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Has Anyone Stayed at The Base Central Pattaya?


tokyojoe2010

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"when i bought april  all the condos  were sold out"

Yes it may well be that all the condos have been sold out by the developers, but IMO a lot of them (almost all?) have been sold to owners who intend to rent them out.  Would the kind of owner who wants that level of finish want to live permanently in such a small apartment?  There seems to be a glut of these condos on the rental mkt, making the rental prices attractive (ie low).  Maybe visitors haven't yet really heard of this development.  I could imagine returning regularly as a renter, and the development needs to attract occupants.

 

"there is a pool in building  B as well"

The pool in building B is down on about the third floor, there are loads of pictures of it.  It's not up at rooftop level like the one in building A.

Good point sirl, I guess if you had money to burn and came to Pattaya fairly often it would make sense.  If you're considering buying a 30 sq.m condo in Pattaya and think you're going to make tons of money renting it out you may need to visit a neurologist.  I've seen a lot of listings for the Base on Airbnb and some of the prices are way out of line, no one is going to pay $1500 a month for a 30 sq.m condo.  It might be worth $700-$800 max per month.  As for living in those of those shoe boxes, no thanks.  

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"the very highest standards of safety procedures"

Yes, but there are plenty of similar pictures during construction of the Empire State building and the Sydney harbour bridge.  Whether it's appropriate for building and safety standards in Thailand to be equivalent to those in the west now or several decades back is something we could debate....

 

 

"some of the prices are way out of line"

Yes it's kinda inevitable that as these condos enter the rental mkt the prices will be all over the place, as owners work out what price will work.  If (shall we say) half the condos currently up for rent are at headline rates which are too high, those condos might as well not be on the rental mkt, and as their prices are reduced to the realistic rate that'll increase competition at the realistic rate.  I think it'll take several months for things to settle down (ie for all owners seeking rentals to settle for prices and rental periods that are in line with what's actually renting), and so maybe rental rates and insistence on long rentals will fall lower than they are now, eventually to rise when the rental mkt sorts itself out.  

 

I think the best prices available for renters now are about B600/night for rentals of at least a month, about B900/night for rentals of at least a week, and B1000-1100/night for rentals of just a few nights.  Remember there are both 29 m2 and 34 m2 small apartments, and their height and direction of view vary a lot, so these condos are not totally comparable commodities.  Whether an owner installs private wifi in his condo in the medium term will IMO make a big difference to whether it'll do well in the short term rental mkt - would a condo with private wifi get B100-200/night more than one without?  Are the buildings close enough that the occupants of condos facing the other building feel the need to close curtains during the day or just after dusk for privacy - that would be a downer?

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Just stayed in a 2 bed condo at The Base for the past 9 nights. Here is my take.

 

Small apartment with battleship grey and black décor. Personally I find such a colour scheme depressing.

 

Great air-con and wi-fi in condo.

 

Cheap fittings such as shower heads, toilet furniture etc. Kitchen ‘ok’.

 

I believe the condo had the standard furniture pack. Rock hard beds, cheap sofa.

 

Way too much money spent on useless common rooms and not enough on providing practical pools and sunbathing areas. 10 sun beds for 1,100+ condo’s is a joke, even more so when you consider that only half will be in the sun at any one time.

 

I won’t be staying there again.
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G-e,

 

How busy during the morning and lunchtime was the rooftop pool, and the lounge at the top of the south building immediately next to the rooftop pool please?  I agree it could easily get pretty crowded up there - personally I'd have created a sunbathing area on the north building top floor, maybe with a little sunroof.  Is it practical to take a kitchen chair up to sit on the very top platform above the rooftop pool?  

 

If the rooftop swimming pool area is shut at 10pm at night, is that by locking a door, or could you sneak out up there at midnight if you were quiet?

 

Did you use the gym?  

 

Is this the cheap and uncomfortable sofa?  What's wrong with it?

base sofa.jpg

base sofa.jpg

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I'm booked to spend a little more than a month in The Base at a rate of B18,000/month.  There were plenty of B18,000/m apartments available.  B18,000 of course equals B600/day, and it was possible to rent weekly at B800/day which I think looks a miles better deal if you're staying a week than any hotel in that price range.  I wanted and got a high floor in Building A (the one with the rooftop pool) with a view facing south towards WS, not towards the other building, and with wifi in the apartment itself, not just down in the lobby, as I'll be working on my laptop (probably HDMIed into the TV as a bigger screen) during the day.  I like the look of it, the roof pool, and that there is an in-house gym.  I know the apartments aren't huge, but I've carefully looked at the floorplan and I think the size is OK.  One problem is the lack of safes in almost all the apartments I looked at, but I'll just have to hide valuables when a girl is around.  I'm interested in all other views and reports about The Base.

 

It appears from your post that you haven't actually seen the room you will be staying at. Let us know how it works out when your stay is complete.

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"It appears from your post that you haven't actually seen the room you will be staying at"

Correct.

 

I'm booked to spend a little more than a month over Christmas in a 35 m2 full-width balcony condo with an outwards southfacing view from the twentysomethingth floor at the rate of B600/night with private wifi.  With the roof pool and gym, I think that's very good value.  At that price, or up to 50% more, what alternatives are there close to say soi Diana that are anywhere near as attractive?  Don't you have to spend twice as much before you get something you could argue is better?  What are the best alternatives somewhere near soi Diana for B1000 or less per night?

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A couple reviews I read said the wi-fi is not very good or non-existent in some rooms here, can any of you guys confirm this?  The place looks pretty nice, but wi-fi is a must for me.  Thanks---

 

Hopefully those who have booked at the Base will address this issue. Poor wifi is a deal breaker for me.

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No WiFi in my room. It's case by case depending on whether owner has set up wifi and cable.

 

Wifi provided in public lounges though

 

Can you find out in advance whether the room you would like to rent has wifi?

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How busy during the morning and lunchtime was the rooftop pool, and the lounge at the top of the south building immediately next to the rooftop pool please? 

 

I went twice pre-afternoon. Once all 6 beds were taken and once just 2 were. Because the beds are fixed to the ground and partly under cover they were only exposed to the sun from early afternoon (I’m sure that changes in different seasons).

 

 

Is it practical to take a kitchen chair up to sit on the very top platform above the rooftop pool?  

 

I see no reason not to as there is room. Currently there is a large circular seat up there made out of basket wicker.

 

 

If the rooftop swimming pool area is shut at 10pm at night, is that by locking a door, or could you sneak out up there at midnight if you were quiet?

 

There is a sign at the entrance to the pool listing the numerous regulations but if there was a mention of the opening hours I missed it. I have done a fair bit of moonlight swimming in condos in the past but I reckon it is probably forbidden. There seems more security guards than guests in the complex and with security cameras everywhere I think you would be soon found out.

 

 

Did you use the gym?  

 

No. I believe its in block A and as I stayed on the 30th floor in block B I would have been too exhausted by the time I got there.  :WinkGrin1:

 

 

Is this the cheap and uncomfortable sofa?  What's wrong with it?

 

That looks like the one bed version. You will see the 2 bed version here: https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/13848834

 
I thought is was cheap looking, not very comfortable and for a 2 bed condo not fit for purpose,
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If the rooftop swimming pool area is shut at 10pm at night, is that by locking a door, or could you sneak out up there at midnight if you were quiet?

 

i would guess to try and prevent pissed falangs ending up as a headline in the local press

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It's absolutely true that I've never actually visited The Base as yet.  I've done quite a bit of reading about it though.  I'm keen to learn about the "softer" aspects of spending time there.  I don't claim to be any kind of authority on the place, but some questions asked are simply factual and I think I know the answers based just on reading the internet.  Corrections to what I write are always welcome!

 

 

"Can you find out in advance whether the room you would like to rent has wifi?"

AIUI the situation with wifi is that there is open wifi in the ground floor reception lobbies and the rooftop lounges, so it's common to see people sitting in those areas to get online.  Individual apartments usually have no internet at all, except if the owner has installed it for his one apmt via the usual modem into a telephone line.  The way to find out whether the apmt you're interested in has it is simply to ask the owner or agent before booking - if there's any in-room wifi at all it'll be his own private arrangement which should work pretty well as you'll be close to the modem.  I'd expect owners looking for multiple-month tenants not to have wifi installed, but those looking for AirBnB rentals might be more likely to have it.  Poor wifi is a dealbreaker for me as well, but the owner of my rental has written that the apmt I'm renting has a fast private wifi cable modem with ethernet sockets.

 

 

"the beds are fixed to the ground"

Ah.  Crucial detail.  Obv it's a bit of a lottery as to whether they are taken at the time you might be interested, the number of apmts suggesting they often would be.  IMO a fixed line of sunbeds doesn't sound great - the sitting on the top platform sounds better, albeit for short periods as it would be very sunny up there.

 

 

I think the gym is on the third floor of the northern block B, and the pics of it show enough machines to be worth visiting for me.

 

 

G-e, I'm guessing that it was https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/13848834that you stayed in, which looks a very nice apmt, but at a cost of ~B3500/night you're entitled to expect far more than one of the smaller ones on at (for me) B600/night.  No disrespect, but my expectations are probably lower than yours and so what doesn't really convince you, might perhaps look like a bargain compared to anything else nearby for me.  I'm ready for the 34 m2 apmt to be fairly small, and I'm prepared to cope with that.  To me, price compared to nearby options is an important factor.  Your points about the fittings and sofa being a bit cheap and the lack of sunbathing etc are appreciated.

 

 

"prevent pissed falangs ending up as a headline in the local press"

Surely at 31 floors up the only options are (a) person goes flying down 31 floors and goes splot on the ground, or (b) the (few) people in the apartments directly below the pool get a little disturbed.  Since the pool is 31 floors up I can't really see how pissed farangs will be observed by many people(??)

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G-e, I'm guessing that it was https://www.airbnb.co.uk/rooms/13848834that you stayed in, which looks a very nice apmt, but at a cost of ~B3500/night you're entitled to expect far more than one of the smaller ones on at (for me) B600/night.  No disrespect, but my expectations are probably lower than yours and so what doesn't really convince you, might perhaps look like a bargain compared to anything else nearby for me.  I'm ready for the 34 m2 apmt to be fairly small, and I'm prepared to cope with that.  To me, price compared to nearby options is an important factor.  Your points about the fittings and sofa being a bit cheap and the lack of sunbathing etc are appreciated.

 
I only paid half that amount and the cost was shared between a friend. A double booking elsewhere meant we were upgraded at no cost.
 
At 600 Bhat a night I would go for it. :)
 
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"Because the beds are fixed to the ground and partly under cover they were only exposed to the sun from early afternoon (I’m sure that changes in different seasons)."

 

Since Thailand is in the northern hemisphere, the sun will follow a higher (more vertical) trajectory in July than December, so in December, with the sun angling in from a lower angle, I guess the sunbeds are a bit more in the sun.  The Pattaya temperature of course doesn't change a huge amount over the course of the year, but it's slightly hotter in July.  Personally I wouldn't mind the sunbeds being in shadow anyway.

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"It appears from your post that you haven't actually seen the room you will be staying at"

Correct.

 

I'm booked to spend a little more than a month over Christmas in a 35 m2 full-width balcony condo with an outwards southfacing view from the twentysomethingth floor at the rate of B600/night with private wifi.  With the roof pool and gym, I think that's very good value.  At that price, or up to 50% more, what alternatives are there close to say soi Diana that are anywhere near as attractive?  Don't you have to spend twice as much before you get something you could argue is better?  What are the best alternatives somewhere near soi Diana for B1000 or less per night?

 

That is an excellent high season price, especially since you will have wifi. The wifi issue is why I won't stay there. Too many BMs are stating that many of the rental units don't have it.

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"That is an excellent high season price, especially since you will have wifi. The wifi issue is why I won't stay there. Too many BMs are stating that many of the rental units don't have it."

 

Yes, I think its a good price, particularly over high season.  Perhaps AirBnB owners aren't yet sensitive to seasons?  

 

I wouldn't be surprised if a majority of rental units don't have private wifi - those owners are hoping for medium-term tenants who'll put it in themselves.  I think most units will end up on short term holiday letting, and if the owners are sensitive to what holidaymakers want, they'll put in wifi in their units.  Next year?  

 

Look out for kitchen hardware as well if renting - I guess diff apmts will have different stuff?  Maybe some might have better sofas?  I would like a safe in the apmt, as well as wall-mounted TVs.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Wi-fi is shared most places. Therefore wifi will never work good. You are sharing a 16mbit 1mbit up line. All it takes is one person syncing Dropbox and everything stops. The secret with The Base. It's one of the less than 10 places I know of in Pattaya with Fiber. I almost bought condo there just for that. 50-10mbit for 780thb. Sharing a 1000-100 mbit can work. On a public wifi. Just use VPN. The best is VyprVPN. Cost a lot but a life saver. Even Netflix works over it

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

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Wi-fi is shared most places. Therefore wifi will never work good. You are sharing a 16mbit 1mbit up line. All it takes is one person syncing Dropbox and everything stops. The secret with The Base. It's one of the less than 10 places I know of in Pattaya with Fiber. I almost bought condo there just for that. 50-10mbit for 780thb. Sharing a 1000-100 mbit can work. On a public wifi. Just use VPN. The best is VyprVPN. Cost a lot but a life saver. Even Netflix works over it

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Thanks for the info Shawn, didn't realize that so few places had fiber in Pattaya.  I guess I shouldn't be surprised though, Pattaya's infrastructure is subpar in general. 

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On my last couple of trips I have tethered to my phone or used a Wifi-4G hub I bought from AIS. The 4G service is faster and more reliable than the land lines, especially during bad weather.

I suffer from PTSD, Post Thailand Stress Disorder =P

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"On my last couple of trips I have tethered to my phone or used a Wifi-4G hub"

Is this referring to connectivity in hotels etc across Pattaya generally, or in The Base?  Have you already stayed in The Base twice?

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I'm booked to spend a little more than a month over Christmas in a 35 m2 full-width balcony condo with an outwards southfacing view from the twentysomethingth floor at the rate of B600/night with private wifi.  With the roof pool and gym, I think that's very good value.  At that price, or up to 50% more, what alternatives are there close to say soi Diana that are anywhere near as attractive?  Don't you have to spend twice as much before you get something you could argue is better?  What are the best alternatives somewhere near soi Diana for B1000 or less per night?

 

I've been staying in this kind of place (35 sqm with full width balcony facing south at The Base) for a about month now and I am very happy. I feel it is big enough and enjoy my stay here very much. Location is great and the balcony has a great view. It has not been a problem to get a swimming workout done in the second pool (3rd floor Tower B) but I see it is often some people on the pool on the top. The gym is also usually pretty empty, even if it is a bit small for so many units. I tried a similar apartment (about 32 sqm) in Centric Sea but felt that it was a lot smaller place. Not sure if it is the few extra sqm that makes it, or if it's a better plan for the place, but it the one in The Base feels much more than 3 sqm bigger. 

 

I have nothing but good things to say about the Base, and I am considering to buy a unit for myself as it is just what I want. It will be only for my many stays in Pattaya and not for renting it out.

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mofser,

 

Thanks for posting.  You're obviously on a high floor -what's the noise from LK Metro like late at night?  Do mosquitoes get up that high up if you're out on your balcony?  

 

How annoying are the (many) stops for lower floors when you take the lift up?

 

How many people are there during the day in the rooftop pool area, the lounges on each roof, and the gym please?

 

Do you think the bed and sofa are comfortable?

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mofser,
 
Thanks for posting.  You're obviously on a high floor -what's the noise from LK Metro like late at night?  Do mosquitoes get up that high up if you're out on your balcony?  
 
How annoying are the (many) stops for lower floors when you take the lift up?
 
How many people are there during the day in the rooftop pool area, the lounges on each roof, and the gym please?
 
Do you think the bed and sofa are comfortable?

 

 

Yes, I'm on a high floor (in the twenties). The first week it was very loud from the bar area every night from 18.00 to 3.00. It stopped at the early closing night before the Marathon (16th) and it has been a lot better since then. I am not sure if the bars in the area were told to be a bit more quiet or what has happened, but it has changed significantly. It is mainly not the LK Metro itself, but the bar area with live music between the beer bars and Metro that is the problem (from the New Orn Bar I think it is). Its been great for two weeks now, but was a bit annoying those nights I was not out partying myself in that time up to this. Suddenly becoming this much more quiet means that it just as quickly can be as noisy again though, but if you don't like noise and people you should not live central in any city.

 

I see no mosquitoes or other bugs at all up here.

 

It is three elevators in each tower and they seem to be dedicated to each user. I.e. when I push the button to go up it almost never stops until I am getting off. It doesn't do stops on the way, even if other people are waiting as it seems like they will get their own elevator too. Pretty nice as I seem to remember that Centric Sea often took a lot of stops when getting up. It's not like this every time, but slow elevators have never been an issue. Maybe this changes when more people move in.

 

On the roof top of Tower A (the pool) it is only 11 (?) lounge chairs. I have never seen them being full, but it is very often 6-8 people there. The lounge of tower B has an amazing view too and is indoor. More a place to sit and relax. I have not been here much, but it was no one in here when I was checking. The pool at 3rd floor is more a pool suited for swimming rather than lounging at the top. It is usually not more than 2-3 people in the water here. It is no problem for 2 people to do a proper swimming workout at the same time, but might be crowded if we have a team of swimmers at once. I usually peak out a window in the hallway to check if anyone is in the pool and do my workouts there when it is empty.

 

The gym is pretty small, but bigger than the one in Centric Sea. Four bikes, two ellipticals, three thread mills, free weights up to 25 kg, two benches, one machine for chest and one for pull downs (freely remembered from my head right now). At most I have seen 6 people in there at once, and then it started to be tight. Usually it is only 1-2 people there and then it is no problem. It is fine for some maintenance workouts during holidays, but if I was having a serious routine over a long period of time I would go to a better gym. I see one is opening up in The Avenue pretty soon, so that might be a very close option if the one here is too small or crowded. Tonys is also on Soi Buakhao only 600-700 meter away.

 

I think the bed is very good, but I also prefer a firm mattress so I have no complaints about this. Some people like to sleep on a puff of clouds and they will probably feel the bed is too hard, but it is not a bad bed in any way, just people have different preferences.

 

The sofa however is pretty cheap and simple. It is also pretty hard and small. This is maybe my only complaint in this place, but it has not been a serious issue for me. I can use it fine, but it is not the kind of sofa made for inviting a bunch of guys over to watch TV and drink beer.

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"On my last couple of trips I have tethered to my phone or used a Wifi-4G hub"

Is this referring to connectivity in hotels etc across Pattaya generally, or in The Base?  Have you already stayed in The Base twice?

 

There are no building wide Wifi in The Base at all. Only in the communal areas. Wifi in the room is all up to the owner of the unit to provide, so if you are renting you need to check before you book.

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sirl, I am just referring to the generally crappy wifi in most hotels and condos. I got fed up when the wifi was really slow at VT6 earlier this year and started using 4G instead.

I suffer from PTSD, Post Thailand Stress Disorder =P

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mofser,

 

What have been your worst surprises, bad things that you didn't anticipate, about the apartment?

 

Is there anything interesting or notable to say about the kitchen, or is it just the boring small kitchen that it looks?

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