Pattaya was the nineteenth most visited city in the world last year, welcoming almost ten million foreign visitors and about seven million domestic visitors, an increase of 350,000 year over year. This year, the city has essentially been a ghost town due to the Covid19 pandemic and measures taken to control the borders.
Foreign tourists, as a whole, remain locked out of Thailand. The situation has now gone on six months and shows no sign of ending anytime soon. It’s worth noting that some places and businesses are doing allright during this situation, especially those catering to Thais or expats. However, as a whole, the city is struggling.
We won’t talk to much in this article and let the photos do the talking, all taken this weekend in Pattaya, Thailand by Adam Judd. This is part one we will have more later this week.
Once thriving massage shops near Walking street now quiet or closed permanently.Most foreign focused restaurants have closed as there is a lack of customers interested.Currency exchange booths are empty across the city.Even many of the towns convienence stores are closed due to lack of customers.A once fairly busy rock bar on Walking street is now closed permanently and for saleThe Simon complex on Walking Street has been closed since the pandemic began.Soi Arab is devastated with probably 80 percent of businesses closed, many permanently.A once busy Thai restaurant near Walking Street has been destroyed, showing that even Thai businesses have been hit hard by less Thai people in town.Many hotels in Pattaya remain shuttered with no sign of opening soon. This was once a very busy hotel catering to Indians.Row after row of Indian restaurants have gone out of business near Walking Street.Massage shops have been especially hard hit, empty and shuttered across the city.Once busy tourist attractions with many foreign tourists now attract only a handful of Thai Nationals.Marine nightclub remains closed since the pandemic. They tried opening for a week and decided to stay closed.It has now been much, much longer than two months.Only a cat is a local market this evening that once attracted tourists.
