It took almost a year of meetings as Jamroon Visavachaiyaphant vice president of the Pattaya Business and Tourism Association put forward his ideas to convince members of the business community to go forth and promote tourism to Pattaya from New Zealand and Australia.

Sutham Phanthusak, through his good connections to Thai Airways International, was able to get the airfare at a considerable discount for the team. Many business people of Pattaya put 10,000 Baht each in the kitty to pay for the reception in Auckland. Thai Airways and TAT agreed to co-sponsor the organising of the table-top sales and receptions in Melbourne and Sydney. Pattaya City threw in their support by financing the production of an 11-minute video tape on Pattaya. Pattaya Mail published a special supplement called "Pattaya, Fun City by the Sea" for distribution Down Under.

Other that that, money was not forth coming from the public sector. We all realised that this was going to be a rather expensive venture for something that we were not even sure would bear enough fruit to justify the investment. But the conviction was there. We were ready to hit the Kiwi and Aussie markets at all costs. It had to be done, and similar to those famous words uttered a long time ago, "It took so few to do so much for so many." These plucky Pattayans proved critics wrong once again. We proved that we do have unity and that we are prepared to fight together utilising all our combined resources to earn for Pattaya once again the title of "The foremost tourist destination in Thailand."

During the excursion the Amazing Pattaya Road Show team proved that unity is all it takes to make for one happy and successful family. We helped each other all through the way. What with the tons (literally) of literature brought along for distribution, to hundreds of travel agents at the three destinations. There was no question of what was yours or mine. It was simply ours. Each and every one of us showed tremendous patience and consideration for one another. Assisting each other to set up tables at the sales venues, and then portraying the essence of Thai hospitality so all our guests could feel welcome and relaxed. Throughout the events the team performed flawlessly and I sensed that deep down in all our hearts we had the same wish and hope, that the guests would accept our invitation to visit Pattaya. More vital to us was that they consider our bid and proposals to make Pattaya one of their preferred tourist destinations.

It wasn’t all work though. Our sightseeing tours were fun but were also very educational. We all viewed in awe the spectacular landscapes of the south islands. We glanced at each other and envied the excellent organization and workings of their cities. We commented on the beauty and cleanliness of their streets. We marvelled at the beauty of their fauna. And out of all that we discussed and vowed to bring home all what we saw in an attempt to emphasize to all the citizens of Pattaya (including the city fathers) to work with determination towards the improvement of our own infrastructure and environment. Then only can we convey this message to the world that we are truly a city of cleanliness and beauty. We promised each other that we would work together towards this goal and regain for Pattaya the recognition of being the true paradise for tourists and residents alike.