Pattaya beach businesses blighted by proliferating food cart vendors

In Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach area, numerous businesses are expressing displeasure over what they describe as a monopolisation of the beach area by an excessive number of food cart vendors. The number of street stalls has swollen to over one hundred food carts that set themselves up and heavily populate the roadway.

Lamphueng Hamilton, known locally as Lisa, who presides over the Jomtien-Pattaya Entertainment Association, has brought this issue into sharp focus. She cites an escalated problem of congestion along the road adjacent to Jomtien Beach, particularly at dusk. This is largely due to the presence of these vendors along the beach.

Following this alarming observation, Lamphueng, in conjunction with her fellow entrepreneurs within the association, elected to conduct an assessment of various segments along the road. To their dismay, they found that clusters of beach vendors and peddlers with food tricycles were ubiquitous, causing a racket with boisterous music echoing along the beachfront, almost incessantly until the early dawn.

As part of their trading antics, some beach vendors also resorted to the use of fireworks to attract customers. This practice is not only against the law but has also been flagged as being detrimental to the reputation and overall wellness of the city.

Lamphueng’s call to arms is spurred by these illegal activities, and she is currently lobbying for the relevant governing bodies to intervene and take swift and decisive action against these illicit practices.

It should be noted that Lamphueng is not the only one miffed by these encroaching beach vendors. The proposed intervention would clearly be welcomed by a multitude of marketplace proprietors and restaurant owners located nearby. Almost unanimously, these brick-and-mortar businesses have displayed their frustration with this situation.

They maintain that they regularly pay rent and other associated fees to legally operate their businesses along the beach, only to be blocked or have business eroded by the food cart vendors that aren’t burdened by these same obligations. This inequity in trading conditions, alongside the noted illegal activities, continues to spur discontent among Jomtien’s more established businesses.