Cooking Classes
Thailand has an impressive cuisine. There is a broad range of herbs and spices that is used in Thai cooking, which explains for the many different tastes of the Thai dishes.
Taking some Thai cooking classes while you are in Thailand is a good idea if you like the Thai cuisine. Actually Thai cooking is not so difficult once you have grasped the basics.
Nowadays most herbs and spices are available in your home country, this makes it possible for you to cook great tasting and easy to prepare Thai dishes to impress your family and friends.
The greatest reward, after a day's shopping and cooking, is to sit down and taste the fruits of all your work.
Elephant Riding
Elephants were used for centuries as the primary mode of transport in Thailand.
At Elephant Village, 3 km west of the town centre, you will have a chance to enjoy a ride on an elephant. You can also watch the elephant taking their daily bath and seeing them demonstrate the logging techniques used in the jungle. There is also another, smaller elephant camp in Khao Takiab.
Go Karting
Hua Hin has one of only twelve go carting tracks in Thailand. The circuit is about 700m long and has banked curves for speed. The track has pits, floodlighting, a beer garden and catering. There is a range of karts available for hire. Transfers to and from your accommodation can be arranged as well.
Golf
Hua Hin is regarded as one of the best golfing locations in Thailand. With its 8 top quality golf courses all within a 30 minute drive of Hua Hin town centre, it is a real golfer’s paradise. Two more golf courses are located slightly further from Hua Hin, but are still reachable easily enough for a day's play.
In short there is plenty of choice and the courses will present challenges for the novice as well as the experienced golfer. Furthermore there are caddies available on all the golf courses. Prices are not expensive and generally it is good fun and very helpful to have them with you during your game, besides carrying your own clubs in the blistering heat is not a good idea.
Horse Riding
In Hua Hin horse riding is available right on the beach in Hua Hin as well as in Kao Takiab and it is suitable for the beginner right through to the more advanced rider. There are different courses available from instructors that are competent horse people. After you attended some basic lessons, you will be ready to enjoy a romantic beach ride.
Shopping
Thailand is well-known for its shopping and especially Bangkok.
Bangkok is only a 2 1/2 hour away from Hua Hin by mini bus and thus is within easy reach to the real shopping die hearts.
Hua Hin itself offers a wide variety of local markets, shops and a shopping mall where you can shop till you drop.
Hua Hin Market Village is the first large shopping complex in Hua Hin, clothes, food, restaurants, camera and computer shops, a bakery, banks and pharmacies is just a short list of the shops that can be found here.
Walking & Cycling
There are some great tracks around Hua Hin for cycling. Before you know it you will be out of the city and in the subtropical countryside. Cycling is a great way to keep fit and, at the same time, enjoy the natural surroundings of Hua Hin.
The main walk in Hua Hin is along the beach that stretches from the Sofitel Hotel to Monkey Mountain at Khao Takiab and is approximately 7km in length. Taking a morning stroll on the beach is a great way to start your day. Along the way you can enjoy little crabs, birds and at the beach at Monkey Mountain you might even encounter some monkeys.
There are plenty of other options for walking routes, one of which is around Royal Hua Hin Golf Course with centuries old trees in stunning landscape.
Watersports
There are a number of water sports one can do in and around Hua Hin. Most of them can be found at the beach in Kao Takiab, about 7 kilometers south of Hua Hin Centre. Water sports offered here are banana boats, jet skis, parasailing, canoeing, kayaking, doughnut and waterskiing. In the past couple of years kite surfing or kite boarding has become an extremely popular sport in Hua Hin, it can be done on Hua Hin and Kao Takiab beach.
Cruises
Come and explore the beauty of the Gulf of Thailand close to Hua Hin. This service features a catamaran which will be available from the beginning of 2010, which will allow you to discover secret places only accessible from the water, to make your holiday a magical memory.
Diving
Koh Talu is a private island in the Gulf of Thailand, 30 minutes boat ride from Bangsaphan which is a 2 hour trip by minivan from Hua Hin. It has unspoiled beaches and coconut palms encircling the pristine evergreen tropical rainforest covering most of the island. The shallow clear blue sea with rich marine life and the shallow depth makes it the perfect place for snorkeling and diving.
Koh Tao - Imagine a small tropical island with incredible snorkeling and scuba diving, a rich jungle in the centre and surrounded by remarkably quiet, palm tree laced beaches. You're imagining Koh Tao, a small island off the southern coast of Thailand not far from the better known Koh Samui. Just over 10 years ago buffalo carts and tiny boats were used as the main form of transportation. The first diving operations came from Samui with the divers staying the night in primitive huts.
Since this time Koh Tao has exploded on the diving circuit and it now has the reputation of being the main training center for dive students in South East Asia.
It takes about 3 hours to get from Hua Hin to Chumpon, from there it takes 2 hours by high speed boat to get to Ko Tao.
Jet Ski & Parasailing
There are a number of activities you can do at the beach in Hua Hin. At Khao Takiab a small water sports center can be found, they offer jet skis, parasailing, banana boats riding, doughnut, and waterskiing. These activities are also popular at Cha-am beach, around 30km north of Hua Hin.
Kayaking & Canoeing
Kayaking and canoeing can be done at Hua Hin and Kao Takiab beach. A nice route to kayak is around Monkey Mountain at Khao Takiab around 7km south of Hua Hin town center. Kayaks can be rent from some beach front hotels and guesthouses at Kao Takiab.
Kite & Windsurfing
There are two kite surfing schools in Hua Hin offering lessons and tuition:
IKO - The IKO Kiteboarding programs are designed to help you learn in a safe way while your IKO Instructor respects your rhythm and takes you through all the steps so you can reach your goals.
Kitesurfing Pranburi - They ensure that all lessons are carried out with 100% safety in mind and a maximum of 2 students per teacher.
The best period with steady winds is March and April. The ocean along the coast is pretty shallow and usually pretty flat.
Snorkeling
Hua Hin has an easy access to diving and snorkeling sites. Bangsaphan, about 90 km. from the provincial town, is a fantastic area for safe snorkeling in Prachuap Khiri Khan.
The sites are around the islands of Koh Talu and Koh Sang where a number of beautiful coral reefs and marine life can be admired beneath the shallow crystal clear water.
Koh Talu is a private island in the Gulf of Thailand, 30 minutes boat ride from Bangsaphan. It has unspoiled beaches and coconut palms encircling the pristine evergreen tropical rainforest covering most of the island. The shallow clear blue sea with rich marine life and the shallow depth makes it the perfect place for snorkeling and diving.
At Koh Lamla you can find Kung Phayaban or "cleaning shrimps", it is the only place in Thailand where these "cleaning shrimps" can be found.