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Voykit pocket guide · Thailand
Lamai
ละไม
Give Lamai 3 nights: beach mornings, Hin Ta Hin Yai and Wat Khunaram by scooter, Sunday walking street. Skip it if you want quiet.
Lamai is Ko Samui's second beach strip, on the southeast coast about 20-30 min by road from the airport and Chaweng. It is cheaper and slower than Chaweng, with a walkable core of restaurants, bars and a night market, and the island's best-known rock formations and mummified monks a short ride south. The beach is good, the sea is not always calm, and the town is busier and more commercial than it was. Most travellers use it as a base for 3 nights, or split a Samui week between Lamai and the north coast.
- Country
- Thailand
- Local name
- ละไม
- Best months
- Feb-Sep (Gulf coast dry season); Dec-Feb is the coolest stretch
- Avoid
- Oct-Dec (northeast monsoon, rough sea and rain on the Gulf side)
- Stay
- 3 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- THB
- Money
- Currency is the Thai baht (THB, ฿). Cards work in malls, hotels and many restaurants; street food, markets, boats and small taxis are cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget ฿1,200-2,000 excl. bed · Mid ฿2,500-4,500 excl. bed · High ฿6,000+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- AIS and TrueMove H sell tourist SIMs at airport arrivals; passport registration is required.
- Emergency
- Police 191 · Ambulance and rescue 1669 · Tourist police (English) 1155
- Plugs
- Types A, B, C, O · 220 V · 50 Hz · Most sockets take flat US pins and round European pins; type O is the Thai three-pin standard. UK plugs need an adapter.
- Tipping
- Street food: Nothing.; Sit-down restaurant: Leave ฿20–100 or the coins; skip it if a 10% service charge is on the bill.; Taxi / Grab: Round up to the next ฿10 or ฿20.; Massage: ฿50–100 per hour to the therapist, in hand.; Guide / driver day: ฿300–500 for the guide, ฿200–300 for the driver.; Hotel porter / housekeeping: ฿20–50.
- Water
- Not drinkable from the tap. Street refill machines charge about ฿1 a litre; bottled water everywhere.
- Toilets
- Western toilets in malls and hotels; squat toilets with a water bucket in rural stops. The hose ('bum gun') replaces paper; paper goes in the bin in older buildings. Some public toilets cost ฿3–5.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Thai rice or noodle dish at a market stall | ฿50-120 |
| Fresh seafood plate at a beach restaurant | ฿200-500 |
| Beer: draught in a bar / can at a shop | ฿90-150 / ฿40-70 |
| Scooter rental, one day | ฿200-350 |
| Songthaew, Lamai to Chaweng | ฿100-200 |
| Internet cafe, one hour | about ฿60 |
| Thai massage, one hour | ฿300-500 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- USM · Samui Airport (Ko Samui)
- Shared minibus to Lamai about 150 baht per person; private taxi charter about 300-400 baht
Typical fares
- Samui Airport to Lamai, shared minibus
- about ฿150 per person
- Samui Airport to Lamai, private taxi charter
- about ฿300-400
- Ferry terminal to Lamai, minibus
- about ฿60-100 per person
Get around
Lamai's core is walkable, but the ring road sights (Hin Ta Hin Yai, Wat Khunaram, Hua Thanon) are 3-8 km south: use a rented scooter, a songthaew or a taxi. Songthaews run along the ring road between Lamai and Chaweng; agree the fare before you get in. Scooter rental is the usual choice; check the bike and wear a helmet, and an IDP plus your home licence is the legal position in Thailand.Lamai's core is walkable, but the ring road sights (Hin Ta Hin Yai, Wat Khunaram, Hua Thanon) are 1.9-5 mi south: use a rented scooter, a songthaew or a taxi. Songthaews run along the ring road between Lamai and Chaweng; agree the fare before you get in. Scooter rental is the usual choice; check the bike and wear a helmet, and an IDP plus your home licence is the legal position in Thailand.
See and do
Known for
- Hin Ta and Hin Yai rocks
- Wat Khunaram mummified monk
- Sunday walking street
- Cheaper beach strip than Chaweng
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Hin Ta and Hin Yai | Scooter or songthaew south along the ring road past Hua Thanon | 15-25 min from central Lamai |
| Wat Khunaram | Scooter south on the ring road past Hua Thanon towards Na Mueang | 20-30 min |
| Wat Lamai | Walk or short ride to the temple corner near the market | 5-15 min |
| Ko Tao diving day | Dive shop speedboat from Lamai; several shops run near-daily trips | Full day, early start |
| Chaweng | Songthaew or taxi north along the ring road | 20-30 min |
| Nathon | Songthaew or taxi west along the ring road | 40-50 min |
Sleep
- Lamai Beach Road (central strip)
- Walk to restaurants, bars and the night market; the busiest and noisiest part.
- South end of Lamai
- Quieter, near Hin Ta and Hin Yai; mix of beach bungalows and mid-range resorts.
- Ring Road / hillside
- Cheaper rooms set back from the beach; you need a scooter or songthaew for every trip.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | สวัสดีsawatdee |
| Thank you | ขอบคุณkhop khun |
| How much is it? | เท่าไหร่tao rai |
| Too expensive | แพงไปphaeng pai |
| Not spicy, please | ไม่เผ็ดmai phet |
| Where is the toilet? | ห้องน้ำอยู่ไหนhong nam yu nai |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: A wai (palms together, slight bow) to return a greeting; a smile and nod for shop staff; avoid: Waiing children or service staff first — it confuses; hugging strangers
- Head and feet: Keep feet on the floor, sit with legs folded to the side in temples; avoid: Touching heads (even children's), pointing feet, stepping over people or food
- Temples: Covered shoulders and knees, shoes off, sit lower than monks; avoid: Women touching monks or handing them things directly; climbing Buddha images
- Monarchy: Stand for the royal anthem in cinemas and at 08:00 and 18:00 in public places; avoid: Any joke or comment about the royal family; stepping on a banknote
- Keeping calm: Stay polite and smiling when things go wrong ('jai yen' — cool heart); avoid: Raising your voice; public anger loses the argument
- Names: Khun plus first name ('Khun Somchai'); nicknames are normal; avoid: Using the family name alone
- Home visit: Shoes off; bring fruit or sweets; step over the threshold, not on it; avoid: Sitting with feet towards the family shrine
- Beckoning and pointing: Palm down, fingers waved towards you; point with the whole hand or chin; avoid: Pointing at people with a finger or with your foot
Scams and watch-outs
- Rip currents and rough water in the monsoon months; red flags mean no swimming.
- Scooter rental disputes over existing damage: photograph the bike before you ride off.
- Bar and restaurant bills with no posted prices: ask the total before you order.
- Jet-ski and motorbike deposit claims are a known island issue; use operators with clear paperwork.
Lamai is a normal tourist beach town: the real risks are scooter crashes, rip currents in the monsoon months and unpriced bar bills. Lock valuables, use a hotel safe, and treat the sea with respect in Oct-Dec.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Lamai yet. Suggested stay: 3 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Hin Ta and Hin Yai rocks
- Wat Khunaram mummified monk
- Sunday walking street
- Cheaper beach strip than Chaweng
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Tourism Authority of Thailand: www.tourismthailand.org/
- OpenStreetMap - Lamai: www.openstreetmap.org/#map=14/9.4639/100.0417
- Wikivoyage: Lamai, revision 5118484 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5118484
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Lamaiละไม
ไปที่ที่อยู่นี้
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies on Samui; most countries are represented in Bangkok, with consulates in Phuket and Chiang Mai for some. Check your own embassy's list before you travel.
Emergency numbers are national. Tourist police 1155 answers in English.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/lamai). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.