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The country's oldest beach resort,
HUA HIN
is very popular with Thai families and makes a pleasant enough stop between Bangkok and the south. However, the beach is nowhere near as attractive as those of nearby Ko Samui, Krabi and Ko Samet, and the beachfront is packed with hotels. There's a
tourist information
desk (daily 8.30am-4.30pm; tel 032/532433) on the corner of Thanon Damnern Kasem and Highway 4 (about 50m east of the train station) and an overseas telephone office (daily 8am-midnight) almost next door. You can buy combined bus and boat tickets to Ko Samui (B550), Phuket (B550) and Krabi (B650) from most Hua Hin tour agents.
A night or two at the former Railway Hotel, now the
Hotel Sofitel
(tel 032/512021; $80 and over) is a reason in itself to visit Hua Hin. It fronts the beach and remains much as it was in 1923, with classic colonial-style architecture and wide sea-view balconies. But it could be almost as fun staying in one of Hua Hin's other equally unusual
accommodation
options - a string of budget guesthouses built on converted squid piers, with rooms strung out along wooden jetties right over the waves:
Bird
(tel 032/511630; $5-15),
Karoon Hut
(tel 032/530737; $10-20) and
Mod Guesthouse
(tel 032/512296; $5-15) are all very near each other on Thanon Naretdamri, and all offer smallish en-suite rooms. Alternatively, try the inland
All Nations
at 10 Thanon Dechanuchit (tel 032/512747; under $20) which has large, spruce rooms with shared facilities and Internet access, or
Phuen Guesthouse
on Soi Binthabat (tel 032/512344; under $15) where small, basic rooms are crammed into a traditional wooden house.
Some of the best places to enjoy the local fish catch are the seafront
restaurants
on Thanon Naretdamri:
Chao Lay, Mee Karuna
and
Thanachote
are all recommended. Fish also features heavily at the night market, which sets up at sunset in the streets around the train station and at a spot close to the bus terminal. The biggest concentration of bars is along Soi Bintaban. Check your
email
in the convivial atmosphere of
Cups & Comp Internet Cafe
on Thanon Naebkehat (9am-12pm).
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