Kui Buri
©
Kui Buri

Kui Buri

Quiet Thai coastal district where wild elephants feed near pineapple fields inland from empty Gulf beaches.

Kui Buri is a quiet coastal district south of Hua Hin, well off the main tourist trail along the Gulf of Thailand. The town itself is small and unremarkable, but the area draws visitors for two reasons: the wild elephants of Kui Buri National Park and the empty beaches along the so-called Sunrise Coast.

The national park, about 30 km inland, is one of the best places in Thailand to see wild Asian elephants in the late afternoon, when herds come down to feed in the pineapple fields at the park's edge. With over 200 elephants, it is the most reliable elephant-watching site in the country — and the tours, run informally from the park headquarters, are considerably less staged than elephant camps elsewhere in Thailand. Gaur (wild cattle) and langurs are also common.

The Sunrise Coast beaches are nothing spectacular by Thai standards, but they are genuinely quiet — a chance to sit on sand without another tourist in sight. Getting here is straightforward: buses and trains run south from Bangkok and Hua Hin along the coast, and the town has a small railway station.

Guide

Beaches

The beaches around Kui Buri are very quiet with not much around — a chance for those who really want to get away from it all. The sand is not spectacular by Thai standards, but this is a place that benefits from hardly any tourists and has a great local Thai atmosphere. Even if you do not stay, a visit for lunch makes a worthwhile stop along the Gulf of Thailand coast.

Guide

Getting There

The easiest approach is by train. The Southern Railway Line from Bangkok's Hua Lamphong or Bang Sue stations stops at Kui Buri railway station; several trains per day make this journey (roughly 3.5 to 4.5 hours depending on train class). The express trains are considerably faster than the ordinary services; check the State Railway of Thailand timetable before travelling.

By bus, take an air-conditioned bus from Bangkok's Southern Bus Terminal toward Prachuap Khiri Khan and ask to be dropped at the Kui Buri junction. Minivans also run from Hua Hin to Kui Buri. Driving from Bangkok takes about 3.5 hours on Highway 4 south through Petchaburi and Hua Hin.

There is no public transport from Kui Buri town to the national park; motorcycle taxis and occasional songthaews cover the route, or the park runs its own transfer from town during busy periods.

Guide

Things to Do

Kui Buri's two main draws are the national park, where wild Asian elephants are reliably spotted in the late afternoon, and the genuinely quiet beaches of the Sunrise Coast. Neither is a polished tourist attraction, which is part of their appeal.