Hua Hin Hotel Advice - Hua Hin Day Trips & Tours - Hua Hin Thailand

Hua Hin Day Trips & Tours

While Hua Hin may not offer as many of the all-night delights of many international resorts, there is plenty to do for those looking for a leisurely holiday.

Ratchaniwet Marukhathaiyawan Palace

This palace, midway between Hua Hin and Cha Am, was built by King Rama VI as a rainy season retreat in 1923. Known as "the palace of love and hope," the palace has recently been renovated. The elevated teak walkways and airy rooms provide a beautiful view of the beach and Gulf of Thailand. Admission is free and it's a quiet place to spend a few hours. Occasionally concerts and theatrical events are staged in the Samoson Sewakamat Hall of the palace as was done in June, 1996, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the King's accession to the throne.

The palace is located within the grounds of a Border Patrol Police camp. Just tell the guard at the gate that you're going to the palace and you'll be admitted. Motor transportation is recommended as it's a few klicks from the main gate on Petchkasem Road back to the beach.

Pa La-u Waterfall

This waterfall is about 60 km west of Hua Hin towards the border with Burma. While the trek to the top of the nine cascades takes a few days in the dry season, one can see the first few levels on a day trip. This area is part of the Kaeng Krachan National Park and arrangements can be made with the park staff for guides and camping equipment. Simple bungalows are also available but arrangements should be made in advance. There are Karen villages in this area that can also be visited. There are three caves about half way between Hua Hin and the waterfall, near the village of Nong Plab but exploring the caves is probably a day trip in itself.

Petchburi Province

Petchburi is about 120 kilometers south of Bangkok (80 kilometers north of Hua Hin) and is best known for King Rama IV's (King Mongkut) summer palace overlooking the city from atop Khao Wang. Phra Nakhon Khiri Palace, now an historic park, was built in 1860 and is a mixture of Thai, Chinese and European styles.

The views of the surrounding area from the hill are tremendous and the gardens within the park are most pleasant. There are also many temples scattered around the complex built on the three hillsides. Though the hill is only 92 meters high, the walk to the top is not as easy as it looks and there is a tram on the west side, away from the city. The park is open 0830-1630 and the palace/museum 0900-1600.

There is an annual fair at the park which takes place in early February.

A couple of kilometers from Khao Wang, on the road to Hua Hin are the Khao Bandai It caves. The caves are within a hill upon which is a monastery built several hundred years ago during the Ayutthaya era. There are several caves housing many Buddha images. Take a flashlight.

Petchburi is well known for Kanom Mo Kaeng, a Thai sweet made of crushed steamed mung bean, egg, coconut milk, and sugar and Khao Kriap, a dried pastry made from coconut, sugar and sesame which is grilled over a charcoal fire before serving. These and other local sweets and fruits are available at many shops along Petchkasem Highway.

Ratchburi Province

About 100 km north of Hua Hin, Ratchburi is known for its pottery. A famous temple there is Wat Mahatat. The main reason to go however is the evening show at Khao Chongsphran Cave when the thousands of bats fill the sky at sunset.

Ratchburi is also home of the famous floating market at Domnoen Saduak. Farmers congregate early each morning in produce-laden boats to sell fresh vegetables, fruit, spices, poultry and the like.

Rides in the long-tailed boats on the local canals can also be booked here. This could be a good stopover on the way from Bangkok to Hua Hin.

Prachuapkirikhan Province

Prachuapkirikhan is about 90 km south of Hua Hin and the provincial town is built around the long, crescent-shaped Prachuap Bay. There are several hotels and bungalows with the Hat Tong Hotel the largest hotel on the bay front near the busy fishing pier. Prachuap is probably what Hua Hin was like a few decades ago, with the town still relying on the sea for income, rather than the tourist trade.

At the north end of town a small hill rises from the coast. This is Khao Chong Krachok (Mirror Mountain) where a natural arch at the top allows you to see through to the sky on the opposite side. There are 395 stone steps to the summit and dozens of monkeys to taunt you while on your way. The city maintains quiet bungalows for rent in the shadow of the hill--Thaesaban Bungalow, Chai Thalae Road. Tel: (032) 611-204. Staying here, you can get an early start on your mountain climb and enjoy the sunrise surrounded by the fragrant frangipani trees in the monastery on the top.

Prachuap is smaller than Hua Hin but the seafood is just as good, and cheaper also. There are many restaurants in town but the best meals are found in the dozens of food stalls that spring up along the quay each night at dusk. Don't worry about needing to speak Thai, just point at a dish that looks tasty on someone's table and one just like it will appear at your table in minutes, though these minutes may drag if there's a crowd as most "kitchens" only have one burner.

Prachuap Bay is not very clean for swimming but there is a beautiful little bay just south of town called Ao Manao (Lemon Bay) that is long, quiet, and lined with beautiful casaurina trees. There are many food stalls selling snacks and beer. There is a small fee for using the beach chairs and umbrellas. A tram runs a few times each day from Prachuap to Ao Manao. This bay is in a military camp but there is no entrance fee.

Nakhon Pathom

Only 55 km west of Bangkok, Nakhon Pathom is best known for the Phra Pathom Chedi, the world's tallest Buddhist monument. Standing over 120 meters high, the chedi was first built over a thousand years ago but destroyed during a Burmese invasion in 1057.

King Mongkut visited the site in the mid-nineteenth century when it was known as the oldest Buddhist monument in Thailand and began reconstruction of the temple over the original chedi a few years later. This attempt later collapsed during a storm and King Chulalongkorn led the construction to its present state.

There is an annual fair at the temple which takes place in late November.

Nakhon Pathom also hosts The Rose Garden, a riverside tropical park-cum-country club. There is an 18-hole championship golf course,excellent accommodation facilities and a Thai Village where a daily afternoon show features traditional activities such as folk dances, a Thai wedding ceremoney, an ordination, sword fighting and elephants at work.

Kanchanaburi

Probably best known for the Death Railway Bridge depicted in the movie, The Bridge Over the River Kwai, Kanchanaburi is about 130 km east of Bangkok. Though the film was made in Sri Lanka and the actual bridge is made of iron and concrete rather than wood, a visit to the rebuilt and usable bridge, the Japanese War Memorial and the Kanchanaburi War Cemetery, can certainly give one a feel for the over 100,000 POW lives lost building the bridge and railway to Burma.

There is an annual River Kwai Bridge Week in Kanchanaburi with a light and sound presentation at the bridge, archaeological and historical exhibitions, folk entertainment, cultural shows, and rides on vintage trains. This festival is in late November or early December.

The rivers Kwai Yai and Kwai Noi are surrounded by lush tropical foliage and there are many resorts and floating lodges for the traveller who would like a break in one of the most beautiful areas of Thailand.

Kanchanaburi is also the home of several national parks and wildlife sanctuaries with many waterfalls, caves, and varied wildlife.

The Three Pagoda Pass, 241 km from town, marks the border with Burma. There is a small but thriving border market.

There are many new golf courses within a few minutes of the provincial capital.

It should be pointed out however that several of these courses are said to be encroaching on the lands belonging to some of Thailand's most beautiful and treasured national parks. Any golfer with children and/or gonads will avoid such parasites as there are many courses to choose from with more benign ecological practices.