Booming Hat Yai city is almost as modern and high rise as you get in Thailand outside of Bangkok, the bustling downtown area consists almost entirely of huge banks, skyscraping hotels interspread between department stores and massage parlours. At ground level the central area is jammed with small shops, food stalls, arcades selling everything imaginable and all lit by dazzling neon. It is not western tourists who are responsible for this boom but the crossborder visitors from Malaysia, an hours drive away, who flock here in droves for the cheap wares. Crudely speaking this involves the wives shopping in air-con malls while the men go off for a massage or "hair-cut" - Thai women being one of the cheap deals to be had for many Malaysian and Singaporean men.

Despite the busy downtown area, Hat Yai is not that big and most of the activity is concentrated along its 3 main throughfares Niphat Uthit 1,2 & 3, known locally as Sai Neung, Sai Song and Sai Sam, particularly the section between Thanoonwithi and Suphasanrangsan Roads which on a rainy evening, and it does rain a lot in Hat Yai, takes on an almost "Blade Runner" feel to it.

Food and drink of every kind abound, though Hat Yai prices are easily as high as Bangkok, but apart from having a massage, shopping or eating there is not a lot to do here. Still it is fascinationg to see and the city park is well worth a visit if you have the time. The population is largely Chinese as one would expect from such a commercial hub, with a muslim minority and due to the number of Malaysian visitors, English is widely spoken.