PATTAYA, Thailand – Walking along Pattaya Beach in the late afternoon, the sun catches the gold chain around the neck of a European retiree, drawing a few curious glances from passersby. He’s here with a simple, yet age-old goal: to find love.
“I came down here hoping to meet someone special,” the retiree tells a Pattaya Mail reporter, adjusting his sun hat as he watches the beachfront scene unfold. “But it quickly becomes obvious that appearances—and wealth—matter a lot more than words or personality.”
Indeed, his gold necklace, gleaming in the tropical sun, seems to do half the work for him. Smiles appear, attention follows, and invitations to talk or stroll are offered—but not always for the reasons he hoped. “You start to realize,” he says with a wry shake of his head, “that the weight of your wallet—or even the shine of your jewelry—can sometimes mean more than who you actually are.”
Long-term residents of Pattaya nod knowingly: in many corners of the city, romance and money are tightly intertwined. Dinner invitations, drinks, or gifts often set an unspoken expectation, and relationships can quickly feel more transactional than genuine.
Yet not everything in Pattaya is purely about material attraction. A few genuine smiles, small shared laughs, and simple moments of connection hint at authentic affection—but these can be fleeting, easily overshadowed by the ever-present undertone of financial expectation. For retirees like him, the lesson comes quickly: he often visits bars—anywhere there is one, from Soi Buakhao to Soi 8 or 9, and even Jomtien—but he’s discovered that getting to know someone through friends or acquaintances is much safer, even though he knows there will inevitably be bills when she asks for help. In a city where attention often comes with a price tag, finding someone who truly cares about you—and not your spending power—requires discernment, patience, and maybe a bit of luck.
As he strolls away from the crowd, the retiree reflects, “Love may exist here, but it rarely comes cheap—or without a glint of gold.”
