An ambitious beachside location, Beach Republic incorporates lazy, poolside dining, chilled-out music, very modern design and pioneering tapas and mains menus. The scene here is decidedly cool and the Republic throws events with international DJ's and also has movie nights. Call for information.

• Opening Hours: 08:00 – 23:00
• Location: Beach Republic The Residences - North of Lamai Beach off the Ring Road – look for the signs
• Address: 176/34 Moo 4, Lamai
• Tel: +66 (0)7 745 8100, +66 (0)7 745 8101

Beer Bar Central is the largest concentration of beer bars and nightlife entertainment in Lamai. Located a few hundred metres away from the more renowned Lamai Central Plaza, it consists of dozens of bars along two interconnected streets, all competing for the chance to make your night.

Beer Bar Central is comprised of Soi Haad Lamai 1, the unmade road which runs parallel to it and the small side-streets which connect the two. It is significantly less family-friendly than the likes of Lamai Central Plaza. While even that location - with its lady boxing and scantily-clad dancers - is hardly what you’d call suitable for young audiences, Beer Bar Central Read More...

• Location: Soi Haad Lamai 1 (and adjoining streets), Lamai

Bondi Aussie Bar & Grill is a popular chain restaurant in Thailand (there’s a branch in Chaweng and one at Patong Beach, Phuket). In Lamai, Bondi is situated in the heart of all things, diagonally opposite the busy Lamai Central Plaza and its beer-bars and outdoor Thai Boxing ring. Set in a long one-storey building blending Thai (thatch roof) and contemporary style (modern furnishing and lighting), Bondi is a cool and lively joint at which punters can follow premier league football or other live sports on their flat screen TVs, or listen to energetic live music performed by a local band every Friday from 22:00 ‘til late.

Most of the food is classic pub-grub-style (fish and chips at 299 baht), burgers (cheeseburger at 290 baht) as well as a great choice of western favourites (pasta, pizza, steak). Two Happy Hour periods (Sundowners from 16:00-18:00 and Latenighters from 22:00-00:00) offer buy one get one free Mojito. Bondi is amongst the favourite restaurants in Lamai due to its cool atmosphere but overall for the quality of the food it serves.

• Opening Hours: 10:00 – 01:00
• Location: opposite Barrio Latino in the centre of Lamai
• Tel: 077 601 738
• Cuisine: International

The Cabaret Lamai Beach is the most chic and modern of the ladyboy shows in Samui, with a luxurious VIP area and talented transgender dancers in 12-act, one-hour performances featuring great family-friendly comedy and song and dance routines.

Located close to the Lamai Variety Centre on the main road through the relatively quiet town, the well-decorated theatre does not get as busy as those in Chaweng, but the dancers still giving it their all, no matter the size of the audience. The show has less ‘audience involvement’ than others of its kind, making it a safer option if you’re easily embarrassed and just want to enjoy the great choreography, feathery

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• Opening Hours: 20:00 – 24:00
• Location: 124/555 Moo 3, Haad Lamai Road, Lamai
• Tel: +66 (0)81 894 3250
• Website: https://www.facebook.com/cabaretlamaibeach

Right in the centre of Lamai, opposite McDonalds is a 2,000sqm plaza hosting a dozen beer bars (‘bar beers’, as they are called in Thailand) some sporting dancing poles, with names like Sexy Lady, Hollywood, Why Not, The Super Girls Bar, Longhorn Bar (this one is a long-established water hole in a bar scene which is in constant evolution) – all playing their own music at various volumes – producing a head-splitting cacophony.

These girlie bars are a happening place in high season and a great people-watching place even for non-customers of this kind of business. The competition is tough between these venues and gets even more on Saturday nights Read More...

• Opening Hours: 18:00 – late (the plaza starts to get lively after 21:00)
• Location: By McDonald's Main Street

Chill In on Lamai Beach is popular with tourists and residents alike due to its relaxed atmosphere, chilled-out music and range of seating areas. You can chose to chill on large comfortable bamboo chairs, swing in a hammock or lie on the beach on a tradition Thai 'mon' – triangular cushion. Chill In also serves food all day at fairly reasonable prices and has a good drinks menu.

• Opening Hours: 08:00 – 02:00
• Location: Lamai Beach

On Lamai's main street is the ever popular Fusion nightclub. Featuring two excellent resident DJs the music ranges from acid jazz to funky house and suits the darkly atmospheric club. Shake the night away on Fusion's heaving dance floor or people watch in one of the comfortable seating areas. This is where the after-hour denizens congregate.

• Opening Hours: 18:00 – late
• Location: Main Street

Lava Lounge is not the only bar in Samui sidestepping bar girls and loud music but it’s one of the best that does so. Quite simply, Lava Lounge has the ‘it’ factor in spades in that it’s friendly, tasteful and actually brews up some great cocktails with a smile. Read More...

• Opening Hours: 16:00 – 02:00
• Location: Diagonally opposite Lamai Wanta Resort

Let Them Drink is a rather large venue located diagonally opposite Shamrock Irish Pub in the centre of Lamai town. Blending in style a sports bar, a cosy lounge, and even a guesthouse (they have a few rooms for rent at reasonable prices in their backyard), this cool venue is stylish yet unpretentious. Punters can enjoy an all-day Happy Hour (70 baht for local beers) and every Friday is Cocktail Night (all cocktails priced at 99 baht). Apart from the many televisions broadcasting international sports events, customers can rejoice in playing darts or playing pool on the professional Brunswick pool table available at the back of the bar. All in all, Let Them Drink is the perfect place to spend a nice evening chatting and drinking with friends, checking email (free Wi-Fi) or watching people strolling along Lamai main road in a nice setting without breaking the purse.

• Opening Hours: 16:00 – 01:00
• Location: Lamai Main Street

Styled like an outback saloon without walls, lots of bar stools and Australian and Thai beer make this the perfect place to perch and watch the world go by. Live sports shown and allegedly this is the place for the best English breakfast around.

• Opening Hours: 14:00 – 02:00
• Location: Lamai Beach Road

For regulars, this is the best bar in Lamai, even if it is sometimes the most dysfunctional one. A sign outside states 'Bad jokes told in a strange dialect' and this just about sums up the bar owner's role in life. A weekly host to the area's Hash House Harriers, the Red Fox also has Sunday roasts later on in the afternoon. It's the friendly ambience that keeps people coming back and the cocktail-mix of British and Thai hospitality, carefree humour and beer is an addictive one.

• Location: Just off the main drag up a small road opposite the Billabong bar

Samui Rock Bar is the image of a typical beach bar in South Thailand: built from bamboo and thatch, driftwood and other recovered materials, this cool venue is set right next to the famous Grandpa and Grandma Rocks (Hin Ta and Hin Yai) at the southern tip of Lamai Bay. The bar features a small terrace built between huge granite boulders and has great sea views, Thai triangle pillows and low tables and its atmosphere could not be more laid-back if it tried.

Samui Rock Bar has a rather misleading name as the venue is more a Rastafarian temple than a rocking place. Hosting occasional live Reggae performances, nightly fire shows (in high season), and a tattoo studio (Samui Bamboo Tattoo Studio), it is a great place to chill out and get back to the roots. Samui Rock Bar also serves food (Thai and international) at very reasonable prices.

• Opening Hours: 10:00 – late
• Location: right next to Hin Ta & Hin Yai

Downtown Lamai you’ll find this sizeable Irish pub that has dominated the local night scene since 2005. For sports lovers Shamrock provides four separate satellite feeds on six large-screen TVs and the place is big enough to absorb them all without descending into audio mayhem. Shamrock also has pretty feisty live music five times a week (in high season) on a centrally located stage. And if you’re after a game of pool the pub has genuine slate pool tables. Read More...

• Opening Hours: 10:00 – 02:00
• Location: Central Lamai
• Remarks: Free Wi-Fi
• Tel: 081 597 8572

Slightly south of outback bar is the Smooth Pub. Don't let this venue's cave-like appearance put you off; there's live music every night, starting around 22:00 and the musicians are up for a jam anytime, in case you have itchy fingers.

• Opening Hours: 16:00 – 02:00
• Location: Lamai Main Street

Soi McDonalds is the common nickname for a short and fairly wide side-street off the main road running through the middle of Lamai (Haad Lamai Road). Unsurprisingly, it takes its name from the McDonald’s burger restaurant on the corner, but the 60m soi is mostly known for its modest collection of beer bars, making it one of the go-to streets for those seeking a lively night in Lamai. Read More...

• Location: Alongside McDonald’s Restaurant, Lamai

Located just behind Fusion nightclub, this cavernous venue has plenty of pounding techno and house music to keep revelers awake.  Sub has an excellent selection of drinks and a large beer garden outside with a huge TV screen to keep sports fans happy.

• Opening Hours: 21:00 – 02:00
• Location: Main Road, Lamai.

No, Swing Bar is not a wife-swapping venue, as the name suggests. Rather, it’s a big beachside affair with rope-suspended swing chairs facing a well-frequented buffed-concrete-and-wood bar right on the beach itself at Lamai. Here, you can enjoy a whole raft of cocktails or even a Sang Som or vodka ‘bucket’ while watching the nightly fire dances (19:00, 21:00 and 23:00) as well as at the Friday and Monday night parties. You can also enjoy a game of pool at one of the three roadside tables at Swing. Read More...

• Opening Hours: 07:30 – late
• Location: At the Rich Resort, Lamai Beach

Situated within the Renaissance Koh Samui Resort & Spa, the TawaNN Bar & Terrace is one of the island's best cocktail lounges. The bar seats about 30 and has a small but concise cocktail list as well as a fine wines and spirits menu.  The decor is an impressive mixture of Thai and contemporary design and the bar looks out towards the beach with spectacular sunset and sea views. There are also delicious light snacks and a good range of afternoon teas and coffees available.

• Opening Hours: 10:30 – 24:00
• Location: Renaissance Koh Samui Resort & Spa. On the Ring Road, between Lamai and Chaweng

Thailand's most famous sport and a must-see for any visitor Muay Thai is hosted by two different venues in Lamai.  Lamai Stadium runs fights on Monday nights starting at 20:30. Expect to see lots of hopping around, the occasional bit of action and a lot of male (sometimes female) pride getting pounded.

• Opening Hours: Monday nights starting 20:30
• Location: Soi Haad Lamai

For a less traditional but hugely entertaining experience the small boxing ring opposite Fusion Nightclub on the Main Street presents lady Thai boxing on Saturday nights. Entry is free – just buy a drink at one of the surrounding Go-Go bars.  Each Saturday there are several bouts of lady boxing, men boxing and if you're really lucky the hilarious sight of ladyboy boxing – once seen never forgotten!  Get there early to ensure a good view.

• Opening Hours: 21:30
• Location: Main Street

In the midst of a warren of girlie bars near to Lamai’s night bazaar stands the Wine Bar – living proof that someone is actually thinking outside the box in Lamai. The Wine Bar is the preferred oasis for many expatriate professionals living in and around Lamai as it is exactly what it says on the tin – a wine bar where people can socialise over a good drink without being harassed. Read More...

• Opening Hours: 18:00 – 02:00
• Location: Near Lamai Night Plaza
• Tel: 087 099 8845