Hat Yai Thailand to Malaysia

There a few options from Hat Yai Thailand to Malaysia for the cyclist. First, you simply hop on the train to Butterworth but the die hard will want to cycle.

A pretty shapshot of the artificial lake on the road to Betong
A pretty snapshot of the artificial lake on the road to Betong

The quickest way to get from Hat Yai Thailand to Malaysia is simply follow the road out of Hat Yai South to Sadao and Padang Besar (59km from Hat Yai town center).

The road to the border is big and busy and mostly unpleasant with the exception of the last 12 km from Sadao to Padang Besar. After the border it is 35 km to Kangar, a very pleasant and quiet road (cars and buses from Hat Yai use the motorway so you won't have them around)

In Kangar you can decide to either stay overnight, or take a boat to Langkawi, or you continue to Alor Setar

But if Langkawi is your first destination in Malaysia, you may prefer to cycle to Satun (around 90 km) where you can hop on a boat (B250) straight to Langkawi. Easier and nicer. And from Langkawi you can take the boat to Penang (RM 50 single).

WARNING

South Thailand, or better, east of Hat Yai is not 100% safe. Over the years Muslim extremist have been occasionally explode bombs in cities as Yala, Patani and Naratiwat. Check the people and police in Hat Yai if you decide to cycle to one of these cities.

There is another way into Malaysia although I hesitate to recommend it nowadays. I have done it a few times, the last time in April 2007. Take the road south out of Hat Yai in the direction of the border. After about 38 km, in Khlong Nguen, take the road to Na Thawi. It's a nice and quiet road you have to follow until you arrive at a T-junction, about 80 km further. At the junction, go right (south) and follow the direction to Yala. It's a long day with about 145 km.

Alternative you can take the motorway No. 4 to Patani and then cycle south to Yala. It's almost all flat and once you reach the beaches, about 60 km out of Hat Yai, you can stay here too. Most of Road 4 here is surprisingly quiet so this should not stop you from taking this road.

Yala has a few reasonable cheap hotels, some are actually surprisingly cheap considering what you get. Yala as a city doesn't offer much to make you anxious to come again here. But it is a convenient overnight stop on the way to either Naratiwat or Betong.

The road to Betong, 140 km long, is scenic, hilly and quiet. Betong itself is another typical border town, busy with all kind of people. And both times when I was there, I felt there's a lot of smuggling here. Remember when you use this road there is no accommodation available in between Yala and Betong. However, you may want to camp near the artificial lake somewhere halfway. You will be able to do some shopping down the road.

Hat Yai around 1925

Betong has a few hotels available from cheap to not so cheap. They are easy to find since the city centre is small enough to go around.

Betong is the border-town with Malaysia. The border is 7 km away from Betong. On the Malaysian site the first next town is about 7 km away: Pengkalan Hulu. There's a few hotels and a Maybank where you can change money or use the ATM.

Instead of going to Pengkalan Hulu and from there cycling south (or west to Baling and Penang, you can cycle south to Gerik. Follow 3 km after the border the signs for the road to Kuala Kangsar. You will pass Gerik. Here too you will find ATM's and Maybank.

The road from Yala to bannang Sata
The road from Yala to Betong, here Bannang Sata

You can choose to cycle from Betong to Penang on a mostly quiet though big road. My advice would be to leave the main road in Binjul and follow directions to Sungai Petani. After about 25-30 km you can follow directions to Pedang Serai and Lunas but you should skip Lunas and follow Sungai Dua, which is only a few km from Butterworth.

Scenery on the road when taking the road from Hat Yai Thailand to Malaysia

Gerik can also be your first food stop. Go in the centre of this little town to the main square, you'll find excellent nasi lemak. And Gerik is a centre for the original Malaysian people called the Orang Asli. You can visit the villages from Gerik, worth to do.

And if you decide to cycle from here east, direction Kota Bahru, you probably want to stay in Gerik too.

Back to Cycling in south Thailand

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Check out other hotel recommendation for Krabi, Hua Hin, Phuket, Koh Tao and Hat Yai

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