TL;DR: Hua Hin has several night markets, and they split neatly by purpose. The downtown Hua Hin Night Market on Dechanuchit Road (the one locals mean, often lumped in with the adjacent Chatsila and the daytime Chatchai fresh market) runs nightly from around 5pm to 11pm or later, and is the classic street-food-and-souvenirs walking street. Cicada Market, out near Khao Takiab, is the polished weekend arts market: Friday to Sunday, roughly 4pm to 11pm (Sunday often closes 10pm), free entry, with handicrafts, live performances and a food zone paid by voucher. Tamarind Market sits right next door to Cicada and skews to food and live music on the same weekend-evening schedule. The Grand Night Market on Phetkasem Road is a more ‘open-air mall’ flea market with an air-conditioned craft section and bars. All are free to enter; you only pay for what you eat and buy. All prices ฿33 = US$1 (July 2026).
If you’ve searched “Hua Hin night market,” you’ve probably hit a wall of similar-sounding names: Chatsila, Chatchai, Cicada, Tamarind, the Grand. Some are the same place under different names, some get confused with a daytime fresh market, and only a couple are the curated weekend markets the photos usually show. This guide sorts them out: what each one is, when it opens, what it’s best for, and how they differ, so you can pick the right night out. Every day, hour and detail below is checked against current 2026 sources, listed at the end, with baht converted to US dollars at ฿33 = US$1 (July 2026).
Hua Hin night markets compared at a glance
| Market | Days | Hours | Location | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hua Hin Night Market (Dechanuchit Rd) | Daily | ~5pm-11pm (later) | Downtown, near clock tower | Street food, souvenirs, seafood |
| Cicada Market | Fri-Sun | ~4pm-11pm (Sun ~10pm) | Near Khao Takiab | Arts, crafts, live performances |
| Tamarind Market | Thu/Fri-Sun | ~5pm-11pm | Next to Cicada | Food and live music |
| Grand Night Market | Most evenings | ~5pm-late | Phetkasem Rd, past Soi 86 | Flea market, bars, AC crafts |
| Chatsila / Patio Old Town | Wed-Sun | ~5:30pm-11pm | Off Dechanuchit Rd | Crafts and clothing |
| Chatchai Market (daytime) | Daily | Mornings | Phetkasem Rd, Soi 70-72 | Fresh produce, breakfast (not a night market) |
Compiled from Thailandee, Cicada Market’s official site, Jonesy in Thailand and the Thailand Tourism Directory; see Sources. Tamarind and Grand day-ranges vary by source.
Which Hua Hin night market should you pick?
Pick by what you want the evening to be. Want the classic, buzzy, eat-your-way-along-a-street experience any night of the week? The downtown Hua Hin Night Market on Dechanuchit Road. Want a polished weekend market with crafts, art and live performances? Cicada, out near Khao Takiab, Friday to Sunday. Want mainly to sit, eat and hear a band? Tamarind, right next to Cicada. Want a quieter, more mall-like flea market with bars? The Grand Night Market on Phetkasem Road. On a weekend you can chain several together; midweek you’re mostly looking at the downtown market and the Grand.
The downtown Hua Hin Night Market (Dechanuchit Road)
This is the market locals mean when they say “the night market,” and it runs every night from around 5pm to 11pm or later along Dechanuchit Road near the clock tower. It’s the classic Thai walking street: a strip of seafood restaurants (grilled prawns and lobster on ice), skewers, pad thai, banana pancakes, plus stalls of clothing, beachwear, souvenirs and gadgets, per Thailandee and Jonesy in Thailand. It gets busiest after about 6:30pm. Because it’s central, it’s the easiest market to reach on foot from most town-centre hotels, which is one reason it stays the default for a first night in Hua Hin.
A quick note on the names: this Dechanuchit strip is often mislabelled “Chatchai Night Market” by blogs, and it sits right beside the small Chatsila courtyard. They’re not the same place. The Chatchai part is covered below.
Cicada Market: the weekend arts market
Cicada is the most polished market in Hua Hin, open Friday to Sunday from 4pm to 11pm (Sunday often to around 10pm), free to enter, out near Khao Takiab. It’s built around four zones: an arts-and-crafts flea market, indoor galleries, an amphitheatre for live performances (music, theatre, dance) and a food zone serving local and international dishes, per its official site and Thailandee. The food zone runs on a voucher system, so you buy vouchers and redeem them at the stalls rather than paying each vendor in cash. It’s about 7km south of the centre, so it’s a deliberate weekend-evening trip rather than a casual downtown wander. It can get very crowded on Saturday nights. Cicada gets its own full write-up in outthailand.com’s Cicada Market guide.
Tamarind Market: food and live music next door
Tamarind sits about 20 metres from Cicada and is the one to choose if you mainly want to eat and hear live music. It has a hawker-centre feel, with grilled pork ribs, prawns, Thai dishes and pizza, open-air stone-table seating and a stage with a band, per Thailandee. It opens the same weekend evenings as Cicada, though sources differ on whether it starts Thursday or Friday, so treat Friday to Sunday as the safe assumption and Thursday as a bonus. The obvious move is to browse Cicada for the crafts and atmosphere, then cross over to Tamarind for dinner and music.
The Grand Night Market
The Grand Night Market on Phetkasem Road, past Soi 86 next to the Grand Thai Boxing Gym, has a calmer, more ‘open-air mall’ feel than the downtown crush. It splits into a front flea-market section (clothes, shoes, accessories, massage and wellness items) and an air-conditioned back section with handicraft shops, bars and fish spas, per Thailandee and Trip.com. It’s at the south end of town, away from the Dechanuchit and Cicada clusters, and the many small restaurants and bars scattered through it are the real draw. Sources disagree on its exact opening days, so plan on it being open most evenings rather than counting on a fixed schedule.
Chatsila and Chatchai: clearing up the names
Two more names cause most of the confusion, and neither is the big food strip. Chatsila is a small craft-and-clothing courtyard just off Dechanuchit Road, since rebranded Patio Old Town Night Market, open Wednesday to Sunday evenings from about 5:30pm, with handmade clothing, accessories, a small stage and some food and drink stalls, per Thailandee. Chatchai Market is a different thing entirely: a historic 1926 indoor daytime fresh market on Phetkasem Road between Soi 70 and 72, with a distinctive seven-eave roof honouring King Rama VII, open mornings and selling produce, dried seafood and breakfast, per the Thailand Tourism Directory. If a blog calls the evening food strip “Chatchai Night Market,” that’s the mix-up in action.
What to eat and what to buy
- Food: grilled seafood, skewers, satay, som tam, pad thai, mango sticky rice and banana pancakes are the staples, commonly ฿40-120 (~US$1.20-3.60) a dish, with sit-down seafood at the downtown market costing more depending on your order.
- Shopping: beachwear, T-shirts, cotton clothing, souvenirs and cheap accessories at the downtown market; handmade crafts, art, jewellery and home decor at Cicada; a mix of flea-market goods and handicrafts at the Grand.
- Payment: cash is king everywhere; at Cicada, buy food vouchers first. Bring small notes.
Honest downsides
- The names are a genuine muddle. Chatsila, Chatchai and “the night market” get used interchangeably online, so double-check which place you’re actually heading to.
- The good weekend markets are weekend-only. Cicada and Tamarind don’t open midweek, and they’re a ride out of town, so a Tuesday-night visitor is stuck with the downtown market and the Grand.
- Cicada gets packed. Saturday nights can be shoulder-to-shoulder; go earlier or on a Friday for room to move.
- Prices creep up at the polished markets. The curated markets can run a little pricier than the downtown street stalls for similar food.
Bottom line
For a reliable, any-night option, the downtown Hua Hin Night Market on Dechanuchit Road is always on and always central. For the best single evening out, aim for a weekend and pair Cicada (crafts, art, performances) with Tamarind (food and music) next door. Keep the Grand in mind as a calmer alternative, and don’t confuse either with the daytime Chatchai fresh market. Pair this with outthailand.com’s things to do in Hua Hin guide, the Hua Hin beaches guide for the daytime, and the Khao Takiab (Monkey Mountain) guide, since the best markets sit near it. See where to stay in Hua Hin to base yourself near the market you fancy most, and check outthailand.com’s live Hua Hin events for what’s on while you’re in town.
Sources
- Thailandee: Hua Hin Night Market (Dechanuchit Road): main downtown market hours (5pm-11pm), location on Dechanuchit Road, what locals mean by “the night market”
- Cicada Market: official site: Cicada opening days (Fri-Sun) and hours (4pm-11pm), Khao Takiab location, free entry
- Thailandee: Cicada Market Hua Hin: Cicada zones, amphitheatre performances, crowds
- Jonesy in Thailand: Top 8 Hua Hin Night Markets: Cicada food-voucher system, Tamarind Thursday-Sunday hours, Grand Night Market Wed-Sat evening hours
- Thailandee: Tamarind Market Hua Hin: Tamarind location beside Cicada, food and live-music focus, Fri-Sun hours
- Thailandee: Patio Old Town Night Market (ex-Chatsila): Chatsila rebrand to Patio Old Town, Wed-Sun 5:30pm-11pm, crafts and clothing
- Thailandee: The Hua Hin Grand Night Market: Grand Night Market location on Phetkasem Road, flea-market and air-conditioned craft sections
- Thailand Tourism Directory: Chat Chai Market: Chatchai daytime fresh market, 1926 origin, seven-eave roof honouring Rama VII, morning hours