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
Above the Nathon market last March, riding two-up on the XMAX 300 on the mountain road access climb, I held 65 km/h on a gradient that drops the NMAX 155 to 45 km/h solo. The 300cc engine - 28 horsepower against the NMAX's 15 - does not treat a gradient as an event. It absorbs incline as background noise. That single climb is the most efficient demonstration of why the XMAX is the correct choice when a touring day includes anything meaningfully above sea level.
Completing the full island circuit last November on the XMAX - 84 kilometres including the southern loop and two mountain road sections - I reached Chaweng with 40 minutes of usable afternoon energy remaining. The same circuit on the NMAX the previous week left me ready for dinner and nothing else. The XMAX's longer suspension travel absorbs the north coast road joins and the broken tarmac near Laem Sor without requiring the rider to actively buffer each impact through arms and core.
Last April over three consecutive days on the XMAX I tracked fuel consumption: 32 to 34 km/l at sustained ring road speeds. With a 12-litre tank, that produces a range of 380 to 400 kilometres before reserve. On Samui's 62-kilometre ring road this means six complete circuits before stopping - a number that eliminates fuel planning from the touring equation entirely. I rode three full days without a petrol stop. Freedom from fuel anxiety is itself a touring feature worth naming.
On the north coast road at 85 km/h last January, I dropped behind the XMAX's windscreen and felt airflow shift from direct pressure to managed deflection. Below 50 kilometres this difference is academic; beyond it, the reduction in wind resistance translates into lower fatigue and more precise throttle control. I tested the comparison by deliberately sitting taller than the screen for 2 kilometres, then returning to the protected position. The energy difference over a full coastal section is not subtle.
I rode the XMAX 300 on the same route as a Honda CB300R last October - ring road to mountain road to south coast. The CB300R was faster in a straight line by 15 km/h and lighter through the mountain road bends. The XMAX matched the CB300R on underseat storage, bettered it on rain protection, and was quieter at 80 km/h cruise. For a rider whose priority is touring comfort over outright pace, the XMAX sits closer to the motorbike fleet in capability than most comparisons acknowledge.
Seven years of running tour groups across Koh Samui's full road network has produced a settled conclusion: no other scooter in the rental market completes a demanding Samui day - 80 or more kilometres, mixed gradients, two riders, full luggage - and returns both riders ready for the following day. The NMAX comes close; every other scooter falls further behind. For a touring day rather than a beach-hop, the XMAX is the instrument built for the task on this island.
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