Pattaya on a Budget: Airport Taxi, Hotel, Food and Nightlife

Airport Taxi from Suvarnabhumi to Pattaya

I just arrived from a domestic flight, exactly from Samui. After one hour, I have a taxi to Pattaya. The process is very easy and the price is very affordable.

As I said, I booked it online yesterday. You just have to go to the website Soy Taxi. It’s very easy. Once you enter the website, you’re going to see that it’s a trusted website. After that, just put the pick-up point for today, Suvarnabhumi Airport. After that, you have to put your flight number, what day you’re arriving, and boom, automatically it figures out what time you’re arriving and what time the taxi should wait for you.

Now, choose the car that you want. You have different sizes and different budgets. 1,000 Thai baht. Everything is included, the toll fee, extra expenses, and even insurance. So, I’m going to choose this one, 1,000 Thai baht. How cheap and affordable it is.

Now, you have to verify, of course. You have different options. I choose WhatsApp. Scan, put in the number, and that’s it. So, after that, I’ve got this voucher and it contains all the information you need once you arrive at Suvarnabhumi Airport. So, you have the driver number and approximate pick-up time. And the best part is that you can chat with the driver in any language you want. It has an AI translator. That’s amazing.

As you see, easy cheesy. Now, it’s almost 12. After claiming your luggage, you can press the call button and the driver will head to the pick-up point. The pick-up point is at the second floor. You just have to go out from Gate Seven, as you can see. We are at the second floor. What weather. It’s so humid outside and we are in the high season, January. So, let’s see where our driver is.

All right, we are at the pick-up point and you can see lots of taxis are waiting. Our car is a Toyota Altis sedan, number plate number 4934. This is the QR code.

Taking Public Transport Down to Pattaya

I started by taking the train from Phrom Phong to Ekkamai, then jumped on the bus at Ekkamai and headed to Pattaya.

The Ekkamai bus terminal has changed. It used to be a big room that you could go into. It was always chaos, but now it feels like extra chaos.

There are a few different options that you can take to go down to Pattaya. I personally prefer the big bus. They have little minibuses, which are like a Toyota HiAce or whatever. I typically try to avoid the minibuses unless there is not a big bus for about half an hour or so. I always try to get a seat at the back.

I got the ticket and the back seat, so that was 131 baht. I think it used to be 119 baht, so that has not gone up by much. I had a 20-minute wait for the bus.

The Big Bus Is My Preferred Way to Go

The little vans are the minibuses. I am not a fan of them. They make stops along the way. They are useful if you are not going to Pattaya Main or if you want to get off early somewhere or later somewhere. They will drop you pretty much wherever, but they do stop along the way. They will pick people up and drop people off. If there is no one in there, they will do package delivery and stuff along the way.

I do not love them. Often, they drive a little bit crazily. The big bus is my preferred way to go. These midsize buses are hit and miss. Some of them are really good. I have taken this down to Hua Hin before and had a really good one, and I have also had an awful one. These ones all look new or newer than the ones I took, but they are hit and miss for sure.

For the vans, it is useful to sit in the front. They usually do not mind. I did that most of the time when I took these, and I would ask to sit in the front seat. You also get a seatbelt, which is nice. It is much more comfortable than being crammed in the back.

It seems better than taking the bus here. They also fill from the front first, so if the bus is not full, you do not end up with anyone next to you. I used to gatekeep this and not tell anyone, but I am happy to give it away now.

247 Boutique Hotel in Pattaya and Soi Honey

All right. So, here we are inside the taxi. It was a very comfortable ride. 1 hour 30 minutes, and here we are in front of the hotel, 247 Boutique Hotel. And only 1,000 Thai baht, including all the taxes, insurance, and even the tollways. Now, let’s check in. I think we are in the middle of the action.

I want to check in. Yes. Have you been here before? First time. First time, nice. Yeah, first time. So, your room is not ready now. The room is going to be ready at 2:00. What time is it now? Fifty minutes. So, I pass by after 50 minutes. Okay. I can leave my bag here.

The room is not ready. So, I leave my bag at 2:00. We still got 30 minutes.

So, this hotel name is 247 Boutique Hotel. I booked it for 800 Thai baht. All right, this hotel is located in Soi Honey, which is Soi 11 at the back side of Central Plaza. In the opposite direction, you have Soi Buakhao. So, it’s in the middle of the action. Inside this soi, you have lots of pubs, bars, restaurants, nightclubs, and massage parlors. It’s a crazy soi. I think for people who don’t like nightlife, definitely this soi is not recommended. For me, it was a last-minute booking. Hopefully, the night will be peaceful, but we don’t know.

I’m going to eat something, but as I said, this hotel location is very strategic for the people who love nightlife.

Affordable Food Near Soi Honey

Pattaya, 800, 623 Thai baht. Nice. The options are a lot, as you can see: the food court, restaurants, whatever you like. But today I’m not into Thai food. Maybe we can eat Lebanese food.

Thank you. Yes, I want this set, and no, with rice.

It was a big meal. I’m so full. 300 24.50 Thai baht.

I came to check in. My room was not ready. No. I should take my key card. So, we finally have the card. Our room is at the fourth floor and the new girl has no idea about me.

I was a little early to check into my hotel, so I grabbed some lunch at Sailor Restaurant and Bar on Soi 8. I got sweet-and-sour chicken, rice, and a Coke Zero. I paid 70 baht for the chicken, 20 baht for the rice, and 30 baht for the Coke Zero.

I am pretty sure I had this exact same meal here when I did this a few years ago. This place has undergone impressive renovations. It is much bigger than it used to be and looks great. This place is famous for being super cheap, especially its drinks. I think it has a great happy hour, but generally its drink prices are quite cheap.

The sweet-and-sour chicken here is amazing. It was an awesome lunch at a great price.

I went to Tree Town for dinner. I used to come here all the time, especially during COVID when all the real bars and everything were closed. This place was the place to be.

I got pepper chicken and rice. This was the same thing that I got a few years ago at the same restaurant. However, I paid 190 baht for it this time. It was 90 baht when I came a few years ago.

This is one of my favourite things to eat, peppercorn chicken. It was so good. I would pay double again.

The 800 Thai Baht Pattaya Hotel Room

Our room is 410, not 401. We were knocking on the wrong door. This is our room, 410. Wow. Nice. Really? This is it. 800 Thai baht. This is the bed. A little bit soft. You have a couch to sit, cool. A place to work.

Let’s check the view first of all. And this is the view. What a view. Nice. No view. At least we have a balcony.

So, let’s check the room. Today outside is very, very hot. So, this is the room. I mean, it’s not bad for the price that we have paid. We have coffee, a kettle, and a place to work. What do we have here? Nothing. We have two complimentary water bottles.

Check the bathroom. We have a shower, classical. And this is the bathroom. So, I think it’s good. It’s really cool. You have also a swimming pool and a gym, and on this side you have all the nightlife. And this is at the back side of the hotel, Soi Buakhao. Hopefully, I’m pronouncing the name right. One of the craziest sois. You have to be very careful. Lots of motorbikes, tuk-tuks, taxis, massage shops, pubs, and bars.

Pattaya Nightlife on Soi Buakhao

All right. That was just 150 Thai baht, and welcome to Pattaya Beach. You can see how busy Pattaya is today. Wherever you look, the beach, the streets, the bars, and the pubs. Quite impressive, really.

Now, it’s a little bit better and cooler, but still today the weather is not January’s weather. You won’t believe it if I say there are no places to sit at the pubs and the bars. I thought when we were here before Christmas, it was the peak of high season. Still, it’s very busy and crowded.

There are lots of massage shops in Pattaya. Wherever you look, left, right, up, down. But 90% of the shops are everything but a good massage session. Anyway, this is one of my favorite massage shops in Pattaya. It’s just opposite Somerset. Just in case you are here.

A Busy Night at Pattaya Beach

300 baht. Thank you. That was really amazing. You know, sometimes you pay a lot of money for a massage session, hundreds of baht, and the result is not good. It all depends on who is doing the massage session and, of course, if the shop is okay.

So, don’t forget this shop place is called Lana Massage. Once you are in Pattaya, I definitely recommend it.

Check how many are in this room: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Why don’t they put only one and make things easy?

A Pattaya Massage for 300 Thai Baht

Definitely, we can see the difference between day and night. This is one of the craziest choices that someone can stay in, especially if you are not into nightlife. It’s very noisy. And still, it’s 9:30. You can see how busy the 7-Eleven is. I’m going to get something. You can see today, wherever we go, it’s super busy. As I said, still early. 9:30 and the streets are full of people.

So, let’s eat, have a beer, and start exploring the nightlife vibes in Pattaya. It’s almost 1:00 a.m. And so far, you can see that the vibes are high, the prices are low, and definitely having a short vacation in Pattaya is not a bad idea.

The Total for This Trip Was 1,726 Baht

The total for this trip was 1,726 baht, which is quite a bit over double what it cost a few years ago. There was one extra meal the last time. I had breakfast, which I did not have here. Needless to say, the price goes up over time.

This has gone up quite a bit, but it is still a relatively budget holiday if you factor in taking the train, bus, and baht bus to get down here, along with beers, a few meals, and a hotel right in the middle of Pattaya Beach.

It is definitely not the $20 that it used to be, but that is obviously to be expected. It is still a budget trip down to Pattaya. It is just not as cheap as it used to be.