Information gathered from here
Introduction
As you enter Thailand by road from Malaysia at the Dannok border
crossing there is a large sign warning of the dangers of HIV and
AIDS.
If you can't live without art galleries or other forms of cultural
stimulation then Hat Yai probably isn't for you. Better choices
might be New York, Paris or London.
These things tend to say quite a lot about how Hat Yai is seen by
many people. But is there more to Hat Yai than just a place for
sexually frustrated Malaysian and Singaporean males to get their
rocks off for the weekend?
Malaysians view Hat Yai as southern Californians might view Tijuana
or Brits might view Amsterdam. It is close enough to visit for a
weekend, it's cheap relative to Malaysia, and it's fun. Groups of
Malaysian girls come to shop, families come for weekend breaks and
groups of men come to mess around with Thai girls (or Thai boys).
The Malaysian visitors are mostly of Chinese ethnicity but Muslims
and Indians also arrive.
In addition to Chinese Malaysian tourists, Hat Yai sees quite a few
Chinese Singaporean tourists who come for basically the same
reasons but have to travel a little further. With the recent advent
of Tiger Airways, a Singapore-based budget airline offering cheap
flights to Hat Yai, I suspect the number of Singaporean tourists
will start to increase.
Weather
Southern Thailand is hot all year round. Sometimes it's just hot,
other times it's very hot and occasionally it's very, very hot. The
humidity can get quite high too. They told me the hot season was
March and April and in true Thai fashion that wasn't exactly a lie
but it also wasn't quite the truth. March and April were indeed
very hot but so was January, February, May, June, July, August,
September ....
Unlike northern Thailand, Hat Yai doesn't get cold at night in the
'cool' season. In all my time spent living in Hat Yai I have never
once needed any article of warm clothing.
The rainy season varies slightly from year to year but fairly
regular light rain appears to arrive around September. October
through to January can be very wet causing the floods which affect
Hat Yai occasionally. By February it's getting damn hot again ready
for the full-blown hot season.
Be prepared for anything though. The winter of 2004/2005 was very
dry - so dry in fact that over 50 Thai provinces were affected by
drought conditions. At any time of year it can be very hot and/or
very wet.
Return to top of page
When To Go
Hat Yai doesn't have a high and low season tourist as such. It's
not like Phuket, for example, where there are huge crowds between
November and March and it is quieter the rest of the year. The
Malaysian/Singaporean tourist trade stays fairly constant year
round but as they tend to visit at weekends there is a definite
pattern each week.
Central Hat Yai on a Saturday or Sunday looks very different
compared to Monday mornings after most of the Malaysians have gone
home. If you are planning to stay for a short visit and can time
your arrival to fall on a Sunday or Monday it's a good idea
(provided the previous weekend isn't a Malaysian public holiday).
If you arrive on a Friday or Saturday, hotel vacancies will be more
difficult to find.
With regard to the time of year you visit, see my comments above
about the weather. To summarise though, February through to
September is very hot while October through to January is still hot
but can be very wet. October and November appear to be about the
two most comfortable months - temperature wise - but this period is
subject to heavy downpours which can be a little disruptive.
