| Probably the most common question any | | | | of the wet season...unless you're in Bangkok, then |
| foreigner living in Thailand will hear from people | | | | get in a sauna and pipe your car exhaust into the |
| planning to visit the Kingdom is "When is the best | | | | sauna to get the right idea...hmmm yummy. Then |
| time to come to Thailand"...not an easy question | | | | thankfully the skies really open up, the wind blows |
| to answer without knowing "why" a person wants | | | | and things freshen up . Rain is pretty much a |
| to come to Thailand. | | | | guaranteed feature on a daily basis and usually |
| There are basically three seasons in Thailand | | | | kicks off in the afternoon, sometimes lasting all |
| (though of late the cold season seems to have | | | | night, Floods are common along with power cuts. |
| gone missing), the seasons are, The Hot, The | | | | So why come to Thailand now...the cost.... hotels |
| Wet and The Cold. Cold being a rather subjective | | | | are empty, tourists are away, it's a great time to |
| description though, the shots of emergency | | | | see Thailand with fewer tourists than usual and |
| blankets being handed out in the northern | | | | get the best prices as even the Thai people stay |
| provinces when it drops to a chilly 10 | | | | home at the weekends. |
| degrees...that's 10 degrees Celsius. So what does | | | | The Cold |
| each season offer. | | | | December to February : Thailand freezes over, |
| The Hot | | | | snow falls from the sky and ice-skating is the |
| March to June : The hottest month is April when | | | | nations most popular sport...well if you watched |
| even the geckos stay inside and most expats | | | | the TV or the Thai people running around dressed |
| look outside at lunch time and decide to not eat | | | | in winter jackets, boots, gloves and scarves you |
| rather than melt on the walk to a food stall. The | | | | may start to think it's true.. in Bangkok it can drop |
| Hot season is beach season, if that's your thing | | | | to a bone chilling 15 degrees Celsius at night, and |
| then this is the time to come to Thailand, | | | | up north it has on occasions dropped down to 2 |
| guaranteed sun sun sun all day long day after day. | | | | degrees, the south gets off much lighter and you |
| For Trekkers you might find this to be a tad hot | | | | can escape with a body warmer and a bobble hat. |
| to go trudging up hills unless mounted on an | | | | Thailand again is swarming with tourists who have |
| elephant, sun stroke and dehydration are high up | | | | come to take advantage of the cool weather to |
| on the list of things to beware of. Bangkok turns | | | | do see Thailand without burning up. This is the |
| into a molten vat of pollution as the winds die and | | | | best time of the year to actually "see" Thailand, |
| the smog just hangs around choking up the | | | | you'll enjoy seeing the sights and touring the cities |
| oxygen. Hotels are at their most expensive during | | | | and trekking will be at its best. Again prices will be |
| the hot season and weekends will see many of | | | | up and hotels fairly full. |
| the mid range ones fully booked. | | | | So in a nutshell the best time to come to Thailand |
| The Wet | | | | is the time that suits what you want to do, |
| July to November : The change over from hot to | | | | Trekkers and Tanners will have different needs, |
| wet is the worst time to be in Thailand regardless | | | | those looking for bargains will have different |
| of what you're into. It's Hot, it's wet and the | | | | needs. Just add that there are occasional down |
| humidity is ruthless. You'll be desperate to take | | | | pours even in the hottest parts of the year and |
| three showers a day at a minimum...living in a | | | | even the wet season can be dry for a week or |
| shower for a month might not be a bad plan. If | | | | more.....but leave your skis at home...there will be |
| you can imagine living in a sauna for a month then | | | | no snow.....guaranteed. |
| you get the right picture of Thailand at the start | | | | |