Betong – the southernmost region of Thailand – is a town in the Yala district. Here, the diversity of cultures and cuisines creates a unique array of delicacies. For example, the free-range, locally raised "Betong chicken" features in many traditional dishes – especially in the Hainanese chicken rice prepared in Betong style. Betong's Chinese community is also represented in other typical dishes, such as Khao Yok (steamed pork with taro), the locally grown watercress, and Betong noodles – the egg noodles typical of this area.

[space_box id=”CR001″ height=”40″]

Attractions near Yala

[horizontal_line style=”4″ margin_top=”0″ margin_bottom=”20″]

The Piyamit Tunnel winds its way for about a kilometer through a mountain and was built in 1976 during the communist uprising in Malaya as an air-raid shelter and food depot. Today it houses an exhibition that sheds light on this part of Yala's history.

Phra Mahathat Chedi Phra Phuttha Tham Prakat is a large and beautiful temple with a golden Srivijaya-style chedi housing relics of the Buddha. The temple was built in the early 1990s to commemorate the 60th birthday of Her Majesty Queen Regent Sirikit.

The Bang Lang Dam is a multi-purpose hydroelectric power plant that dams the Pattani River. Since its opening in 1981, the dam has become a major attraction in Yala, in addition to its function as an irrigation dam. Rafting trips through the beautiful landscape of the Hala Bala Forest are a particular highlight.