Hat Puek Tian

Phetchaburi


This rather unattractive beach, 20km southeast of Phetchaburi (you'll need private transport to get here) attracts a mix of beach and book lovers. Although the locations in the epic Thai poem Phra Aphai Mani were fictional, it has been surmised that this beach was writer Sunthorn Phu's inspiration because he did visit here.

In his honour, a partially submerged statue of an ogress stands offshore with an outstretched hand and a forlorn expression, depicting a character from the poem who disguised herself as a beautiful temptress to win the love of the hero and imprison him on the beach. But he discovers her treachery (and her true ugliness) and with the help of a mermaid escapes to Ko Samet.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Phetchaburi attractions

1. Phra Ram Ratchaniwet

11.62 MILES

Construction of this elegant summer palace, an incredible art-nouveau creation, began in 1910 at the behest of Rama V (who died just after the project was…

2. Wat Kamphaeng Laeng

12.15 MILES

A 13th-century remnant of the time when the Angkor (Khmer) kingdom stretched from present-day Cambodia all the way to the Malay peninsula, this shrine was…

3. Cha-am Forest Park

12.24 MILES

Out on the edge of town, an easy bike ride from the beach, this park is known not for its beauty, but rather its white-handed gibbons. The gibbons usually…

5. Wat Yang

12.33 MILES

This temple west of the city centre has a century-old hŏr đrai (sacred manuscript library) on stilts in a pond to protect the contents against termites…

6. Wat Mahathat Worawihan

12.42 MILES

Centrally located, gleaming white Wat Mahathat is one impressive temple. The showpiece is a 42m-tall five-tiered Ayuthaya-style prang (corn-cob shaped…

7. Wat Yai Suwannaram

12.45 MILES

This expansive temple, founded in the late Ayuthaya era, holds quite a bit of history. Foremost are the faded murals inside the beautiful bòht (ordination…

8. Shadow Puppet Museum

12.47 MILES

Not a fully fledged museum, rather there are 32 large năng yài shadow puppets, made by the former abbot, displayed on light boxes in Wat Plabplachai's old…