🔄 Updated 21 Jun 2026
Khlong Hae Floating Market sits at the canal landing of Wat Khlong Hae in Khlong Hae sub-district, Hat Yai, about 3-4 km north of central Hat Yai. It's under a 15-minute drive or Grab ride away. What sets it apart from a regular evening market is that vendors really do paddle out and sell their food from boats in the middle of the canal, not just from stalls on land. Buyers stand or sit on the landing along the canal, place an order, and the vendor passes the dish or wrapped parcel up on a long pole. It's a sight you'll only find in a handful of places across the South.
Another thing the market is deliberate about is its packaging. Most food comes in banana leaves, coconut shells or bamboo tubes, cutting down on foam and plastic in keeping with the cultural-market concept. It all adds to the atmosphere as you eat, and it suits anyone who wants to see real Southern life the way locals come out to eat it, rather than a market built purely for tourists.
Opening days, hours and the best time to go
Khlong Hae Floating Market opens only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The official hours are roughly 1:00-9:00pm, but in practice the boats come out in force and the crowd peaks from late afternoon into the evening. If you arrive in the morning or early afternoon, some stalls may not be fully open yet.
- Open days — Friday, Saturday and Sunday only (closed on weekdays; turn up on the wrong day and you'll just find a quiet temple and an empty landing)
- Hours — roughly 1:00-9:00pm, with the peak around 4:00-8:00pm when the boats and crowds are at their best
- Recommended time — come around dusk, when the air cools down and the sun softens, so you can eat and stroll along the canal in comfort
- Heads up — opening and closing times shift with the season and festivals, so if you're coming a long way, check the Khlong Hae Floating Market page or the Khlong Hae municipality before you set out to be safe
Plan your day around the right dates
The most common mistake is coming to Hat Yai Monday through Thursday and planning to visit Khlong Hae, only to find the market closed. If you want to come here, build your trip so it overlaps a Friday, Saturday or Sunday first.
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Booking online ahead on Klook or GetYourGuide is usually cheaper than the gate and skips the queue. Pick only the experiences you actually want — prices and availability are shown live on each site.
The dishes worth ordering at Khlong Hae Floating Market
The heart of Khlong Hae is local Southern food — savoury and sweet, ranging from home-style cooking and Muslim dishes to modern street snacks. Most prices are easy on the wallet, from tens of baht up to the low hundreds, so you can graze on several things without breaking the bank. Here are the dishes people tend to order.
Khao Yam (Southern rice salad)
Rice tossed with fresh shredded vegetables, toasted coconut and ground dried shrimp, dressed with a well-balanced budu (fermented fish) sauce. It's a signature Southern dish that's easy to find here and packed with flavour.
Grilled squid and prawns
Fresh squid and prawns on skewers, grilled over fragrant charcoal at several stalls along the canal. Order it straight off the grill and eat it hot — one of the most popular snacks here.
Khanom Jeen Nam Ya (Southern curry noodles)
Fermented rice noodles topped with a rich Southern curry sauce, eaten with fresh raw vegetables on the side. A light main that fills you up just right while you wander the market.
Khai Krata (pan-fried eggs with toppings)
Eggs cracked into a small hot pan with whatever toppings you fancy, eaten with bread or on their own. An easy snack that kids love.
Fish maw soup
A bowl of thick fish maw soup, generously loaded, slurped hot in the cool of the evening by the canal. Tasty and warming, sold at several stalls.
Fried quail / local fried snacks
Southern-style fried snacks that are easy to keep nibbling on, fried fresh and hot from the pan. Perfect for grazing as you walk around.
Thai and Southern home-style sweets
All sorts of Southern sweets, from desserts served in coconut shells and banana leaves to old-fashioned treats that are hard to find in the city. Grab a few to tide you over or take home.
Fresh fruit and herbal drinks
Freshly squeezed fruit juices and cold herbal drinks served in bamboo tubes or cups, perfect for cooling off as you walk, and easy on the budget.
Straight talk
The prices listed here are rough ranges based on reviews and will move up or down depending on the vendor and the ingredients. Larger grilled items or big seafood may cost more. We'd suggest doing a loop to check prices before ordering, then picking things to try one at a time — it keeps your budget in check and lets you sample more variety.
Food sold from paddle boats — what makes Khlong Hae one of a kind
What people remember most about Khlong Hae is the sight of hundreds of small paddle boats lined up along the canal in front of the temple, with vendors cooking on board. When someone orders, they pass the food up to the bank on a long pole tipped with a basket or clip; the buyer drops the money down and the vendor sends the food back up. It's a way of buying and selling that's genuinely fun to watch and unique to this place.
Along the canal there are landings and roofed pavilions to sit and eat at various spots, and at times there's a paddle-boat service that takes visitors out to take in the atmosphere on both banks. The fare is cheap and it's good for families or anyone wanting photo angles from the water. If you're interested, ask at the boat service point by the temple landing on the day, since it runs some days and not others depending on the period.
Pay respects at Wat Khlong Hae and the cultural centre
The floating market sits right within the grounds of Wat Khlong Hae, so you can pair a temple visit and making merit with a market stroll all in one place. Before or after eating, drop in to pay respects at the temple, walk the merit bridge across the canal, and stop by the Chaloemrat Khlong Hae Cultural Centre, which showcases Southern local life and old community artefacts.
Pay respects at Wat Khlong Hae
Step inside to pay respects and make merit at the temple that owns the market grounds — merit and sightseeing in one trip.
Chaloemrat Khlong Hae Cultural Centre
A learning spot for Southern local life, with old artefacts and the story of the Khlong Hae community. A good short stop to understand the area better.
Merit bridge and Nora performances
Walk the bridge across the canal for the view; on some evenings there are free Nora dance and folk music performances to enjoy as you wander the market.
Dress for the temple
Because the market is inside a temple, if you plan to go in and pay respects too, bring something modest to wear — covering your shoulders and knees is best. For just browsing and eating, dress as you normally would.
How to get to Khlong Hae Floating Market
- Car / motorbike — from central Hat Yai head north on Lopburi Ramet Road (Highway 414) or via Niphat Songkhro Road; it's about 10-15 minutes
- Grab / taxi — easy to hail from the city and the fare is cheap, but the ride back in the evening gets busy and you may wait a while, so it's worth booking ahead or arranging a pickup time
- Parking — you can park at the Wat Khlong Hae lot and the lot across from the market for a small fee; spaces fill up fast on busy days, so arriving in the early evening makes it easier to find a spot
- Coming from elsewhere — if you're staying in Hat Yai without a car, booking a Grab round trip is the easiest option, or renting a motorbike to ride yourself works well too
If you're planning a Hat Yai trip, slot Khlong Hae Floating Market into a Friday-Sunday evening, then spend the daytime on other spots like Khao Kho Hong Park or browsing the Kim Yong Market in town — that way you get the eating and the sightseeing all in one day.
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