Thailand in late June. Pattaya or Phuket?

[donovano]

My wife (a novice diver) and I will be in Bangkok late June and want to do one or two days of diving. We are then heading to Indonesia to a dive resort to do our main diving.

I'm trying to decide if travelling over to Phuket is going to be worth while at that time of the year (and with a novice diver). Suggestions/opinions?

 

[Orlando Eric]

You Tube search Pattaya and you might leave your wife at home.

 

[stevenl]

IMO the diving in the Andaman Sea is nicer than in the Gulf of Thailand, even in the low season on the Andaman side. So in that respect Phi Phi, Krabi and Phuket will have more to offer, even for a novice. But for 2 days the distance is a lot more than especially Pattaya, so you should also check out the options there.

 

[TJ_Diver]

Also, the weather can be quite rough in Phuket in June. (Of course weather is unpredictable). I have dove in Phuket in June and had very rough seas - the main dive sites are 1-2 hours by boat and if the weather does not cooperate, then it can be an unpleasant experience. As stevenl stated above, the actual dives sites are much better in Phuket than in Pattaya, but you are more likely to have good weather in Pattaya.
If I was making these plans for myself, and heading over to Indo for some great diving, I think I would just stay in Pattaya, get in a few decent dives, enjoy the beach (what there is of it) and definitely fill up on the Mango & Sticky rice.

 

[BigBlueTech]

You Tube search Pattaya and you might leave your wife at home.

 

[Arizona]

Also, the weather can be quite rough in Phuket in June. (Of course weather is unpredictable). I have dove in Phuket in June and had very rough seas - the main dive sites are 1-2 hours by boat and if the weather does not cooperate, then it can be an unpleasant experience. As stevenl stated above, the actual dives sites are much better in Phuket than in Pattaya, but you are more likely to have good weather in Pattaya.
If I was making these plans for myself, and heading over to Indo for some great diving, I think I would just stay in Pattaya, get in a few decent dives, enjoy the beach (what there is of it) and definitely fill up on the Mango & Sticky rice.

I agree with TJ. June would be a good time to dive Pattaya. If your time is limited this is an excellent option from BKK. Two hours by bus for under 200baht. A couple of reef dives for you & the wife along with dive on a WWII wreck a bit deeper (26-30m) for yourself.

 

[lord khram]

Just be carefull if you decide to dive Pattaya, pick your shop very carefully. The shops around here have the habit of selling you one thing and once you have paid your money they will give you something else. Then tell you 'NO REFUNDS'. Also in my experience diving in pattaya is very expensive about 3300bt for a 2 dive day, I have been asked for as much as 4000bt for a trip to the far islands or Samae San. unless you like diving with speed boats and jet skis and litter abound, forget the Pattaya near islands. The service provided often does not reflect the high prices charged in this area.
Maybe you could consider a trip with one of the Thai run Bangkok shops who will take you to Samae San for about 1200 baht.
The diving there is generally better than Pattaya and in my experience the service provided equal or better than the high priced Pattaya shops.

 

[lord khram]

If you dive Pattaya, in my mind the best 2 dive sites are Koh rin, in particular the north rock and the Khram wreck. Many shops will tell you that the Kood wreck is the same, yes the boat its self is, but it was not sunk as long ago and there is much better life on this wreck.
However many shops prefer to take customers there because it is at the near islands and about half the distance to travel to the khram.
If you dive Samae san I can recommend the Hard deep wreck and shark fin rock.
But having said that In my mind Phuket generally provides better diving than Pattaya even in poor conditions, but in this case Pattaya is much more convenient to travel from bangkok.

 

[Arizona]

As written before Lord Khram, sorry about your bad experiences. Mine have been different and I never paid that much to dive Pattaya. There are many other spots worth diving as well IMO. We differ on Koh Manwichie for example.

 

[katdiver]

Hi donovano,

As stevenl said, if you want to take a plane hop down south, Krabi is a pleasant option. The change over with the monsoons will have settled down by then and the weather a little more predictable. Diving on the local islands can be done in the mornings before the afternoon rains. I think I only had to call the boat off twice in all of last low season. We still serve Shark Point and Phi Phi during this time too (sites shared with Phuket). Krabi is an all year round diving location and a beautiful province to explore if you ever have the time.