Nine must-do highlights of Hua Hin, Thailand

Khao Sam Roi Yot (“Three Hundred Peaks”) National Park, 25 kilometres south of town has waterfalls, walking trails and a chain of deserted beaches. Its most popular destination is the Phraya Nakhon Cave Temple, an open-air cavern visited in 1890 by King Rama V, where a delicate, temple-like pavilion seemingly floats on a sunlit mound. Meanwhile, north of Hua Hin, the neighbouring provincial capital Phetchaburi has numerous Buddhist temples plus a funicular railway that brings you to the hilltop, 1860 Phra Nakhon Khiri castle. See thainationalparks.com

The restaurant

Go local, open-air and overwater. There is nothing like soft-shell crab or dish of baked scallops in garlic sauce, as served on a pier of creaking timbers with stars above and the sea slapping below. Find them at Ketsarin Restaurant, the best of Hua Hin’s old fishing wharf eateries, with local fare, served chilli-aware according to one’s taste buds. Meanwhile, on terra firma, try Baan Itsara in an old-style mansion for spicy Isaan (north-east Thailand) dishes and, naturally, seafood. For beachfront dining and steamed rock lobster, The Rock restaurant at Cape Nidhra resort is the one. See capekantaryhotels.com

The vineyard

Hua Hin is more than its celebrated coastline. Head 35 kilometres inland to Monsoon Valley Vineyard (formerly Hua Hin Hills Vineyard) for an afternoon of surprisingly good “new latitude” wines and beaut food. Your options here include vineyard touring by four-wheel drive, mountain biking and visiting the estate’s elephant sanctuary. Then it’s time for lunch, as long and slow as you like, at the Sala Bistro with tasting platters of Thai and international food plus matched Monsoon Valley varietals including chenin blanc, sangiovese, shiraz and cabernet sauvignon. See monsoonvalley.com

The palace

Mrigadayavan Palace, a great wooden wonder billed as “the Longest Golden Teak Palace in the World”, sits on the Cha-am shoreline 20 minutes north of Hua Hin. Built in 1923 by King Rama VI, this sprawling, beautifully restored structure is usually open to the public (although currently closed for works until early 2024). Known simply as “the Wooden Palace”, its breezy pavilions and walkways lead to the king’s writing room — he was a poet, playwright and Shakespeare translator — where the calm blue walls and sea view would be the envy of any writer. See huahin.city

The hotel

Thai hoteliers Cape+Kantary specialise in discreetly located boutique resorts, usually coastal. Their Hua Hin hotel, Cape Nidhra, fits the bill perfectly with its absolute beach-frontage, quiet but central location, roomy pool suites and plenty of tropical woodwork (as opposed to concrete glare and glass). Sunrise over the Gulf is at your window and the beach is at your doorstep. There are big pools, Thai cooking classes, a quality spa and On The Rocks Bar for happy hour with horizon views and a Secret of Amphawa signature cocktail. See capekantaryhotels.com

Nightlife

When the sun sets over Hua Hin the town retains it dignity. Seaview dining (such as at White Lotus atop the Hilton Hotel, early nights and a post-golf massage can be more its style than rioting beer bars and ballistic dance clubs. There’s a couple of Irish pubs (of course), with live rock at Father Ted’s, or more intimate sounds at the Centara Grand Resort’s intimate piano space, the Elephant Bar. Things rev-up towards the weekend, and nightly from 9pm around the Soi Bintabaht area with dozens of bars focused on live music and sports. See huahin.city

One more thing

Centara Grand Beach Resort & Villas Hua Hin started life encumbered by far fewer syllables. The town’s original hotel, founded in 1922 by a savvy prince, was simply the Railway Hotel. But there was nothing simple about its gardening. Step into the grounds and marvel at the historic topiary, a wondrous, frozen stampede of giant elephants, rabbits, giraffes and other verdant follies. Finally, head inland to the railway station of that same era and its Royal Waiting Room, a uniquely Siamese structure that looks like a cross between a temple and a ticket office. See centarahotelsresorts.com

The writer was a guest of Cape Nidhra Hotel and otherwise travelled at his own expense.