Hat Yai for Two
Dim Sum Mornings, Cafe Days, a Cable-Car Sunset and Night-Market Dates

A morning for couples in Hat Yai should start slowly, and the thing not to miss is a dim sum breakfast. Hat Yai has a strong dim sum and old-coffee-shop culture, because it is a Chinese-Thai city. Take a late start and sit down together to order steamed buns, har gow, siu mai, chicken feet and trays of steamed dim sum to share, with a fragrant kopi coffee with condensed milk. The setting of an old shop, with locals in for their morning coffee and a chat, is a charm you will not find in other cities. Starting the day like this makes a trip for two feel relaxed from the first plate.

One of the hearts of a date in Hat Yai is the cafe scene. The city has plenty of new-wave cafes, from specialty coffee shops and matcha-and-dessert places through to old kopitiams still serving old-style coffee with condensed milk and kaya toast. In the heat of the afternoon, ducking into a nice air-conditioned cafe to sit with a coffee or matcha, eat something sweet, and talk for a long while is an easy, quietly romantic thing to do. You can pick a designed cafe that is good for couples photos or an old kopitiam with a local feel. Hopping between two or three in a day makes a good date with no real planning needed.

This is the most romantic spot in the city itself. Hat Yai Municipal Park on Khao Kho Hong has a cable car that takes you up the hill, with a view over the city and the green hills on the way up. At the top are the Phra Buddha Mongkol Maharaj, a large golden standing Buddha, and the Guanyin shrine, and there is a lovely high view over Hat Yai at golden hour. Go in the late afternoon to early evening to watch the sun set over the city together — a quiet stretch of being close without going far. Importantly, check the cable car's opening hours first, as it is closed some days and shut for maintenance at times. If you would rather not queue for the cable car, there is a road up to the standing Buddha as well.

Evenings for two in Hat Yai mean a good dinner together. The city is known for several kinds of food — seafood with fresh prawns, crab and squid, Chinese-Hokkien cooking, and proper southern dishes like kao yam (herb rice), roti and southern Thai-Muslim food. If you like to share a spread, the Chinese-southern restaurants in town serve plenty of dishes by the plate, or for a seafood mood there are seafood restaurants in the city — order grilled prawns, grilled squid and crab fried in curry powder to share. Finish with a dessert or a chilled fruit drink. A good dinner with the person you love is the best memory of a food-city trip like this.

Evenings for couples in Hat Yai mean an easy stroll through a night market together. The ones not to miss are the Greenway Night Market and the ASEAN Night Bazaar, both full of street food, snacks, drinks, fresh juices and things to shop for. Graze your way along, with a milk tea or a cold fruit drink in hand, eating your way through hand in hand. It is an easy evening date that needs no planning. Hat Yai's night markets are lively and feel safe in their busy area, which makes them a good way to round off an evening for two after dinner.

After a day of walking the city and the markets, a couples spa is a favourite way to round things off. Hat Yai has plenty of spas and massage shops, from hotel spas through to friendly-priced massage places in town, and many have couples treatment rooms where you can lie side by side. You can pick a Thai massage to work out the aches, an oil massage, or a foot massage after a day on your feet. Lying side by side for a massage with soft music in the background is a moment of calm you share without needing to say anything. Book the couples treatment ahead, as evening slots fill fast. It is a light thing to do that keeps a city trip from getting too tiring.

For a bit of sea and a change of pace from the city, a ~30-minute ride to Songkhla is the answer for two. The highlight is Samila Beach, the nearest beach to Hat Yai, which is good for a seafront sunset together and a photo with the Golden Mermaid statue, the symbol of the town, with the small Cat and Mouse islands offshore. From there, walk the Songkhla old town along Nang Ngam, Nakhon Nai and Nakhon Nok roads, full of pastel Sino-Portuguese shophouses, street-art murals and cafes to wander and photograph hand in hand. And if you have the energy, Khao Tang Kuan hill gives you a high view over the town and the Songkhla lagoon. It is a day trip that gives you sea, an old town and good food all in one.

Hat Yai is a shopping city that Malaysians and Singaporeans cross over to shop in, so shopping together is a fun, light thing to do for two. The best-known is Kim Yong Market, a market of dried goods, snacks, food and imported gifts where you can pick out things to take home together. Nearby are the Santisuk and Plaza markets for clothes and goods, while for air-conditioned malls there are Central Festival Hatyai and Lee Gardens Plaza to wander, catch a film, and eat. It is a good thing to slot in during the heat of the day or on a rainy one — no real planning needed, just shop and eat your way around together.

Hat Yai is a city, not a resort town, so most stays are city hotels. The key to a stay for two is picking the style that fits the trip. If you mostly want to eat and wander the city, choose a hotel in the city centre around the Kim Yong Market and Lee Gardens area, and ask for a quieter higher-floor room with a city view — an easy walk to dim sum, cafes and the night markets. If you also want some downtime at the hotel, choose a hotel or stay on the edge of town that is calmer and has a pool, then call a Grab into town when you want to eat or browse a market. Pick the right area, then spend the time with your other half, for a trip that is easy both out and about and back at the hotel.

Timing matters for a city trip for two. November to February is the dry season and Hat Yai's best window — less rain and more pleasant weather than the rest of the year, ideal for walking the city, sitting in cafes, taking the cable car and browsing the night markets. March to May is hot and humid but still fine to visit, with an umbrella and water on hand. The honest part is that the northeast monsoon, roughly October to December, brings heavy rain in spells (peaking around November), and in bad years the city floods — so if you come in the rainy season, check the forecast and flood news before you travel. The upside is that Hat Yai has a lot of indoor places — restaurants, cafes and malls — so even on a wet day you can still eat and wander happily.