Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [615]
Eating, Drinking & Entertainment
Hat Yai is the capital of southern Thailand’s cuisine, offering Muslim roti and curries, Chinese noodles and dim sum, and fresh Thai-style seafood from both the Gulf and Andaman coasts.
On Th Niyomrat, between Niphat Uthit 1 and 2, starting at Tamrab Muslim, is a string of casual and inexpensive Muslim restaurants open from about 7am to 9pm daily. Meals at these places cost between 20B to 60B. The extensive night market (Th Montri 1) specialises in fresh seafood and Hat Yai–style chicken. After gorging on street-stall food, try hitting one of Hat Yai’s upmarket hotels. Great meals can be found at the Montien Hotel, BP Hotel and the splurge-worthy Novotel, which features an amazing all-you-can-eat sushi dinner on Saturday evenings (450B).
Kai Tod Daycha (08 1098 3751; Th Chi Uthit; dishes 30-50B; lunch & dinner) Hat Yai–style fried chicken is a dish known across Thailand, and locals claim that Daycha does it best. Enjoy your spicy bird over fragrant yellow rice.
Sor Hueng 3 (08 1896 3455; 79/16 Th Thamnoonvithi; dishes 30-120B; 4pm-3am) This popular local legend with branches all over town prepares heaps of delicious Thai-Chinese and southern Thai faves. Simply point to whatever looks good or order something freshly wok-fried from the extensive menu.
Post Laserdisc (0 7423 2027; 82/83 Th Thamnoonvithi; 9am-1am) With an excellent sound system and well-placed monitors, this is a great joint to watch the latest blockbuster after dark; music videos are shown as fillers between films. Rockers replace movies on some nights, and the bands tend to be relatively good. Quash the booze with cheap pub grub from the East and West.
Cabaret enthusiasts should visit Barberry Club, Paragon Club or Hansa Café – all are located in a cluster downtown.
Getting There & Away
AIR
There are 12 daily flights connecting Hat Yai to Bangkok (2800B to 3000B). Operators include THAI (0 7423 3433; 182 Th Niphat Uthit 1), One-Two-Go (in Bangkok 0 2229 4260 ext 1126, elsewhere 1141; www.fly12go.com; New World Hotel, 152-156 Th Niphat Uthit 2), with one daily flight (1850B), Nok Air (0 2900 9955; www.nokair.com) and Air Asia (0 2515 9999; www.airasia.com).
BUS
The minibus station is 2km southeast of the town centre, though many buses make stops in town. It costs around 50B to take a túk-túk (pronounced úk dúk) to the bus junction. Destinations from Hat Yai include Bangkok (740B to 1075B, 14 hours), Krabi (235B, five hours), Ko Samui (combined bus/boat 380B, eight hours), Kuala Lumpur (350B to 450B, nine hours) and Phuket (370B, eight hours).
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MAKING A (VISA) RUN FOR THE BORDER FROM HAT YAI
The Malaysian border is about 60km south of Hat Yai, and many travellers come through town just to extend their Thai visas. To get an in-and-out stamp, head to Padang Besar, the nearest Malaysian border town (you do not need to head to Sungai Kolok). Buses are the most efficient option, costing 39B (two hours, every 25 minutes from 6am to 6pm); minivans are 50B (1½ hours, hourly from 6am to 6pm).
On the Thai side, the immigration office (0 7452 1020) is open daily from 5am to 9pm. There’s another border at Dan Nawk, south of Sadao (open 6am to 6pm), which can be reached by minivan (50B, 1½ hours), but this route sees more through traffic than day trippers. On the Thai side, the immigration office (0 7430 1107) is open daily from 5am to 11pm. If you need a longer Thai visa, you’ll have to see the Thai consulate in Georgetown, on Penang Island (accessible through the mainland town of Butterworth). Buses from Hat Yai to Butterworth are run by private tour companies and start from 250B (four hours). Trains from Hat Yai to Butterworth are slower and less frequent.
If you’re not in a rush to stamp your passport, try doing your visa run in style by taking the ferry that runs between Ko Lipe and the Malaysian island of Langkawi; Click