Bowling
There are three international standard bowling alleys with digital scoring, top gear and even coffee shops for snacks and ice-cold beer.

Go-karts
Children love the resort’s two go-kart circuits that cater for beginners all the way to race-bred amateurs. There’s even an off-road track for those who like to eat dust. Karts are powered by 5 hp to 15hp engines, but there is an advanced category for race-proven drivers.

Water-skis
If water-skiing in Pattaya bay is too much of a challenge, there’s the cable-ski on an inland lake where children can safely handle the fun of skiing and parents can breath easily..

Elephants
Learn about elephants from the experts at the Pattaya Elephant Village. While there is an afternoon show designed for children, there is also the opportunity to meet the Village’s elephant handlers who explain the lifestyle and care of elephants even to demonstrating the use of Thai herbal medicines.

Trail rides
Elephant or pony treks through meadows and forested hills just a few kilometres inland from Pattaya are popular half-day activities. These rides pass through villages, farms and plantations and even ford streams.

Paintball
A mock-up of a typical Thai village in a coconut plantation is the venue for paintball competitions. It has a Rambo air to it, making the mock battles appear even more authentic.

Horse riding
A school with 40 horses and an indoor stadium where trainers show both riders and horses the steps to master both sport and classical riding skills. Trail rides are organised on the club’s 2,500 acre property. A group ride for four to six people costs approximately €30.

Thai boxing
Pattaya has its own boxing stadiums and a professional training camp that is open to visitors. It even enrols foreigners for short courses in the basic skills and traditions that govern this exciting sport.

Theme parks and shows
Scaled-down models of famous buildings throughout Thailand and Southeast Asia plus a few of the popular European ones for good measure make for an interesting family outing. There is also an open zoo that has the second largest walk-through aviary in Asia. Children love to view tigers and crocodiles that are kept in an environment that is close to their natural habitat. A half day can easily be spent watching a cultural and folk dance show followed by demonstrations by working elephants as well as handcraft presentations. One enterprising local has even created a floating market with all the trappings such as the typical fruit and noodles vendors who hail from nearby villages. There are also handicraft demonstrations and an introduction to rice cultivation.

Tennis
There is now a calendar of tennis tournaments that attract Asia’s top players, including the highly successful Volvo Open Women’s Tournament. Most of the four- and five-star resort hotels have professional standard tennis courts and resident coaches.

Scuba
Learning to scuba dive is a bargain. It’s also more comfortable in Pattaya’s warm seas. There are as many as 20 professionally managed scuba diving companies at the resort that employ PADI and NAUI certified instructors. Resort courses provide the basics with orientation in a hotel pool followed by a dive off one of the islands. This introduction costs about €55. Dive shops provide full certification courses for all levels of proficiency, from beginner all the way up to instructor level. Costs range from €250 to €325 including equipment all the way to instructors. They also sell specialised wrecks, photography and advanced reef dive packages that cost €14 to €25. Beginner dives are sited at the islands of Larn, Sak and Kok while advanced dives are venued at Man Wichai and Rin islands.

Windsurfing
Jomtien Beach is a windsurfer’s haven where you can watch Thailand’s windsurf team practice for the tournament season or sign up for lessons with a former champion.

Yachts and marinas
Pattaya is home to a top sailing club. Membership rules apply but keen sailors will probably find they have reciprocal rights to visit and the buddy system in the sailing fraternity opens doors to enjoy this sport away from home. A marina on Jomtien Beach is home to a fleet of locally owned ocean-going yachts and power cruisers.

Golf
It’s an expensive proposition in time and money to achieve handicap status in Europe. It can be achieved during a Pattaya vacation. There are 18 international standard golf courses within a 30-minute drive of Pattaya that welcome overseas visitors. The courses have professional coaches and drive ranges. Specialised golf tour companies in Pattaya work closely with hotels and the top golf clubs to organise golf trips at preferential rates including a two-way transfer between hotel and the golf course. A round of golf, including green and caddy fees costs approximately €40.These specialists know the best times to play and have access to the top courses to help you improve your game or even get that handicap. The 10th World Golfers Championship was held here in Pattaya in 2004.

Walkabout
There’s a nightly walking street off limits to cars where you can stroll past bars and entertainment spots in South Pattaya’s famous bar district. Enjoy a cold beer and joke with the locals or move on to the theme pubs with their own house bands. The choice is endless. There are small discreet cocktail lounges where you can enjoy pre-dinner drinks or popular boisterous clubs that serve meals and then transform into night-clubs once the in-house band arrives at 21:00 hrs. Then if energy levels are peaking, go for Asia’s largest and most sophisticated disco.