Khao Sam Roi Yot (“The Mountain With Three Hundred Peaks”) National Park, just south of Pranburi, contains an expansive 88.8 kilometers, and houses part of the Tenasserim Mountains. It also boasts magnificent gray limestone mountains that rise to a height of up to 605 meters, as well as ravines and caverns ripe for exploring through the park’s trails and roads. Khao Sam Roi Yot features ten different habitat zones, including the Thung Sam Roi Yot, the largest freshwater marsh in Thailand. The park also contains beaches, caves, mountains, offshore islands, forest trails, and mangrove. You can find rare animals like the Serow (a goat-antelope difficult to find in other parts of Thailand) Barking Deer, Dusky or Spectacled Langur, Crab-eating or Long-tailed Macaque, Slow Lorris. Malayan Pangolin, Malayan Porcupine, Javan Mongoose, and more. You may even spot the occasional dolphin.

The Pranburi Forest Park, located at the mouth of the Pranburi River, protects the Khlong Kao-Khlong Kob National Reserve Forest’s mangrove forest. If you have time, you can also seek out the Pa La-U waterfalls , which takes the shape of 11 tiers cascading magnificently down in the very center of the forest. The Mrigadayavan Palace (“Palace of Love and Hope”) is located not far from Hua Hin, and was built in by King Rama VI in 1924 as a summer vacation spot. Comprised of 16 golden teak buildings, Mrigadayavan Palace features architecture in the Thai-Victorian style.

Another relatively close attraction, Paknam Pran, where the Pranburi river flows to the sea, is about 10 kilometers away from Pranburi. Paknam Pran is home to many boutique hotels, as well as Kao Galok (Skull Mountain), the most famous resort area of Pranburi. The 42-meter high and 1500-meter wide Pranburi dam is another often-missed attraction of Pranburi. Built in 1978, the dam prevents the lowland from flooding by creating an artificial lake with an area of 35.2 square kilometers, and supplies a constant flow of water for irrigation.

Pranburi’s peaceful, relaxing beaches and its stunning array of nearby natural and manmade wonders should sate a traveler’s thirst for exotic discovery (not to mention fresh fruit).