Hua Hin With Kids: 25 Fun Family Activities + Budget Travel Tips

25 Amazing Things to Do with Kids in Hua Hin: The Ultimate Family Guide

In this article we will share our experiences of our two months in the coastal town of Hua Hin as a family of four in 2025/2026, with kids aged nine and six.

We will cover where to eat, how to get around, the beaches and most importantly how to keep the kids entertained.

Why Hua Hin?

When you hear of the “must-do” places to visit in Thailand, Hua Hin is often left off that list.

Which is what makes it so appealing.

It doesn’t attract the masses and retains a local charm.

After spending many years drawing expat retirees from across the globe, Hua Hin is now becoming a magnet for families to settle or visit as part of their Thailand holiday.

Located just three hours from Bangkok, it’s easily accessible for anyone flying into the capital without the need for long distance travel or flights.

It’s a very scenic town with hills surrounding the town creating a dramatic backdrop and of course it has many beaches.

What makes it great for families is the feast of activities on offer.

Below is a list of all the activities that we took part in that we feel are worth sharing with anyone looking to spend a decent amount of time in this cool funky coastal town.

Where is Hua Hin?

Hua Hin is a large coastal town of around 80,000 people located approx. 3 hours south of Bangkok on the western side of the Gulf of Thailand, easily accessible by train, bus or taxi.

It’s a popular destination for Thai nationals from Bangkok to visit for weekends and for holidays.

Who lives in Hua Hin?

What we liked about Hua Hin was the mix of locals and expats.

It never felt too ‘touristy’ but at the same time, because there were still a high number of tourists, it had some familiar western comforts, which was great for the kids.

In recent years it has become more popular with families looking to avoid the full-on vibes of Phuket or Pattaya and Samui.

If traveling solo, looking for a more authentic Thailand, we probably wouldn’t have stayed so long, but traveling with kids, it was a perfect blend of new experiences and more familiar surroundings to ease the kids into the culture shock.

When is it best to visit Hua Hin?

The dry season is from November to April. We visited November to January and did not see one single drop of rain and hardly saw a cloud in the sky.

On average for us, it was 28 degrees, some days up to 30-32 degrees.

The best part was that there was always a breeze. I hardly recall a day without one.

Some days, the wind was almost too strong, but refreshing, nonetheless.

I can’t comment on personal experience outside of these months but my understanding from the long termers we met was that the wet season in Hua Hin is not as wet compared to other parts of the country. Humidity isn’t as high and the rains short and short.

Orientation

Hua Hin is very spread out as the town hugs the coast for several kilometres, from Khao Takiab in the south to Cha-am in the north, taking about thirty minutes to drive the full length.

There’s one main busy road that cuts right through the town, Kasem Road (Phetkasem) parallel with the beach, divided from the waves only by the sea-lined expensive hotels.

Two main points of reference are Bluport and Market Village shopping malls.

Located just a fifteen-minute walk apart on Kasem Road, its likely you will spend some time in both malls.

We will use Bluport as the starting point when describing the distance to activities listed below.

Where to stay?

If you are short on time, you will probably be best to book a hotel or Airbnb.

If you are planning on staying longer term, you will save money by renting a villa or condo, depending on how much space you need and how close to the centre you want to be.

Many expats live in villa complexes about fifteen minutes inland where prices are cheaper.

We made friends with long-termers who were renting for 20,000 baht per month for huge three-bedroom villas with pool.

We stayed in a two-bed condo (Baan Kiang Fah) walkable to the centre and beach for 30,000 baht per month. We had a swimming pool, gym, games room and library/quiet workspace.

Bills (electric and water only) were on top but were just 1,700 per month and easily paid in a nearby 7-eleven.

How to get around?

Taxis

We started off taking Grab or Bolt before we hired a car.

There’s not much difference between Grab and Bolt, both acting like Uber.

In the end we leaned more towards Bolt as they seemed to 1) reach the more rural areas quicker and 2) Their pickup map location was much more accurate than Grab.

We spent on average 200 baht per day which included short trips most days (between 65 and 100 baht), but also some days with no trips and others with longer trips.

Hire car

Having your own car with a family is probably the best option for flexibility and being able to change plans at the last minute, as so often happens with kids, and to be able to take those urgent toilet breaks!

But driving in Thailand isn’t for everyone.

Hua Hin can be a little crazy in the centre.

We ended up hiring a car and it completely changed our trip, giving us so many more flexible options.

You can get a hire car for 500 baht per day if hiring long-term. We paid more as we ended up having a one-way drop fee blended in, as we drove to Krabi.

The Green Songthaew

There are green songthaews that go up and down Kasem Road from Takiab to the Old Town and cost 15 baht per ride no matter how far you go. We never took one as for four of us, it was just as easy to take a taxi and get there direct without the stop offs.

Tuk Tuk

A Tuk Tuk ride is always fun and I often had the kids in my ear “dad, can we get a Tuk Tuk, pleeeeease”.

We always find Tuk Tuk rides more expensive but maybe that’s just our poor bartering skills, but we found we couldn’t get them lower than 100 baht for a Bolt ride that would be 65 baht.

But sometimes it was worth it just to see the smile on the kids’ faces.

Where to eat?

Cafes

It can be quite overwhelming to decide where to eat as there are so many options and a very diverse range of prices.

Listed under the activities section below are some family friendly options that have specific activities for kids so you can combine food with a kid’s activity.

Otherwise, you’re best left to trial and error.

Bluport and Market Village both have decent food courts and surprisingly very well priced, but for us, lack soul.

Both have a miss of a prepaid card system and cash in place. If you go to the basement of Bluport, tucked away at the back, there’s a smaller ‘street food’ food court that’s even cheaper.

I will list our three favourite restaurants below. We were travelling on a budget so this may not be everyone’s choice:

Im Jang: located on the corner of Kasem Road and Hua Hin 112, this was our local, our favourite and our regular. With our regular bill coming in under 200 baht (the kids’ favourite dish of basil chicken and rice at 40 baht was delicious and a bargain), friendly service and a good vibe, it was hard to look elsewhere each day.

Roses on Hua Hin 112. Cheap, from 50 baht, and good quality, although we found the service a little unfriendly.

Thi Baan Bistro: just a five-minute walk north of Bluport, this place is well priced and has a menu that covers dishes from all over Thailand. Always greeted with a big smile, we always had a decent sized portion and incredible flavours.

Huana Market

If you’re travelling on a budget, look no further than this local’s market. We stayed nearby and so were regularly here.

Our boy loved the 10-baht pork skewers and rice and with other local dishes prepared here, we would often eat for all four of us for under 150 baht.

This is also a good place to stock up if self-catering on fruit and vegetables.

Saphan Pla Walking Night Market (Weekend evenings only)

Located on the pier in the old town, about ten minutes drive from Bluport, this market has about thirty stalls selling all the usual dishes and is a great spot to watch the sun go down over the hills.

Cicada & Tamarind Markets

Located next door to each other, south of Bluport towards Takiab beach, these two markets both serve food. Cicada also sells souvenirs and clothes but Tamarind purely food.

We found Tamarind far cheaper and greater choice than the more upmarket Cicada, however we also found the portion size was smaller at Tamarind. Cicada works on a refundable prepaid card system, Tamarind on cash.

Tamarind is open Thursday to Sunday evenings.

Cicada is open Friday to Sunday evenings.

Night Market

The Night Market, located on Hua Hin 72, is open every day and not only sells cheap clothes and souvenirs but also has a large food market with well-priced and good quality foods.

Self-catering

If you’re on a budget and like us, you have kids a with a bottom less pit stomach, you will likely be wanting to stock up on snacks constantly.

We used Huana market to stock up on eggs and fruit.

In the big malls you have big supermarkets. We found Lotus’s in Market Village cheapest and best range of options and so would do a weekly shop there for snacks and breakfasts.

And then there’s always 7-Eleven to fill in the gaps, located everywhere. Slightly more expensive but ever so handy.

Just a tip regarding water. Rather than spending heaps of money on new bottled water and adding to Thailand’s massive plastic problem, you can buy one of the large 6-litre bottles from 7-Eleven and then top it up at the many Reverse Osmosis public filter machines dotted around town.

These cost 1 baht per litre compared to 41 baht for 7-Eleven’s cheapest 6-litre bottle. A small saving that adds up over time if you’re here for a while.

What are the beaches like?

Hua Hin beach, which is the main beach that stretches the length of the town is very tidal, meaning when the tides in, for the most part, there is no beach as the waves come right up the rocks/walls.

However, when the tide is out, it is a great beach for kids to play. The sea can be a little choppy as there’s almost always a refreshing breeze in Hua Hin. This choppiness can make it a little difficult for swimming for younger ones.

The sea here isn’t the idyllic crystal-clear ocean like the southern islands but on a calmer day it can clear. The temperature of the sea can be slightly colder than the southern islands, but we found it fine to swim in the dry season.

Khao Takiab beach, which is located at the southern end of Hua Hin beach, is split into two beaches either side of Monkey Mountain (Khao Takiab). Down this end, the beaches retain their sand at high tide. These were our favourite local beaches as a family.

On the north side of Monkey Mountain (Khao Takiab Nuea) there are fewer beach restaurants but some shaded area by the trees. There is a large buddha statue up on the mountain with great views back across the whole Hua Hin skyline.

On the southern side (Khao Takiab beach) there are many restaurants right on the sand and the water is calmer on this side, the best side for kids safe swimming.

There are many other beaches further afield that we explored, which will need a taxi or your own wheels:

Cha-am beach

Thirty minutes north of Hua Hin and quieter Cha-am does have a nice charm to it, and the tide isn’t so high. Everything is slightly cheaper here and less busy.

Sai Noi beach

Located about twenty minutes from Bluport by car, this is a lovely scenic small bay surrounded by cliffs on either side.

When we went the waves were a little rough for kids to swim though. There is a large Buddha statue (Buddha Kao Thao) you can walk to up on the hill.

Pran Kari beach

This beach is next to the Pran Buri mangrove walkway, about twenty minutes from Bluport and was deserted when we went there after the mangrove walk.

Not the most stunning beach but very scenic with a forested backdrop and a great café called Eureka Beach Café located right on the beach with beanbags to chill out on to watch the waves.

Sam Roi Yot beach

As you travel down the coast south of Hua Hin, there are dozens of villages and beaches. Sam Roi Yot is located forty-five minutes away, down towards Phraya Nakhon Cave. It’s a nice little beach with a small village vibe.

25 Activities for kids

Here is a list of what to do in Hua Hin with kids:

1. Vana Nava Water Jungle

Located just south of the centre of the city, about five-minute drive from Bluport, our kids loved our visit to Vana Nava. With over twenty attractions over three hectares, this is the premier water park.

We visited in peak season, and it was pretty much empty, the queues never being more than three deep.

There are heaps of rides where you can ride on inflatables as a couple or family. Minimum height does apply for some rides so check before going. For example, our boy was too small to go on the Abyss ride.

Tickets are expensive if paid directly either at the door or on the Vana Nava website. We would’ve paid 6,800 baht but we managed to get a sizeable discount by booking with Trip.com for 3,839 baht, a 44% saving.

We took the package option which included a buffet, towels and lockers. The buffet was pretty good, being open to visit as many times as you like during your stay.

Pretty good for those constantly hungry bellies.

Note that they check your bag before entering to restrict bringing in food and drinks from outside (water seemed ok if in a personal water bottle but not a plastic store purchased bottle)

See more at https://www.vananavahuahin.com/

2. Black Mountain Water park

Located fifteen minutes inland and slightly smaller than Vana Nava, this was by no means less fun, as once again the kids loved it.

With nine different slides, an infinity pool, a lazy river, a wave machine and lagoon, a kid’s pool, restaurant and a much more laid-back feel, this is a great cheaper alternative to Vana Nava.

And if Vana Nava was close on empty, we went here twice and both times I could count the number of people there on two hands. You won’t need to wait for a ride at all.

You can buy tickets from several outlets online, but we found the cheapest way was to go in a group, call ahead and give them the lead name of the group and as each member of your group arrives, they get a discounted price under that name.

We paid 1,300 baht for entry and took our own towels and didn’t need a locker as didn’t feel our stuff was in any danger left in the seating area. But towel rental and lockers were cheap anyway.

3. Parrotdise Organic Farm

Located about fifteen minutes inland, Jeff, a Dutch expat runs this café and farm for families to visit.

Jeff keeps goats, pigs, rabbits, guinea pigs, tortoises and many species of parrot, which are tame enough to fly around and land on visitors’ shoulders.

On a Tuesday from 10.30am he runs a weekly activity from scavenger hunts, walking with goats to baking cookies.

These activities are free although it’s expected you’ll spend some money in the café which is slightly more expensive that what you would pay elsewhere, but the food is good and it’s a great place for the kids to be kept busy, meet other kids and a chance for the parents to (try) take some time out.

4. Treeoh Curiosity Café, Soi 102

Run by Tim and Nat, this is another great place for kids and parents to socialise, centrally located a stone’s throw from Bluport.

On a Saturday they have cooking classes for a small fee and on a Wednesday they have a family catch up, sometimes with a bouncy castle.

There is a treehouse and swing for the kids to play with, as well as other activities like rock painting, games, toys etc. And beanbags and a nice café area for the parents to chill out on.

5. Loch Camp Cafe (& meet-up)

At the time we were there, there was a weekly expat-run Storytime session on a Thursday from around 11.30am which was another great place for kids to meet and play, and for parents to connect.

Located about fifteen minutes by taxi from Bluport heading South, Loch Camp is a café with a huge back lawn with a decent playground and heaps of space for the kids to burn off energy.

There is an entry fee of 100 baht which you get discounted off if you buy something from the café.

So, even if there is no meet-up, this is still a good place to come with the kids.

6. Beaches

See the section above regarding the beaches. Each of the beaches all have activities happy to take your money. You will find:

Horse rides (for reference, we paid 100 baht for ten minutes at Cha-am beach but 200 baht at Takiab)

Inflatable rides – tied to the back of a jet ski and pulled out to sea: banana boats, inflatable sofas etc. Negotiate and get for 120 baht per person.

Jet ski hire – if your kids are older or you want to take them out. This isn’t something we have done so cannot quote a price.

7. Cicada Market

As well as selling food, as mentioned in the food section above, Cicada market is a great place to wander around at weekend evenings. They have live music and a magic show at 7.45pm each night.

The market sells all kinds of unique crafts. This isn’t plastic junk like the Night Market (see below), this is mostly locally crafted products and worth a visit.

8. Night Market

The Night Market on Hua Hin72, is the classic tourist market selling Chang Beer and 7-Eleven T-shirts, tacky souvenirs and tons of plastic toys. It’s a good place for a bargain and open every night, always busy.

9. Art & Craft Cafes

There are several Art & Craft cafes in Hua Hin where the kids can spend hours being creative. We visited two of them:

Le Studio Art Café at Hua Hin 112

This café has a huge array of options for kids to create. They have a menu to choose from the dozens of projects lined up on the shelves.

Projects like clay modelling, paints, mosaics, amongst many other crafts.

Prices vary from 50 baht to 400 baht depending on the materials being used.

Parents can either drop kids off as they are supervised by the staff there, or can just hang out and read, work, eat, drink while waiting in the spacious cafe area.

Ninepunn Café at 15 Hin Lek Fai

Located fifteen minutes from Bluport, very similar to Le Studio but we found it was jam packed, smaller with less choice. But still heaps of fun to get creative and similar prices.

10. Harborland

Located on the third floor of Bluport shopping mall, this huge indoor soft play zone opened while we were there in December 2025.

Covering 3,500 sqm it is massive and from our experience, it never gets crazy busy.

There are slides, heaps of soft play areas, tramps, a mini zip line, computer games, inflatable world, and a bucking bronco.

And then there’s Harbor Town – a mini town where the kids can play different roles of different jobs: from being a barber, chef, farm worker, vet, dentist, mechanic, baker, musician amongst other roles.

Tickets are quite expensive at 440 baht per child (over 80cm, otherwise 170 baht) plus at least one adult must go in at 170 baht.

However, if you can keep your kids awake, they can go half price after 6pm.

There are heaps of break-out spaces for parents to get their head into a book, chat with friends or catch up on work, including a massage chair.

Being only the third day since opening, we were lucky to experience everything fresh and clean with no yucky sticky stuff on the toys.

11. Shopping

Whilst we had no intention to come away and spend time in malls, we somehow ended up in both quite a lot, because they have everything that we needed at some point in our time here.

The debate between locals as to which is ‘best’ will go on. We found both as useful as each other depending on what we needed.

Bluport

Bluport with five levels, probably has more going on, in that apart from the shops and food court, it also has a cinema, a roller-skating rink, a twice weekly second-hand market and it’s now got Harborland.

It also has another smaller kid soft play area where kids can be dropped off for a small fee.

The main food court is well priced, even if a little soulless.

It also has a Big C large supermarket.

The shops cover everything you need and do have international brands (genuine products) but there’s also some pop-up markets scattered around with cheaper, fake goods too.

It’s worth noting that the second-hand market at Bluport on a Wednesday and Saturday is huge and if travelling on a budget and needing something cheap for the kids (or yourself) is a good option.

Market Village

Very similar to Bluport with a food court and market stalls alongside international branded goods in the shops, it also has five levels.

We preferred the Lotus’s supermarket here, for a wider choice and better prices.

If you need a technology solution, the top floor has a huge range of stores selling every piece of hardware and accessory, including some repair shops.

12. Siam Venezia

Siam Venezia is a Venetian themed park with various attractions, each accessible depending on which ticket you buy.

The cheapest ticket at 200 baht per adult and free for kids, gets you four attractions which include the petting farm, upside down world, the king & queen costume photo shoot and the European garden (complete with its own version of Rome’s Trevi Fountain).

For extra costs, you can ride a gondola on a man-made Venetian canal, and the 3D gallery is meant to be awesome. They also have a café and reasonably priced gift shop.

Despite having a reputation as one of the most expensive flops (allegedly it cost USD $35m, to build around 2015,) we found this a good place to spend an hour and a half, and the kids seemed to enjoy it heaps.

It’s located about fifteen minutes north from Bluport on the road up to Cha-am.

You’ll very likely find that you have this massive open space to yourself.

13. The Artist Village

Located about a fifteen-minute drive inland, this small artist village is home to several artist galleries with interesting artwork, crafts and sculptures. It’s a scenic place with a café next to a large pond.

They have craft activities for the kids to take part in for a small fee.

There is also a museum with all things art for an extra small fee.

14. Hutsadin Elephant Foundation

Not to be confused with the Elephant Village (where you can ride elephants however we heard of concerns about the elephant’s welfare), at Hutsadin Elephant Foundation, rides on the elephants are not permitted.

It is a sanctuary for rescued elephants. At the time of our visit, they had four elephants.

It cost us 2,400 baht for the four of us. For this we got thirty minutes with one of the elephants, going for a walk, stopping and feeding it and then hosing it down after the walk.

The whole magical experience felt a little rushed but with each elephant eating 200kg of food per day, it’s good to know that the money goes towards the upkeep of the foundation and feeding the elephants.

This was a truly memorable experience for the whole family to be so close with these gracious animals.

15. The Chocolate Factory

Technically this is not a Willy Wonka style factory. There is a small window where you can watch some sweet things being crafted but this is actually a good quality restaurant. Whilst we didn’t stop for a full meal, we did swing by to try their specialty – chocolate desserts.

The Dark Chocolate Lava cake came with some form of dry ice display so if you do order it, have your cameras ready. The presentation, service and taste were exceptional here.

16. Queen’s Park (best on a Friday night)

Queen’s park located at the northern end of town is a playground with pathways and a nice garden area located next to the beach.

Outside of a Friday, it’s a quiet place to visit but on a Friday night there is a street food market and live music, and the place is busy with locals and the odd tourist.

There’s also a very popular pop-up open air barbers if you need a haircut.

17. Wat Huay Monkal & Deer Park

Located about twenty minutes inland, at this temple there is a huge statue of a monk, sometimes referred to as a Buddha. It’s free entry and you can walk up the steps and walk around the giant statue.

There’s a small gong at the top for the kids to bash.

There is also a very beautiful template to explore nearby.

There are plenty of food options around too.

Just a two-minute drive or short walk away, in the same complex, is a Deer Park where for a small donation, the kids can get some food to feed some deer.

Also of interest in this complex is a walkway by the lake that has some huge fish for the kids to feed. There are vendors or machines to buy fish food from.

18. Observation lookout viewpoint (Khao Hin Lek Fai)

Just a ten-minute ride from Bluport, you can drive up to the top of one of the many hills that make Hua Hin so scenic, for free.

There is a map of several walkway options through the woods to lookout points. Up there, you get fantastic views across the whole town and beyond, out to the deep blue sea and up and down the coast.

There are plenty of monkeys here for photo opportunities and a small café.

19. Pran buri Forest Park / Pran Kari beach / Eureka beach cafe

Pran Buri Forest Park is home to the Mangrove Forest Walkway.

This boardwalk raised above the muddy mangrove bed below is a tranquil walk through the dense mangrove and gives the kids the opportunity to spot colourful crabs as they scurry around the boggy mud.

There’s a lookout halfway round for the kids to climb up.

As mentioned above, there is also a fantastic, deserted beach nearby too, worth exploring.

There are some cafes around too.

20. The Golden Buddha and Walk up Monkey Mountain (Khao Takiab)

There is a large Buddha statue at the northern side of Monkey Mountain.

It’s also possible to walk up Monkey Mountain.

Access is best from the northern end of the mountain by the cafes that line the foot of the mountain. There are steep steps leading up to the top of the mountain where you will find incredible views of the coast north and south.

You may find some monkeys hanging around as you walk up.

It’s free and well worth the effort.

21. Watch Muay Thai Boxing

This may not be for everyone’s kids, depending on their age or your own beliefs on what appears to be a brutal sport.

There are posters up all over town and vans driving around promoting the next fight night, usually every fortnight.

We got to know an English family who’s thirteen-year-old boy was a Muay Thai fighter and went along to one of his fights. His family reminded me that whilst their son fights for fun, the Thai kids are often orphans and fighting for survival.

The fighters get 1,500 baht per fight win or lose. This English kid donated his money win or lose to his opponent.

A fight night typically starts around 8pm and contains approx. 12 fights of varying ages, levels and rounds.

22. Rajabhakti Park (The Seven Kings statue)

These impressive seven bronze statues are fourteen metres tall and represent seven of the most important Kings of Thailand.

The park is about a ten-minute drive from Bluport, heading south.

Free parking and free entry and a souvenir shop nearby.

23. Kaeng Krachan National Park

Thailand’s largest National Park located 75km away is a UNESCO Heritage site.

Websites will tell you it’s possible to see leopards, bears, deer, elephants, jackals, mongooses, various monkey types, gaurs, snakes, lizards and various birds.

The reality is that with the size of the forest, many of these will be hard to spot unless you have a large amount of time. Something we didn’t have with tired and hungry kids.

We self-drove to the visitor centre in the heart of the park, which costs 300 baht for adults and 150 baht for kids plus a small 30 baht for the car.

From there we had the option to pay 1,800 baht for a 4×4 further into the park to potentially see more but by this stage our kids were cranky, so we declined. This may have been the opportunity to see more.

But we did have the incredible memorable experience of seeing a Sun Bear, just hanging out, looking for food right next to the café at the visitor centre.

We also saw some Dusky Langur is the nearby trees.

24. Kui Buri National Park

Famous for its 95% success rate of seeing elephants, this is a popular day trip from Hua Hin, approximately one hour away.

There are other animals in the park such as deer, gibbons, bears, macaques but sadly we didn’t see anything other than the elephants.

By car, you can only go as far as the visitor centre (600 baht entrance fee for the four of us) and then need to pay 850 baht for the 4×4 safari to go looking for elephants. For us, this was a thirty minute bumpy drive to a plateau that looked out to where the elephants were hanging out far in the distance.

I would recommend hiring binoculars from the visitor centre (100 baht). This made the difference between the kids squinting to see any elephant on the horizon and seeing it up close through the binoculars.

25. Phraya Nakhon Cave and the Royal Pavillion

Arguably saving the best until last. Famous for the Royal Pavilion, built in 1890, a Royal ceremonial structure built deep in the jungle through a cave network. The pavilion lights up as the sun passes through a hole in the collapsed roof of the cave.

It’s best to arrive by 8.30-9am to allow time to do the walk (approx 45min-1 hour) to arrive at the Royal Pavilion by 10am. The sun only lights up that part of the cave between 10am-11am which is the most spectacular part.

Quite possibly one of the most spectacular sights for us in Thailand.

It is however a challenge to get there.

It’s an hour’s drive south from Hua Hin.

And then there’s two steep climbs to get to the cave.

You can skip the first 500m climb by paying 200 baht for a return boat. But you still need to do the final steep 430 metre climb.

You will see monkeys on the way to lighten the pain of the hike.

Is it worth it with kids? We found our nine-year-old appreciated it but our six-year-old was happier getting his shorts dirty by sliding down the loose gravel.

Places we didn’t have time for but worth a mention

That concludes our list of the top things that we had done in Hua Hin with kids.

There were still several places that we didn’t get time to visit or for whatever reason decided not to visit.

As I don’t have experience of going to these places, I can’t comment from experience but will list them here for reference and you can do further research:

Elephant Village: we heard this place is less ethical than the foundation. They do elephant rides and shows but there are concerns as to the elephant’s welfare.
Tree top adventure: we heard this was good but for us it felt too hot each day to be doing something like this, and we have one back in our home country nearby that we can visit any time so this wasn’t high on our list, but could be a fun afternoon out.
The Holiday Inn rooftop Skybar. Not sure if this is more for the adults than the kids but have heard this a stunning spot for views from the 27^th floor. We had a look at the menu and couldn’t justify the prices.
Malai Farm: forty minutes from Hua Hin, this place has crocodiles, sheep, deer amongst other petting farm animals. Again, we heard that this is not a very ethical attraction so decided to skip it.
Capy village: this place opened a few days before we left so never got round to it but looks pretty awesome for the kids. They have capybara, rabbits, iguanas all freely roaming around for the kids to feed.

Further afield from Hua Hin

The coast down from Hua Hin to Surat Thani is filled with dozens of villages and beaches, all very quiet but no less stunning.

Thung Wua Laeng beach was a highlight for us. A stunning quiet beach with white sand and lapping gentle waves with a stunning woods and cliffs as backdrop.

It is possible to reach Ko Phangan and Ko Samui from this coast without having to go all the way to Surat Thani. Boats leave from Chumphon. However, what you are saving on time in the car/train, you spend more time on the boat, so it’s about personal preference.

Getting to Krabi from here takes about nine hours in one solid drive in a car. We broke the journey up over three days and enjoyed the coast at a leisurely pace.