French · 7 years on Samui
French motorcycle tour guide living on Koh Samui for 7 years. Marc leads group rides across southern Thailand and knows every road on the island.
Updated: May 2026
On the Nathon ring road last February at 95 km/h - the Z650RS in fifth gear at approximately 5,800 rpm - the 649cc parallel twin produced a composed, authoritative touring rhythm. The Z650RS at 95 km/h feels genuinely relaxed rather than committed; the 67 horsepower is barely exercised at Samui's legal speeds. For a rider who wants to cover the ring road circuit at highway pace without the motor working at its ceiling, the Z650RS provides that margin more emphatically than the CB300R or MT-03. The ring road is where the Z650RS's displacement makes itself felt.
On the north coast road at sunset last November - the light on the Gulf of Thailand, the Fisherman's Village ahead - I stopped the Z650RS at the coast viewpoint above Bophut. Two other riders stopped alongside to look at the bike. The Z650RS in that setting - retro styling, round headlights, chrome accents, the fishing village backdrop - attracted more attention from other travellers than any other bike I have ridden on Samui in seven years. For a rider who wants the visual experience of the Z650RS as part of the coastal circuit, the bike earns its place on scenic days beyond its riding performance.
Above the Nathon junction last March on the Z650RS - the switchback road to the viewpoint - I used the 649cc twin's low-end torque through the tight corners without the downshifting that the CB300R requires on steeper sections. At 67 horsepower, the Z650RS carries a power reserve on Samui's mountain roads that allows corner-exit acceleration in a higher gear than the smaller bikes require. For a rider who has ridden 600cc+ parallel twins before and wants to use mountain switchbacks at their natural pace, the Z650RS provides the power and chassis balance to do so.
On a two-day rental last January - ring road circuit, north coast, Nathon - I assessed the Z650RS against the shorter rental timescale. For two days the ergonomic compromise of the narrower seat is not relevant; the visual presence and performance are. For a rider on a short Samui stay who wants to spend two days on the Z650RS for the experience of riding it on Samui's roads and stops, the two-day timescale is ideal. The retro styling, ring road performance, and visual presence all peak in the first two days; the ergonomic limitations accumulate after day four.
Planning a mainland day last October, I chose the CB500X over the Z650RS without deliberation. At 100 km/h on the Surat Thani highway without a windscreen, the Z650RS's naked aerodynamics produce significant wind load at that sustained speed. The CB500X's windscreen eliminates that load. For riders planning mainland days, extended touring above 80 kilometres per day, or two-up riding on long circuits, the Z650RS's sporting ergonomics and naked aerodynamics both work against comfort in those conditions. The Z650RS is a Samui island circuit bike - it is exactly right for its intended context and less suited outside it.
Seven years of riding and recommending the Kawasaki Z650RS on Koh Samui has produced a consistent answer to when it is the right choice: ring road circuits at highway pace, scenic north coast routes where the bike's visual presence matters, mountain road days with a 600cc power reserve, and short two-to-four-day rentals where the style advantage accumulates before the ergonomic limitations do. These are the conditions where the Z650RS's combination of retro character and modern performance delivers exactly what the rider came for.
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