Phuket's best weather by a wide margin: dry, sunny days and the lowest humidity of the year, ideal for the west-coast beaches and boat trips out to Phang Nga Bay. It's also the busiest and priciest stretch, book Patong and Kata well ahead. March can turn properly hot as the dry season nears its end.

This tier spans quite different parts of the year. December can still bring an occasional intense shower even though it's technically dry season, and November, right after the monsoon retreats, sees rain drop off fast. April sits just before the monsoon proper, hot with showers building. July, August, and October fall within the wetter half of the year, rain remains frequent, but conditions can still hold decent for stretches, and this window doubles as prime surf season on west-facing beaches like Kata and Karon.

The wettest stretch of the year, when May opens the monsoon with its first heavy peak and September brings the second, with rain most days and the year's highest humidity. Seas turn rough with dangerous currents, and jellyfish sightings become more common on the west coast. Hotel prices drop to their lowest of the year to match.