Thailand Weather and Climate

General & Geography

According to COUNTRYAAH, the Kingdom of Thailand is a popular vacation destination in Southeast Asia. The capital and largest city of the country is Bangkok with around 8.4 million inhabitants.

Thailand borders on the neighboring states of Malaysia, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia. The two adjoining seas are the Gulf of Thailand (Pacific Ocean) and the Andaman Sea (Indian Ocean).

More than 90 percent of the Thai population of currently around 68 million people profess Buddhism.

The national territory of Thailand extends from the southeastern foothills of the Himalayan Mountains to the Malay Peninsula. The center of the country with the capital Bangkok is dominated by the fertile Chao Phraya River.

In northern Thailand (e.g. Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai) are dominated by mountain ranges; Doi Inthanon is also the highest point in the country (2565 meters).

The East Thailand region includes Pattaya and the islands of Koh Chang and Koh Samet. The palm-fringed region of southern Thailand, which includes popular travel destinations such as Phuket, Krabi, Koh Samui, Koh Phi Phi, Koh Pha-ngan and Koh Tao, is of the greatest tourist importance.

• Abbreviation Finder: Check to see national geography, brief history, society description, domestic politics, economy overview, and a list of widely used acronyms about Thailand.

Climate in Thailand

The climate in Thailand can generally be described as tropical, but there are regional differences. The north of Thailand has a humid savannah climate, which is monsoonal and makes three different seasons recognizable. The slightly cooler dry season in the north lasts from the beginning of November to the end of February.

Subsequently, the Thai summer runs from the beginning of March to around the end of May with very hot temperatures, before the rainy season in northern Thailand usually ensures heavy rainfall, high humidity and muggy and warm conditions in early June to late October.

The center around the capital Bangkok is climatically part of the tropical savannah zone in the north and is considered to be humid with a longer dry season. The south of Thailand, on the other hand, has more constant temperatures all year round, with only minor fluctuations.

The climate on the popular holiday islands is therefore rather humid and tropical all year round. So there is also tropical rainfall during the northeast monsoon in winter. With the summer southwest monsoons, however, there is a significant increase in humidity and rainfall.

This rainy season in the south runs similar to the north of Thailand from the beginning of June to the end of October. The islands in the southeast (especially Koh Samui) have less rainfall and a shorter rainy season than the areas in the southwest (e.g. Phuket). May, October and November in particular are very humid here.

Optimal travel time for the regions

In the following overview you can see the best travel time depending on the region (Thailand).

Place	Best travel time
Bangkok	January, February, March, November and December
Chanthaburi	January, February, March, November and December
Chiang Mai	January, February, March, October, November and December
Songkhla	January, February, March, April and December
Phuket	January, February, March, April and December
Koh Samui	all except October, November and December
Well Thon	all except October, November and December
Pattaya	January, February, March, April, November and December
Hua Hin	January, February, March and December
Khao Lak	January, February, March, April and December
Chiang Rai	January, February, March, November and December
Prachuap Khiri Khan	January, February, March and December
Ko Tao	February, March and April
Krabi	January, February, March, April and December
Koh Lanta	January, February, March, April and December
Koh Phangan	January, February, March, April and December
Phi Phi Don	January, February, March, April and December

Temperatures, precipitation, sunshine in Bangkok (Thailand)

	Jan	Feb	March	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Daytime temperature	32 ° C	33 ° C	34 ° C	35 ° C	34 ° C	33 ° C	33 ° C	33 ° C	32 ° C	32 ° C	32 ° C	31 ° C
Night temperature	21 ° C	23 ° C	25 ° C	26 ° C	26 ° C	25 ° C	25 ° C	25 ° C	25 ° C	24 ° C	23 ° C	21 ° C
Water temperature	26 ° C	27 ° C	27 ° C	28 ° C	28 ° C	28 ° C	28 ° C	28 ° C	28 ° C	27 ° C	27 ° C	27 ° C
Precipitation in mm	9	30	29	65	220	149	155	197	344	242	48	10
Rainy days	2	2	5	8	17	18	19	21st	22	16	5	2
Hours of sunshine	9	9	9	9	7	6	6	5	5	6	8	9
Sunrise	6:45	6:40	6:25	6:05	5:50	5:50	6:00	6:05	6:05	6:10	6:20	6:35
Sunset	18:10	18:25	18:30	18:30	18:35	18:45	18:50	18:40	18:20	18:00	17:50	17:55

Temperatures

The annual average temperature in Bangkok is 27.8 ° C. For comparison: Munich reaches an average of 8.6 ° C, in Berlin it is 9.6 ° C. The warmest month is April (29.7 ° C), coldest month of December with averages of 25.6 ° C. The maximum water temperature in Bangkok is 28 ° C. Comfortable bathing is possible at these temperatures. All months have a water temperature of at least 21 ° C and are therefore suitable for a beach holiday.

Precipitation

The annual precipitation is 1498 mm on 137 days with precipitation. For comparison: In Munich, 967 mm, in Berlin 570 mm, precipitation is measured annually. The months of May, August, September and October are considered the rainy season, as more than 175 mm of precipitation can be expected per month. Overall, about 1003 mm of precipitation can be expected in the rainy season. You cannot expect snow in any month in Bangkok.

Sunshine

As our climate table shows, January is the sunniest month with an average of 8.8 hours of sunshine per day. On average over the year, the sun shines 7.2 hours per day. For comparison: In Munich and Berlin, the sun shines an average of 4.7 hours per day throughout the year.

Cities nearby

The following major towns are nearby and have a similar climate: Nonthaburi and Pak Kret.