travel42 Port Guide: Pattaya

travel42 Professional Cruise Port of Call Review

On the Gulf of Thailand 100 mi/160 km south of Bangkok, the resort of Pattaya was developed in 1968 and has evolved into a major tourist destination. Pattaya attracts more visitors than anywhere else in Thailand, save Bangkok. Those who haven't been there in the past 20 years will hardly recognize this 5-mi-/8-km-long beach.

Though some of the newer properties are stunning, construction has gotten out of hand—too many new hotels and apartments now line the shore. Because of sewage runoff, the...