Getting home

At a glance

Baht bus

15 baht for rides up to 10 km, up to 20 baht on longer routes, since 10 April 2026Source 1

Central loop

South along Beach Road, north along Second RoadSource 2Source 3

Ride apps

Grab and Bolt both operate in PattayaSource 4

Walking Street

Closed to vehicles in the evening: ride apps stop at either endSource 5

Bolt example

Terminal 21 Pattaya to Walking Street: 5.2 km, about 17 minutes by Bolt’s estimateSource 6

Drink-driving limit

Over 0.05% blood alcohol; over 0.02% for drivers under 20, on a temporary licence, with a licence for another kind of vehicle, or with no, a suspended or a revoked licenceSource 7

Checkpoints

All year in Pattaya’s tourist and nightlife areasSource 8

Baht bus

The pick-up trucks with benches in the back run set routes. Flag one, climb in the back, and press the buzzer to stop. The fare is 15 baht for rides up to 10 km, up to 20 baht on longer routes, since 10 April 2026 (Pattaya Mail); pay the driver at the window when you get off.

Check the direction before you climb in. On the central loop, baht buses run south along Beach Road towards Walking Street and north along Second Road back towards the Dolphin Roundabout (Holiday Inn Pattaya’s guide, undated; Second Road is one-way, by Pattaya Mail). So from Walking Street, a bus heading north for Central or North Pattaya leaves from the Second Road side, not from Beach Road. Other routes run to Jomtien and Naklua. Pattaya.Guide says baht buses run the main routes late; no timetable is published, so a bus at any given hour is not guaranteed.

If you ask a driver to take you somewhere off the route, it becomes a private hire: agree the price first.

Grab and Bolt

Both apps work in Pattaya, with cars, taxis and motorbikes; Grab also has vans for groups. The price the app shows is the quote for the service you select; tolls, booking or cancellation fees depend on the service, so check the app’s terms. Journey times in the apps are estimates.

An app that works in Pattaya does not mean a car will come. At 04:00, when the clubs empty, expect to wait, and further out, from East Pattaya, the Darkside or Na Jomtien, there may be no car at all; Pattaya.Guide says ride apps thin out the further east you go. Book the ride back before the last drink, or agree a return with a driver.

From Walking Street

Walking Street is closed to vehicles in the evening, so ride apps drop off and pick up at its two ends: the arch where it meets Beach Road, and Bali Hai Pier at the far end (Pattaya.Guide, June 2026). Set your pickup at the end you will walk to, and walk out of the crowd before you book.

Motorbike taxis

Riders wear numbered orange vests and wait at stands; a short trip usually costs 20 to 30 baht (Pattaya Mail, August 2025), and the stand should show a fare chart. Agree the price before you get on, and wear the helmet. Complaints go to Pattaya City on 1337.

Do not drive

Don’t drive or ride after drinking: a legal limit is not a safe amount to drink. Under the 2024 regulation, a driver counts as drunk above 0.05% blood alcohol, and above 0.02% if under 20, on a temporary licence, holding a licence for a different kind of vehicle, or with no licence or a suspended or revoked one (Government Public Relations Department, 23 September 2024).

If you ride a scooter on a car licence from home, that is a licence for a different kind of vehicle, so the 0.02% limit applies to you. Australia says you need a motorcycle licence and an International Driving Permit to ride; the UK says to carry an International Driving Permit with your UK licence, and warns that insurers expect the right licence for the vehicle. Pattaya’s police run checkpoints all year, not just at holidays.

Questions