Hua Hin: Taking it Slow

Photo: Ocean views from Hilton Hua Hin Resort & Spa, one of the area’s landmark hotels / Facebook

The sleepy seaside town has long been the choice of families looking to munch on fresh-caught seafood at beachside stalls and restaurants. It boasts one of the cleanest and longest stretches of white sandy beach in the country with clear blue waters and ample daybed vendors more than happy to let you lounge all day (just try to arrive before 10am before they are all booked). 

Hua Hin has long been the weekend getaway of choice for people looking to take things slow. It’s still very much that place, and you can cover a lot of ground by just walking the main road that slices between town and beach. 

Photo: Trattoria by Andreas is our pick for the best Italian restaurant in the area, but booking in mandatory / Facebook

Check out Cicada Market for an easy combo of food, entertainment, and local crafts—the Hua Hin Night Market is also a good option. 

Trattoria by Andreas is our pick for the best splash out Italian restaurant in the area (booking is mandatory), and Som’s Table for seaside European bites. Ple Seafood, while not much to look at, is a must-visit for its fish and shellfish locally caught by fishermen who dock their boats within vision range of the tables. 

Photo: Hilton Hua Hin’s daybeds with ocean views / Hilton Hotels

The Stay: Hilton Hua Hin Resort & Spa

Anyone who’s driven to Hua Hin will know this resort’s iconic towering white exterior as one of the first buildings to poke through the skyline. All the rooms and suites, which range from incredibly affordable B3,000/night to exuberant B14,000/night, all come with ocean views, easy beach access, and can accommodate groups of 3-6 people in most cases. 

The ample pool comes with plenty of daybeds (so no need to fight for often-packed beds at beachside stalls), a waterslide, and kids pool. Its Chay Had Restaurant and Lounge offers arguably the best panoramic views of the Gulf of Thailand out of any restaurant in the town—great for sunset cocktails or breezy lunches munching on somtam. The resort’s eforea Spa is also known town-wide as one of the very best in the whole area, and you get it just an elevator ride away here. 

Check out all the resort’s offerings and book a room for your next long weekend escape. 

Pattaya: Action Packed

Photo: Central Pattaya and Hilton Pattaya on Jomtien Beach / Facebook

Pattaya has come a long way in the past six years. Often brushed aside by Bangkokians as Thailand’s real “Sin City” with lesser-than food and drink options, it’s far from that today and many of the options for things to do rival Thailand’s capital. 

The surrounding area is packed with local landmarks, temples, and day trip opportunities to floating markets. The city is, however, still as fast-paced as ever with more than enough things to keep you occupied (sinful or otherwise). 

Photo: Horizon Rooftop Restaurant and Bar / Hilton Hotels

To start, it’s home to Thailand’s only Jewish deli, London Beigel and Salt Beef Bar, which makes the best pastrami on rye you’ll find in the Land of Smiles—for our money, at least. There’s also Prod, the “fin-to-scale” seafood specialist that pairs locally caught fish with high-wire cooking techniques, which is a first for the city. 

The Bann Sukhawadee mansion, just a few minutes away from the main drag, is a monument that feels ripped from the pages of a Wes Anderson film and well worth a visit. The city is also uniquely positioned as arguably a better place to check out rooftop dining and drinking than Bangkok, at least when visiting places like Horizon Rooftop Restaurant and Bar, which sits at the highest possible vantage point on top of Hilton Pattaya and features a stunning circular cutout of its ceiling. 

Photo: Every room at Hilton Pattaya faces the ocean form an elevated position / Facebook

The Stay: Hilton Pattaya

Blessed with a higher location than any other hotel in Pattaya, the Hilton Pattaya offers elevated sea views from every F&B outlet and every room. If the view is your first priority, you’ll get Pattaya’s very best at this place. 

The infinity pool, which is right beside the lobby, is begging for a dive in as soon as you arrive. Float to the far edge of the pool and you’ll gaze on Pattaya Beach and the glistening ocean. The food at Edge is great, especially for intimate evening meals paired with a good wine recommended by the sommelier. 

The rooms and suites, which again all face the ocean, start from a little over B7,000/night and you’ll be hard-pressed to find a better price-to-view combo anywhere along Jomtien Beach. The best bit is that the hotel sits right on top of Central Pattaya, a mega mall that’s a destination in its own right and a launch pad for much of what the city has to offer. 

See the very best of what Pattaya has to offer from a central location right by the beach by booking a stay at Hilton Pattaya through their website. 

Which one to choose?

So which one of these destinations is right for you? Both offer more than enough to do during a weekend getaway, it’s just a matter of pace and what you want on your to-do list. Choose Hua Hin if you want to spend hours (and hours) on the beach reading, eating, and taking the occasional nap before heading out to a night market. It’s a slower pace, but makes it easily approachable. Pattaya, on the other hand, is best for the travelers that want to get a lot done during their stay—beach time, shopping, visits to temples, waterparks, go kart rides—and don’t mind zipping around the city to get it done.