Tens of thousands expected to visit even on weekdays

Tourists in Hua Hin, Thailand can now cap a day at the beach with a stroll at the shopping mall, and with talks of a future housing project beside it, they will soon be able to live where they shop too.

Hua Hin Asset Co, the joint venture between The Mall Group and the Liptapanlop family’s Proud Real Estate firm, opened on Saturday its first mall in the beach resort town: BluPort.

The rise of top-end residential property projects in Hua Hin has become a deciding factor in the mall’s creation, according to Supaluck Umpujh, vice-chairwoman of The Mall Group, the developers behind the Siam Paragon in Bangkok. “Many executives have a second home in Hua Hin, where they enjoy relaxing on weekends,” she told The Nation. “Hua Hin is a charming city with a long legacy.”

The new mall stands next to a tract of land that has been reserved for a residential development, according to Pasu Liptapanlop, executive director of Hua Hin Asset.

BluPort, which covers 200,000 square metres, cost more than THB5billion (USD144 million) to build. The retail centre is expected to command heavy foot traffic, with 20,000 visitors expected on weekdays and 60,000 at peak season.

Aside from retailers, residential developers are bullish on Hua Hin’s prospects. PACE Development is developing MahaSamutr, a community of villas which gird a Crystal Lagoon similar to one in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. The development earned three awards at the recently wrapped-up Thailand Property Awards.

Source: http://www.property-report.com/you-can-now-go-to-a-mall-in-hua-hin-thailand-and-live-beside-it/