Koh Samui scooter route map
This is a heat-map of every road I have personally ridden on Koh Samui over the past few years — from the 4169 ring road to the small mountain tracks that never show up on tourist maps. Use it to plan a self-guided scooter route, or download the whole island as a free GPX track for offline navigation.
Open in Google Maps works in the Google Maps app on your phone — tap any pin or use the map normally. Download GPX for any other navigator: Maps.me, Organic Maps, OsmAnd, Garmin, Wahoo, Strava. Share sends the page link via your phone's native share menu.
Ready-made routes
Ring road 4169 — around the island
Viewpoints loop
Mountain roads — Pom Mountain & Secret Buddha Garden
Waterfalls — Na Muang, Hin Lad, Wang Saotong
South-west — Taling Ngam, Lipa Noi, Laem Sor
North coast — Bophut, Maenam, Bang Por, Nathon
Temples of the east — Big Buddha, Plai Laem, Khao Hua Jook
One-day classic — the best of Samui in a day
Start here
Where to ride
Every place on the map is from my own rides. Open a section: an overview and a page per place with the road to it.
About these Koh Samui routes
Anton A.
I have been riding around Thailand for several years and spent a long stretch on Koh Samui. The tracks on this map are stitched together from my own GPS recordings — mostly on a Yamaha X-Max and a Honda Fazio, with side trips on smaller scooters.
This is not a commercial tour guide. It is a personal map, last updated for the 2026 season. Use it as a hint for where a scooter can actually go on the island.
Skill level — which Koh Samui roads a beginner can ride
Most of Koh Samui is easy. The mountain sections in the centre of the island are not. Be honest with yourself before you point the scooter uphill.
Difficulty levels on this map
🟢 Easy — coastal ring road
Route 4169 around the island. Wide, flat, well-maintained asphalt. Fine for a first-day rider, including the section between Lamai and Chaweng.
🟡 Medium — secondary roads and short climbs
Roads to most viewpoints (Lad Koh, Wat Khao Hua Jook, Secret Buddha Garden access). Steeper grades, occasional gravel patches, tight turns. You should be comfortable braking on a downhill curve.
🔴 Hard — central mountain roads
The roads cutting through the centre of the island and reaching the high viewpoints (Pom Mountain, Khao Pom area, the inner waterfall tracks). Very steep climbs, broken surface, loose gravel, sharp blind turns. A weak scooter will not make it up, and brakes get hot on the way down.
Routes by level:ring road, north coast, south-west — easy · viewpoints, waterfalls, one day — medium · mountain roads — hard
Minimum experience
- At least 50 hours of scooter riding before you attempt mountain roads — roughly 2-3 weeks of daily riding.
- Confident cornering at 40-60 km/h.
- Understanding of how a scooter behaves on wet asphalt, sand and gravel.
- Comfortable with left-hand traffic (Thailand drives on the left).
Which scooter to rent on Koh Samui
⚠ Take an ABS-equipped scooter — this is non-negotiable
Koh Samui has steep mountain descents, sudden tropical showers and gravel patches in the middle of corners. ABS will save your skin at least once on these roads. All major rental shops on the island stock ABS models, usually for an extra 100-200 baht per day. Pay it. Do not even consider a scooter without ABS for these routes.
Easy starter: 125-160cc with ABS
Honda Click 125 ABS, Honda PCX 160 ABS. Lightweight, easy to pick up if you drop it, easy to manoeuvre at parking speed. The right choice for your very first day on a scooter on the island.
Sweet spot for most riders: 150-200cc with ABS — RECOMMENDED
Honda ADV 150/160, Yamaha Aerox 155, Honda PCX 160. Enough torque for the mountain climbs, but still light enough for a beginner to lift alone, push backwards into a tight parking spot or roll out of a sand patch. This is the safe default if you have a couple of weeks of riding behind you.
Only for experienced riders: 300cc maxi-scooter
Yamaha X-Max 300, Honda Forza 300. I personally rode every track on this map on a Yamaha X-Max — but I have years of maxi-scooter experience. It is heavy and tall; if you drop it on a slope you will not pick it up alone, and tight mountain hairpins on a steep grade are noticeably harder. Do not take a 300 as your first scooter on the island.
Do not take
Anything without ABS — full stop. Honda Wave 110 and similar underbones — not enough power for two people on a 15% grade. Large tourist trikes — too wide for mountain turns.
More: which engine size, and the model table → · rental prices
Videos
Videos play silently as you scroll past — tap one to open with sound, controls and seeking.
Photos
Tap any photo to open full size.
Gear and what to bring
Required
- Full-face or open-face helmet (provided with the rental, demand a working one).
- Long trousers and closed shoes — no flip-flops on the bike, ever.
- Gloves are strongly recommended even in heat — they save your palms in a fall.
Take with you on the day
- 1-2 litres of water (mountain rides are sweaty).
- Light rain jacket — tropical showers come fast even in the dry season.
- Phone with offline maps (Organic Maps or maps.me) and a full battery, plus a power bank.
- International driver's licence with motorcycle category and a copy of your passport.
- Small first-aid kit: bandage, antiseptic, painkillers.
- Mosquito repellent with DEET — dengue fever is endemic on the island, especially in the mountain jungle.
- Cash — most viewpoints and small shops do not take cards.
Things to avoid
Riding mountain roads after rain
Asphalt becomes glass, gravel slides, and storm runoff washes mud across blind corners. Wait a few hours after a heavy shower.
Night riding in the centre of the island
No street lights, dogs and the occasional snake on the road, and oncoming locals who know the road and will not slow down for you.
Any alcohol
Tight turns, left-hand traffic and steep descents do not forgive even one beer.
Rainy season for the high routes (October-December)
Some of the inner mountain tracks turn into a small river. The ring road stays fine.
Long breaks in the jungle without mosquito protection
Dengue fever is endemic on Koh Samui and the mosquitoes that carry it live in the mountain jungle. They are most active around dawn and dusk. Use DEET repellent, cover arms and legs when you stop, do not linger barefoot at viewpoints in the evening. Dengue puts you in bed with 40°C fever for 1-2 weeks and there is no easy treatment — prevention is the whole game.