Pattaya Orientation – Read it First


Districts “Greater Pattaya” occupies most of the coastline of Banglamung (one of the eleven districts that comprise Chonburi Province). It is divided into a larger northern section which spans the areas to the east of Naklua Beach (the most northern beach) and Pattaya Beach (the main beach) plus the Buddha Hill headland (immediately south of Pattaya Beach), and a smaller southern section covering the area to the east of Jomtien Beach (which lies directly south of Buddha Hill) including Dongtan Beach. Jomtien’s beaches are much broader and generally in better shape, and the atmosphere locally is more sedate and family-oriented, than at Pattaya Beach.

South is central, Central is north
Pattaya’s sub-district names sometimes cause confusion, usually when the official Pattaya Bay area titles (North Pattaya, Central Pattaya, South Pattaya) are misunderstood. These names don’t relate to Pattaya as a whole, instead they refer to the sections of Pattaya Beach to which each sub-district is aligned. Pattaya’s coastal side is divided longitudinally into five contiguous sub-districts (or six, if also including Jomtien). Each one is named after the section of beach or headland at its seaboard.

In the middle are the three Pattaya Bay sub-districts, which share the main Baht Bus route (so most places are within 5 minutes / 10 baht of most other places, at any hour) and have much else in common, and hence in combination make up the main quasi-downtown zone:

North Pattaya (Pattaya Nua) – not the northern-most part of Pattaya (as Naklua lies further north), but the section of Pattaya adjacent to the northern end of Pattaya Beach and extending inland to both the north and south of North Pattaya Road. Does not include Naklua.South Pattaya (Pattaya Tai) – not the southern-most part of Pattaya (as the Buddha Hill headland, and then Jomtien, lie further south), but the section of Pattaya adjacent to the southern end of Pattaya Beach and extending inland to both the north and south of South Pattaya Road. Includes Pattayaland and Walking Street. Does not include Buddha Hill or Jomtien.

Central Pattaya (Pattaya Klang) – not the dead centre of Pattaya, but the section of Pattaya adjacent to the middle of Pattaya Beach and extending inland to both the north and south of Central Pattaya Road. Some maps/guides disregard the Central Pattaya convention, and instead extend North Pattaya and South Pattaya to meet each other along Central Pattaya Road; sometimes, Beach Road is described with a similar division, and the respective halves given “North Beach Road” and “South Beach Road” monikers.

Related posts:

  1. Understand Pattaya: History of Pattaya
  2. How to make contact in Pattaya
  3. Information of Pattaya : The Past and Present
  4. Pattaya Supermarket
  5. How to shopping in Pattaya
  6. Shopping Mall in Pattaya
  7. Pattaya hotels: Amaze to be discovered
  8. Effective Pattaya Travel Guide
  9. Pattaya Resort: One Of The World Best Resorts
  10. Tips for booking hotels in Pattaya