Mam, our new born & myself are planning to head out to LOS in June sometime. After going to Issan we were thinking of going to Hua Hin to see more family & staying there for the rest of our break.

My question is, what's Hua Hin like, is there much to see & do etc. I've read lots on the net but wanted to hear from forum members that have actually been.

Our original plan was to head to Koh Chang but I keep reading about malaria problems there (gutted)& feel it's probably not worth the risk with a 6 month old child.

Cheers

I don't know, but am going there for a week in February
so I'll let you know when I return.

Anyone recommend a good family hotel there?

BigRed

We have visited for a day or so but we always stayed at the Dolphin Bay Resort. http://www.dolphinbayresort.com. (I'm not advertising and don't have any connection with the resort)It was an English chap called Graham who was the manager (from Sheffield I think). The website is quite good and explains a lot. I would go again for my third visit if I could but have many places in LOS I've not been yet so it will have to wait.

And I was going to recommend Dolphin Bay Resort too! Beyond doubt my favourite place to stay anywhere. It is a good hour away from Hua Hin, and is a remote spot, but possibly even better for kids as a result. If you are into trips into a national park, viewing monkeys, eating fresh seafood, and generally chiling out, it is the place to go!

I note you want to visit family while you are there - so it depends exactly where they live. You can visit Hua Hin in the daytime very easily - the hotel owners will arrange transport.

Hua Hin itself is pleasant, although I prefer Cha Am up the coast for a more "Thai" experience. Don't forget to visit the wonderful Sofitel Central Hotel, and take a quick look at the small royal waiting room on the station. Beaches are clean, town not too bad. Decent night market.

Ian

Rob and BigRed.
I have visited Hua Hin many, many times as I love the place.
What are you looking for from a Thai Seaside resort ? If you want a quiet, deserted, pristine beach surrounded by swaying palms then Hua Hin is not for you however the beach is relatively clean, the sea is clean enough to swim in (watch the large rocks though) and the water not too deep.

If you want late night entertainment with hundreds of different venues to choose from you would be better looking elsewhere however Hua Hin does have a few nightlife areas with quite a few bars but nowhere near as "in your face" as Pattaya or Phuket.

If you want to eat freshly cooked sea food then Hua Hin has more than enough Sea Food restaurants to keep you happy. However if you prefer a Pizza, Burger or Wienerschnitzel you wouldn't have to look far either.

If you like golf (I don't) you will be spoilt for choice in Hua Hin. You can go elephant trecking (quite expensive) nearby, visit Pala-U waterfalls, visit Koh Takiab (recommended) to see the monkeys or visit Cha Am for a day.

Hotel wise,
We have stayed in The City Beach, Golf Hotel (no pool), Hua Hin Suites, Thipurai Central, Sirin and Jed Pee Nong and all were suitable for families. All are very close to the small soi leading to the beach and are close to the mainlife area.

In a nutshell
Hua Hin is not the quiet seaside resort that it was fifteen years ago.
There are many large resort style hotels between Cha Am and Hua Hin offering relaxing all inclusive breaks at a premium cost. There seems to be as many German,Swiss and Italian restaurants available as there are Thai however there are many genuine Thai and Seafood restaurants available.

My recommendation is to give it a try, I did and really enjoy the place.

Conrad

P.S. I am not employed by The Hua Hin Tourist Board but if they want to make me an offer .....

I went there last january and absolutely loved it, so I would say definately say go there
We stayed at the chom view hotel which was about 2000B a night but it should be cheaper than that in june. It's about a mile or south of the centre but the hotel has a free shuttle bus until about 9pm I think and a tuk tuk is cheap back to the hotel at night. The rooms were very big and the pool was right next to the beach. I liked it.

Plenty of seafood restaurants, there was one very good one we ate at on a pier (can't remember the name sorry). Also at the south end of the beach is a large mountain with a buddhist shrine on top, and there a large walkway around the mountain where plenty of little monkeys live that you can get pics of and feed bananas or peanuts to. A nice afternoon out and at the base of the mountain is a really good seafood restaurant on the beach which you can eat at before walking along the beach back to the hotel about 1km away.

In the town centre there seems to be a big square with lots of restaurants and normal bars and then an area within that with some girlie bars, but it's not in your face and we walked past without being bothered at all.

Have fun, I will be back there when I'm next in thailand, probably around june time too

We liked Hau Hin, certainly a more peaceful place tha Ko chang which is currently a building site (the malaria is restricted to the inland parts of Ko chang I have read) and the Thai resurants overlooking the sea are good, one is very good but I forget the name.
We were strictly on a budget (there are no Thai words I belive for strictly on a budget) and stayed in a cheap over the water wooden place along the sea road, my feet got bitten to death by some little beastie's but not sure if they were in the bed or in the sea in the morning, anyway the shower emptied straight into the sea so I didnt eat any of the shell fish from that day on.
Will go again one day and stay somewhere a bit better.

Thanks very much everyone, Hua Hin it is then!

We may pop to the Dolphin Bay Resort for a couple of days it looks fantastic. We'll probably stay somewhere nearer to the town centre (where the family live)for the rest of the time.

I personally quite like the quieter places, my wife however goes mad without lots of shops etc.

quote:

certainly a more peaceful place tha Ko chang which is currently a building site

Really, I've never been to Koh Chang, dont reckon I'll bother now either, cheers Antlers.

I was in Koh Chang in September and can confirm it is a building site...but not like Samui!!!

More beach huts, bars and small hotels being built.

Go to Koh Chang soon...in 5 years time it will be very busy.


Nick

Is it Hua Hin that has all the donkeys walking up and down the beach, or is that Cha Am?

I guess, if you've got kids, the donkeys are an added attraction, but personally I don't like them at all.

Marcus,
Both Hua Hin and Cha Am have nags on the beach, many more in Hua Hin though. My five year old loves them and spends an hour a day riding them when in Hua Hin.

Conrad

Cheers Conrad.

(There really is something wrong with my memory!)

We bought house in Hua Hin last Apirl, the reason why we bought house in Hua Hin?
I like Hou Hin that not too busy ( like Pataya or Phuket ) we like quiet and safe place and also bueatiful sunset, sand on the beach still white and soft... next few month I will go to Hua Hin again, can say only love Hua Hin

Kob

But the sun doesn't set over the sea, does it?

Ian

Yes Hua Hin is on the sunrise side of the gulf.

The only thing I can add to the above is that if you want a quieter beach drive to the army camp about five kilometers south of the town on the left. The beach is at least five kilomters long and during the week you will probably be the only person on it.

Dougal,
I agree with you about the beach at the army camp, deserted when we visited a few years ago. Unfortunately my wife and her friends said it was boring so we all went off to Cha Am beach where they could eat fresh crabs etc surrounded by all the Thai day trippers from Bangkok

Conrad

The DT's from Bkk fill out HH at weekends as well - be warned.

My favourite place, though.

we went on holiday there a couple of years and it was great, the hilton did a great buffet dinner and the beach was not bad

CHA AM is supposed to be good as well, its only up the coast

Wots the DT's ????????

BigRed

quote:

Wots the DT's ????????

Isn't that what you get after being in Hua Hin for 2 weeks on the ****?

BigRed,
I wondered what DT stands for at first, then decided it must be Day Tripper.

Conrad

quote:

I wondered what DT stands for at first, then decided it must be Day Tripper

Aha, yep that makes sense, cheers Conrad, it's been doing my head in trying to suss that out, when I should have been working , easy really!

Oops, sorry guys - I did indeed mean day trippers when I used the term DT - bit silly really. Sorry.

I've stayed at a few places in Hua Hin, from expensive to cheap and my favourite is ppvillas for location and VFM.

Be back again in April/May, with a trip to the NE thrown in to get married!

No problems,
Have you considered writing a brief report about some of the places that you've stayed at when in Hua Hin ? You may be able to give a fellow member some inspiration (and earn the odd beer as a thank you).

Conrad

OK - here goes!

Hilton - the main Hotel hogging the front. You get what you would expect, all very good, but not cheap. Can't see the point of spending so much for the quality if you're out and about a lot. Eating out is better than eating in and much, much cheaper. Great brekky.

Grand - a few minutes walk South of the main town, you have to cross the main road that disects the town. If you're heading for the bars in the evening, you'd probably want to get a tuk-tuk back. I had a great view from my room, but as with other recent reviews I've read - when thinking of my trip in April - I found the rooms a bit drab and in need of some TLC, but large, plenty of space. Great 25 metre pool. Did 50 lengths each morning and before heading out. Staff friendly. Brekky very average. But reasonable value for money. I would stay there again, but not as first choice, but if a serious swimmer...?

City Beach - hated it, but very central. Didn't like the room. Small pool, grotty brekky and when I was there, seemed full of German(?) package tourists. That was reflected in the breakfast fare. Staff not the best I have come across. The worst deal I have had. I've also heard of complaints about the music from the cabaret / night club that is below the Hotel. I was on the other side. The club is worth a visit though. Popular with local Thais.

Hua Hin suites. Calls itself a boutique hotel. Odd set up. No brekky in my deal. Good deals all over town in any case. Rooms entered via a bleak corridor, and the suite I had had two rooms, one full of Thai furniture and the other the bed. But in reality, one room was wasted. I enjoyed my stay, but the bathroom was in need of some TLC. Small pool, but not used much, always had it to myself. Very friendly and helpful staff. It would be my 2nd choice.

ppvillas. This is the only one that doesn't advertise on the various sites.

If needed, the email address is: ppvillahotel@hotmail.com

I really liked it. Biggish sized place, not so apparent from the road as its set back. Virtually on the junction where the Sofitel is, so very central, very friendly staff. They want cash, so bear that in mind. Good room, best shower I've had in HH. But no frills. A towell each a day, no mini-bar - all the others do, but an empty fridge to fill. As with the Hilton, the only one to offer a balcony, albeit without the sea as your vista - back block only as far as I can tell. No lift and 4 floors, so be warned if unfit. Good pool, no brekky. If I wasn't planning to rent a house this time, I'd stay again. I stayed about 12 days last time in HH and the rate was meant to have gone up 100baht a night about halfway through my stay, but when I settled up, they only charged me the lower rate because of the length of my stay! I didn't even ask for that.

The main area of HH is really quite small and easy to walk everywhere.

Oh, and if so inclined, as far as I could tell, all the above were "Girl friendly".

Hope that helps.