Looking for budget stays in Hua Hin? This section is designed to save you time, money, and unnecessary stress. We've got insider tips to help you find affordable hostels and the cheapest places to stay in Hua Hin.
Very popular with Thais and expats due to its easy access from Bangkok, Hua Hin, Thailand, is a slightly different, more local beach experience than many you'll get in Thailand. Popularized in the early twentieth century by the Thai royal family, who built holiday homes here, and by the construction of the Thailand-Malaysia railway, Hua Hin is busier than most Thai beach destinations. Although large resorts are the norm here, there are still a large number of backpacker budget hostels in Hua Hin, Thailand.
With many buses and minivans arriving hourly from Bangkok and the slightly slower trains, Hua Hin is an easy place to get to from Bangkok. Hua Hin Beach stretches the length of the city up to Khao Takiab hill, some eight kilometers south. The beach is soft and sandy, though, in the city center the beach disappears during high tide and the water can be a little dirty. A short one kilometer or more stroll south, will reveal clearer water. Khao Takiab hill has many Buddhist temples that command a great view of Hua Hin and the coast.
Klai Kangwon ("Far From Worries") Palace was the summer palace of King Rama VII and was built in the early twentieth century. It can be visited when the royal family are not in residence and is about two kilometers north of the city center and has a large ornamental garden.
Along the beach in the center of the Hua Hin, can be found a long stretch of beach lined with small shack restaurants all specializing in squid, which is plentiful in the waters in this area. Fishing was the main vocation here before the royal family made Hua Hin famous as a beach resort.
Khao Hin Lek Fai, three kilometers west of Hua Hin, is a scenic picnic area, from where there are great views of the city and the surrounding countryside. Some sixty kilometers west of Hua Hin, Namtok Pa La-u, an eleven-tier waterfall, can be found, and Hua Hin is a very handy base from which to visit Kaeng Krachan National Park near the Burmese border. It's very popular with bird watchers with more than four hundred fifty species recorded, and there are also more than ninety species of mammal.
The Victorian red and white train station, built in the early twentieth century, is a source of pride to the locals, having brought a huge measure of prosperity to the region. It is also architecturally worth visiting, as it is arguably one of the most beautiful railway stations in Thailand.
Cheap accommodation can be found around the city center. Hua Hin, Thailand hostels are concentrated near the clock tower, on, or not far from, Thanon Phetkasem, the main street. The hostels in Hua Hin, Thailand, are very convenient for the bus and train stations and there are a number to choose from, all of pretty good standard and similar price and all offer dorm beds. Each Hua Hin, Thailand hostel can help with tours and trips in the area and for onward transport.
Written by Travel Expert Hua Hin
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