Ko Samui
With serious wow factor and spectacular panoramas, the W Retreat’s signature bar is the best place for sunset cocktails. Get there early to bag the…
Must-see nightlife in Ko Samui & the Lower Gulf
Ko Samui
The wander across the rope bridge to the treetop platform isn't for the faint-hearted, but when you get there, you'll hear the gasps long before the…
Surat Thani
Part cafe, part wine bar, this stylish little spot has an interior decked out in wood, where customers sit on hip retro-style chairs as cool urban tracks…
Songkhla Province
We love this cool little coffee oasis conveniently located metres from Songkhla's old town. It is the ideal spot to take a break after a morning of…
Ko Samui
Where Samui's cool kids hang out. This local bar plays great Thai urban music and serves very reasonably priced beers and cocktails in a hip setting. Pop…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Sit beneath a starry sky at this pop-up stage and bar where it’s live DIY music, with anyone welcome to get up and jam. The action is usually kicked off…
Ko Tao
Lotus is the leading late-night hang-out along the northern end of Sairee, affording front-row seats to some of the most spectacular sunsets on Ko Tao…
Nakhon Si Thammarat Province
It's self service at this popular cafe clinging to the edge of a rocky hillside overlooking the sea. Once you grab your beverage and delicious roti, you…
Songkhla Province
This family run venture has been renovated into a cool, modern art-shop-slash-cafe. Instead of heads of dead animals and bric-a-brac hanging from the…
Ko Samui
This place has an entire soi named after it. Traditionally one of Samui’s favourite bar-cum-clubs, the Green Mango is very big, very loud and very fa·ràng…
Ko Tao
This relaxing, secluded and rustic spot at the Earth House bungalow operation serves up a global selection of 40 beers, craft labels and ciders in a…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Coffee connoisseurs will love this sibling of Bubba's Coffee Bar. Sourced from farms in the mountainous north of the country, not only is the coffee…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Listen to laid-back live music and recline on lean-to orange triangle cushions set around candlelit low tables at this chilled space as it sprawls out of…
Ko Samui
This ramshackle and delightfully remote bar is popular with couples for the tranquillity and divine sunsets. Looking out over an isolated craggy bay,…
Ko Samui
Part of the Library hotel, this highly stylish bar along Chaweng Beach Rd is uber cool with a contemporary design and serves some excellent cocktails – it…
Ko Samui
The rather charmless interior decor and downcast service win no prizes, but the beer (from 120B) – brewed on-site – gets serious accolades and big thumbs…
Hat Yai
Mercifully close to the train station, this quiet, air-conditioned oasis is a good place to pause and reorganise yourself after jumping off a long train…
Ko Samui
This bright-blue converted Volkswagen camper van pitches up five days a week in front of Central Festival, bringing with it decent music and dance acts…
Ko Samui
There's a pool table, English pub food (children's menu, too) and a friendly atmosphere at this central watering hole backing onto the beach. It opens…
Ko Samui
Grab a swing at the bar or plop yourself on a beanbag on the sand, order a giant cocktail or a to-die-for coconut milkshake served in a jar, and take a…
Ko Samui
Toast the setting sun as it sinks into the golden gulf from the magnificent outside bar perched above a cliff at this swanky resort. There's an excellent…
Ko Samui
Recognised by its yawning thatch-patched awnings, Beach Republic could be the poster child of a made-for-TV, beachside, booze-swilling holiday. There’s a…
Ko Samui
With delightful views over the sea and across to the pier, this perfectly positioned cafe is an ideal final filling station before boarding a ferry. The…
Hat Yai
Decked out in all the bells and whistles expected of an expatriate Irish pub, this is a warm and friendly watering hole. There's live music every evening,…
Ko Samui
There's live music every night from 9.30pm and a decent Western and Thai food menu (including breakfasts) at the Shamrock, which also serves a decent…
Ko Pha-Ngan
The rooftop swimming pool staring out to glorious sunsets is the key draw at this popular hillside bar, perched high up on the west coast. Arrive early to…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Light, bright and spacious, Dots is the hangout for yoga retreaters with slimline silver laptops and even slimmer waistlines. Next to the Phantip Food…
Ko Tao
With a fine elevated open-air terrace and panoramic views over the island's jungle greenery, hammocks for lounging around in, ambient chill-out sounds and…
Surat Thani
Sit in the shade of a banana tree or pull up a stool at the hipster coffee bar of this charming roadside coffee spot, where the open-plan hut is decked…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Bubba's serves its famous, locally sourced and roasted coffee alongside an excellent breakfast menu at this sibling of Bubba's Roastery. The atmosphere is…
Ko Samui
Come night-time, the live music kicks on and this place turns into the most popular Irish bar on Ko Samui (yes, there are quite a few), but it's a great…
Ko Pha-Ngan
There are few better ways to unwind at the end of a Ko Pha-Ngan day than watching the sun slide into an azure sea from this bar on the northwest sands of…
Ko Pha-Ngan
One of Hat Rin’s largest venues, Tommy lures the masses with loungers, low tables, black lights, a swimming pool and blaring Full Moon music. Drinks are…
Ko Samui
We love this coffee shop in the heart of Mae Nam. Little vintage items create a chic and quirky interior that is small and perfectly formed and looks out…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Run by the affable Quentin, this enjoyable bar defies Surat Thani's appropriation by yogis and the chakra-balancing crowd with a heady range of Belgian…
Ko Samui
This small, charming and colourful cafe serves no alcohol (as Wat Phra Yai is alongside) and shuts early, but it's a lovely spot to catch the sunset with…
Ko Pha-Ngan
With chatty staff and a prime location on the corner straight down from the Thong Sala pier, cavernous wood-floored Hub is the sports bar of choice for…
Songkhla Province
This local chain has been trading since 2001, and actively supports coffee growers in Thailand. On the busy 407 coming into town, the cute cafe is a great…
Ko Pha-Ngan
Offering superb views of the Full Moon party from an elevated terrace – and excellent panoramas at all other times – this bar at the southern end of the…
Ko Samui
Drinks are dispensed from the multicoloured bar to an effusive crowd, guests recline on loungers on the beach, and the party is on day and night, with…
