Military Beach, also known as Saikaew Beach. Many Pattaya tour operators selling transfers call it Blue Lagoon. The average transfer price from Pattaya through a travel agency is about 350 baht. Some also offer lunch included in the cost, but then the price goes up to 600-700 baht.
The best price you’ll hear quoted is 200 baht. When buying a tour, they pick you up from the hotel around 9 am (some offer earlier times, some later), and the minibus with tourists leaves the beach for Pattaya around 4 pm.
Beach Overview
Saikaew Beach is about 1,310 feet (400м) long, forming a lagoon between two hills. It’s also sheltered from the mainland by low green mountains.
The sand is light grey, almost white in sunlight. The water is crystal clear with a turquoise hue and little silt on the bottom. There are many slightly prickly round shells in the sand at the bottom, along with other marine life. This is especially noticeable at low tide.
What makes this beach special is that it’s located on military base grounds. Thailand has quite lovely military personnel who allow tourists to swim in their domain. The advantage of such a location is that the beach is very clean, tidy, peaceful and quiet. There aren’t excessive crowds, but there’s necessary infrastructure – rentals and showers.
Nothing excessive. No seedy areas, just fresh air and seclusion. Plus, this place is well away from the city and surrounded by mountains on three sides. The downside is that the choice of shops, cafes and rental accommodation is indeed very limited. On weekends, despite being restricted access, it gets quite busy here – mostly locals, both Thai and foreigners permanently living in Pattaya.
Another peculiarity worth remembering – when entering the base, you’ll be asked to leave some form of ID at the checkpoint. A passport or Thai driving licence will do. You can collect your documents when leaving the base. At the second checkpoint, you need to pay a 100 baht fee. If you buy a transfer from a tour operator, this fee is included in the price, and they might not ask for documents.
Recently they’ve stopped allowing personal vehicles onto the territory. You have to take a motorcycle taxi for 40 Baht, then pay 100 Baht per person, then you’re taken to the beach by tuk-tuk, which seems to be free.
Swimming
The water entry is gradual, making it very convenient for swimming with children. At low tide, the water recedes quite far, first leaving small sandy spits that later turn into islets surrounded by shallow water – ankle-deep for an adult.
Children find it fun to run around in this water mirror. There’s a swimming area marked off with buoys. This is convenient and makes sense, as people are taken around on jet skis and banana boats nearby. There are usually no big waves here.
Sunbeds and Shade
Sunbeds can be rented for 30 baht, beach mats for 20 baht. Between the path and the sea are planted low palm trees and other trees that provide shade. There are also bamboo pavilions.
Beach Photos
Amenities
Along Military Beach runs a moderately wide paved path, alongside which, interspersed with small flower beds, are several cafes and rental places for sunbeds, mats and other tourist equipment. A bit further in, behind the wooden bungalow-style houses available for rent, there are free toilets and showers.
Being on military base grounds has its pros and cons. It’s quiet and clean with few people, but there’s also little infrastructure or nightlife to speak of. It’s almost 1.9 miles (3км) to the nearest checkpoint, and that’s just to travel at least another equal distance to reach the entrance to the restricted area.
There is some sort of shop on the premises, but it’s certainly no Big C.
Accommodation
There’s not much rental housing here, which isn’t surprising. It’s a military base, not the city centre. There are bungalow-style houses for rent which, judging by appearances, have few amenities but are right on the beach. In general, perhaps only those who love seclusion will be able to live here for any length of time. Although during the day, this seclusion will be interrupted by tourists brought in from Pattaya.
How to find the beach
From Pattaya to Saikaew Beach, you can travel using your own transport or buy a transfer from a tour operator. The journey from central Pattaya takes about 20-40 minutes, depending on the type of transport and traffic on the road. About 15 minutes along Sukhumvit and the same amount of time through the base itself.
