Padang Besar Thai: ปาดังเบซาร์. Also spelled Padangbesar, Padangbezar and Padangbasar is a border town in Southern Thailand.
Padang Besar is the only direct rail link between Malaysia and Thailand. It also has a road crossing between the two countries which is a lot less busy than the more direct Sadao-Bukit Kayu Hitam crossing.
The town on the Malaysian side of the border, in Perlis, is also called Padang Besar. Malaysians usually refer to the town on the Thai side as "Pekan Siam" or "Siamese Town".
Slightly bigger and a lot more ramshackle and sleazy looking than its Malaysian counterpart, Thailand's Padang Besar is often busy with Malaysians crossing the border for shopping and to indulge in the freewheeling entertainment which Thai border towns are infamous for.
