The Best Of Thailand | Travel in Thailand with Ashley

Courtyard Marriott Hua Hin targets Indian MICE during weekdays

  

All the Courtyard Marriott's 243 guest bedrooms offer you stunning views of the sea. Located about 20 kilometers out of Hua Hin on its sister beach Cha am, the Hotel has some unique advantages to host Indian meetings, conventions and exhibitions.

1. The high ceiling-ed Leelawadee Grand Hall is 6200 square feet and can be partitioned into 5 separate rooms. This is ideal for corporate in house programs. Indian wedding planners looking for a better value option might also consider the Courtyard Marriott.

2. They have 5 breakout rooms that are 474 square feet which are excellent for breakout sessions.

3. They have extensive beachfront which can be used for gala dinners, theme dinners and wedding welcome receptions.

4. Internet connectivity is good.

5. The hotel is happy to cater for Indian meals.

6. Weekday rates would be better than weekend rates as Hua Hin is a weekend destination.

7. Corporate managers can take their families as the resort has a state of the art kids club.

 

3 things to do using Hua Hin as a base

If you check out any of the websites that recommend activities and sightseeing around Hua Hin, you are bound to come up with golf, palaces, a hillside palace and a tram that takes you all the way to the top. Nothing for the activity crazy tourist. However here are some ideas that you might wish to try out.

1. Go bird watching at Sam Roi Yod:This is a national park that begins about 36 kilometers south of Hua Hin. Check out the topography on the google map link attached.  http://maps.google.co.th/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=hua+hinddr=sam+roi+yod&geocode=l=en&mra=ls&sll=13.622725,99.443375&sspn=2.64235,3.515625&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=10

There is not a great deal of awareness on this national park but the Bangkok Post had done a nice article on this (see http://www.bangkokpost.com/travel/travelnews/11929/topographical-medley) While there isn't any birdwatching for the punters who are looking for birds of the non feathered variety, Sam Roi Yod offers great opportunities to avid birdwatchers. You can find the scaly thrush, the pied kingfisher, the Indian roller and the Asian-bared-owlet to name a few.

 

Sam Roi Yod National Park

2. Pack a picnic lunch and head for Prachuap Khiri Khan:

Prachuap Khiri Khan is a town that has a stunning bay that isan hour's drive from Hua Hin. Check out this link.. http://maps.google.co.th/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=hua+hin&daddr=prachuap+khiri+khan&geocode=&hl=en&mra=ls&sll=12.38427,99.957733&sspn=0.663956,0.878906&ie=UTF8=12.360125,99.891815&spn=0.664018,0.878906&t=h&z=10

 

Prachuap Khiri Khan

3. Pack a picnic lunch and go to Kaeng Krachan National Park:

About 66 kilometres north of Hua Hin is the Kaeng Krachan National Park. See the link...http://maps.google.co.th/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=hua+hin&daddr=kreang+krachan&geocode=&hl=en&mra=ls&sll=12.360125,99.891815&sspn=0.664018,0.878906&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=9&iwloc=ddw1_0&lci=org.wikipedia.en 

Kaeng Krachan is located on the eastern slope of the Tenasserim Mountain Range at the border of Burma (Myanmar). This is as close as you are going to get to Burma without a visa.

 

Keang Krachan National Park, Thailand

Hua Hin vs Pattaya

 

 

On a clear day you can look across the Gulf of Thailand from Pattaya on the eastern seaboard and see Hua Hin on the western seaboard  is what a friend told me. http://maps.google.co.th/maps?hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=13.141003,100.426025&spn=1.318572,1.757812&z=9   I have tried on many occasions and perhapsthe eyesight is fading or our climate is too tropical to allow great visibility.  Whatever the issue the two destinations could not be more different from each other and never the twain shall meet. Hua Hin is different in many ways as listed below:

1. Hua Hin is a family destination:   When you think of a beach destination within driving distance of  Bangkok that provides a quick escape for the whole family, Hua Hin immediately comes to mind. Indeed many of Bangkok's rich and famous have their second home in Hua Hin. Known for its seafood and championship golf courses, punters looking for nightlife are likely to be disappointed here. Avid photographers looking for picture postcard scenery are likely to be disappointed. What you can capture here is life in its simple form. Hua Hin is after all a weekend getaway for the Thais and now for a lot of foreigners.

2.Hua Hin offers world class championship golf courses: O.A. Robbins, a Scottish railway engineer designed a golf course which opened in 1924 called the Royal Hua Hin Golf Course. This firmly established Hua Hin as the playground for the Thai rich and famous. Today you have severalchampionship golf courses in the immediate vicinity of Hua Hin. Jack Nicklaus put his name to the Springfield Royal Country Club. Other well known golf courses include the Imperial Lake View, Palm Hills Golf and Country Club, Majestic Creek, Milford Golf Course, Banyan Golf Course and the Black Mountain. 

 

Great golf to be played in Hua Hin

3. Hua Hin has boutique hotels and 5 star hotels:In Pattaya you could get a room for USD 10 per room per night including breakfast. In Hua Hin you should not be looking for a room below USD 100 a night as you want to be spoiled and pampered. Take your pick from the Hyatt Regency, Anantara, Sheraton, Dusit Polo Club, Hilton, Sofitel, Marriott Resort & Spa to name a few of the 5 star hotels. The Courtyard Marriott is one of the few hotels that fuse a great product with a value for money price and this is bound to be always "sold out" in the future because of a lack of rooms in this segment. You could also try out boutique hotels like the Veranda, Aka or Let's Sea.

  

 

 

4. Hua Hin has great seafood restaurants and dining options: Most of Hua Hin's seafood restaurants are built on stilts above the sea. There are a couple of them that are in the main town area and these are more like open air shops. Prices are reasonable and the food is delicious. There are trendy restaurants like Let's Sea and there are 5 star eateries...all in all great choices, whichever way you lean. There are even a couple of Indian restaurants in the area around the Hilton.

 

 

5. Hua Hin has some great MICE facilities: The first great draw is the complete absence of night life. This means no bleary eyed delegate the morning after. Bright eyed and busy tailed delegates can be expected to conference without any distraction...they cannot shoot out for a shopping expedition either as Bangkok and Pattaya's famous mall culture has yet to arrive in Hua Hin. Hotels like the Courtyard Marriott, Hyatt Regency and Hilton have large convention halls, breakout rooms and a plethora of gala dinner options.

You can see why the twain never shall meet though the Gulf of Thailand licks gently at both eastern and western seashores.