Khao Takiab

Khao Tabiab’s prominent rocky mountain marks the southern end of Hua Hin’s 20 kilometres of straight, almost uninterrupted beach. The steep, pointy outline of this mountain dominates the area, and can be seen from all Hua Hin beaches to the north. The mountain is home to a famous Buddhist monastery that many visit, and a huge troupe of monkeys (crab-eating macaques) that are an attraction in themselves. A small estuary and canal run behind the mountain, providing a harbour for a fleet of small artisanal fishing craft.

The beach on the north side of this mountain is generally referred to as Khao Takiab Beach, while the name of the beach on the southern side is sometimes confusing. Some also call this Khao Takiab, for easy recognition, while others refer to it as ‘Suan Son’, the name of the long beach to the south, which also ends at the mountain.

Suan Son, on the south side of the mountain, is usually recognized as the beach area controlled by the military and accessed through the military camp a few kilometres down Phetkasem highway. This is open to the public, and is the only beach in the area left in a natural state, without walls or buildings along the sand. Anyone wishing to see what Hua Hin looked like before development transformed, and often ruined, its beaches, should come here to enjoy the wide, park-like forest of casuarina trees behind the beach.