how is diving in pattaya compared to other places?

[Island Hoppa]

hey
i was wondering how diving was in pattaya, thailand. as compared to places like bangkok, koh tao, phuket, and samua. i am looking to do an internship program there in thailand and was just wondering what the best place to live is. where would you live? i really do not care about night life at all, i am going to dive. thanks.

 

[ssra30]

I moved the thread from Australia and Pacific Islands to Asia section where there should be more helpful inputs on the subject.

My take on Pattaya is that it is a convenient location for someone from Bangkok like myself to dive when I can't get away for more than a day or an overnight trip. Visibility is generally no so great, anything above 5m would be pretty good for Pattaya. There is not much corals to speak off, a few patches here and there. Some divesites have some interesting critters and once in awhile I do enjoy going through all the muck and garbage under Koh Larn Pier looking for some critters for photography but generally diving there is nowhere nearly as nice as Koh Tao/Koh Samui and nowhere near what you can get on the Andaman side. There are a couple of decent wreck dives in the area however.
Depending on the season, I would think Koh Tao or Andaman Sea would be much preferable.

 

[Vie]

hey
i was wondering how diving was in pattaya, thailand. as compared to places like bangkok, koh tao, phuket, and samua.

Pattaya can be very nice for diving (under the pier at Koh Laan, for example) - it can be quite crowded above AND underwater (this would also apply to Koh Tao). The underwater environment around Phuket is in very sorry shape but Phuket is a good jumping off point to great diving at Hin Muang/Hin Daeng or the Similan Islands. Nearer Phuket, Koh Yoong, amongst many other sites, is quite interesting. I dived in Bangkok once - in a murky pond (fresh water) - I don't know why anyone would want to dive in Bangkok; it's not by the sea and there are no caves.

 

[whitehead]

The different locations in Thailand could be better viewed if you considered them in the vein of "life style choice" locations. Find out what each of the locations is renowned for (above water) and then decide, cos they are all VERY different.

BTW above water Pattaya is NOT for the faint hearted. It has a good reputation as a location for training although the diving is not very good in my personnal opinion.