The warm Phuket weather
attracts visitors year-round.

The Phuket weather is affected by two distinct monsoon seasons but there are variations.

The south-west monsoon comes in from May to October and the North-East monsoon from November to April. Generally the best time to visit is December to March but even during the rainy season you would be very unlucky if it rained everyday during your vacation (although of course it could happen).

To help you better understand Phuket weather and choose the timing of your visit, I have divided the year into four parts (Daytime temperatures are in brackets):

December – March (75–89°F, 24–32°C). This is the driest, coolest and least humid time. Consequently it is the busiest and most expensive with prices sometimes reaching dizzy heights, especially of course over the Christmas New Year Period.

April – May (86-95°F, 27-36°C). This is the hottest time and the start of the rainy season. This is the time of renewal for the local farming communities and on 13 April Thais celebrate the New Year. If you go out and about during the New Year Celebrations (Songkran) you will undoubtedly get a soaking. And be prepared for a generous dollop of flour with your water! The number of tourists starts to thin out and hotel prices come down to their low season level. If you are looking for a quiet holiday with good value-for-money prices this is an excellent time to visit.

Jun – Aug (70–90°F, 20-33°C). You are in the middle of the rainy season now but you can still experience some dry days. I have noticed the Italians in particular love to visit at this time. I was here in June with the family one year, on Bangtao Beach, and the rain was blown horizontally off the sea like tiny spears. Fortunately the storm didn’t last too long and we were soon enjoying some sun. Some hotels push their rates up a little during August.

September – November (86-95°F, 27-36°C). This is usually the wettest time to be on the island. The Champions have visited in October and it was indeed very wet: Alex and I had a great time (honestly) on the Lagoon at Phuket Laguna canoeing in pouring rain and a wind that took our breath away. Incidentally I have put November in here but I wasn’t sure really what to do with it. It could go along with December – March because it is the official start of the high season (when prices go up) but experience tells me that the Phuket weather is too unpredictable during this month so be prepared: it could go either way.

Mind you of course everything above is subject to our unpredictable weather patterns so please use it only as a rough guide.

(N.B. the Indian Ocean Tsunami of 26 December 2004 was of course a tragic freak event and not related to Phuket weather conditions).

Return from Phuket Weather to Exclusive Phuket