watersports

[a447]

No, not that. I was wondering how much it cost to hire a jet ski at Jomtien beach. Also, just how clean is the water? Is it safe to swim in?
Also, I went to a bar last year in BKK on Rama 4 where they did jack off shows. Are there any such places in Pattaya?

Thanks.

[Marsilius]

Jomtien beach water is certainly improved since 1993 when I first visited. Then, at times, it was actually a lurid green colour - and a friend of mine who was incautious enough to go for a paddle got a very nasty skin rash within a few hours.

It IS better now - but still looks pretty dirty and is certainly not water that I'd want to explore.

Go to Phuket if you want boys and swimmable water!

[jinks]

watersports

Now why oh why did my mind not think about jet skis ????

:3some:

Jomtien beach water is certainly improved since 1993 when I first visited. Then, at times, it was actually a lurid green colour - and a friend of mine who was incautious enough to go for a paddle got a very nasty skin rash within a few hours.

It IS better now - but still looks pretty dirty and is certainly not water that I'd want to explore.

Go to Phuket if you want boys and swimmable water!

Agree with all that.

Although the City fathers would like you to believe otherwise, hundreds of thousands of gallons of semi-treated sewage are still pumped into the bay everyday.

Last time I was anywhere near involved (hiring a jet ski for the b/s at the time!!), it was 300 THB for 30 mins but that was several years ago and fuel costs have risen sharply since then so imagine it would now be higher.

[thrillbill]

Yes, I agree with the previous suggestion... If you are planning a vacation back to Thailand and enjoy jet skiing or just swimming in the sea, stay at Patong, Phuket. You have jet skis there to rent, a small gay beach area, and more of a wider age group of gay tourists there. (Here in Pattaya, it is basically geared for the retired GWM). You have a better nite life in Patong if you are into good music and dance clubs( Boat Bar and Kiss) along with the go-go boy bars and a couple gay bars. I just visited Phuket last weekend(5th time there) and for the first time I went to Aquarius Sauna and was surprised how "active" it was (after 4pm). that can be added to your agenda. The one negative thing about Phuket is that it is more expensive and many of the local boys are not as fun/cheerful as the ones in Pattaya (that's because many of the Thai fellows working in Phuket are from the south--my opinion).

On your way out or in, spend a couple days in BKK in Silom and visit Soi Twilight which has the "entertainment" you had seen on Rama 4. Phuket and Pattaya do not have such shows.

Is it safe to swim in?

Not near where the jet skis are being hired!

If you do rent one
Be very careful , one of the many scams around was this
On one my of my first trips me and some friends rented several off Jomtien beach.
When we rented them they were still in the water we checked them over to make sure there was no damage to them.
When we got back with them the pulled them up out of the water onto the sand and said we had damage the sides of them.
You could not see these places before because they were in the water.
They were talking about us having to pay 2 0r 3 thousand baht to fix them.
After a long time talking and coming up with a price for damages we each gave them 300 baht
You might want to think about this if you do rent one

I think they are about 5-700 bht to hire for 30 minutes now, I know its a rip off. Similarly the hang gliding is definately 700 bht for about 10 minutes, relatively very expensive, but when you do that sort of stuff in the UK or US then probably 3 times as much.

I have found renting jet skis at Koh Larn a bit better. Water is cleaner than Jomtien.

You may want to read this article to be forewarned.

www.bangkokscams.com/scams-in-thailand/jet-ski-scam-in-kamala-beach-phuket.html (http://www.bangkokscams.com/scams-in-thailand/jet-ski-scam-in-kamala-beach-phuket.html)

I have had the bad experience of taking a boy jet skiing and having him hit a boat. He told me he knew how to ride a ski. Turns out he did not realize you can only maneuver when you give it throttle. Real damage done to the jet ski which I was obligated to pay.

[a447]

Thanks for your replies.
Having read them and also having checked out the scam web pages mentioned here, I don't think I'll be hiring a jet ski anywhere in Thailand.