March 27th, 2008 
Sheila Simkin A little R&R in Hua Hin, a beautiful resort area about three hours south by car from Bangkok. Hua Hin was discovered in the early 1920s by King Rama VII as an ideal getaway from Bangkok. This quiet fishing village was turned into the Royal resort and rapidly became popular among the nobility and upper-class. Most other Thai holiday destinations cater primarily to foreign tourists but many Thais spend weekends in Hua Hin. Probably because of its proximity to Bangkok.
There are several ways to reach Hua Hin. One is by train from Bangkok. The trains leave from Hualamphong Station (main train station of Bangkok). Another is local air-conditioned buses. The buses leave from South Bus Terminal, Bangkok. Bangkok has several different bus terminals so check and make sure your destination leaves from the correct one.
Our choice was a taxi from Survanabhami Airport to Hua Hin. If there is more than one person, sometimes a taxi is the best way to go. Not that big a cost difference. Flying in from Cambodia, we would have had to take a bus to South Bus Terminal and then another bus from there, and then a taxi to the hotel in Hua Hin. It was a 2-1/2 hour trip on expressways for most of the way and we were there…
The Rock Hua Hin, a small luxury, boutique hotel, located a short distance from the center of Hua Hin. Huge, beautiful rooms, gigantic bathroom with a tub big enough for two (you wouldn’t believe how long it took to fill that tub), separate shower and private patio. Very happy with my hotel choice (when booking on line one never knows if your choice will live up to expectations), and even happier with a delicious dinner. A Chicken curry, hot enough to burn the taste buds off our tongues and much more.
The Rock had a huge breakfast buffet with, hooray, yogurt (I was very yogurt deprived in Cambodia). Out to the infinity pool for a little sun and beach exploration. The beach exploration came to a fast halt. At the morning high tide, the entire beach (by The Rock) is completely covered by the sea with an abundance of dead fish, squid and jellyfish washed up on the steps leading to the beach.
It’s only 6km/3.5miles from downtown Hua Hin all the way to The Rock and the beach stretches the entire distance. (The Rock also had motor scooters and bicycles for rent.) All along the beach are lounges, chairs, umbrellas and tables to use as long as you order something from the different owners. Sellers carrying goods back and forth. Horses and ponies available for riding on the beach. Quite crowded during the day with tourists greased up and tanning theirselves, eating and drinking.
For kids, banana boat rides offer hours of fun and shrieks, while grown-ups can enjoy water sport activities like water-skiing, jet skis, sailing, windsurfing, and parasailing. With the beaches here being so wide an open – and almost never really crowded – how about a game of frisbee or beach volleyball? There’s also snorkeling, kayaking (nearby at a national park) and diving excursions can be arranged. If these sound like all the ingredients of a perfect beach break, you’re absolutely right!
Deluxe hotels, small hotels, guesthouses and rooms available from $5 a night up to $1,000 a night. Sofitel, Hyatt, Hilton, Chiva Som and Marriott are the very big ones. We walked by one small hotel, that looked very clean with air-conditioned rooms for $40. A guesthouse would run in the 450 Baht range (a little over $10).
Too many restaurants and fast food spots to mention along a 3-4 block strip (heading east-west and north-south) in the center of town. Burger King, Subway, McDonalds, Starbucks, Swiss, German, Irish Pubs and Thai, all extremely reasonable. Row after row of seafood restaurants on the street running parallel to the beach. (After my seafood experience in Cambodia, I was staying away from seafood.) A Thai dinner ran 410 Bahts, about $12, for spring rolls (6 to an order), chicken fried rice, sweet & sour pork, two glasses of wine, tax and service. Pretty good! Both the food and the price.
The Rock runs complimentary service to town three times a day but then you have to arrange your transport back. No worries. There are tuk-tuks, taxis and open covered trucks with benches along the sides. It will cost 170 Bahts for a tuk-tuk, more for a taxi, and only 10 Bahts (around 30 cents) a person to ride in the open covered trucks. Just wave one down anywhere along a road, jump in, push the little overhead buzzer to stop when you near your destination, jump out and pay the driver 10 Bahts. Fixed price for anywhere on their route.
Of course, this wouldn’t be Thailand without handicrafts, handbags, artifacts, antiques, reasonably priced clothing, sunglasses, costume jewelry, beach gear, DVDs and even prescription glasses for sale. Up and down the roads leading to the beaches. Up and down the narrow streets. Boots Pharmacy even had some prescription drugs that I use at half the price here. Bargaining goes without saying anywhere in Asia.
Hua Hin is another area to consider the next time you look for a beach resort in Thailand. We saw families, young people, lots of Europeans who rent facilities for the winter. Especially the Norse, escaping the three months of darkness.
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Yes Hua Hin has become one of the most favorable destination in Asia. It has got many reason behind it. The resort are exquisite and charming. I recently came across the news that Nikki Beach is going to open its new resort venture in Thailand on 1st December. I stayed at their Florida resort but I want to have taste of their new Thailand beach resort.