Foreign tourists caught in illegal orgy raid in Thai red light district

Thai police have busted an illegal sex party attended by a group of foreign men, including Australians, at a hotel in Thailand's most notorious red light district.

Officers arrested the owner of the Pattaya establishment after finding 11 men from around the world cavorting with 14 young local women.

Attendees paid $62 on a website to take part in the "swingers' party", police told the Bangkok Post.

Officers raided the Tulip Hotel at around 11.30pm on Saturday and found people having group sex and rooms scattered with condoms, lubricant, sexual enhancement drugs and toys, local media reported.

Police burst in on the illegal sex party on Saturday night after getting a tip off guests had paid 1,500 baht ($66) to take part in an orgy.

The items were collected as evidence and the participants were detained for questioning.

Extraordinary footage of the scene shows sweating, semi-naked, middle-aged men covering their faces with towels as police take photos and record video.

The tourists reportedly came from Australia, America, Britain, Canada, China, Malaysia, Singapore, Germany, Thailand, Cambodia, India and Ukraine.

Hotel owner Sheng Liao Yang, from China, was arrested on suspicion of running a hotel without a license and hosting obscene events.

Naris Niwapantawong, District Sheriff in the Banglamung area of Pattaya where the raid happened, said the men from many different countries 'exchanged partners with each other'.

Naris Niwapantawong, district police chief for Banglamung, said the men "exchanged partners with each other'' during the sex party.

"We received a complaint about the Tulip Hotel. We were told they organised sex parties at the weekends," he said.

"My staff co-ordinated with police, immigration and the military to strike quickly and accurately. We carried out the operation while they were having sex and we shut them down."

The Tulip Hotel has 30 rooms spread over four storeys, with one floor dedicated the "play zone". Officers said "almost all of the participants" were in the play zone when the building was raided.

Three hotel staff were tasked with serving hot tea to the guests, cleaning the rooms and joining in with the sex games.

As well as the guests, the Chinese hotel owner was arrested for running a hotel illegally and hosting sex parties.

Sheriff Niwapantawong said police investigated the claims and gathered evidence and a warrant before carrying out the raid. He said people signing up for the party had to be in couples.

Police recently began cracking down on the seedy goings-on in Pattaya, storming pubs and clubs and arresting sex workers and their clients. But residents say the chaos has returned, bigger and bolder than ever.

There are believed to be about 27,000 sex workers in the so-called sex capital of the world. Many of them can be found on Pattaya's infamous Walking Street, a two-kilometre strip lined with go-go bars and pleasure dens.

Despite prostitution and naked shows being illegal, red light district Soi 6 is awash with escort services.

Over the past 12 months the city has been plagued by violent crime. Melbourne tourist Benjamin Robb, 42, was allegedly beaten to death in Ruby Lounge, a bar in the red light district.

Jose Manuel Polanco Jr, 43, was charged with manslaughter. He told police it was self defence, claiming Mr Robb had manhandled a female employee.