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Hat Yai is a sprawling town of over 130, 000 people and is the business and entertainment capital of Southern Thailand. Some 950 km South of Bangkok, Had Yai can be reached from the capital by air, bus or train. The overnight bus trip from Bangkok is cheap but hard going with up to 15 hours on the road - travel by express train is recommended.
Hat Yai is the first major stop in Thailand for overland travelers from Singapore and Malaysia and has a deserved reputation as a wild city. To Malaysian tourists on a budget Hat Yai is sin city with it's masses of cheap hotels and even cheaper brothels. The city is also an important commercial hub for Thai-Malaysian trade and its streets bustle with countless shops and other businesses. Hat Yai has a substantial and visible Muslim population and there are Mosques as well as Buddhist Temples scattered around town.
Hat Yai is well worth spending a few days exploring if you are passing through on your travels. The town itself is unremarkable aside from a plethora of shops full of bargains but is a good place from which to explore Songkla Province, including the town of Songkla 32 km away and the inland sea.
Why stay in Hat Yai ? It has a bewildering choice of restaurants and food stalls with a mix of Thai and Malay influences. The range of hotels in town is staggering - no matter what your budget you will be surprised at the level of comfort you can afford in Hat Yai. As is usual in any Thai city some of the cheaper places are flea pits or brothels or both so shop around before you choose. Prices in the better hotels in town can be bargained down considerably if business is slow.
I have stayed at the Pacific Hotel near the railway station which is basic but cheap and comfortable. Two classier places I have stayed at and highly recommend are the Inter Hotel with its large downstairs disco on Niphat Uthit 3 Road and the Montien on Niphat Uthit 1 Road with its smaller but equally noisy cocktail lounge.
Apart from the nightclubs which grace all of the larger hotels the streets of Hat Yai are amazingly free of the usual lurid neon signs and blaring bars. If you are wondering where the legions of nightclubs for which Hat Yai is well known are, you had best ask your hotel bellboy or tuk tuk driver.
Hat Yai's wild nightlife is for some reason modestly tucked away by and large out of the view of the passer by and only discovered by the casual visitor with the guidance of locals - just make sure you know what you are in for before you set off - everything and anything goes in some of the local nightclubs and bars.
If you are looking for a mild evening's entertainment I would suggest dinner at a street restaurant then heading for one on the bigger hotels' nightclubs for drinks and live entertainment.
Be aware that whilst Hat Yai is largely a friendly town there are plenty of gangsters on the streets offering to sell any vice known to man. Avoid the strangers who approach you on the streets and be security conscious when out alone at night.
Sadly Hat Yai has been affected by the insurgency afflicting southern Thailand. Bomb attacks in April 2005 targeted the airport, a local supermarket and a hotel, killing 2 and injuring 75. Be sure to check your country's latest travel advice before visiting Hat Yai.
From Hat Yai you can buy cheap bus or train tickets to almost anywhere in Thailand and Malaysia. By bus Phuket is 6 hours away, Surat Thani 5 hours, Kuala Lumpur 13 hours and Singapore 15 hours. Or splash out and take a 40 minute flight to Penang in Malaysia for a change of scenery.
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HOTEL RESERVATIONS 
