What to Visit and Do in Hua Hin, Thailand ? Page 3

Note : You are on Page 3 about Hua Hin. Start with Page 1.

Maps – Orientation

Map 2 – Center of Hua Hin

Map 3 – Hua Hin – Interactive Map

  1. Points in Red – Transport
  2. Points in Blue – Attractions
  3. Points in Green – Shopping

What to Visit and Do in Hua Hin ?

8. Artists Village -Baan Sillapin

A sort of art exhibition, a museum. It is not a big place, but still very impressive. I usually don’t visit art museums, but I enjoyed this one. It is located close to the city center.

The entry price (at the time of writing) is only 40 Baht.

There are objects in a garden and objects inside a house.

Many beautiful paintings

And statues

It feels like visiting a private house, not a museum. There are works of at least 15 artists.

There is also a shop, in which it is possible to buy some art.

How to arrive ?

9. Wat Tham Khao Tao –  A temple near the sea

A beautiful Buddhist temple on a small hill near the Beach and near a lake. There is a wonderful view.

  

In order to arrive to the temple, you cross a small river

The river may be dry during the morning

The temple at the sea level is in a sort of cave

Interesting statues

In some of the halls, it is required to take off the shoes

One sign that draw my attention, was one of Travel Safety.  The first line says : “Avoid Traveling Alone”. Well, I was alone.

Then, there are a few steps to climb on a hill with nice view over the beach

and you arrive to a big Buddha. It is hot, so you may want to bring water with you.

View from the top over the Khao Tao lake

How to arrive ?

10. Khao Tao – Lake

It is located very close to the Wat Tham Khao Tao temple, so you will pass via this lake.
There are a few cafés and restaurants on one side of the lake.

It is nice to make a full circle walk around this small lake when it is not too hot.

Close to this lake, there is a wonderful restaurant (and hotel) with the theme of turtles. It is called Turtle Bay Hua Hin Eco Luxe.

And also not far from the lake is Sai Noi beach.

Very nice beach. See location of this beach on Google Map

How to arrive ?

11. Mangrove forest walk road and Pran Kiri Beach

Mangrove environments are cool. I always enjoy them. There are a lot of them in Thailand, also on the islands (Koh Chang, for example).
This Mangrove walk is part of a reserve, near the beach.

The entrance to the Mangrove walk :

The “walk” is on a wooden bridge, that goes over the mud and between the Mangrove trees.

The interesting part are the many crabs that you see below you

There is an explanation about the different crabs and about the Mangroves. There is one type of crab that is asymmetrical, it has one long arm and one short.

There is a wooden tower, on the way. You can climb the tower for a panoramic view.

Apparently, in some periods, it is possible to make a boat trip in the Mangrove area.

The Mangrove walk takes about half an hour, depending on how long you observe the crabs.
After you have finished the Mangrove walk you can walk towards the nearby beach. You cross a nice park with sport facilities.

Some chicken

And a beautiful beach

How to arrive ?

12. Monsoon Valley – Vineyard

A vineyard with a visitor center.

It is a pleasant visit in a relaxed surroundings. The entrance costs 200 Baht (at the time of writing) and it is possible to use the entry voucher as a discount at the restaurant (you will spend more than this sum at the restaurant…).

The main attraction of the place is a café-restaurant with a view over the fields.

I took a cake with a coffee, but most of the visitors are choosing wine.

There is a guided tour in the vineyard with a minibus. The tour starts each hour and you have to pay for it. Some of the tours include a visit to a sanctuary with elephants (there are only 2 elephants, at the time of writing). Some of the tours include wine tasting. The simple tours lasts only 15 minutes.

Instead of participating in the minibus tour, you can make a short walk in the fields, by yourself.

The fields are more interesting in the season when the grapes are matured.

On the way to the vineyard (on a motorbike), I met some cows.

How to arrive ?

13. Phraya Nakhon – Cave near a Beach

A very nice cave in a very nice environment. It is located a little bit far from the city, but very recommended. See later how to arrive.
Just before you enter the site, you pass over a bridge with a beautiful river.

The area is a national natural reserve, so there is an entry fee.

At the time of writing, the entry fee for foreigners (adults) is 200 Baht. If you are Thai, you pay much less.

The entrance area is on a beautiful beach. There are also restaurants with Thai food. You will surely use the restaurants on your way back, because there is a strenuous climb till the cave.

From the ticket booth, arriving to the cave requires about 1.30 hours of climbing. It is moderately difficult. There are steps on the trail, you don’t need to do any acrobatics. Buy water before the climbing because there is no water at the cave. The weather is usually very hot.

There are 2 hills to climb till the cave. The cave is on the top of the second hill.
Regarding the first hill : You need to climb the hill and descend to the other side of it.

You arrive then to a beautiful beach and you begin to climb the second hill. Instead of climbing and descending the first hill, you can use a service of boats that make a detour around the hill and bring you directly to the second beach.
My recommendation : Climb the first hill by foot in order to get a wonderful panoramic view and make photos. On your way back you can use a boat. Climbing the first hill (and descending) takes about half an hour.

The view from the first hill :

More view from the first hill :

View from the first hill over the second beach :

After you descend the first hill and arrive to the second beach (sweating), you get an encouraging sign : ” Your health is still strong”. It means you have survived the first part of the ordeal.

And you see a sign about the cave

Now begins the second and hard climb. There is a restaurant here, so buy water before the climbing.
There is again a warning sign that you should be in good health in order to climb.

There is a sign about the possible presence of monkeys, but I didn’t encounter any.

There is a view point on the way, but it is far from the beach, so less impressive than from the first hill.

In midway, there is a Thai paramedic, waiting for emergencies. Cool. I wish there was also water here.

After about half hour of climbing you arrive to the entrance of the cave

There are usually people doing the same track as you do. You are not alone.

The main hall of the cave is very impressive

There is a shrine

There are some explanations about the formation of the cave

Of course that there are stalactites. There are no bats here.

The way back is easier because it is a descent. You will find the restaurant on the “second beach” and you will probably drink a cold drink.

Then you may take a boat in order to bypass the first hill (or you can climb again the first hill). The boat costs 200 Baht per boat (at the time of writing). The boat can take up to 6 persons.

That’s it. Now you have returned to the starting point and you can eat something.

How to arrive ?

14. Lotus lake- Bueng Bua Wood Boardwalk – Thung Sam Roi Yot

This place is relatively close to the Phraya Nakhon cave , so you should consider visiting both on the same day.

It is a lake with a lot of lotus plants. You can make a trip of 1 hour on a small engine boat. It costs 500 Baht per boat (at the time of writing). A guard of the reserve will drive the boat, not you. There is a small roof on the boat, that gives some protection from the sun.

When I visited the place, there were only cows around, so I boarded a boat alone.

The ride on the boat is cool, I have never sailed in such an environment before.

The ride was very quiet and peaceful. There are big birds living here and you see them from time to time. My boat crossed another boat only once, there are not many visitors here.

In some parts of the lake, the lotus plants are extremely dense.

There is also a walking bridge over the water and you can use it to watch the area, instead of making a boat trip.

At some point during the boat trip, the driver stopped and brought me a lotus fruit.

It turns out that it is possible to eat the grains (you need to avoid the small ones, they are not mature).

I took the lotus with me and returned to Hua Hin after a long and happy day.

How to arrive ?

Continue to Page 4 – What to Visit in Hua Hin

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