Not the first time I’ve been to Hatyai, but I thought of writing it this round. Meeting my girlfriend in between (she works in Bangkok & yes she’s Malaysian), so I traveled from Penang with a tour van and she flew from Bangkok. It amuses me how people always think I have a Thai girlfriend whenever I mention it.
This post is going to be filled with more photos than me writing. Read on!

To and fro Hatyai for only MYR75.
To and fro tickets only costed RM75 which I thought was dirt cheap but some other more experienced people told me otherwise. Oh wells. It took about 4 hours to get from Penang to Hatyai city. Through the trip there were about 3 mandatory stops to get passports stamps and clearance to enter Thailand. I traveled alone and got the front single seat so nothing to complain here. The back of the van looked quite cramped though.
First Day – Eat
I think the only thing you’ll do there on your first day in Hatyai other than massage is to eat. That’s exactly what I did after settling down at the hotel with the girlfriend.
Like any tourist looking for good food to try, we were suckered to go to the restaurants we found featured online. The first stop was at Kan Eng. I’ll be brutally honest, I was a little disappointed with the food. The food didn’t live up to its hype we found online but maybe I’m just being bias. I’ve tasted better Thai food in Malaysia though. 😀
I’ve never enjoyed the taste of pineapples, but it all changed after I had Thai pineapples. You have to eat Thai pineapples if you happen to be in Thailand.
You most likely will spend your first day walking a lot in Hatyai city, so foot massage is a must, yes? We treated ourselves to a 1-hour foot massage for 200 baht each. Makes me wonder how the masseurs survive running the massage parlor despite charging at such a low rate, not mentioning the fierce competition they have (there are massage parlors in every block in Hatyai. ).
More food after the massage. You’ll find lots many stalls and markets to explore in Hatyai City. I didn’t note the specific names of the marketplaces, but they are all mostly within walk reach. It was a fun food-filled day.
The thing about shopping in Hatyai though, is that the things you see are often repeated. Walk a block of stalls in Hatyai and you’ll probably cover near 50% of the things you can buy. You’ll find repeats of the same things being put up for sale as you explore around.
Second Day – Floating Market at Hatyai
Every tuk tuk driver you meet on the road WILL pester you to visit the floating market in Hatyai. The prices the tuk tuk drivers throw out can be negotiated, so make sure you negotiate before hopping on. I left the negotiation part to the girlfriend. Girls make the best negotiators, so make sure to travel with a lady 😛
The to & fro ride to the Hatyai floating market costed 400 baht for us.
It was at the entrance of the floating market where you’ll find a stall selling some exotic finger food. I’ve never tried food like this before & I was hoping that the seller could mix the different types of insects together. They refuse to mix unfortunately, so I only went with the crickets, which were the smallest insect of the lot.
It was nice to walk around the floating market and eat. Prices of the food are very reasonable and I got myself lots of different snacks.
Another highlight at the floating market was the drink stalls (or boats) that sold drinks in cartoon shaped porcelain mugs or bamboo.
Here are some photos from the floating market in Hatyai:
[images picture_size=”fixed” autoplay=”yes” columns=”1″ column_spacing=”13″ scroll_items=”” show_nav=”yes” mouse_scroll=”no” border=”yes” lightbox=”yes” class=”” id=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/crikets-for-lunch-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/bamboo-pulut-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Happy-to-be-selling-1024×612.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/floating-stalls-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/hatyai-floating-market-683×1024.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/sleepy-cat-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/fried-lok-lok-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Pretty-nice-coconut-stuff-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Market-next-to-the-floating-market-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/ji-an-chooi-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/Fancy-fried-grasshopers-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/yucky-food-1024×683.jpg” alt=””] [image link=”” linktarget=”_self” image=”https://www.reubenchng.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/really-doubting-my-choice-now-683×1024.jpg” alt=””] [/images]
The floating market is a nice place to visit for food, drinks and some shopping. While not being the biggest floating market you’ll find in Thailand it’s still a must see.
Time To Go Back
Hatyai is a nice place for a quick weekend trip. 2-3 days to explore is all you really need when you visit Hatyai.
I only learnt about the many other places like the Dragon’s Cave in Songkhla that I could have visited, when I was leaving Hatyai, so perhaps there would be a next round for that.
Below are more photos that I took during my time there, so feel free to browse them and ask me anything in the comment section below. I’ll do my best to answer any questions you may have.
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