Asia · Beach and resort guide
An island with its own weather pattern, beach personalities and strong villa and resort choice.
Is it right for you?
A strong fit for
Couples, families and island-led trips.
We would think twice for
Strict budget trips, because reaching Samui usually means its premium little airport, and the island's best beaches carry boutique pricing to match its honeymoon reputation.
What we would want you to know
Season differs from Phuket and routing usually adds another flight.
We’ve been here
Samui usually enters the conversation when a family's dates fall in July or August and the Andaman side is off the table. We have been to Samui ourselves, and across to Koh Phangan and Koh Tao, and our view centres on the two choices that shape a Samui holiday: which of its very different beaches to wake up on, and villa or resort.
Map and areas
The island's busiest resort, with its longest beach, the most hotels and a strip of bars, clubs and restaurants behind. The northern end is quieter with shallower water, while the centre stays lively late. Great for choice and nightlife, less so for peace.
Chaweng's more relaxed neighbour to the south, with a long beach, a small centre of bars and restaurants and a weekly walking street market. Hotels cost less and the atmosphere is less polished, which plenty of repeat visitors prefer.
A narrow lane of old Chinese wooden shophouses, now boutique hotels, restaurants and bars, along a calm north-facing beach. Evenings are charming rather than loud. The sand is coarser and the water less clear than at Chaweng, which is the trade for the atmosphere.
A long, quiet beach on the north coast with good-value resorts, a local village and views across to Koh Phangan. Calm in the summer months and peaceful all year, but you will need taxis for evenings out beyond the village.
A small horseshoe bay in the north-east with gentle water, a few upmarket resorts and little else. It is sheltered and easy with young children, but quiet after dark, so nightlife means a taxi to Chaweng.
The quiet sunset side around Lipa Noi and Taling Ngam, facing the mainland and the Ang Thong islands, with secluded resorts and villas. The water is shallow and calm and the evenings very peaceful, but the busier east coast is a long taxi ride away.
Weather and seasons
Samui keeps its own timetable. While the Andaman coast takes the south-west monsoon, the island stays relatively dry from February to August, with July averaging around 140mm of rain and highs near 33°C, which is why it is our first thought for the UK school holidays. The wet season arrives late: October to December bring the heaviest rain, November about 423mm, with grey days, choppy seas and the odd flooded road. February to April is often the sunniest stretch, and the sea stays warm all year at around 30°C in April. Christmas and New Year stay expensive despite the weather gamble.
Worth timing a trip around
Bophut's beachfront lane closes to traffic for a market of street food, crafts and live music. Busy and fun; arrive before dark for a table with a sea view.
A vast beach party at Haad Rin on the neighbouring island, reached by boat from Samui. Loud and young, and ferries and rooms on both islands fill up around it, so it is worth knowing about even if you plan to avoid it.
| Month | High | Low | Sea | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29°C | 24°C | 28°C | 166 mm |
| February | 29°C | 25°C | 28°C | 37 mm |
| March | 30°C | 26°C | 29°C | 36 mm |
| April | 32°C | 26°C | 30°C | 55 mm |
| May | 33°C | 26°C | 30°C | 109 mm |
| June | 34°C | 25°C | 30°C | 96 mm |
| July | 33°C | 25°C | 30°C | 140 mm |
| August | 33°C | 25°C | 29°C | 73 mm |
| September | 32°C | 25°C | 29°C | 92 mm |
| October | 32°C | 25°C | 29°C | 244 mm |
| November | 30°C | 24°C | 29°C | 423 mm |
| December | 30°C | 24°C | 28°C | 247 mm |
Temperatures are 2015 to 2024 averages from NOAA records for Ko Samui, 7 km away at 7 m. Rainfall is from the GPCC rain-gauge analysis (Deutscher Wetterdienst) for 2010 to 2019 and shows the typical (median) month, so one freak storm does not skew it. Sea temperatures: NOAA OISST, 1991 to 2020.
Sand, shingle and swimming
Powdery white sand along a long bay, with a reef at the northern end that keeps the water shallow at low tide. The centre is busy with loungers and jet skis; walk north for space.
Golden, coarser sand that can see bigger waves than Chaweng in rough weather. Good swimming when it is calm, and quieter at the northern end.
A sheltered crescent of soft sand with calm, shallow water for much of the year, among the easiest swims on the island for small children.
A small cove between Chaweng and Lamai, framed by granite boulders, with clear water for snorkelling off the rocks. Tiny and busy by midday, so arrive early.
A long, shallow west-coast beach where you can wade out a long way, ideal for toddlers and for sunsets over the Ang Thong islands, though less good for real swimming at low tide.
Things to do
More than forty islands west of Samui, visited by boat with kayaking and a steep climb to the viewpoint above the emerald inland lake on Koh Mae Ko. Trips can be cancelled in the rainy season, so book it early in your stay.
Fast ferries link Samui with its northern neighbours, and a day on Koh Tao with the sandbar islands of Koh Nang Yuan is the classic snorkelling outing. Koh Tao is also a well-known place to learn to dive over three or four days.
Two temples on the north-east tip: the golden seated Buddha on its causeway island, and next door the many-armed statue of the goddess Guanyin rising from a lake. Go in the softer light of late afternoon.
The mummified body of a revered monk, Luang Pho Daeng, sits upright in a glass case, wearing sunglasses over his eyes. Strange but respectful, so dress as for any temple.
The Grandfather and Grandmother rocks at the southern end of Lamai, named for their remarkably anatomical shapes. A giggle for grown-ups, with stalls selling coconut toffee along the path.
Two falls in the jungle-covered interior: the first a short walk from the road with a pool for swimming, the second a steeper climb. Wear sturdy shoes, because the rocks are slippery after rain.
A hilltop garden of sculptures made by a local fruit farmer, reached up a steep road best left to a 4x4 or a guided jeep trip. Cool and green after the beaches.
Food and drink
Samui was built on coconut plantations, and fresh coconuts are sold everywhere, chilled and opened in front of you. Look out for coconut ice cream served in the shell.
A sour, orange southern fish curry with green papaya or bamboo shoots, sharp with tamarind, fiercely hot and made without coconut milk.
Choose prawns, squid or fish from the ice at a beach restaurant and have them grilled with a lime and chilli dip. Check the weight and the price before anything goes on the fire.
The island's orchards fill the markets in the summer with rambutan, mangosteen and the notorious durian, which many hotels ban from rooms because of its smell.
Money
Samui is the dearest Thai island like for like. The convenient flights into its small airport carry a premium, and the best beaches are lined with boutique hotels priced for honeymooners. Where money goes further is the private pool villa, often better value here than the same idea in the Caribbean or the Indian Ocean. Ferries to Koh Phangan and Koh Tao are cheap, so a second island adds little.
Flights and transfers
The easy way in is the short connecting flight from Bangkok to Samui's small resort-style airport. It carries a premium; the budget route by ferry via Surat Thani costs half a day. There is no direct UK flight, so this is a one-stop-plus journey however you shape it.
Flights from UK airports
Route check September 2026. Some routes are seasonal and schedules change, so we confirm the live options when we quote.
Practical details
7 hours ahead of the UK in winter, 6 hours in summer
Thai baht (฿)
Thai
Type A, B, C and O, 220V; a universal adaptor is safest
On the left
Not safe to drink; villas and resorts supply bottled or filtered water
Not expected; a small tip for villa staff, drivers and boat crews is appreciated
Entry for British passport holders
Visa. Since 15 September 2026, visa-free entry covers tourist stays of up to 30 days, normally for two entries a year. You must complete the Thailand Digital Arrival Card online within 3 days before you arrive.
Passport. Valid for at least 6 months after you arrive, with a blank page.
The FCDO advises against all but essential travel to the southern border provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat and part of Songkhla, and within 20km of the Cambodian border. The places we suggest on this page were outside those areas when we checked, and we check the advice again before every booking.
Summarised from the FCDO travel advice on gov.uk, checked 29 September 2026. Rules change: read the current entry requirements and the full travel advice before you go.
Questions we get asked
Mainly October to December, with November usually the wettest month. It is a different pattern from Phuket and Krabi, which take their rain from May to October. That is why Samui is where we look first for summer trips, and where we tread carefully at Christmas.
Bophut's Fisherman's Village for evenings out on foot, Choeng Mon for a quiet five-star stay and the west coast for sunsets and seclusion. Chaweng has the most going on, which suits some couples and not others.
Yes, particularly at Choeng Mon and Maenam, where the water is calm and the resorts are family-sized. The island is compact, the airport is close to most beaches, and trips to Ang Thong and the waterfalls suit older children. Avoid central Chaweng if you want quiet nights.
Easily. Fast ferries connect the three islands several times a day in season, so a day on Koh Tao or a few nights on Phangan's quieter beaches slot neatly into a Samui holiday. Seas can be rough from October to December, when crossings are less comfortable.
Not usually. Taxis and the Grab app cover most trips, songthaews run along the ring road and hotels arrange excursions. Hiring a car for a day helps with the interior and the west coast, but we would not hire a scooter: some roads are steep and accidents are common.
Photographs
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