If you decide to stay at The Welcome Plaza Hotel, or indeed any hotel in Pattaya for that matter, it is advisable to print off the address in thai from a website. The chances are that you will be landing at either the new airport or the older (but impressively) refurbished one in Bangkok. From the latter it is a two hour taxi ride to Pattaya. This includes two obligatory stops: one for the driver to refuel the car and another for him to suddenly dash off for a piss in a ditch. It seems to be a tradition, or just the effect I have on people. If you are really lucky like me, then there might be a third time; when you get to help him change a tyre while huge trucks thunder past within inches of your backside.. ....all because he didn't pull over to the side of the road when he noticed he had a puncture.

Even though I was showing my driver the way and mentioning road names, it was apparent that giving directions in this manner was futile as he didn't know Pattaya that well. In fact, in seven trips to this city only the first driver knew the address of my hotel (luckily). As it happened, on my last visit when I stayed at The Welcome Plaza, such was the congestion that as I knew a short cut, I handed over a tip and staggered up a side street dragging my case behind me. In their defence the taxi drivers are all extremely pleasant and if they are unsure then they do at least know where their office in Pattaya is located and will go and ask for guidance. Even in this instance, having the hotel address printed in thai will ease matters as the language barrier can throw even the simplest dialogue in to chaos.

My decision to lug my case the rest of the way to the hotel may have been shrewd in terms of saving time, but not in terms of my fatigue. Halfway up the road a girl kindly offered to 'smoke me'. Thais have a poetic way of desrcibing everything, oral sex included. Replying in pigeon English that it might be better if I were to check in to the hotel before any 'smoking or boom boom' I continued on my way. The tropical heat and humidity never wavers in its intensity even as the skies rapidly darken and an abundance of neon illuminate the city. I was therefore dripping with sweat by the time I staggered to the desk in the hotel. About thirty feet long, the reception cannot be missed as it faces you directly when you cross the marble effect floor from the main entrance. During the day there is often a small army of smartly dressed recruits sat behind their mahogany barrier, usually eager to help any visitor needing their assistance. From about 5pm however, the numbers reduce to maybe two or three people on the desk.

It seems helpful at this point to mention the attitude of the staff in relation to other hotels in which I have stayed in this crazy city. I have used the Lek Hotel, Fipper Lodge Hotel, Sunshine Hotel and the the Welcome Lodge Hotel (not to be confused with the Plaza). Aside from the issue with the porter, I have always found the folk at the Welcome Plaza both courteous and professional, if a little detached. If you are one for banter then they are more reserved than at other places I have stayed but I have no complaint. However, upon staying at the Lek Hotel on a previous visit, the porter held out his hand for a tip and offered to find me a woman within seconds of placing my case outside the room. I am very broad minded but this had left me unimpressed. I know Pattaya, I love the place and admire its brazen disregard for subtlety even if my visits have not exactly been merely for vacational purposes. I am also fully aware of why alot of men go there but a porter in a supposedly reputable hotel should not be saying this sort of thing to a guest. I think if he'd offered to find me a boy I would have hit him. I didn't want to explain to him that not every fella is a sex tourist and just forced an unconvincing smile while declining his 'kind' offer. It was to be something of an omen with regard to the Lek which probably had the least welcoming ambience of any of the hotels in which I have stayed while in Thailand. With that exception, all the hotel staff are usually typically Thai - full of smiles and most helpful. I have to add that the friendliest staff I have encountered have been at the Flipper Lodge Hotel in Soi 8. Always courteous, the lads on the front doors went out of their way to say hello and they remembered me by name when I passed several years later. A word of advice though, (if they are still there), don't get them on to football or your holiday will have finished before even leaving the hotel. But here comes a little advice that probably applies to the Welcome Plaza or indeed any hotel in Pattaya. Do not pay with a credit card - pre-book and pre-pay online through an intermediary such as Asia Rooms, Expedia, Ebookers and so on. I stopped staying at the Flipper Lodge because I paid the bill with my plastic. Two weeks after my return to England I received a letter from my card company saying £1,800 had been used to buy goods in Taiwan. The girl on reception only had it for two minutes and never left my sight. It was that easy to copy. It was the only time I used the card other than in a cash machine. If it could happen at the reception in Flipper Lodge, it could happen at The Welcome Plaza or any other hotel. I certainly never pay for anything outside the hotel with plastic as you are asking for trouble. Most thais I have met are as honest as the day is long and implicitly trustworthy but you are of course going to get opportunists. Tourists are easy pickings.

By the time I reached my room I was starting to get utterly sick of the sight of my case, having hauled it from front door to train station to tube to airport and halfway across the world. It was a great relief to dump it on the stand just inside the door. Although I was situated at the front of the hotel this time, the layout was exactly the same as on my previous stay. As you enter there is large double wardrobe, with sliding doors mounted on the wall to your left and enough room for two people to hang several weeks worth of clothing. It also housed a number of shelves. As on my last visit there were few hangers, however, so I would suggest bringing some with you. Immediately to your right is the bathroom which, surprise, surprise, houses a bath and shower, along with a toliet. The sink runs along one side with a large mirror, over which can be found a fluorescent light. The bathrooms in The Welcome Plaza do not look particularly refined and on first glance actually seem grubby. However this tends to be more a case of decor than hygiene. They are on a par with those at Flipper Lodge and far superior to those at the Lek and the Welcome Lodge.

One of the most important features is obviously the bed. Even for a double, these are very large and extremely comfortable. I can sleep anywhere and am quite content to 'rough' it, but I am sure even the most fastidious of guests will enjoy a good night's respite in the beds at this hotel. I have read on other sites that people thought the beds were dirty. I can see their point but, as with the bathroom, this is something of a misnoma and its more a case that the frames are worn and old. The sheets and blankets were spotless and, as with the towels in the bathroom, were changed every day. The chambermaids were also very conscientious in cleaning all the surfaces on a daily basis. I had far better things to do than check, but you could tell. Restocking of bathroom accessories and the mini bar was also done on a daily basis. Presumably, you are not going to spend all day in your room but on one occasion I had to stay there for most of the morning while doing some paperwork and making some necessary phone calls. Subsequently, I noticed that while the maids are very wary of disturbing you, they come in intervals to change the linen and do the cleaning, before returning to then restock the bathroom and mini bar. For approximately half an hour there is a stream of smiling faces parading in and out of your room. They always knock on their first visit however and if you put up a no disturb sign then it is always respected and they will return at a later time. On this point, it is only fair to state that this has been the case with every hotel. Just make sure you lock the bathroom door if you are in the shower of a morning, because the cascading water drowns out the maid's knock at the bedroom door. This happened to me and just as I was climbing out of the shower in she marched with some soap. I try to tell myself to this day that her smile and giggle was due to the fact that this is how thais often express embarassment, rather than her being unimpressed with, and mocking, my equipment.... ...I think the latter is probably more likely.

The television may be somewhat temperamental, but the mini bar is reliably well stocked. Bottled beers such as Heineken Export, Chang and Singha stand side by side with bottled water, fruit juices and Lipo (an energy drink). Obviously never drink from a tap. For snacks there are oriels, nuts, chocolate and crisps. These are restocked daily. As one would expect however, the prices are dear compared to the shops and the majority of bars. For the beer , these average between 60 and 85 bht from the mini bar - thats approximately £1.20 - £1.50 which by UK standards is naturally quite reasonable. However you can get a double sized bottle from a '7/11', the thai equivalent to a co-op, for about 40 bht. Conveniently, these shops are plentiful around Pattaya and there is one straight across the road from the Welcome Plaza. Resting on the dressing table is a menu for room service. What unfolds is a list of standard fare from various types of sandwich to hot meals including chicken with salad and chips through to curries. The menu is not particularly extensive, with approximately twenty or so choices. For Thailand, the prices are expensive, for the UK again very competitive. But unless you really have bunkered down for the night, you are far better getting food from outside the hotel. Pattaya is genuinely 24 hour and even though it quietens down after about 3am there are still bars open and food outlets to be found which are still serving. This is a good alternative to the room service, for negotiation with the hotel's telephone operator can be very awkward due to their unusually limited English and my even more basic Thai. In addition to this, the food from room service is pretty poor fare by Thai standards. A better alternative for snacks would be from one of the street vendors which are perfectly safe and very cheap. The Welcome Plaza staff have no problem with you getting your room key laden with bags of dried squid, sausage and chicken feet whatever time of day or night.

A final note is that while a number of indoor bars and restaurants are following their western counterparts by introducing a smoking ban, you can smoke in the hotel room. I did not do so myself, instead using the balcony and I smelled no residue of cigarette smoke when entering my room on that first night.

In Pattaya there are two things that I ideally want from the hotel, aside from those to be found in the room itself. One is a swimming pool and the other, while not so important, is an internet service. If you have tried ringing your Thai friends on their mobiles then you'll understand the need to access e-mail.

With regard to the pool, it is located through a wall of glass doors directly opposite the main entrance. Again it may be useful to compare

Pictures of Welcome Plaza Hotel, Pattaya

View From The Balcony at the front of The Welcome Plaza

The Welcome Plaza boasts conference room facilities which may well house internet services aswell, though it may be unlikely as this is a facility that is normally advertised. I never viewed these areas and to be fair, the hotels that offer such internet usage usually have them in the foyer, as in the case of the Flipper Lodge. It is not the end of the world but a shame. Luckily, the service is available close by. If you walk out to the road at the front of the Welcome, turn right and after twenty yards you will see a chemist. This has four or five internet pcs which are all fast and I have never paid more than 30 baht, with half an hour being my longest stint in any one session. Incidentally, the lady in there is very professional if you need any over the counter medication. As with the '7/11's, internet cafes are plentiful, though a friend has just told me that due to the global recession, these shops are amongst the first businesses to close.

If you backtrack from this chemist to the hotel you will also find a lady with a table offering excursions and taxi services. These booths and kiosks are again scattered around Pattaya but as she is virtually on the Plaza's doorstep, it would be wise to use her should you want to book your taxi back to the airport. I would not use the hotel reception to do this, you will pay more. With heavy heart, I ordered a taxi for the following morning from the lady on the street corner. This cost me 800bht. Previously, I ordered one from the hotel for the same journey and it was 1,500 bht. With no difference in the punctuality of the cars nor the service, the gulf in price speaks for itself. If you consider that 800 bht is approximately £12 or £13 for a two hour journey, this is a bargain. Of course you can use any kiosk, but one nearer the hotel seems sensible as you can just point to where you are staying.

I cannot comment on this unfortunately as I never made use of this facility, despite the fact an American breakfast was complimentary when I booked online. I was usually coming in when this was served which during my stay was between 7am and 10am. Neither did I use the restaurant for lunch or dinner which are understandably not included in the price of the room. To be honest, there are so many wonderful and cheap places to eat that it seems pointless. Even if the hotel's offerings are of a high standard, you will want to sample the cooking available in the city. With idyllic places to eat both amongst the bustle and in more secluded locations, to use the hotel could be to waste part of your trip and miss out out on an experience.

One of the major advantages of The Welcome Plaza is its locale. Pattaya is wonderful, because Pattaya is crazy. The Welcome is on what is called 2nd Road which runs parallel to the noisier Beach Road. The latter is maybe two hundred yards away as the crow flies and right on the beach, as the name suggests. Connecting the two are numerous 'sois' or side roads and to get to the sea will take you no more than ten minutes walk, should you survive the traffic. 2nd Road is generally far more relaxing as you are not going to be hustled with the regularity of the beachfront, not that it is what you would can tranquil. The Welcome Plaza is set back though, so walking through the car park at the front to get to the entrance, the beat of the bars and the noise of the mopeds and pick ups gradually drift in to the distance. By the time you are in the lobby, the hum and the buzz of the city has dissipated completley. The same cannot be said of the Lek, the Sunshine or Flipper Lodge. They are nearer the beach and they are in the heart of some of the noisiest streets in the city. I love these 'sois' but, whatever the time of day, you will walk out to an often chaotic, bustling scenario which doesn't suit everybody. Certainly not all of the time.

Costs fluctuate between high and low season, the type of room and which site you use to book, so obviously there is no point me quoting a price list. It is most definitley worth shopping around, though one constant is that prices rise steeply in Thailand over New Year. Financially, for the average holiday maker The Welcome Plaza is more or less on a par with the other hotels mentioned in this review.

To view this hotel objectively, you really need to remind yourself what you would pay in the UK or Europe. With this in mind, it is easier to forgive any minor niggles that may prevail.