Jomtien Beach, Pattaya

Beyond the hill, south of Pattaya, is Jomtien beach, another, much longer, stretch of beach. The beach is slightly deeper than Pattaya, and the section just south of the hill is very popular with Thais. There are many sections here where you can rent a beach chair and order food and drinks from staff serving that section. Numerous vendors also pass by offering fruit, ice cream and many other things, including massages. Officially known as Dongtan Beach, this is the only stretch of sand around Pattaya that doesn't have a road immediately behind it. There is a small paved street, but it's closed to traffic during the day. There is a charge for the use of the chair, which is generally somewhere around the princely sum of 30 Baht (0.78 USD).

But there's more to Jomtien than the beach. There are hotels, restaurants - some very good restaurants in fact - and just about everything else you could want. But perhaps the most important thing about Jomtien is what it doesn't have, and that is the seedier elements that characterize Pattaya city. Oh, there are a few go-go and girly bars around, but they're relatively out of sight and can be easily avoided. This makes Jomtien a bit more of a family friendly base than Pattaya. You can easily stay in the Jomtien area and never have a need to visit Pattaya itself.