Another Thailand Thread!

goonersnroses

Hi,

I couldnt find any threads on when is best to travel in what particular regions.

So when is the best time of year to travel in Bangkok, Chang Mai, Phuket & Koi phi phi over a two or three week period?

For us, as my OH is a teacher it would have to be April (two weeks)(too late to organise?), July, or August this year.

Regards

breadmonkey

From:

Thailand weather

November thru February - Dry, "Cool" Season - Winds are predominantly from the north when this season starts. Daytime high temperatures are between 30-35 C (85-95 F), humidity between 50% - 60%. Every day is a sunny day. The ground will still be saturated in many places in November due to the previous rainy season. This is the season to travel around Thailand.

March thru June - Hot Season - Travellers unaccustomed to the heat should not arrive in this period. Even the Thais have problems in the hottest spells. Temperatures can soar to 40 C (105 F) on the hottest days, and at night the humidity rises. Sometime between late June to late July, evening downpours start to come.

July thru October - Rainy Season - By "rainy", we are talking about evening downpours. It rarely rains for more than an hour at a time. The mornings are usually sunny, but a thunderstorm or two can come towards the late afternoon or at night. This usually starts in late July or August, but by September there is a thunderstorm on most days, often resulting in flooded streets but cooler nighttime temperatures. Because Bangkok is flat, you rarely find any place with more than a foot of water, and it usually drains away ... slowly ... in a few hours. By late September and October, the major rivers are high and there is sometimes permanent flooding along the river, sometimes quite deep. There is a massive investment in pumps to manage the problem, but sandbagging of economically valuable areas and flooding of adjacent areas is not uncommon. This season usually ends abruptly in late October when the winds suddenly change to the north.

I've been there in July and in October and the weather was great both times. As the article says, if you were to go in April it would be a scorcher but I don't think that's a reason not to go unless you're very sensitive to heat. And it's definitely not too late to arrange a trip in April. All you need is flights! You can pretty much always find accommodation in Thailand without booking in advance.

EDIT: Actually, if you want to go in April, you'd better get your jabs pronto -www.tmb.ie

goonersnroses

Thanks breadmonkey.

When you went in July and October what areas did you go too? I'm abit worried about the level of rainfall for Phuket and Koi Phi Phi around July, as this is ment to be the relax on the beech part of the trip.

Also could you recommend airlines best to check for return flights to Bangkok?

breadmonkey

When I was there in July I was in the north as well as one of the islands down south for a little bit. I do remember that it rained for about 28 hours straight in the very north but that only happened once! Weather down south was mostly blue skies during the day with the odd thunderstorm at night. Good for keeping the temperature down and keeping the mozzies away!

October I was only really in Bangkok, Koh Tao and Koh Phi Phi and the weather was awesome pretty much the whole time.

Can't advise you on airlines as I don't remember which one I used first time around and the second time it was part of a round the world ticket.