Bang Saen Beach & Khao Sam Muk

Bang Saen does the seaside the Thai way: you rent a deckchair under the casuarinas for a few dozen baht, order som tam, grilled squid and a bucket of ice from the vendor, and stay all afternoon. Weekends bring crowds from Bangkok and Chonburi, inflatable rings and a holiday noise that is entirely local; weekdays are near empty. The sand is coarse and the water is calm but rarely clear, so treat it as a place to eat and paddle rather than snorkel. From roughly October to February the sea clears noticeably and the beach is at its best.

Khao Sam Muk is the wooded hill at the northern end of the bay, with a road to the top, a shrine to the goddess Sam Muk, sea views over the Gulf and a large, bold troop of macaques. Entry is free and it is open in daylight hours. The monkeys are the attraction and the problem: they snatch bags and food and bites are reported every year, so keep everything zipped and do not feed them. A few minutes away the Institute of Marine Science at Burapha University runs the Bang Saen aquarium, with a Bryde’s whale skeleton from the Gulf and a large tank of groupers, reef sharks and rays, a good hour for children.

Bang Saen is about an hour north of Pattaya by car on Motorway 7 or Sukhumvit Road and roughly 1.5 hours from Bangkok, which makes it a natural break on a private transfer between the two: a late lunch on the beach instead of a motorway service station. A Bolt or Grab from Pattaya costs around 800–1,000 THB each way, so going by taxi for the day only makes sense for a group; buses and minibuses run from Pattaya to Chonburi town with a short local ride onward. Ang Sila fish market, 10 minutes south, is the place to buy seafood on the way back.