| By Blazers on Monday, June 09, 2003 - 10:02 pm: Edit |
TAXI-
If you are going straight to Pattaya from the airport, there are many booths with taxi drivers ready to take you to Pattaya. The average rate is 1,500 baht. The trip takes anywhere from 2-3 hours from the airport. If you are staying at a hotel in Bangkok, there are many drivers who will take you to Pattaya for 1,000-1,200 baht but make sure you find out whether the price includes the toll road fees or not. A trick I have used is to have the taxi take you to the Ekamai bus station. The driver will immediately ask you where you are going. If you tell him you are going to Pattaya, he will not leave you alone and will keep asking you if he can take you there. You have the leverage here and can get a price of about 900 baht...if he says no, just get out of the taxi when you arrive at the bus station.
BUS:
I have taken the bus and a taxi and the bus gets you there in the same exact time. These buses haul ass. You can take the sky train to the Ekamai station or take a taxi. If you have a lot of luggage, the sky train will not be feasible. Once you arrive at the station, look for the booth that sells aircon Pattaya tickets for 90 baht. The ticket will have the bus number and the time of departure on it. Buses leave every 30 minutes. The bus will be blue and white and there will be a sign that says "Pattaya" above your bus. DO NOT take a bus from a tout..they are buses for locals and they stop hundreds of times...I learned that the hard way and the trip took 4 and a half hours. The bus station in Pattaya has trucks with covers in the back called songthaews or baht bus. Take a bus by yourself, so you can throw all of you luggage in the back. If you ride with the locals, you will be packed like sardines and have no room for your stuff. The ride should not cost more than 50 baht.
| By Jrsx on Tuesday, June 10, 2003 - 05:45 pm: Edit |
The bus ride to Pattaya is fast and easy. The bus tickets also have assigned seats. This is a little confusing as the seats are marked on the back. If you are assigned seat 10 and you are correctly seated you will be looking directly at the label for seat 6. The bus looks like this.