PATTAYA, Thailand – The humble “lady drink” — once seen as a lighthearted icebreaker in Pattaya’s nightlife — has become a lightning rod for debate, frustration, and blunt honesty among Pattaya Mail readers. As drink prices climb and expectations blur, one message comes through loud and clear: buying a drink was never meant to buy a person — only a conversation.
Readers from long-time visitors to first-timers describe a scene that hasn’t fundamentally changed in decades, but feels sharper now. Many say the misunderstanding begins when tourists confuse attention with attraction. A drink, they argue, is a transaction — not a promise. “It’s not your girlfriend,” one reader wrote. “It’s just your turn.”
Others point out that for bar staff, selling drinks is part of the job. Commissions are modest, often cited at around 50 baht per drink, which explains the persistence — and sometimes the pressure. From that angle, the system isn’t romantic or deceptive; it’s simply business. As one reader put it: “If you don’t want to pay for company, go home and sit in your local pub.”
Still, frustration is common. Some complain of being hounded the moment they sit down, or of buying a drink only to watch the girl disappear moments later. Others bristle at prices — 200 baht for a “lollipop water” that delivers minutes of company and little else. “Take control or you’ll walk out broke,” one reader warned.
A growing number say they’ve opted out entirely. Their advice is consistent: buy your own drink, be polite, and if the vibe feels transactional or unfriendly, leave — no drama, no tip, no return visit. Several recommend avoiding lady-drink-heavy areas altogether, steering instead toward daytime meetups, cafés, Koh Larn trips, rooftop dining, or gardens where conversations happen sober and expectations are clearer.
Some readers push back against the cynicism. They insist there’s nothing wrong with buying a drink and enjoying company for what it is — a short, agreed exchange that works for both sides. “A win for all,” one commenter called it. Problems arise, they say, only when fantasy replaces reality.
Perhaps the sharpest consensus is this: Pattaya hasn’t changed as much as the people arriving with the wrong assumptions. “Everything is transactional now,” a reader concluded. “What ‘was’ is no longer. End of story.”
