Doing a little homework before visiting Pattaya for the first time is always a good idea, especially when traveling as a large family or group. It’s not that it’s difficult for large families and groups to vacation in Pattaya; it’s just a little more challenging than planning a trip as a solo traveler or couple.
To help you plan, here is a little about where you can stay, how to get around, and things you can do in Pattaya, whether you’re a large family with young children, a bunch of guys on a jolly boy’s outing, or a group of backpackers.
Group and Family Accommodation in Pattaya
Fortunately, Pattaya has a vast choice of accommodation, including child-friendly hotels with family suites, cheap backpacker hostels with large dormitories, and short-term holiday homes and villas suitable for 20 people and more.
To find suitably large rooms, search for hotels in Pattaya on Agoda, enter your dates, number of people, and number of rooms, then use the filters to select your accommodation type and any preferences you might have.
Holiday Homes in Pattaya
The main benefits of renting a home/villa in Pattaya vs staying at a hotel are that vacation rental homes and villas can accommodate your whole group, are more private, and allow you the freedom to do as you please.
The drawbacks…..
You may have to forfeit some of the benefits of a typical hotel, like room service, daily cleaning, and on-site restaurant, and you might have to pay for electricity and water.
If you have any questions you would like to ask the owner, such as about kids’ sleeping arrangements, access, electricity costs, or local transport, most booking sites offer a free message service when you log in.
Booking…..
Some popular Pattaya villa and holiday home booking sites are Agoda, Clickstay, and VRBO.
To search and book holiday homes and villas in Pattaya on Agoda, go to the Agoda Pattaya homepage, select “Hotels & Homes” then select “Homes & Apts” and enter your dates and number of occupants.
Group Transport in Pattaya
A Motorcycle taxi (excluding Thais, who often squeeze on 4 or 5) can carry one passenger. A taxi can carry three passengers. A baht bus can comfortably accommodate ten large adults, plus 1 in the front seat next to the driver if that seat is empty. And at just 10 baht per person on most fixed routes, a baht bus is easily the best way to get around Pattaya as a group on a budget.
Pattaya Baht Bus Routes: Pattaya’s baht bus service operates around the clock, although they do become more scarce late at night through to early morning. There is a baht bus route map and more detailed information on how to use them in this article on Getting Around Pattaya.
Bolt and Grab ride booking apps are a convenient and cheap way of getting around and have vehicles suitable for large groups. Bolts have vehicles suitable for 6 passengers, and Grab has vehicles suitable for 10 passengers. If you are a large group, it’s best to book in advance as they are less common than sedan/saloon-style cars.
Pattaya hotels with shuttle services: If you choose a hotel a little outside of the baht bus routes, try to find one that offers a free shuttle service. Hotel shuttle services operate on a daily schedule and drop you off and collect you from a central location in downtown Pattaya, but some hotels also offer a shuttle service as and when required, a little more like a taxi service.
Where to Stay in Pattaya for Group Travelers
This is really a matter of choice and necessity. Your need for convenient transport necessitates that you stay within easy walking distance of the baht bus routes. But your own preference might be to choose a quieter location such as Jomtien, Pratumnak, Naklua, and Wongamat. Those locations are all covered by the baht bus routes but to a lesser extent than central (downtown) Pattaya.
There’s a better choice of vacation homes and villas in Pratumnak: Commonly referred to as “The Hill,” the Pratumnak area between South Pattaya and Jomtien has many more vacation homes and villas than downtown Pattaya. If you can find one close to the Pratumnak or Thappraya roads, you can still easily commute to Pattaya or Jomtien by baht bus.
There are more things to do in central Pattaya: It may be more difficult to find villas or other accommodations capable of sleeping large groups and families in downtown Pattaya, but if you can, you really have the best of everything.
Come rain or shine; you will never be bored in downtown Pattaya. There are some popular attractions like Art in Paradise and Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, just a short baht bus ride away. Then there are group and family activities such as Pattaya cinemas, tenpin bowling, and activities for children in Pattaya’s shopping malls.
Family friendly hotels in downtown Pattaya: Even in downtown Pattaya, there are more family-friendly hotels, resorts, guest houses, and residences than I could mention here. For a little more guidance, read this article about family friendly hotels in Pattaya.
Here is a more detailed article about where to stay in Pattaya.
Family and Group Activities in Pattaya
Some things are definitely more fun as a group, whether it’s for team-building exercises, a little friendly competition, trying something new and daring, or just having a fun day out as a group.
Here’s a list of fun activities for groups in Pattaya.
- Visiting islands near Pattaya
- Have a game of football
- Have a paintball war
- Go kart racing
- Lazer tag
- ATV and off-road motorcycle adventures
- Ten-pin bowling
- Play crazy golf
- Go to Ramayana Water Park or Columbia Pictures Aquaverse
When you are a large family or group on vacation in Pattaya you can benefit by buying cheap tickets to attractions in Pattaya.
Pattaya group and family vacation tips
- Consider a vacation home or villa
- Try and choose accommodation close to the baht bus routes
- If booking multiple rooms or family suites, request that they are connecting rooms or at least next door to each other
- Choose a hotel with a free shuttle service