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[donald36C32C72]

I have taken the plunge and decided city life is not for me
Would be grateful for any advice and tips on moving to the area --have the land already and will be looking for builders ,also what sort of Expat community is there around the area

[stattointhailand]

Donald, I posted this report a few months ago on the golf forum. Although not aimed at someone living in the area, you may be able to glean a little info from it.

Perhaps this report from a recent 3 day trip to the area may help:-

Couple of notes to fill you in.

1) Mission Hills was in great shape, but played very easy (even I got a net 60!!)
2) Sir James was tough ..... bl**dy tough, and destroyed us all. Not for the high handicap golfer, and probably not for anyone over 20. Needed to hit long off the tee (2 x 180 yd carries required), and also a couple 2nd/3rd shots required a 150 yd plus carry (providing you got close with your lay up).
3) Voyage Panorama ..... cheapest of the lot and fairways could do with some attention, but the greens were fantastic ....plenty of problems, but ALL in perfect condition. Very fast (like sh*t off a shovel), but true. If you got the read and speed right you holed it.

Hotel was acceptable (not even any complaints from Ian who is used to staying at the "posh" end of the market). Breakfast was better than most in Thailand, only downside was that the pool was being cleaned and could not be used.
Night porter arranged massage etc;

Packchong was "QUIET" as expected with only the 4 or 5 Karaoke bars (50 girls) in the one Soi.
Thai resturant on day 1 excellent
Nightclub, small, modern, dancers on platforms, big TV in courtyard.
Texas Steakhouse "passable" (I think I'll pass it next time) ..... but to be fair it was OK for a steakhouse in a small town.
Pizza House not bad, but no better than any other pizza place.
Hotel resturant did excellent snacks in a lovelly setting by the stream, but didn't get to have a complete meal there.

Bar opposite small entertainment Soi was reasonable. Plenty of room and a couple of guys playing music.
A - Bar:- Modern bar with big screen TV outside, but very uncomfortable stools around all the tables. Looked like they were geared up for a large influx of people later in the evening if the amount of glasses/towers they had ready was anything to go by !! (possible freelance pick up place !!)
Sport bar:- Looked new, modern, good pool table, MU tv on big screen, draft Leo available.

Reckie complete ...... wouldn't mind going again to play in a small group, but I don't think the area would support a large farang influx, so wouldn't recommend it as a CM venue.

The only farang seen in three days were the guy who ran the sport bar and a couple of his mates, and an Aussie/French backpacking couple who thought 300B far  too expensive for a hotel.
If there is a thriving farang community in the area I think they must keep themselves to themselves, but there again you might be able to change all that.

Good luck in your venture

[dclaryjr]

stattointhailand, on 2008-05-19 07:30:36, said:

If there is a thriving farang community in the area I think they must keep themselves to themselves, but there again you might be able to change all that.

There will be on more full time resident in 2014...and I'm bringing my clubs!  

Donald, I built a house on the Phupimarn resort just outside of PakChong.  I haven't actually seen the place with my own eyes but you can see some pictures on my website at davidclary.com.  My brother-in-law oversaw the construction (and put his own residence up as collateral) and he was pleased with how it turned out.  I'm planning on going for a visit in 2010.

[donald36C32C72]

Thanks statto for that most helpful reply --will start from there

[MrIrrisistable]

We will be moving there in a year or so also. Have the land also.

There is an international school nearby and they have a lot of foreign teachers.

They also have a starbucks nearby, so just hangout there and wait for the foreigners to rock up.

[samran]

MrIrrisistable, on 2008-05-20 09:47:37, said:

We will be moving there in a year or so also. Have the land also.

There is an international school nearby and they have a lot of foreign teachers.

They also have a starbucks nearby, so just hangout there and wait for the foreigners to rock up.

what are land prices going for up there these days?

[MrIrrisistable]

Anything from 200k per rai to 3mil pr. Depends on title, location etc as always.

An example, we looked at 60rai at 200k but the title was the lowest available, the one you are not even supposed to sell, only hand down to family etc. Por Bor Tor 5 from memory

The next was NS3 at 500k.

Next was 1.5 rai in a village area, nice locale and 2.5mil per rai, but then jumped to 3 mil.

Next was 8 rai with the title next below NS3 at 1mil per rai.

A bank repo area was 1.5 per rai on main road.

[samran]

cheers for that.

[BAZZAT]

Try Phimai 50km up from Korat up and coming town, terrific 2 markets fresh food every day and evening, also have a few small bars land and building very reasonable, currently building a second home now on river Moon you can keep Hua Hin,Samui, Pataya, it costs me 50% less to live up here and if we want a week on the crazy side its a 5 hr drive to Hua Hin or Pataya. if you need a builder can recommend

[donald36C32C72]

On land prices we were looking at 1.2 million per rai  which seemed to be the dealers pricing ,anything much cheaper seems to be in very large lots---ours i8s just over 5 rai which was what we were looking for ,we have paid a little over half for non chanote land ---my partner of 9 years is pretty happy about it and I know that she would not be keen if she thought it was going to be a problem ,she has pulled me back from the brink before

[donald36C32C72]

BAZZAT, on 2008-05-21 02:15:11, said:

Try Phimai 50km up from Korat up and coming town, terrific 2 markets fresh food every day and evening, also have a few small bars land and building very reasonable, currently building a second home now on river Moon you can keep Hua Hin,Samui, Pataya, it costs me 50% less to live up here and if we want a week on the crazy side its a 5 hr drive to Hua Hin or Pataya. if you need a builder can recommend

Hi Bazzat --always appreciate any recommendations the more the better

[chris41]

we saw a house for sale in Pakchong today - there is a village close to PakChong called pimpaka garden home resort with about 40 houses - mosly completed and being lived in by germans and swiss people - the house we saw came with 2 plots of land - each 700 m2 with a 2 storey house on one plot - the owner wanted 5.1m baht for the lot - the resort website is in german  http://www.thailand-...e.de/index.html . As for PakChong - I've spent a bit of time there as my wife is from a village 10kms away called Botong. Not many falangs in the village but quite a few knocking around in the town. Tesco Lotus and the Italian restaurant make the place a lot better than when I first visited.

[crab]

Interesting to come upon this thread right now, as I am mid-plunge. I move to Pak Chong in three weeks' time. I am renting a simple house at the top of a hill with a fabulous view. But I shall almost certainly buy two rai of land not far from that house, with a view to building when and as I feel able to afford. Fabulous plot with a magical view: 250,000 baht a rai.

Anyone living in the area or thinking about moving there who would like to connect, please PM me.

[EvilDrSomkid]

dclaryjr, on 2008-05-19 17:36:51, said:

stattointhailand, on 2008-05-19 07:30:36, said:

If there is a thriving farang community in the area I think they must keep themselves to themselves, but there again you might be able to change all that.

There will be on more full time resident in 2014...and I'm bringing my clubs!

Donald, I built a house on the Phupimarn resort just outside of PakChong. I haven't actually seen the place with my own eyes but you can see some pictures on my website at davidclary.com. My brother-in-law oversaw the construction (and put his own residence up as collateral) and he was pleased with how it turned out. I'm planning on going for a visit in 2010.

Any relation to Johnny Lee?

[rono]

pak chong city:

sportbar and pakchong beach bar nearby: run by expats
there use to be a swiss/german run restaurant/bar on the road as well, moslty germans visiting the place and they are not very fond of outsiders
texas saloon: very quiet place

this is what I remember from when I used to live there.

thanarat road to national park:
many guesthouses and good restaurants.
for drinks: a friend of mine  has opened a saloon at km5, turn right, he just finished building a stone oven to bake breads and pizza

I am moving to Muaklek and will be in that saloon quite often to see my friends.

[stevehaigh]

i've driven past Pak Chong many times and often wondered if it it would be a nice place to live. What's the climate like there? does it rain much and how is the hot season? its a few hundred meters above sea level, does that help keep it a bit cooler and wetter in the hot season or is it just as bad as Korat?

thanks for the info

[dick turpin]

Well they do call it amazing Thailand, and I am always amazed to hear posters say they have bought property sight unseen or without any real knowledge of the area they are buying into.

Where am I coming from? I live in rented property in khao yai and for the past 18 months have been looking for land to buy. Call me fussy, but I feel it has taken me that amount of time to really get to know the area, luckily I think I have now found my little piece of nirvana (no I am not telling you where).

Information I can pass on.

Make a distinction between pak chong and khao yai. One is a grotty urban sprawl, with some token falang action. The other is set against the backdrop of the beautiful mountains of a national park. This is where you can find many property and golf style resorts, much favoured by bangkokians for their weekend retreats.Here the air is clearer and fresher, and with a temperate year-round climate. The biggest clue to that?
Take a look at the number of vineyards.    

Prices in these projects now going at 15,000 per sq wai, but careful though, they tend to become ghost towns during the week. Outside of these land prices now typically tipping two million baht a rai.

There is a small, but thriving family orientated expat community here which very much appreciates the peace and beauty of where they now live.

Oh, and by the way Starbucks has closed.

Edited by dick turpin, 2010-06-21 14:48:04.

[bikerlou47]

I have lived in Khao Yai for 5 years..I LOVE IT!

Once in a great while I see a farang...very quiet, peaceful dark at night all the stars are easy to view.

National Park close by and a great ride for my Big Bike.

I have a Thai gf....... I dont think I could live here without her Thai expertise.

I dont golf but I play tennis daily!

BTW

Starbucks closed at the Tesco but is still opened in Outlet Village.

[moe666]

12 years ago the Riverside Restarant was a good place to eat. On occasion seranaded by a sax player who lived across the river from the rest. A friend was a teacher at the International school.

[RossTaylor]

BAZZAT, on 2008-05-21 02:15:11, said:

Try Phimai 50km up from Korat up and coming town, terrific 2 markets fresh food every day and evening, also have a few small bars land and building very reasonable, currently building a second home now on river Moon you can keep Hua Hin,Samui, Pataya, it costs me 50% less to live up here and if we want a week on the crazy side its a 5 hr drive to Hua Hin or Pataya. if you need a builder can recommend

Hey... I think I'm moving up your way soon! Getting tired of Phuket after 6 years of hoards of tourists and crazy prices for EVERYTHING! I'm looking for a nice Plot of Land on or near the river and would like to built a home there this year. Any suggestions as to where I might find some land and a good local builder?

[JonTogetArneLivingston]

RossTaylor, on 2011-02-13 05:36:27, said:

<br />

BAZZAT, on 2008-05-21 02:15:11, said:

<br />Try Phimai 50km up from Korat up and coming town, terrific 2 markets fresh food every day and evening, also have a few small bars land and building very reasonable, currently building a second home now on river Moon you can keep Hua Hin,Samui, Pataya, it costs me 50% less to live up here and if we want a week on the crazy side its a 5 hr drive to Hua Hin or Pataya. if you need a builder can recommend<br />

<br /><br /><br />Hey... I think I'm moving up your way soon! Getting tired of Phuket after 6 years of hoards of tourists and crazy prices for EVERYTHING! I'm looking for a nice Plot of Land on or near the river and would like to built a home there this year. Any suggestions as to where I might find some land and a good local builder?<br />

<br /><br /><br />

any meeting place for foreigners around here?

[dclaryjr]

I posted in 2008 that I would be a resident by 2014. It looks like that time schedule is going to slide, but I  have my tickets for a visit in July of this year. Looking forward to it!! It will be nice to finally see the house with my own eyes.