Wat Tham Khao Tao

The climb is the point here. This is a cave temple set into a limestone hillside in Nong Kae, south of Hua Hin, and while the caverns with their Buddha images and religious artwork are worth your time, it's the walk up to the hilltop and the open views across the surrounding landscape that people remember. If you've done the busier temples closer to town and found them a bit of a scrum, this is the antidote.

It's a working temple, not a spectacle, so come expecting quiet rather than grandeur. Paths link the cave shrines to the higher viewpoints, and the ground is rocky and uneven in stretches. I wouldn't attempt it in flip-flops, and I wouldn't recommend it at all if stairs and loose footing are a problem for you. Go early. Morning is cooler, the light is better, and you'll have the place more or less to yourself.