Hey there, fellow travelers! Just got back from an amazing 5-day getaway to Pattaya, Thailand with my husband during the Eid holidays. If you’re looking for beaches, night markets, and cultural experiences all in one place, Pattaya might just be your perfect destination! Let me take you through our experience day by day.
Day 1: Arrival and First Impressions (March 27, 2025, 11:00 AM)
Our journey began when we landed at Suvarnabhumi Airport at 11 AM. I have to say, this four-floor airport is absolutely beautiful and super easy to navigate! After completing our visa-on-arrival process (quick tip: bring cash or be prepared to use the ATM like we did), we collected our luggage and grabbed a SIM card.
Pro Tip: We went with DTAC’s unlimited data option for 8 days at 449 THB, and the internet speed was amazing throughout our entire trip!
We had pre-booked a taxi to Pattaya for 1000 THB. Since I get motion sickness, I sat up front for the ride while we both relaxed and enjoyed the view of the new place.
Hotel Ibis Pattaya (2:00 PM)
Our hotel, Ibis Pattaya, was in a great location that everyone seemed to know. Check-in was smooth, and while the room was on the smaller side, it was perfect for just the two of us since we mainly needed it for sleeping and freshening up. Everything was super clean—the room, the bathroom, and the comfortable bed. The AC worked great!
My favorite thing about the hotel? They keep the power on all the time with an extra key card, which was perfect for coming back all sweaty from exploring. Though the WiFi was a bit slow, my phone data was lightning fast so I could still watch movies on my iPad. Overall, an amazing hotel experience!
Click the link to book now – Hotel Ibis Pattaya
Pattaya Beach Stroll (2:30 PM)
After freshening up, we headed to the beach, which was just a short walk from our hotel. It was hot—being from South India, we’re used to heat, but living in Dubai with constant AC had made us a bit soft! We rented beach chairs for 50 THB each and relaxed with some refreshing coconut water (70 THB).
Since we were hungry, we ordered some food right there on the beach—omelet rice and shrimp rice. Being a picky eater, I couldn’t handle the shrimp rice but managed some of the omelet rice before dozing off for a quick nap.
Central Pattaya Mall & Pattaya Night Market
Around 4:30 PM, we took a baht bus (local shared taxi) to Central Pattaya Mall. Quick note: we ended up paying the “tourist rate” since we weren’t sure how it worked yet! We enjoyed some Starbucks and the blessed air conditioning inside the mall before heading out to the lane behind the mall around 6 PM.
We walked around, bought some cut mango for 60 THB, and then treated ourselves to a heavenly one-hour foot massage at Risa Massage Parlour for just 200 THB for one person. It was so relaxing that we kept dozing off!
At 7:20 PM, we explored Pattaya Night Market where we bought some elephant pants (though we later realized they were overpriced compared to other markets—lesson learned about bargaining!).
Pattaya Walking Street (8:13 PM)
By 8 PM, we were back at the beach near Central Pattaya Mall. The atmosphere was lively with street performers singing with microphones. The illuminated Pattaya City sign looked beautiful from the beach.
We then took another baht bus to the famous Walking Street. Honestly, it was a bit of a weird experience for me. I knew it was the red-light district, but it was more intense than I expected!
We eventually made our way to a quieter area at the end of the street where we found delicious mangoes that were so sweet and yummy. We even bought some to take back to the hotel. Near the Pattaya sign, we discovered Na Baan Pier, where ferries depart for Koh Lan Island. After noting down the ferry timings for future reference, we grabbed a Grab taxi back to our hotel and ordered some Indian food through the Grab app to end our first day.
Day 2: Temple Tours and Market Adventures
After a good night’s sleep and some morning snacks, we headed to the Sanctuary of Truth, arriving at 10:17 AM. One thing to note—we should have booked tickets through the Klook app for better prices! There were guided tours available in different languages (not optional, but you can choose the language). We missed the 10:10 AM English tour and had to wait for the 10:40 AM one.
While waiting, we spent time at an amazing viewpoint. Remember to bring your own water from a 7-Eleven, as bottles there are a bit pricier!
The guided tour was both entertaining and informative. The structure itself is absolutely breathtaking—a treat for the eyes and definitely worth visiting.
Wat Phra Yai (1:11 PM)
Next, we took a Grab to Wat Phra Yai (Big Buddha Hill) and reached at 1:11 PM. It’s such a beautiful place! We enjoyed some snacks and smoothies there, though I wasn’t a big fan of the smoothie, the snacks were delicious.
Instead of booking another Grab, we accepted a ride from a local taxi driver to Pattaya Night Market, which turned out to be cheaper.
Pattaya Floating Market (3:10 PM)
We reached the market at 3:10 PM, and I absolutely fell in love with this place! The fruits were amazing, especially the peeled coconut with its many varieties. While shopping for clothes is a bit pricey here (especially if you’re not good at bargaining like us), the food experience was worth it.
We opted for the boat package, which was definitely worth the money. We spent our entire evening here.
It was at the floating market that we heard about the devastating news of an earthquake affecting Myanmar and Bangkok. Fortunately, Pattaya wasn’t affected.
Terminal 21 Mall (8:20 PM)
After returning to our hotel to freshen up, we headed to Terminal 21 Mall around 8:20 PM, which was very close by. This mall is absolutely beautiful and definitely worth a visit! The food court offered many options to experiment with. We ordered creamy omelet rice with green chicken curry, which was delicious.
After exploring the mall, we stopped by a nearby McDonald’s, grabbed some chicken to go, and enjoyed it back in our room.
Day 3: Botanical Gardens and Night Markets (1:05 PM)
We had a lazy morning and reached Nong Nooch Botanical Garden at 1:05 PM. First on our agenda was the show at the Elephant Auditorium featuring the Nong Nooch cultural show followed by an elephant performance. I absolutely loved the cultural show! The elephant show was good too, with opportunities to touch the elephants or take photos with them for an additional fee.
We then boarded the sightseeing bus (included in our ticket) to explore the vast garden. In the hot sun, this was definitely the way to go! We visited different sections of the garden and spent extra time at the last stop where we could explore more areas via an overhead bridge. There were refreshment stops on the bridge, which was a nice touch. The giant statues and various themed gardens were amazing—definitely a great day trip option.
South Pattaya Exploration & Runway Night Market
Later, we explored South Pattaya on foot and treated ourselves to another foot massage. Dinner was at Haveli Restaurant, which was absolutely delicious.
After returning to our hotel, we decided to explore the nearby streets and stumbled upon Runway Night Market. The prices here were much more reasonable than at Pattaya Night Market—elephant pants were only 100 THB with fixed prices! We enjoyed some fruits and bought boiled peanuts and watermelon on the way back before calling it a night.
Day 4: Hotel Change and Island Excursion (12:00 PM)
We enjoyed a leisurely morning before checking out of Ibis at noon. Instead of heading to Bangkok as originally planned, we decided to stay in Pattaya and moved to Mermaid’s Beach Resort near Jomtien Beach in South Pattaya.
Mermaid Beach Resort
Since we arrived around 12:30 PM and early check-in wasn’t available, we stored our luggage and went for a stroll along the beach. When we finally got our room, we found it spacious with a balcony. Everything was very clean, including the bathroom (though it took us a day to figure out how to adjust the hot water regulator under the sink).
The AC took some time to cool down, unlike at Ibis where the room was always kept cool. The WiFi was a bit slow, but again, we used our mobile data. While the hotel is located in a lively lane, we didn’t hear much noise when the door was closed. Overall, the experience was okay.
Koh Lan Island
After checking in, we decided to visit Koh Lan Island. We reached the ferry area by 2:30 PM, boarded an almost-full ferry that departed at 3 PM, and paid 30 THB per person. We arrived at the island by 3:45 PM. The weather was amazing that day.
Koh Lan felt like a mini Pattaya. We found a baht bus going to Tien Beach and hopped on. With the last ferry back at 6 PM, we had to return to the baht bus stop by 5:30 PM.
The beach was beyond beautiful and serene—a perfect short outing! We took the ferry back to Pattaya and walked through Walking Street again, though it wasn’t as lively since it was still early.
Central Mall and Pattaya Beach
We took a baht bus to Central Mall’s food court, where I tried KFC’s spicy chicken rice with spicy wings—absolutely delicious! We then visited Pattaya Beach again before taking a Grab back to our hotel to freshen up.
We found a massage place near our hotel and enjoyed another foot massage. Later, we walked to Burger King, got takeaway, and ate in our hotel. We noticed that Jomtien Beach near our hotel was very quiet and dark compared to Pattaya Beach—a completely different experience with very few people around.
Day 5: Parks, Rain, and Final Night Markets (11:10 AM)
On our final full day, we visited the Million Years Stone Park, arriving at 11:10 AM. We discovered the Grab Saver option, which helped save some money. The park was definitely a unique experience that I both loved and hated. Surprisingly, it started raining while we were there, making the weather perfect for exploring.
KFC and Street Exploration (2:00 PM)
We took a Grab to KFC at Xzyte Square, reaching by 2 PM for another round of that delicious spicy chicken rice with wings. Then we started walking in the amazing post-rain weather, making our way to Central Pattaya Beach again.
We explored the lanes in the pleasant weather until we got tired, then visited another branch of Risa Massage for foot massages.
Thepprasit Night Market (6:00 PM)
We arrived at Thepprasit Night Market at 6 PM via Grab. This market had everything we’d seen at the previous night markets and more, all at very reasonable prices. It’s definitely a must-visit! We did some shopping and enjoyed various foods, mostly fruits and sweet corn.
Jomtien Night Market (9:40 PM)
After returning to our hotel to freshen up, we took a baht bus to Jomtien Night Market, arriving by 9:40 PM. This area was the lively part of Jomtien. We sat there for a while, enjoying some French fries and mango juice.
The walk back to our hotel was very quiet with few people along the beach. We had planned to order food to the hotel, but the Grab app showed delays, so we settled for vegetable noodle mix and snacks we bought at 7-eleven before calling it a night.
The next morning, we booked a taxi to Suvarnabhumi Airport, concluding our wonderful 5-day adventure in Pattaya.
Final Thoughts
Pattaya offers a fantastic mix of beautiful beaches, cultural sites, exciting night markets, and delicious food. While some areas like Walking Street might not be everyone’s cup of tea, there’s definitely something for everyone in this vibrant coastal city.
Travel Tips from My Experience:
Get a good data plan like DTAC’s unlimited option
Use Grab Saver for cheaper rides
Learn to use the baht buses to save money
Visit multiple night markets—prices vary significantly!
Don’t miss the Floating Market and Koh Lan Island
Book attractions through Klook for better rates
Try the local fruit—especially the mangoes and coconuts