Hua Hin Beach

Our current house sit in Hua Hin is a bit out of town. With no public transportation and limited taxi availability, we’ve been relying on our host’s motorbike to get us around. It’s given us a great opportunity to explore a bit, while still living in a quiet and secluded area. Plus, there is something so freeing about riding a motorbike through an unknown city. One of our first adventures on the bike was to the center of town to Hua Hin Beach.

Hua Hin, Thailand

Hua Hin proper is only a 10 minute drive from our home. We were a bit nervous about driving on the main roads without our international license (shhh!), so we found a shady place to park just outside of downtown and walked in.

Hua Hin is a cute little town, jam-packed with boutique hotels, backpacker hostels, Western restaurants, 24 hour bars, and massage parlors… but in a non-trashy sort of way. It was obvious from our first look that Hua Hin is a tourist town. But it wasn’t cheesy and we felt safe and at ease. It looked fun and lively.

There is so much to do in Hua Hin for both the budget travelers like us and the more extravagant Hua Hin honeymooners, of which there were a lot. We walked through the streets checking out the sights and sounds of the city for a bit until we found what we were looking for: an outdoor restaurant with our first view of the ocean.

Gulf of Thailand

We grabbed a table at the waterfront and bought a tall beer to share for 60 baht ($2). For an hour, we just sat there and admired the view. Josh and I are reading The Beach by Alex Garland, so we enjoyed a moment putting ourselves in the main character’s shoes. I wondered how many other people have taken the SE Asia backpacker’s route and what sort of adventures they had on the beaches of the Gulf of Thailand.

♥ Read Josh’s Literary Tourism piece for The Beach at O:JAL

After our beer and some discussion about The Beach, we headed back to the road and toward the huge resort hotels a few blocks away. I didn’t have to look at the map to know that must be where the beach is.

Hua Hin Beach

Picking our way along through little side alleys, we made our way to the main beach. Hua Hin Beach is a stretch of fine white sand with the occasional outcropping of rocks, and is wedged between the Hilton Hua Hin Resort and the Centara Grand Beach Resort. There were food stands, cocktail waitresses, chair and umbrella rentals, horseback riding, and everything else one would expect on a busy beach.

The majority of the beach-goers were Caucasian and looked to be of retirement age. There were a few that looked like they might live here or have a summer home, but most looked like they were on vacation.

We spent some time wandering up and down the sand, taking in the view of the ocean. I’ve often said that the ocean is where I belong, and days like this one really bring it home for me. I could spend all day just lying on the beach and listening to the waves. Josh, however, can not. We wandered up into a group of little roadside stands run by the locals and made our way back downtown.

The day grew warmer as we walked back to the bike and drove home. It was a wonderful little adventure for the day. Thailand has proven to be just as lovely as everyone describes it. I can’t wait to take our little bike out and see more!

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