5.90 AUD, + breakfast at B119.
The best value breakfast in Pattaya.
Foodland at Terminal is the place to go if you are looking for a low cost breakfast, only B65 or $2.70 AUD. This low price is available everyday between 6.30 & 9.30 am. Includes Tea or coffee, orange juice 7 toast & jam 🙂
Sewing lady
These nice ladies set up on the footpath and repair anything that needs sewing. She fixed up a pair of shorts for me for 80 cents AUD, so I I gave her an extra 80 tip. You gotta love Thailand.
Local doctor
Located on 2nd Rd 250 meters north of Central Rd, B100 or $4.20 AUD.
Hopefully this has given you an idea of the cost of living in Pattaya, come & grab yourself a slice of happiness.
Ten Years in Thailand from 2011 to 2021, including friends & family who have made an impact on my life. The first 9 were great before Covid-19 hit with a vengeance & people could no longer travel freely between countries.
The photo above was taken in the carpark next to the Sabai Resort in 2011 featuring Tony & Nikki Murphy, my brother Warren & a couple of Thai babes. 🙂
2011 at Rimpa Lapin
A terrific restaurant about 30 minutes drive south of Pattaya. A great night with friends & family.
2012 50th birthday for Trevor Loresch
Trevor’s son & daughter & Herbie pastor on the right.
2012 with Nick Partridge & Joergen Ulitza
On the way to dinner with Nick from the Gold Coast & Joergen from Melbourne.
2012 Big Viv Kennelly from western Sydney with two friends
They guys had a good time visiting Pattaya.
2013 & the boys from England arrive in Pattaya
They took to Pattaya like moths to a flame. On the left is my good friend Bill Austin, then Simon, yours truly, Chris & Dave Catchpole.
2013 the English boys & Dave Wylie
We were dining at Froggies which was a terrific French restaurant until the authorities closed it down because he did not employ enough Thai staff.
2013 The Beach Club
A fabulous of a bunch of Gold Coasters. The big guy 2nd from the left is Nathan Corbett 11 times world champion in Muay Thai boxing.
2014 Xmas Day in Soi 6
A bunch of Aussies who love the bars in Soi 6. Either side of me are Geoff & Doug.
2014 on the ferry to Koh Larn
Irina from Russia eventually moved to France & got married. More Koh Larn photos here.
2015 at the Mantra for the fabulous Sunday brunch
Without a doubt the Mantra has the best buffetI have ever seen. The food came from eight different kitchens.
2015 at the Party bar
Lots of terrific girls on opening night, sadly the bar only lasted a couple of years. Check out opening night here.
2016 at Jim’s Burgers
From the left, Hamish, Jonathon & Matt.
2016 at Pattaya Beer Garden
Father & son, Christopher & David Robertson, aka Chocs.
2017 at the Atlantic Bar
From the left we have Joergen Ulitza, Steve Reid, Pothole, aka John Martin & Bill Curtis who sadly passed away in 2020.
2017 A group of his Aussie friends say farewell to Larry Krausz who sadly passed away due to a major stroke.
Larry & I travelled to South America, Thailand & London in 2000.
2018, the boys from Port Macquarie
Coffee at the Holiday Inn with Chris Lockwood aka Dr Evil on my left & my brother Warren on the right.
2018 Happy crew at Patrick’s Steakhouse.
An excellent restaurant & one of our favourite places. Sally Schmidt & Wayne Schmidt, Patrick, Dan Escamilla & Hamish Elton at the back.
2019 at the Atlantic Bar
Tony & Nikki Murphy with Nikki’s Dad & sister + my brother Warren & Pothole aka John Martin. For 20 years of photos at the Atlantic just click on THIS LINK.
2019 final feast at the Mantra
Our favourite restaurant for over 10 years has closed permanently. Lots more photos here.
2020 at Holiday Inn with Mark Yagalla
Only 100 meters from my condo on Beach Rd, as you can imagine I’m a regular customer there.
2020 Hamish Elton loves to entertain his friends
A Sunday BBQ at his home in Jomtien.
2021 Pothole’s farewell drinks
Pothole aka John martin has spent a small fortune in the 12 years he has lived in Pattaya. Consequently he has to spend the next 2 years in Australia to qualify for the aged pension. Predictively he lasted 3 months & returned to the land of smiles.
How lucky am I?
This is the magnificent view from my condo on Beach Road.
Pattaya in all its glory
Home to around 100,000 people.
Farewell for now
Thanks for visiting my Ten Years in Thailand photo blog, I look forward to the end of the Covid crisis so we can all enjoy life as we previously knew it.
My exciting life Pattaya David Herd 2013 was a total pleasure. January started with a bang when I spent NYE in Sydney, then mid January four English guys came to sample the delights of life in Thailand so naturally I played tour guide for them.
This is not a travel blog just a personal photo collection from 2013.
The boys from England
The guys all came from around Wiltshire and naturally loved Pattaya.
Travel highlights for 2013
The year started with a bang, literally. I spent NYE 2012 at my old condo block in Wrights Rd Drummoyne which is a perfect spot to watch the fireworks. It reminded me of my great escape on NYE 1981. Another nostalgic moment was a visit to Crescent ave Newport to visit the home of the late Tim Bristow where his long time partner Sue Ellis still lives, I of course also lived in Newport for 3 years from 1984 before moving to the Gold Coast.
January 1st I drove to Port Macquarie via Ettalong (where my family spent their annual holidays when I was young), to spend a few days with my brother Warren then on to the Gold Coast to catch up with friends.
In June I flew to England to visit my friend Alan who is a guest of Her Majesty, then his brother Bill Austin, Dave Catchpole & I took a road trip to Bruges & Versailles before winding up in Brighton on the south coast of England.
Every morning I walk along the & my camera is always with me, and I am always on the lookout for interesting shots, this is one of my favourites.
We lost a friend in January.
Here is my brother Warren & his friend Chris from Port Macquarie on the NSW coast with Dennis Freemongrel, Dennis & I were friends for 30 years before he turned nasty on me. 🙂 The lovely lady is Om who sadly passed away far too young, I miss her smiling face & often think about her.
Loi Krathongtakes place on the evening of the full moon of the 12th month in the traditional Thai lunar calendar. In the western calendar this usually falls in November. Loi means ‘to float’, while krathong refers to the (usually) lotus-shaped container which floats on the water. Krathonghas no other meaning in Thai besides decorative floats, soLoi Krathongis very hard to translate, requiring a word describing what a Krathong looks like such as Floating Crown, Floating Boat, Floating Decoration. The traditional krathong are made from a slice of the trunk of a banana tree or a spider lily plant.
Desert at Froggy’s with Daryl Evans.
Froggy’s was one of our favourite restaurants in Pattaya, sadly it is now closed.
Robbie & Hamish at the Gentlemen’s club
A good club in Soi Diamond off Walking St run by two Aussie guys Robbie & Hamish, NEWS FLASH 30 September 2014, they just sold the club to some Russians.
World famous Walking St Pattaya.
My exciting life in Pattaya includes a visit to Walking St every couple of months whether I want to or not. 😈 To receive my latest posts please follow me on TwitterFollow @David_Herd
Pattaya boat people.
Every day they line up in the thousands to take a boat ride to the islands.
On the ferry to Koh Chang.
Koh Changis Thailand’s 2nd largest island, about a 3 hour drive from Pattaya.
Motorbike ride in Koh Chang.
It was about to rain so I offered this nice lady 100 baht to take me 500 meters to the hotel, small price to pay to stay dry.
Bangkok Go-Go Bars can be found in three areas, Patpong, Soi Cowboy & Nana Plaza. Patpong is where it all started many years ago. It has even been filmed in in a James Bond chase-sequence. Patpong has long since lost it’s title of number one for sexy shows Go-Go bars. Soi Cowboy & Nana Plaza now reign supreme.
John Martin aka Pothole & David Herd at Nana Plaza.
I have known John for 15 years, without a doubt he provides me with an enormous amount of entertainment, he would have to be the most dysfunctional person I have ever known. 😆
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Bob & Greg from Australia
My exciting life in 2013 has been full of action, travel & fun, in January I was in Australia catching up with family & friends. In June I travelled to Bruges,Versailles,Brighton & London, rather than duplicate photos from those trips just click on the links to see my posts.
The Cherry bar is my local haunt on the corner of 2nd road & Soi 3, you will find me there 3about 4 times a week from 6.30 pm. The photo shows 3 guys from Australia, Lenny, Mervyn & my brother Warren, the lovely Thai lady is Merv’s new wife.
Sadly Merv & Lenny both passed away in early 2016.
This is Aoy, a Beautiful young Thai Lady who used to work at the Cherry bar, she used to occasionally drop in to visit me, however she has now found herself a sponsor. 😎
Fabulous views, excellent restaurants & a very good room rate if you book through THIS LINK.
The building in the middle is the Holiday Inn, on the left is the Amari Hotel which is another very good five star hotel. Use THIS LINK to book for a very good room rate.
Sutus Court is a great budget hotel right i the heart of one of Pattaya’s main bar areas, just use THIS LINK for a terrific room rate. 420/100 Moo 9 Soi Buakhao.
This is the view from Horizons the amazing rooftop bar. A great five star hotel located opposte the beach & above the Central Festival shopping mall. Just book through THIS LINK for an excellent room rate.
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