The best night markets in Samui offer a huge selection of shopping and dining opportunities, with the added advantage that you can shop for longer in the cool evening air than you could during the heat of the day. Plus, you also don’t need to sacrifice a potential beach day in order to pick up some great discounts on clothing, electrical goods, souvenirs, and much more besides.

The weekly Walking Streets around the island feature prominently among this list of the best Samui night markets, particularly since their popularity among visiting tourists has seen them grow into size to the point that they now take over entire towns for one night every week! Even with this popularity, prices are still generally very low and can usually be bartered a bit lower, if you take a friendly and cheerful approach to it. Be sure to check out as many of the following markets as you can while you’re on Koh Samui in order to enjoy great local eats and unbeatable bargains.

Fisherman’s Village Walking Street

Fisherman’s Village Walking Street brings the quiet, sleepy town of Bophut to life every Friday from 17:00 to 23:00. It sees the narrow Beach Road and adjoining streets crammed with market stalls and shoppers from across Koh Samui, with a diverse range of wares available at very low prices. Many of the stalls sell much the same items as you will find in markets throughout Thailand, including 100-baht T-shirts, simple jewellery, handbags, sunglasses, beer cosies, souvenirs, watches of questionable mechanical soundness, branded clothes of dubious manufacture and electrical goods of suspicious provenance. As with all market shopping in Thailand, a certain amount of judgement and measured expectations is necessary when selecting your purchases. Read More…

• Opening Hours: Fridays from 5pm to 11pm
• Location: Bophut Beach Road, Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84320, Thailand

Elephant Walk Koh Samui

Elephant Walk Koh Samui is a small night market which opens every night in Fisherman’s Village. Located just a short walk (across the road) from the Happy Elephant Restaurant, it is a fun and quirky shopping experience in Bophut and a good place to find some interesting souvenirs. The titular walk is not a particularly long one as this little shopping precinct stretches only about 30 metres back from Bophut Beach Road. Most of that space is a gravelled central courtyard with cute elephant statues painted as comic book characters, as well as seating for dining and relaxing and small tables made from empty oil drums painted with national flags. Read More…

• Opening Hours: Daily, shop hours vary
• Location: Bophut Beach Road, Bophut, Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84320, Thailand

Chaweng Night Market

Chaweng Night Market, despite its name, is not exactly a full and proper market. While there is a fantastic array of dining options, there is very little else, with only a couple of stalls selling clothes and souvenirs. Established behind the large and popular fitness centre Star Gym, the market is effectively a large food court, with a choice of local Thai food as well as European and international choices and even a couple of small bars. Read More…

• Opening Hours: Daily from 5pm to 11pm
• Location: 14/102 Moo 2, Chaweng Beach Road, Bophut, Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84320, Thailand

Lamai Night Plaza

In the centre of town, diagonally opposite McDonald’s and leading to a bar beer square, you’ll find a mini-version of Bangkok’s Patpong night market. With lots of pirated goods, copied clothes, trashy ‘Swiss’ army knives, the usual displays of flip flops. It’s a fun place to get your shopping in. Read More…

• Opening Hours: Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday from 5pm to 10pm (closed on Mondays, Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays)
• Location: Lamai Centre, 139/24 Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84310, Thailand
• Tel: +66 (0)84 695 3502

Chaweng Walking Street

It’s hard to imagine shoppers in the West sipping on cocktails while out shopping but at Chaweng Walking Street Market you can do just that, and for very little money, too. Chaweng Walking Street is a riot of colours, sounds and scents. This is where you can haggle for items such as T-shirts, sunglasses, knockoff watches, beach dresses, lamps, sexy cutoff jeans; copied Ralph Laurent polo shirts, flip-flops, bags of all shapes and sizes, carved wooden souvenirs, kids clothing and cosmetics. Read More…

• Opening Hours: Monday–Thursday and Saturdays from about 4.30pm to 12am. Closed on Fridays and Sundays.
• Location: 39/36 Chaweng Beach Rd, Bophut, Koh Samui, Surat Thani 84320, Thailand
• Tel: +66 (0)77 961 910

What are your favourite markets to visit in Samui? Let us know in the comments below!

This article was originally published on kosamui.com