'Don't go to Phuket nor Koh Samui. Try this quieter Thai paradise instead.'

Sizzling satays, sandy beaches, cocktails, beachfront meals, night markets, swimming, sun…what's not to like especially when the alternative right now is an Australian winter.

I have been to Thailand several times but I had never been to Hua Hin. My husband, two adult daughters (21 and 24) and myself recently spent a week there.

Hua Hin is a coastal city and area on the western coast of the Gulf of Thailand — about 200 kilometres south of Bangkok, making it a popular weekend getaway for Bangkok residents. 

It's also where the Thai Royal family spends their summer.

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Where did we stay?

We stayed at the five-star AVANI + Hua Hin in interconnecting pool access rooms. This meant that we stepped from our sliding doors to the pool!

The hotel is built around enormous lagoon pools. Some rooms have jacuzzis and all the villas have their own private pools. 

The AVANI + Hua Hin would be great for smaller kids with the kids' club, (ages 4 -12), an inflatable obstacle course in one of the pools and special kiddie items at the breakfast buffet. Think electric Nutella dispenser (yep!!), fairy floss machine and soft serve ice-cream machine. There's also an aquarium with colourful fish in it as part of The Pantry restaurant.

For us bigger "kids," the pools were great, the buffet breakfast huge (a special shout out for the juicer and choice of healthy options all ready to juice for a morning energy boost) and the AVANIWell spa complex was luxe and enormous.

The hotel is also on the super long, 12-odd-kilometre white sand beach stretching between Cha-am and Khao Takiap beaches. The long, sandy beach was terrific for morning walks and beachfront meals.

We stayed in Hua Hin for a week so it would have been sacrilege to waste that enormous spa complex!

I had the AVANIWell half-day experience, which included a healthy and delicious lunch at The Pantry (restaurant), a 30-minute session in a 42-degree steam room (a new experience for me), a divine aromatherapy massage, and a one-on-one Reformer Pilates instruction session. In addition to the facial I had later in the week (thank you to my girls), I returned home a new woman!

My husband and daughters also had aromatherapy massages and ELEMIS facials. They all loved the pampering.

What did we do?

In Hua Hin, our favourite places to visit were Khao Takiap (beach), Tamarind Market and Cicada Market. These Markets are only open at night and only on certain nights — Friday through Sunday for Cicada and Thursday through Sunday nights for Tamarind. Tamarind is only food and Cicada is food and handicrafts. There is live music at both too. 

The array of food at both markets — not just Thai nor Asian but all sorts of food options — is incredible. The Markets also very clean so we didn't hesitate to eat there twice. Super cheap — think 20 chicken satays for $6AUD! The ambience was chill (warm actually but chill vibes!) and happy.

We also loved Khao Takiap (beach). Either side of Monkey Mountain (a giant rocky outcrop), there are restaurants, hotels and water sports. On the Hua Hin side, there were also a few small restaurants and bars built on stairs leading up to a twenty-metre-tall gold standing Buddha statue. There were great views from the restaurants and bars across the long Hua Hin sandy beach.

There are spas, tailors, restaurants, hotels and bars galore in Hua Hin. A lively night market too (distinct from Tamarind and Cicada Markets).

We wanted this holiday to be a recharge holiday rather than a charge-around holiday so we only left the Hua Hin area once. And that was for a pretty unique reason — to see elephants in the wild! We booked an elephant safari through GetYourGuide. We were picked up in a van and driven 90 minutes to the Kui Buri National Park, very close to the Myanmar border.

The wildlife-watching area of the National Park only opens from 2pm - 6pm every day (elephant feeding time) and you can only enter upon paying an entrance fee and hiring a safari vehicle together with a guide. You cannot self-drive in the National Park.

We stayed in the National Park for a couple of hours. There is no guarantee of seeing elephants, as the guides continually reinforce, these elephants are wild animals. In fact, for the rainy few days before our visit, no elephants had been sighted.

The four of us crossed our fingers and toes and we were rewarded by seeing four elephants in the wild, many gaurs and a heap of birds and butterflies. The gaur (a large wild cattle species native to Southeast Asia and also known as an Indian bison) were very handsome with their dark coats and pale horns against the lush green scenery but, for us, the stars of the natural show were the elephants.

What a thrill of thrills! We marvelled at seeing the elephants wandering happily. Our guide said the oldest and biggest elephant in the group was about 50 and the youngest and smallest was about 13.

Fun fact — Chang is the Thai word for elephant. Next time you order a Chang beer (we had a few in our week-long stay!), look at the label. There are two elephants on it.

Where did we eat?

The four of us love Thai food so we were not disappointed. Since we didn't wander too far from our hotel, we tried all their restaurants. The Pantry does a huge breakfast buffet and à la carte lunch. AQUA Pool Bar opens for lunch and dinner. We particularly loved the wood-fired pizza (yes, I know, not Thai!), the fried chicken with cashews and the Pad Thai. On the beach, there is Brezza Beach Bar and Restaurant open from 11am - 11pm. You can sit inside or outside. We sat outside both times we ate there — one night in a fairy lit teepee and the other night in a fairy lit marquée.

We had some great lunches at ramshackle restaurants on the beach too. One lunch was sitting under a blue tarpaulin as rain pelted overhead. Thai curry and Chang beer have never tasted better!

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How did we get around?

We mainly used Grab (a rideshare company widespread in Asia). This is easy as it's prepaid so no need to worry about having enough Thai Baht for the journey.

When it rained the first few days we were there, we also hired a car.

How do you get there?

The road between Bangkok and Hua Hin is very good, so you could self-drive but it's about a three-hour drive so we organised a private transfer. 

There's also a bus and train service. Hua Hin has an airport, but we couldn't find any direct flights between Bangkok and Hua Hin.

So, what's the verdict?

Hua Hin — a long, white sand beach, great food, endless days of 30 degrees (even if raining), high-quality accommodation and blissful spa treatments. A sure-fire recipe to relax and recharge. Plus, we were able to enjoy it with our adult daughters. 

When can we do it again?

The writer travelled to Hua Hin at her own expense. She was a guest of AVANI + Hua Hin for the AVANIWell half-day experience and the AVANIPOPUP dinner. All opinions expressed are the writer's own. 

Feature images: Supplied