USS Abraham Lincoln: US sailors unwind in Thailand by shopping and bar-hopping

Night, though, is when this resort city comes into its own, putting on a riotous spectacle of neon, noise and naughty bars.

Pattaya’s tourism industry has been hit by conflict in the Middle East, where the USS Abraham Lincoln was last operating, with many of the tourists the city depends on choosing to stay at home.

Local establishments have been hoping American sailors, arriving with nine months of unspent salary while at sea, will provide a much-needed boost. On Wednesday night, the city’s most famous promenade, Walking Street, was very much open to them, with a huge, illuminated sign at its entrance welcoming the crew of the US carrier.

They have, however, been reminded the sex industry is off-limits, as prostitution is technically illegal in Thailand.

But alcohol was flowing. By midnight some of the younger sailors were so inebriated they had to prop each other up. Others edged nervously into the red-lit caverns of the go-go bars, with their gyrating and barely-clothed pole dancers.