Phuket Thailand in October - What to Expect

May 29, 2011 4:09 PM

I'm planning a trip to Phuket, Thailand in October. What should I expect from the weather since it is nearing the end of the 'rainy' season?

Also I am between two resorts - Le Meridien Beach Resort Phuket and Westin Siray Bay Resort & Spa. Any Suggestions/Help will be greatly appreciated!?

Le Meridien is on the west coast of Phuket - while the Westin is on the east, will this make a difference in October?

posted by ejames to Travel & Transportation around Ko Phuket, Thailand (8 answers total)

I doubt which side of Phuket you're on will matter. October's gonna be filled with heavy rain, but it's usually short in duration, and it can be a nice respite from the heat. Between rainfalls, it'll be quite pleasant and there'll probably be a good breeze. Daytime temperatures will range between 80 and 90 degrees. At night it'll about 10 degrees or more cooler.
posted by gman at 4:52 PM on May 29, 2011

Response by poster: So knowing that there will be heavy rainfall during this time and wanting a beach vacation - would you recommend visiting during this time - or postponing until November/December?
posted by ejames at 5:00 PM on May 29, 2011

Yeah, if it's possible. November still has a bit of rain so if you can book late November through early December (no idea how long you're gone for, just guessing), you'd be all set and you'd miss the Christmas vacation rush to boot.
posted by gman at 5:05 PM on May 29, 2011

I went to Thailand in October of 2010 and while it rained every day, it made it a rather lovely trip. The rain kept the heat a bit more tolerable and it only rained for about an hour maybe once a day, if that. During the begining of October I was up in the north, in Chiang Mai and it was beautiful and only rained a couple days we were there. For the second half of the trip I was in Tonsai/Railay area which is pretty close to Phuket. The awesome thing about going to Thailand in October is that the prices are off-season prices, even though the weather is still quite nice. I was on quite a small budget, so this was a major factor for me and my beau. To keep in perspective, we did not go to Railay for a beach vacation, we went to climb. Climbing in the rain is never a very good idea, so we hoped for lots of sunny days and got them most of the time. October is also a great time to go coz there are much less tourists around and you get to hang out and talk to more locals. Feel free to Memail me if you have any more questions!
posted by ruhroh at 6:21 PM on May 29, 2011

My wife and I went to Phuket a couple years back more in the middle of the season, possibly end of August, beginning of September, and it wasn't that great. We stayed on the western coast of the island, in the resortish area. The beach was closed the entire time we were there due to riptides. We took a boat trip to a couple of the various islands, and were caught in a storm. Rough seas in a two engine boat with other tourists puking into plastic baggies wasn't the best time. There were legitimate concerns about whether or not we'd capsize, and the crew went over the instructions on what to do, and started rearranging us because the boat was listing. If you are going to check out the other islands, I'd suggest doing it in one of the tours that have the larger ships, just to be safe.

On the other hand, I would definitely suggest to tours that go up into the bay to the east of Phuket. The limestone islands there are a lot like Haiphong in Vietnam, and canoeing around in inflatable canoes was a hell of a lot of fun. Probably the highlight of our trip.

Also worth checking out, if you get a chance, would be a cooking class, if you're into that. We went to Pum's Restaurant and Cooking School, which was really instructive and fun.
posted by Ghidorah at 9:15 PM on May 29, 2011

I'm currently in Vietnam, and this is the early end of the rainy season. The rain is not constant; it's usually a quick (although torrential) storm, no more than an hour or two in duration. In general, it moderates the heat a little, especially the humidity. Honestly, having been here, I would prefer visiting during the rainy season to visiting in the dry. (The locals here refer to the two seasons as "wet" and "sweat.")
posted by sonic meat machine at 12:46 AM on May 30, 2011

Response by poster: Thanks for the suggestions on the rainy season! Any idea on which resort would be a more enjoyable stay?!
posted by ejames at 6:57 PM on May 30, 2011

Just got back from Puket (early June trip for 5 days) and if October is anything like June, as they say it is, I'd go with staying south/east and at the Westin. I stayed on the west coast and it the beach was constantly closed due to riptides; however the same day we ventured down to the Westin hotel area and it was totally calm and peaceful. The Westin looked great, too.

The rain passes quickly, too so it's not a problem.
posted by peachtree at 3:05 AM on June 8, 2011