While the central part of Lamai can seem a little 'single-male-orientated', especially at night, there is often a fairly mixed crowd of Westerners hanging out in the town. The older European ex-pat scene centres around the beach-road beer-bars, with backpackers and health-seekers staying on the fringes, catered for by spas and cheap bungalows. Due to its relaxed atmosphere, Lamai is also great for families and some resorts such as Jungle Park and Buddy Beer cater well for kids with good swimming pools and shallow, safe beach front areas.

Lamai is a much more manageable size than Chaweng, so a daytime stroll along the beach or an evening walk on the main strip can take in most of the sights. Lamai is also bordered by lush jungle, with secluded bays, small quaint villages, temples, Spas, mummified monks and phallic rock formations all close by. Lamai is also a living, working Thai village with a tight-nit local community centred around the cultural hubs of the temple and daily market.