loveasia - what time of year there are different weather patterns so where is good say November to April is different from where might be best weatherwise March to september ( I hope it's not October as that if difficult as seasons change and it can be bad anywhere ).
If it's November to say April Khao lak may well suit, about an hour north from Phuket Airport on the mainland, busier now ( bob has been recently ) but the mix of nice beaches plus sufficient restaurants and a few shops seems like it might be of interest.
If it's between April and September then probably one of the quieter beaches on Samui might suit you, adding restaurants and shops to your requirments means some great beach places might not suit you.
To eat out in the evenings with a good selection Samui does give you options, so too would Khao Lak area.
I don't think Koh Tao would suit you based on your requirements and that also puts Koh Phangan out of the running.

I would 'never' deter someone from taking any recommended malaria med but just so that you know, for those who live in the tropics taking anti-malaria med is really a no-go as we simply cannot take them all the time, so we have to rely upon prevention. hence, I have no idea if you really need for Koh Chang or not. Koh Lanta is ok but I think Khao Lak seems it might be what you are after. perhaps Kata Phuket though getting more commercial.
As established, the beach at Hua Hin is not as great as others, however, do considor it is a cab/limo ( or train ) ride from BKK. Plenty of shops and masses of restaurants with great seafood and some very very good beach restaurants. Plenty of top class absolute beachfront resorts, Chiva Som, Hyatt Regency, Sheraton, Hilton, Sofitel, Marriott, Courtyard, Evason Six Senses, Intercontinental opening in a few months. National parks and beaches nearby, 2 hours to snorkeling off Koh Talu.
If it's within the next few months perhaps one of the better Samui beaches, you can from there take trips over to koh Phangan ( avoid Full Moon Party time ) and Koh Tao ( if you wanted to try some snorkeling ).
I would say until Sept Samui, if after November try Khao Lak.

No commercial ships are allowed anywhere near the Hua Hin coastal waters except local registered small fishing boats, perhaps 20 km offshore, well 'maybe'. Any 'ship' within the water would be a Navy supply vessel. MV Hanuman is the only exception allowed.

Wow, what a friendly post. For what it's worth, Leigh is not a woman. Leigh Travel Club is so named after the town we live in.....Leigh on Sea. A small fishing town in the south of England. My name is John.

I am tempted to respond to the bitching from the twat from New England.....but....hey I just can't be bothered.

Below is a link to a photo of the beautiful beach at Hua Hin. I have included a shot from some other 'so,so', Thai beach!!
http://tiny.cc/R3ieG

Shanek,

I'm just a local person and I'm not an expert on all things. I just pointed out your mistake or error when you wrote about the view of what you claimed to have seen from Hua Hin - "container ships making their way to Bangkok". Would you like to admit to your mistake and end this rather boring back and forth?

John,

Appologies on the mistaken gender. Could not zoom in or blow up the photo but your photograph shows a small naval patrol boat and some sort of auxiliary ship or perhaps even a WW2 vintage LST(landing ship tank) that the Thai navy still uses. It doesn't show the container ships and oil tankers that you claim sail within eyesight of the Hua Hin shore.

James,

The "MV Hanuman" is selling noodles at the floating market at the moment.

No reply from loveasia? Looks like he/she is as bored by this petty bickering as I was..

Bored by petty bickering? I don't think so! It reveals so much about each poster. They're degree of emotional involvement, plus an insight into their level of reality. Not to mention the Needhamite fouling things up. Keep it up.

Hanuman,
I already admitted that what I saw may have been Naval supply ships rather than commercial ships. Why this detracts from my original point eludes me. Whether they are commercial or military doesn't make them any less of an eyesore as Leigh's (John's) photo shows.
If you are so bored with the back and forth, why are you so intent on having the last word.
James, you may be right that Kata is becoming more commercial, I too are looking for another destination. I am hoping that there still isn't a Mcdonalds or a Burger King there. Would I be right in saying that it is still no more built up than AoNang however. The reson that I have recommended it to the now scared off OP is that they are travelling with kids and may actually find it convienient to be close to some commercialism. That is why it may suit them more than Khao Lak.

John, where did you stay when you went to Hua Hin ? If you just stayed around Plang Tao that would be near the fishing boats so would not be a decent area.

wow...all these months and even years i have thought leigh was a woman....i even looked at your business travel website once...sorry for the mistake...

sorry!!

might you be english? UKite or what ever term you wish? thought so...

lets call a truce and move on to more mundane things...

btw, i love seeing the navy ships off of HH....they are way north of town usually and never near to the coast on my visits there...

twat of NE

i've really liked my times in the past in plang tao....its unique

Bob, your apology is gracefully accepted.
Leigh Travel Club is not a business.....just a hobby which Lynda and I created because we couldn't find a group of 'like minded people' anywhere near where we live.
No, I am not english nor a UKite.....I am a Scot born and bred...but now exiled in england!
The truce is called, though I expect we will disagree again some time in the future.....but then, that's the point of a forum like this. We all like different things and we will not always concur.
The beaches of New England are a treat I have yet to experience.......but certainly on my list to visit.......We'll call by and see you.....maybe.

loveasia, sorry your post degenerated into this. Please don't be put off. This is a wonderful travel forum.

Apologies but have had computer problems and not been able to log on since I first posted a few days ago.

Thanks everyone for your replies and recommendations which I will now look into further. For information, and sorry that I did not include this in my original post, we are travelling in April. Although we would prefer a fairly straightforward journey from Vientiene to the beach, we do not want to compromise on it's beauty, given that we are used to the area around Ao Nang. Although we always took longtail boats to Railey and the other islands during the day, we did enjoy wandering around Ao Nang in the evening and having a choice of restaurants.

Thanks everyone for your input.

Well i very much like Hua Hin but it doesn't have the beauty of say Krabi (which is beautiful) but i would be happy with either.
The food in HH was smply fab too!

By the way I also meant to say that I have not been put off! I appreciate that people have different opinions and are passionate about the many wonderful and beautiful places in Thailand. This travel forum is an invaluable resource where we can tap into the highs (and occasionally the lows!) of other people's experiences.

Thanks again.

Good to see you back loveasia. Our behaviour has been appaling.
Dont get me wrong, I really enjoyed Hua-Hin. I got to play golf at a more reasonable price than the rest of Asia, I loved the trips to the National park, the food was excellent and the people very friendly. As a "beach" person though I was dissapointed, nothing wrong with the sand but the water was not that clear azure color and the outlook not spectacular. A good city beach but not what we have come to expect after trips to Samui, Phuket, Krabi and Phi-phi.
April is a great month for Phuket, prices are generally still high-season but I think that this year you will find some bargains. It will be a Hot time of year but that suits us and the monsoon would not yet have started to take it's control on the sea currents.
Phuket get's a bad wrap from people that have seen Patong beach and little else. It is a large,varied,beautiful Island with something for everyone.