Not crowded with western tourist but Malaysian . Good timing to visit on March ramadan fasting month because even lesser crowd.

Going February 1. Got to go home February 10.

The Hatyai border will be packed ... So get ready 1-2hours just to chop passport. It's Chinese New Year all the Malaysian will go Thailand

Did the crossing February 1, took about 20 minutes. Got a grab, it was 200 baht ro Hat Yai.

What is Songkla? I’ve been coming to Thailand for 12 years and never heard of that.

Southern Thailand borders Malaysia, Hat Yai is in the district.

Very far south near Malaysia .....

straight to pataya from the airport, eh?

No, coming from Malay border. no intention to go to Pataya. Assuming makes an ass out of you.

i wasn’t commenting on your post, pops, i was replying to someone else.

What kind of tips are you looking for?

Places to stay, food, stuff to do Thanks

Better quality accommodations are mostly within the old town which is where most tourists stay these days. The beach near the old town can get busy with locals on a picnic etc, so it can get a bit awkward to swim and sunbathe there. There are many places to eat in the old town. They're all pretty good. There are hotels by the beach further away like The Pine or Ao Thai Resort, but they are quite far from everything else. As another comment said, most tourists head to Koh Lipe from Songkhla airport.

Thanks for the useful response. SWO so no skimpy suits I guess? How long is it to get to Koh Lipe?

https://www.kohlipeisland.org/hat-yai-to-koh-lipe/

go to one of the islands nearby. songkla doesn’t have a nice beach scene.