About Samui69
Samui69 is an independent travel guide to Koh Samui, Thailand. We are not a booking site and we do not sell tours. Our goal is simple: the most accurate, practical page on the internet for every beach, waterfall, temple and hiking trail on the island.
Why this site exists
Most Samui content online is written once, copied everywhere, and never checked again. Prices go stale, roads get resurfaced or washed out, waterfalls dry up in the hot season, and none of it makes it back into the article. Samui69 exists to fix that: one place with current, verified detail for people planning a trip, not people trying to guess which listicle to trust.
How it's funded
Samui69 is non-commercial and makes no money: that will not change. There are no ads, no affiliate links, no sponsored placements and no paywall. Nothing on this site is ranked, recommended or left out because of a payment. Our support page is live: it's not a row of donate buttons but a record of what we checked for local causes: the organisations we could verify, where each one's work actually happens, where its money is registered (often two different countries), and the causes where we looked and found no one to vouch for. Every link on it goes straight to the organisation's own donation page; the site keeps none of it.
How we research
- On the ground. Places are visited in person; opening hours, entry fees, parking and road conditions are checked on site.
- Cross-referenced. Every article is compared against at least three independent sources before publishing.
- Concrete numbers. Distances in km, prices in Thai baht (with a USD estimate), durations in minutes.
- Kept current. Articles carry their last update date. Seasonal caveats (monsoon, dry-season waterfalls, temple ceremonies) are reviewed every year.
What's on the site
Coverage spans beaches, waterfalls, temples and hiking trails, plus practical guides and pieces on everyday island life. What gets written about is decided by what's useful and what's missing elsewhere online, not by what earns anything, since nothing here earns anything. Gaps get filled, weak articles get rewritten, and pages that no longer match reality get updated rather than left up.
Photos
Many photographs come from the Pexels community and are credited to their photographers in each image's attribution file. Where a photo shows a general Thai scene rather than the exact spot, the caption says so.
What we don't do
Samui69 doesn't take bookings, doesn't sell tours, and doesn't rank hotels, restaurants or operators for money: there's no money involved to rank them for. If a place is described well, it's because we found it good on the ground, not because anyone paid for the placement.
Who writes here
- Mike Brochlowski: Travel photographer & writer. Travel photographer and island explorer. Mike has spent years documenting Southeast Asia's hidden gems, from secluded beaches to jungle waterfalls.
- Migues Ferfumoz: Writer, Koh Samui resident since 2019. Freelance writer and Koh Samui resident since 2019. Migues covers local culture, food, and the best off-the-beaten-path destinations on the island.
- Samui69 Editorial Team: residents and frequent visitors who fact-check and update guides published under the team byline.
Corrections
Found an outdated price or a closed road? Email hello@samui69.com or use the contact page. Corrections are usually live within a week.