A pleasant quiet place where there’s practically no background noise, just the sound of the wind and rustling palm trees. You can settle under an umbrella at the beach café (plastic chairs, high table) or right there on the beach, under umbrellas in sunloungers. They sell fresh coffee from a stall under the palm trees, and children can run around on the playground near the beach.
There’s a gazebo and a palm tree avenue with plenty of space for beach games on the sand. They keep the place tidy, but half the beach is not well-maintained and slightly overgrown, though this means you can enjoy complete solitude. It’s a nice spot not far from Pattaya with almost island-clean water and a pleasant atmosphere.
There aren’t loads of vendors pestering sunbathers, and few foreign tourists. There aren’t many people here at all, especially on weekdays. Thai locals come at weekends. What little life there is can only be found in the more developed northern part, where the 32nd alley leads to the beach. The entire southern half is practically wild with absolutely nothing there.
Beach Overview
The beach is 2,600 feet (800 metres) long, butting up against a pier at the north end that separates the river mouth from the sea. Further north, closer to Pattaya, begins the marina and yacht club. To the south, the beach ends at a headland. The good country restaurant Rimpa Lapin is located there, offering a splendid view of the beach, sea and city silhouette in the distance.
The middle section of the beach is very wide, with 100 feet (30 metres) of bare sand. There’s an area with umbrellas that’s even wider, but it’s filled with sunloungers, with umbrellas right up to the water’s edge. Most of the beach is practically uninhabited, between 30 and 70 feet (10 and 20 metres) wide, but there’s occasional litter and the sand is overgrown with grass.
Swimming
The water entry isn’t gradual; it gets deep almost immediately. At low tide, it’s the opposite – you have to walk very far to reach depth, with water slightly below knee level. At the end of the season (late February-March), there can be waves and strong winds. At low tide, sea urchins and other marine life like shells may appear near the shore and in the surf.
Since the water is murky, walking barefoot on the seabed on such days is dangerous – you could injure your foot. During the season in good weather when the water is calm, it’s clean and pleasant. There’s almost no rubbish in the water, nor silt. The sand is light yellow and fine. On the shore, you’ll find broken shells of various types.
Sunbeds and Shade
The 350 feet (100 metres) of beach closest to the pier, directly opposite the car park, is covered with sunloungers under umbrellas. Between the beach and the road grows a palm tree avenue, along which food and drink stalls are positioned. Opposite the 32nd street beach entrance there’s a gazebo, beyond which to the south stretches a very wide and bare part of the beach, without loungers or vegetation.
Along it, palm trees are planted in neat rows with a narrow path beneath them featuring several benches where it’s nice to sit. The avenue is rather far from the water as the strip of sand is very wide at this point, but in the hot midday sun it’s better than being in direct sunlight. Further south towards the headland, the beach isn’t very well-maintained, completely deserted, with the sand in places overgrown with local bindweed. But there’s complete solitude and quiet.
Beach Photos
Amenities
The northern end of the beach abuts a pier that separates the river mouth from the sea. Nearby is a seafood restaurant “By the Lighthouse”, as well as fishing boats, toilets and a car park. It’s not very touristy. Across the road from the beach, opposite the car park, is a small park with exercise equipment and a children’s playground, which is old and a bit knackered. Right here, just by the playground, there’s a Thai café where the owner sets out low tables and mats right on the lawn at sunset.
Most of the beach is bordered by gates and fences overgrown with tropical vegetation belonging to large condos and hotels, which are located a bit inland, quite far from the water and don’t catch the eye or spoil the seclusion. The nearest fairly large shops are on Sukhumvit, 1,000 feet (300 metres) from 32nd street (mini Big C and other local shops).
Near the headland that marks the southern end of the beach is the Rimpa Lapin restaurant. Tables are arranged on open terraces on several levels. It’s a romantic and atmospheric place with excellent views of the sea and distant city. The menu features Thai and international cuisine, with a large selection of seafood.
There aren’t that many attractions nearby. For children, not far from the beach on Sukhumvit is the recently opened Exotic farm with a zoo, children’s rides and an Italian restaurant. Nearby is also Greta farm, located beyond Sukhumvit, opposite 38th street.
In the same direction you can visit one of Pattaya’s main attractions – the Nong Nooch tropical garden, Silver Lake vineyards and Wat Yan temple. Towards Sattahip, also on Sukhumvit, is the Cartoon Network Amazone water park, Military Beach (Sai Keo). Towards Pattaya – Alangkarn theatre, elephant riding and the floating market.
Accommodation
There isn’t much accommodation near the beach. Along 32nd street there are a couple of condo buildings and hotels several storeys high, a pair of high-rise condos and a village with villas. Being there gives the impression that there are more vacant lots than built-up areas.
The large hotel Baan Somprasong is located near 32nd street.
Among the condos, the largest is Sunshine Beach Condotel by Komtana.
Besides these, there are also Sunrise Beach Resort and Residence and Tw Jomtien Beach Resort. There are practically no houses for rent at reasonable prices in the beach area, and if you do find something, it will be some distance from the sea, closer to Sukhumvit.
How to find the beach
The beach is located just beyond the marina, 8.7 miles (14 km) south of Pattaya towards Sattahip, in the Na Jomtien area. If driving, make a U-turn opposite the technical college (Sattahip Technical College), 32nd alley (Na Chom Thian 32 Alley).
Without personal transport: take a white tuk-tuk along Sukhumvit, get off at the Technical College, cross the road and walk 1,300 feet (400 m) along 32nd street to the sea.
