Weather in Koh Tao
”How’s the weather in month x” is understandably one of questions we most often get, since who wouldn’t want to have the best possible atmospheric conditions during their well-deserved holiday! Luckily, we have the 100% accurate answer to this question:
No freaking clue.
Weather in a small tropical Island changes often and the years are not the same, so whenever you plan to travel to tropics, do not leave your sunscreen home but remember to pack light raincoat with you as well. Most of the year we enjoy sunny weather with occasional showers and even when it rains there are things to do. You hardly ever survive a diving day without getting wet!
As said the years are not brothers, but they might be cousins or at least second cousins. You can find certain similarities in between different seasons on the rock. What is the best time to travel and dive around Koh Tao is not the easiest question to answer since preferences differ, but we promise to do our best to explain seasons one by one.
October to November – Monsoon Season
Let’s start with everyone’s favorite: The Monstrous Monsoon! Which is honestly a not too bad time to travel to Koh Tao. The island is quiet, so you can find cheap accommodation deals lot easier than on the peak season. Yes, it might rain heavily, but even during monsoon it usually lasts only few hours at a time. The air is nice and cool (in tropical standards this means you are not sweating like crazy all the time) and the nature is blooming because it gets enough water.
This time of the year the wind is blowing from east, so the best diving is on the west coast of the island. Occasionally it gets quite strong especially in November, but there are still plenty of dive sites close to the island if the further out ones are unreachable. In some of years whale sharks have also been quite actively visiting Koh Tao during these months.
December to end of February – Cool and dry season
By mid-December the latest the heavy monsoon rains are usually over. At the beginning of the season the winds might be quite strong still. If you are not a big fan of extreme heat, this is the time to travel to Koh Tao, since the breeze makes a huge difference.
The direction of the wind is still from east and most of the diving takes place on west coast of the island. The closer we get to spring, the less windy it is and some years you can visit the less dived east coast already in February.
March till end of June- hot and dry season
This is the time of the year we call “where the hell is everyone?”- season. Most people take their winter holidays around Christmas and so when we approach spring the island gets quieter. And it really should not!
Only reason not to come to Koh Tao during this season is if you absolutely can’t stand the heat, since occasionally it gets VERY hot. Other than that, this is often the most beautiful time of the year. The ocean is calm and the sun is shining. If you enjoy calm seas and half empty beaches you really should travel to Koh Tao on springtime!
At spring time it is possible to dive all around the Island on most of the days and this is also the peak-season to spot whale sharks around Koh Tao. It is possible to spot some individuals pretty much any time of the year spring time your chances to meet one multiply.
July- end of September – Hot and Wet season
During summer and early fall the wind is coming from the west. This time of the year, the heavy rains and big waves will hit east coast of Thailand. In Koh Tao the effect of “West monsoon” is a little sneeze compared to the west coast. Air is still quite hot, but it showers more often. Depending on how boiling the spring time has been a bit more rain is often very welcome by nature and us humans too.
The best diving this time of the year is on the east side of the island due the wind direction. So, if you have visited during Christmas season summer time might be a good choice for next trip to literally see a different side of Koh Tao.
Overall Koh Tao is all-year diving destination. Due the island’s sheltered location in the Gulf of Thailand the risk of any natural catastrophes like tsunamis or typhoons and the currents stay mild all year around. This is also the reason why we can dive 365 days a year. Compared to many other diving destinations we do not have an off-season when the diving completely stops due terrible weather conditions and big waves. It does not matter when you have your holidays, we are here ready to take you diving!
Usefull links:
YR Koh tao weather
Windguru Koh Tao
