Animals & zoos
Underwater World Pattaya, 22/22 Moo 11 Sukhumvit Road (15 minutes from town centre); tel. +66-38756879. Aquarium full of tropical creatures. Open 09:00-18:00, last admission 17:30, feeding times 10:00, 10:30, 11:00, 14:00, 14:30, 15:00. Different prices for Thais (180 baht/adult, 120 baht/child) and foreigners (360 baht/adult, 180 baht/child).
Institute of Marine Science Aquarium & Museum, Burapha University, 169 Long-Hard Bangsaen Road, Bangsaen; tel. +66-38391671 /3 is open 08:30-16:00 (feeding time 14:30), except public holidays (open 08:30-17:00, feeding times 10:30 + 14:30) and Mondays (closed); admission 20 baht/adult, 10 baht/child.
Oasis Seaworld, Paknam, Laemsing, Chanthaburi - full day guided trips including 45 minutes swimming with dolphins - approx. 2000 baht/adult 1500 baht/child - available via travel agencies.
There are two submarines (yellow ones, of course!) with tour operators in Pattaya:
Hynix of the Sea - main ticket office at the Second Road end of Tipp Plaza (near Soi 10); tel. +66-38711059 /60
Vimantaitalay contact any Pattaya travel agency; or tel. +66-38415234
Elephant shows & trekking offered by several operators, most located on Sukhumvit Road. These include Ban Chang Thai tel. +66-3870628 /91, Utthayan Chang tel. +66-38716379, Thin Chang Thai tel. +66-38756516 / +66-38756577, Suan Chang tel. +66-38756517, Farm Chang Thai tel. +66-38237825.
Elephant Village, 54/1 Moo 2, Tambol Nong Prue; tel+fax. +66-38249818, +66-38249853 offers shows, elephant trekking and jungle tours (including a four-day/three-night tour in Phrae Province).
Monkey Training Centre, Soi Chaiyaphruk (off Highway #3) tel. +66-38756367 / +66-38756570. Features monkeys trained to harvest coconuts and undertake other tasks. Also stages cockfighting (a traditional Thai bloodsport) and a snake show. Open daily, shows 09:00, 11:00, 12:00, 14:00, 17:00 - admission 250 baht.
International Snake Show, Sukhumvit Road (39/4 Moo 5 - near the junction with North Pattaya Road) tel. +66-38731586 /
Khao Kheow Open Zoo (35 km north of Pattaya) tel. +66-38298270 . A huge zoo with about 8000 animals of 300 species. Open daily - 08:00-18:00, 50 baht/adult, 10-15 baht/child; Night Safari 19:00-20:00, 100 baht/adult, 50 baht/child.
Sriracha Tiger Zoo, 341 Moo 3, Nongkham, Si Racha (30 minutes from town centre); tel. +66-38296556 . A zoo with various shows.
Gardens
Nong Nooch Tropical Garden, 163 Sukhumvit Road (15 minutes east of town centre); tel. +66-38429321. Beautiful gardens with waterfalls, elephant shows, "Cultural Extravaganza" performances 4 times a day, restaurants etc. - enough to fill an entire day. In Feb 2007 they had major construction ongoing. We did the whole place in 90 minutes. Disappointing. Yet another place in Pattaya that thinks it is acceptable to charge foreigners more than Thais .200 baht for locals, 400 baht for foreigners. This practice is illegal in Thailand but strangely nobody in authority is prepared to do something about it.
Saithip Butterfly Garden, 79/5 Moo 11 Bangpra-Khaokheow Road, Bangpra Sriracha; tel. +66-99365339. Open 08:00-17:00. Admission for foreigners: 100 baht/adult, 60 baht/child.
Museums
Bottle Art Museum, 79/15 Moo 9, Sukhumvit Road, Nongpler; tel. +66-38422957, +66-38415783 . More than 300 miniatures in bottles, open 08:00-20:00.
Open Eyes, 2nd floor of Pattaya Bazaar, 266/52-53 North Pattaya Road; tel. +66-38362077. "The Great Experience Behind The Magical", a lot of technological magic and illusion shows. Open 15:00-23:00; show time 15:00-23:00; Spy Zone show time 15:00-22:00.
Ripley's Believe It Or Not museum (tel. +66-38710294 /8) is located on the third floor of Royal Garden Plaza. Access from both Second Road (you can't miss this side - there's a large aeroplane protruding from the upper floors) and from Beach Road. Different prices for Thais (280 baht/adult, 230 baht/child) and foreigners (380 baht/adult, 280 baht/child); at the same location there's also a "Haunted Experience" show, a 4D movie theatre and "Infinity Maze" game. Various combination tickets available, all dual-priced - for Thais (480 baht/adult, 380 baht/child) and foreigners (580 baht/adult, 480 baht/child) to enter all four. Open daily 11:00-23:00.
Sacred places
Buddha Hill (between Thappraya Road and Phratamnak Road; 5-10 minutes by songthaew) is one of the highest points in Pattaya. At the summit is the biggest Buddha statue in Pattaya, and nearby is a beautiful Chinese-style sacred area dedicated to Confucius and Lao-zi. The next hill, just across the Phratamnak Road, has the best Pattaya Bay coastline viewpoint and is also worth a visit, especially for sunset.
Sanctuary of Truth, 206/2 Moo 5, Soi 12, Naklua Road, Naklua; tel. +66-38225407 / +66-38367229 . An unfinished project, but worth a visit even now. The main attraction is a huge ancient-style wooden temple; nearby is a small dolphinarium with dolphin shows at 11:30 and 15:30.
Theme parks
Gems Gallery, 555 Moo 6, North Pattaya Road; tel. +66-38371222. One of several "World's Biggest" jewelry stores, this one also has a theme park.
Million Years Stone Park & Pattaya Crocodile Farm (15 minute drive from central Pattaya) . Features an exotic zoo, and crocodile, fire-swallowing and magic shows, as well as the garden and stone park. Open 08:00-18:30.
Mini Siam is located on Sukhumvit Road, surrounded by Soi 33, and features miniature replicas of iconic structures from Thailand and all over the world.
Three Kingdoms Theme Park, 100 Moo 9, Tambon Pong; tel. +66-38421428 . Adjacent to Horseshoe Point (20 minutes from Pattaya), this is a Chinese-style garden filled with pagodas, murals and figures from the Chinese epic San Guo Zhi, and more an expression of filial piety than a theme park. Perhaps worth a quick look on a slow day, but unlikely to offer much to visitors not familiar with the story. 60 baht/adult, 30 baht/child.
