Pattaya and Bangkok in 6 Days: A Plan That Leaves Room to Breathe

Most first trips to Thailand from India follow the same route: land in Bangkok, drive to Pattaya, come back to Bangkok, fly home. The route is right. What goes wrong is the pacing: too many 6 am pickups, temples squeezed between shows, and a last day spent repacking shopping bags.

This is the order we plan it in, and why.

Nights

2 in Pattaya, 3 in Bangkok

Between the two

About 2 hours by road

Cooler, drier months

November to February

Hottest months

March to May

Entry for Indian passports

Rules change; see our Thailand visa page before you book flights

Start at the beach, finish in the city

Drive to Pattaya straight from the airport. You arrive tired from an overnight or early flight, and a beach town forgives a slow first day in a way Bangkok does not. It also means your shopping happens at the end, in Bangkok, close to the airport, so you are not carrying it around the country.

What fits in two Pattaya days

Three things, comfortably:

• The Alcazar Cabaret Show on your first evening. It is an easy, seated hour after a travel day.
• Coral Island (Koh Larn) by speedboat on day two. Go in the morning, before the beach fills up. Parasailing and jet skis are sold on the spot; agree the price before you start.
• The Sanctuary of Truth on your way out of town. It is carved entirely from wood and still being worked on, so you may be handed a hard hat at the door.

Three Bangkok days without temple fatigue

Give the temples one morning, not three. The Grand Palace and the Temple of the Emerald Buddha open early; be there when they do, walk next door to Wat Pho for the Reclining Buddha, then take the short ferry across the river to Wat Arun. By lunch you have seen the four places people come for.

Keep one evening for a dinner cruise on the Chao Phraya, when the temples are lit and the heat has gone. Give Safari World a full day of its own: it is well outside the centre and the animal shows run to a timetable.

What it costs

Our Pattaya and Bangkok package is ₹46,000 per person for two adults sharing, with four-star hotels, breakfasts, private road transfers and every entry ticket in the plan. Flights are separate. On top of that, budget for lunches and dinners that are not listed, water sports on Coral Island, and whatever Pratunam and ICONSIAM do to your luggage allowance.

Mistakes we see

• Booking a flight that lands in the evening. You lose the first night in Pattaya to the drive.
• Planning Safari World on the day you fly out. It takes the whole day.
• Packing only sleeveless clothes. Temples will not let you in.