What’s with people avoiding Thailand during rainy season?
I spend a fair amount of time reading questions about Thailand on places like Reddit and Quora and, half the time, I notice two things.
First, many of the people giving advice or information have obviously spent little time in Thailand, as their replies are either missing vital information or are completely incorrect.
And second, so many people seem to think rainy season in Thailand is this horrendous time when all it does is rain, everything is grey, damp and miserable, and it is absolutely the worst time of the year to travel to the Asian country.
So…I am here to give you the ‘real deal’ about rainy season in Thailand. And to tell you, if you are thinking you should avoid rainy season in Thailand completely, why you may want to rethink your plans.
When is rainy season in Thailand?
First, let’s start with when is the actual time of year when Thailand gets most of its rain?
While, of course, there is not a specific date of the year when you can say rainy season begins and then ends, most weather experts will tell you for most of Thailand it begins in May or June, depending on the year, and ends in September to mid-October.
(**On the Gulf of Thailand, rainy season will often be October to early January).
In other words, there are six months of the year where Thailand could, and usually does, get more rain than the rest of the year.
What does rainy season in Thailand mean?
Most people who are not Thai, or haven’t spent much time in Thailand, seem to think it rains all day and every day during rain season.
No, it really does not.
Related: What is rainy season like in Bangkok?
In fact, all rainy season means is that it rains often, it may rain every day for a week or two, or it may not but…even if it does rain, and it comes down hard, it will rarely last longer than 45 minutes to an hour.
After that, the sun comes out again, the rain dries up incredibly fast (it’s a very hot country) and everyone goes about their business as usual.
Most of the time too, the rain happens in late afternoon 4pm to 7pm, so you can often plan for it.
Why you should not avoid Thailand in rainy season?
It has always been interesting to me why so many people avoid traveling to Thailand during rainy season, as there really is no need.
After all, when it rains for no more than an hour or two a day (and it does not rain anywhere near every day), and is still 30 degrees even when it does, the rest of your day can be spent doing what you always do on a trip to Thailand — travel, swim, visit local places of interest, meet new and interesting people.
Related: How to enjoy rainy season in Thailand — it’s fun and not that difficult
If it does rain, you can then spend your time doing the other things you would like to do — eat, drink, shop, hang out with your traveling companions and talk about your next plans.
The real reason for why it is foolish to avoid rainy season, however, is in the prices and the crowds.
Prices in Thailand during rainy season
Prices tend to be less during rainy season — both for airfares and hotels — and, in the main tourist areas, there are less crowds.
(** Both prices and crowds remain pretty much the same in Bangkok throughout the year, however).
This also often means lower prices in shops, malls and local restaurants, and for any trips or excursions you may go on.
In fact, if you take a trip to Thailand during rainy season, you could discover the total cost of your holiday is around 15-20% less than it would be during the height of the tourist season.
If you are spending a month there, that can be quite a chunk of money.
The weather will be lovely too. Despite an occasional downpour.
Finally, here is a video from YouTuber Warren talking about rainy season, and why he thinks people should still come to Thailand (as you will notice, he mentions it was completely fine and beautiful all day until about 5pm, when it rained for an hour — that is pretty common — an hour a day of rain, late in the afternoon).
So, should you avoid rainy season in Thailand? No. Absolutely not.