With over 80 hostess bars that line up nearly every inch of the street from where Beach Road meets 2nd Road, Soi 7 & 8 make up together one of the biggest and most popular beer bar enclaves of Pattaya. During the day, while many establishments are operational things tend to be quiet and subdued, it’s really only between 5PM & 7PM that the bars start to fill up. By 8PM things are usually in full swing as all the bargirls have shown up for duty at their respective bars and start flirting and drinking with the customers. The ones that aren’t already been taken yet line both sides of the walkway, enthusiastically trying to lure or grab you or passerby’s to join them for a beer, a game of pool or more.
The open plan layout of most beer bars in Soi 7
While Pattaya are getting more international year after year with the influx of Chinese, Indian, and Middle-Eastern tourists changes have been much slower to take place here and Soi 7 & 8 is generally speaking, still almost exclusively visited by white middle-aged single men. A lot of the bars cater to this crowd and feature bands playing rock hits from the 70’s through to the 90’s era. Unless you go to to the Rolling Live 3 Bar on Soi 8, in general you won’t be getting the same quality rendition as the live acts in walking Street but the drinks and girls are a lot cheaper and after a few it is usually good enough anyways. Also, I love the vibe here where the beer bars are open to the elements and next door to each other, some even housed together in bigger beer bar complexes, the mood feels a lot less claustrophobic and the girls seem more happy and playful since they get the chance to run around and aren’t confined to a small space.
Beer bar complex in the middle of Soi 7 & 8
It’s also nice to note that the barfines in the Soi 7 & 8 beer bar stronghold are of course substantially cheaper than what you’d get quoted in walking street, expect to pay around 300 Baht for the bar and anywhere between 1000 Baht and 2500 Baht for the girl depending on her looks and your skill to negotiate. But even if you are not after finding companionship, it’s still a cool place to sit down, relax, have a chat and few drinks before planning the rest of your evening.
Some of the girls working at the Shooters Coyote Bar in Soi 7