Thai royalty fell for the beach at Hua Hin long before anyone else, in the early twentieth century, when the new southern railway made it easy to reach from Bangkok. King Prajadhipok built a summer palace here in the 1920s and named it Klai Kangwon, which means Far from Worries. Thai kings have spent long periods here ever since, and the town has kept a slightly more refined, less frantic air than many other resorts.
The railway station is a symbol of the town: a small, ornate wooden building painted red and cream, with a royal waiting room that looks like a pavilion from a fairy tale. The beach stretches for kilometres south of the centre, with horses for hire and rows of seafood restaurants on stilts over the water. At the southern end, Khao Takiab, a rocky headland with a temple and a resident troop of monkeys, has fine views back along the coast.
Food is one of Hua Hin's great pleasures. The night market in the town centre is packed with stalls selling grilled seafood, noodles, fruit and desserts, and the seafood restaurants along the waterfront serve fresh crab, prawns and fish at reasonable prices. There are also plenty of cafés and international restaurants catering to the large community of foreign residents.
For riders, Hua Hin is a natural lunch stop and a good base for exploring further south. About an hour's ride away, Khao Sam Roi Yot National Park has limestone hills rising from marshes and mangroves, and the Phraya Nakhon cave, where a royal pavilion stands in a vast chamber lit by sunlight through a collapsed roof. The ride along the coast is pleasant, though Highway 4 is busy, so it is worth seeking out the smaller coastal roads. Fuel and services are easy to find. The cool season, from November to February, is the best time to visit, although even then the midday sun is strong, so start early.