They say Pattaya is changing...

[trouble999]

well the world is in a credit crunch
and this weekend i hear the nova lodge is going so they can build a shopping mall
then on the secrets board there saying soi yamoto and soi post office are trying to be brought up.
so they can turn into a huge mall
is it the end off sex tourism

[PigDogg]

(trouble999 @ Jan. 18 2009,04:43) is it the end off sex tourism

It'll just move away from the beach.

[kahuna]

The "rumor" I have heard is that is the ultimate goal...Who is
gonna shop in the malls is another question...The majority of shoppers
I see are farangs with their two-week girl friends...

Truth is there are less than 100 bars on those two Sois...that will still
leave 9900 +/-...bars in Pattaya, Jomtein and Naklua...and if the bars on
those two Sois are making a baht, I suspect they will relocate...

[Stogie]

It looks to me as though corporations are paying off the politicians to make way for all this new stuff.

In ten years the politicians will be sunning themselves in a different part of the world and Pattaya will be a concrete ghost town...

...but the sex industry will never go away.

This is because the sex industry is ingrained in Thai culture. No, not the horrible places that farangs are allowed to wallow in, but the real sex industry - the domestic one.

In the rest of the world we can righteously claim that we don't like sex outside of marriage because it's anti-social and God would frown on it. In Thailand sex for sale is just the way it is, so when Pattaya becomes just too inconvenient/dull/dangerous then the market forces and the needs of the Thai people will provide us all with cheap sex for life.

The smart money for expats has already spilled over into Jomtiem...

[trouble999]

well after spending new year there
i am sure those bar owners can,t wait to sell
i been drinking in soi yamoto over 20 years
its a pretty sad soi now mostly english drinking holes
like kahuna said the busy bars will just move

[shrimpsoup]

another shopping mall? The construction money has to dry up soon...just like it has in the west.

They have built too many malls, the monster mall at soi 9 and Beach Rd being the newest,  and any more might mean the demise of present malls like Mikes and RGP.

and will certainly drive out the independent hawker along Beach Road outside of Mikes...they were pleading for business in October and I can just imagine what this low season will be like.

The new monster mall might just put the final nail in the coffin of The Avenues...imagine yer anchor being McDonalds

Tenants for new mall shops may be few and far between.

[Snick]

(shrimpsoup @ Jan. 22 2009,09:34) The new monster mall might just put the final nail in the coffin of The Avenues...imagine yer anchor being McDonalds

Absolutely. The new Central Mall will kill whats left of The Avenue - except for Villa, McD, movies, and bowling everything there is hurting.

Its hard to predict what will happen to Pattaya, its not like there is any real plan or anything. But I hope the new gov't is less anti-nightlife then the old gov't. I'd really like them to get rid of the 2am closing times, which they could do by just granting entertainment zone status to all of Pattaya. (I know things don't really close at 2am, but it does affect things).

[PigDogg]

Shenanigan's, California Fitness, and the green and yellow banks seem busy too.

The Avenue will morph into a food, beverage, and entertainment center and away form a place to shop for clothes.

[kahuna]

(Snick @ Jan. 22 2009,10:37) I know things don't really close at 2am

Correct...But the fucking shit music stops...

[rossco]

The new Mall on Soi 9 is the biggest "Beach Side Mall in SE Asia" apparently!

Another cinema (10 screens) and an hotel (Hilton). Opens Friday January 23rd just in time for Chinese New Year!

Great looking place but are there enough customers?

My bet is that of the 8000 Bars in Pattya City (excludes Jomtien/Naklua) 25/30% will close due to cashflow - no high season this year 2008/2009. The good news is that the surviving bars will become better as they fight for existence.

The GG's and the LB's still need to earn a living so the industry will survive but just in different venues/locations.

[Snick]

(rossco @ Jan. 22 2009,18:10) The good news is that the surviving bars will become better as they fight for existence.

Never figured you for such an optimist

(where is the new movie theater ?)

[PigDogg]

(rossco @ Jan. 22 2009,03:10) The new Mall on Soi 9 is the biggest "Beach Side Mall in SE Asia" apparently!

Another cinema (10 screens) and an hotel (Hilton). Opens Friday January 23rd just in time for Chinese New Year!

Just rode by on a baht bus and seems that there's a soft opening of sorts tonight. But the full blown raging hardon is tomorrow.

Movie theatre somewhere in the new mall.

[rossco]

Snick - I am the eternal optimist when it comes to "pleasure town" - It has hit lows in the past and faced numerous 'clean-ups'. As long as Men are Men and Women are Women and LB's abound there will always be a market for buyer and seller. It is the oldest industry known to humankind.

I do think many bars will close - many of the owners run them as a 'hobby' but when it becomes a drain on their hard earned capital then they will quit.

There are other bars, who try to be a business, who will close as they just did not have a sustainable business model. You can sell beer cheap IF you have volume. Now the volume is diminished. The bars that will survive 'know' the business and will 'weather' the storm.

Many GoGo bars in Walking St are doing well - their market is the tourist who thinks a 150 Baht beer is reasonable for the added entertainment.

The problem with us resident guys, who actually live here, is we are always thinking about the cost - we are actually poor customers as we rarely BF nor buy LD's because we know the scene.

Buying 2 beers or a single bottle of water does not increase the bar's profit - welcome the tourist who will spend 1000 plus and enjoy himself - that is the desired customer.

LB's is a niche market, and for those guys seeking that the business, they will survive - we are, after all, addicts. Come what may we will seek that 3rd gender.

A very wise man said that in a recession 3 things carry on - Sex, Food, Drink.

Thailand is still relatively cheap and does still offer some unique attractions.

Compare a few LD's and a BF and a mutually agreed fee in Thailand to what it would cost in the West! On top of that compare the talent readily available here compared to the West - no contest.

[mardhi]

I think the new mall will actually do very well and at the expense of the less hi-end malls like Royal Garden and of course the Avenue which must rate as the worst designed shopping experience in Thailand. The new mall is owned and run by Central Group - they are extremely smart and are bringing in heaps of brands that they control in Thailand. Previously many of these items were only available in BKK. What remains to be seen is the impact on traffic - it will deteriorate even more which will actually put off even more the out of city centre residents from ever venturing into the city. Its amazing quite how this city still grows with zero thought to car parking as they chase the so called Hi end visitor (and if they are from BKK, they will have a car).

Interesting times though.

Cheers
Mardhi

[PigDogg]

Heard a rumor that the movies are free tonight (Friday) at the new mall. Can anyone confirm?