Pattaya Bay viewed from "Radio Tower" look out.

Shopping In Pattaya

Pattaya is a stimulating place for an avid shopper. What do you want to buy? You name it and the Thais will probably be able to provide it. Clothing, art, paintings, sculptures, leather goods, bags, suit cases, silver, gold, pottery, sporting goods, wood craft, furniture, ceramics, jewelry, gems, computer software, electronics, digital cameras, music, musical instruments, antiques, .............

Buy Thai Clothing and Crafts Direct On Line

Carrefour

Carrefour opened in December 2003. Located on Pattaya Glang Road (Middle Road). More than 50 specialty shops including a small post office on the ground floor grace the two floors of this shopping complex. The supermarket has a good range of fresh fruit and vegetables at market prices.

Tip: If you are a falang (foreign) male and your body frame is larger than the average Thai man (usually the case) you will have difficulty finding a pair of undies to fit your western bumper and body parts. Try squeezing into the local XL size and you will soon grasp the feel of what I mean.

At the time of writing Carrefour is the only supermarket where you will find undies to fit the majority of falang. Check out "Inner Gear" brand.
For the home renovator Home Pro has everything from telephones to the kitchen sink.

Festival Center (Big C)

Pictured at left is the entrance to Festival shopping center. Inside the complex you will find Big C super market and over 50 specialty shops. The complex includes a cinema center boasting 5 state of the art movie theatres. There is a mobile telephone sales and service mini mall on the second floor where a lot of the Thais shop for a good deal.

The complex is located on Second Road at the northern end (North Pattaya). To check out what's on at the movies call 038 361 500.

The Royal Garden Plaza

The Royal Garden Plaza (pictured right) is a large shopping centre with a multi cuisine food court, twin cinemas and "Ripley's Entertainment Centre" on the top floor. "Bookazine" on the second floor has a good selection of travel books, news papers and novels.
If you are into learning Thai language they also have Thai phrase books and dictionaries (Thai - English, Thai - German, Thai-French.)

International franchises include Burger King, Sizzlers, Mister Donut, MacDonalds, Boots Chemist and Nike. One of the largest selections of music CD's and tapes in Pattaya is at "CD Warehouse" on the 3rd floor.

Tuk Com Center and IT City

The Tuk Com Center celebrated its official opening on 25th of December 2004. Located in South Pattaya Road this computer supply center features most of the computer hardware and software traders who also operate from the Panthip Plaza in Bangkok. There are five floors and a basement in the Pattaya Com Center.
In the basement is a small food hall where you can sit down and enjoy a meal (Thai food). There is also a mini maze of clothing vendors selling women's gear.

Click Picture to View Map

At the front (South Pattaya Road end) of the basement is an electronics parts warehouse. selling parts from washing machines to TVs. They also offer a selection of remote controls for televisions and DVD's.
On the ground floor you will find DVD and VCD movies, a book shop which has a fair selection of English language computer books but a good selection of Thai computer books, Thai Commercial Bank and ATM machines, Coffee shops including Starbucks and a few clothing and bag shops.

The second floor is devoted to cell phones (mobile phones) You can have your overseas phone chip converted to operate on the three services available in Thailand. There is a wide range of brands to choose from. If you want to save a few baht you can purchase a second hand phone. Don't like the color or buttons? An obliging sales tech will change it for you before you take one step away from his counter.
The third floor has a few accessory shops which sell computer gadgetry and digital cameras.
The fourth floor has the more serious computer gear. This is where you can buy almost any computer component from a memory card to a complete build it yourself computer kit.
There are also a few competent technicians who will build a computer to your specification.

The fifth floor is where you will find lots of foreigners browsing the software vendor alcoves.

On the sixth floor is the IT Super Market where you will find digital cameras, ready made computers, printers, scanners, power supplies, monitors, modems and a range of computer accessories.
The Com Center opens daily at 10:30 AM and closes at 10:00PM. More to come

Art Galleries

There are lots of talented gallery artists in Pattaya. If you appreciate clever copies of famous paintings then when you visit Pattaya you will enjoy visiting some of these art shops or galleries.
I commissioned one of these artists to paint a portrait of my mum from a nice photo. The result was a great likeness. I was surprised. My mum was over the moon with her Christmas present.

How do I shop and get a VAT refund?

1. Shop from the stores displaying the "VAT Refund for Tourists" sign. 2. The total amount of your purchase must be at least 5,000 Baht (VAT included). 3. Spend at least 2,000 Baht (VAT included) per store per day.
4. Present your PASSPORT and complete your VAT Refund Application Form for Tourist (P.P. 10) at the store on the purchase date. 5. Attach the ORIGINAL TAX INVOICE to the completed "P. P. 10" form.

VAT Refund Methods
Not Exceeding 30,000 Baht (a) Cash in Thai Baht (b) Bank Draft (c) Credit to credit card account	Exceeding 30,000 Baht (a) Credit into credit card account (b) Bank draft.

The following fees are charged for refund requests.
* For cash refund a fee of 100 Baht.
* For bank draft refund a fee of 100 Baht plus draft issuing fee at the rate charged by banks and postage fees.
* For credit into credit card account a fee of 100 Baht plus money transfer fee at the rate charged by banks and postage fees.

Made In Thailand

Clothing, art, Thai craft, paintings, sculptures, leather goods, bags, suit cases, silver, gold, pottery, sporting goods, wood craft, furniture, ceramics, jewelry and gems can be purchased at the "Made In Thailand" compound on Second Road. This is a popular bargaining center for tourists. So don't forget to bargain. Aim for at least 25% off the asking price. Shop for items direct on line.