Pattaya Beach - Diving Holiday Destination

Pattaya Beach (Thailand)

Pattaya is a city in Thailand, located on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 165 km southeast of Bangkok. Pattaya Beach is now Thailand's premier tourist resort.

Modern dive tourism began in Thailand at Pattaya 40 years a go, when resting B52 bomber aircrew from a nearby US Vietnam war airbase discovered a small sleepy fishing village located on a palm fringed tropical beach just 150km south of Bangkok.

GIs returning with friends as well as adventure travellers triggered a huge boom in hotel and resort develpment making it the most developed beach resort in Thailand, and it is now famous world wide for its vibrant and liberal nightlife.

Pattaya is Thailand’s premier wreck & technical diving destination with diving activities planned throughout the year. Popular local dive sites include several large shipwrecks, shallow coral reef dives at offshore islands, and technical diver training at the deepest point in the Gulf of Siam.

Climate

Pattaya enjoys a tropical wet and dry climate, divided into the following seasons: Warm and Dry (November to February), Hot and Humid (March to May), and Hot and Rainy (June to October). The most comfortable time of year coincides with the peak tourist season, which is on and around Christmas and New Year.

Pattaya's weather is similar to that of Bangkok, with the highest temperature in April, and the most rain falling from May to October.
Warm, Dry Season : (November to February)
- Short sharp showers (known as Mango rains). Humidity around 50% Temperature from 20-30 C. The best time to enjoy the nice weather. Recommend your prospective visitors to come in this season.

Hot, Dry Season : (February to May)
- Occasional rain. Humidity around 75%. Temperature from 30-40 C. Watch the spectacular thunder storms from a safe place, not the golf course!

Warm, Wet (Monsoon) Season : (June to October)
- Heavy prolonged rain. Humidity approximately 90%. Temperature from 25-35 C. The monsoon season need not keep you in, an umbrella is more useful than rainwear.

Dive Facts

One great thing about diving in Pattaya, Thailand is that it is not seasonal. If you want to get wet and dive 365 days of the year - feel free. Generally visibility ranges from 3 - 20 meters. The water temperature maintains between 27 and 30 degrees.

Dive Attractions

The main scuba diving areas around Pattaya are located in the "Far Islands". These are the second ring of islands about 20-30 kilometers from Pattaya. The islands are controlled by The Navy, and no permanent structures are built there (boat traffic is also minimal). These islands include Koh Rin, Koh Man Wichai, Koh Keung Badaan, Koh Hu Chang and Koh Phi. Altogether there are up to 20 different dive sites with visibility ranging from 5 - 15 meters.

Scuba Diving Sites in Pattaya offer all year round scuba diving and a huge range of sites to choose from. You can opt for shallow coral reef dives, deep wreck dives, drift dives and night dives. There are many different types of soft and hard corals, and large schools of Jacks, Barracuda and Tuna. Blue Spotted Stingrays, Porcupine Puffer fish and Moray Eels can be seen on virtually every dive. Day Trip Sites include: Hardeep ShipWreck, HTMS Khram ShipWreck, Koh Hu Chang, Koh Keung Badaan, Koh Man Wichai, Koh Rin, & Petchburi Bremen ShipWreck.

See our Dive Site Directory for detailed scuba diving sites in Pattaya, and our Dive Club Directory for Pattaya Scuba Diving Clubs and Tour Operators.

Other

Currency: Baht

Language: Thai, with English widely understood

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