When is the Best Time to Dive Thailand?

Thailand, the "Land of a Thousand Smiles", is a land of fascinating history, remarkable temples, exotic wildlife, and friendly people.  And of course, who could forget the delectable delights of Thai cuisine - especially for the hot & spicy lovers.  But it is also known for the treasures found in its Andaman Sea.  The striking beauty of limestone islands with breathtaking cliffs rising from emerald waters to reach the sky, often encircled with white sand beaches.  And for the spectacular diving found around its granite Similan Islands.

So when is the best time to travel to Thailand to experience diving at its best?

In the southern, coastal region of Thailand, you will find its largest island, Phuket, where most divers begin their journeys.  In this part of Thailand you really experience only two seasons - wet & dry.  On Phuket's west or Andaman coast, where destinations like Krabi and the Phi Phi islands lie, the climate is controlled by southwest monsoons.  The monsoonal season generally runs from April through October, bringing heavy storms.  The wet season often consists of fairly steady, continual rains that force businesses outside the major tourist destinations to close until the rainy season is over.  On the southeastern coast, where Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, and Koh Tao lie, most the rain falls between September and December.  Here storms come in sporadic, heavy downpours, with many sunny days in between.  Overall, particularly along the Andaman coast, the southern parts of Thailand get nearly 95" (8 ft) of rain per year.  Amazing!

To experience the best you must dive from a liveaboard

Most dive travelers and travel specialists in the industry will tell you there is no other way to get the most out of your Thailand experience, to truly explore its open ocean seamounts, pinnacles, deep drop-offs, fringing reefs, and wrecks, than to dive from a liveaboard.  Although there  are plenty of resorts along her shores, Thailand's best diving will be found far offshore.  Long proclaimed by a prolific amount of divers, the best diving is said to be found at the Similan Islands and north to Thailand's border with Burma.  No other area in Thailand offers a diver more dive sites or diversity of marine life than this area.  With visibility often exceeding 100 ft, the ocean temperature ranges from 82° to 90° F, you will find it hard to complain about conditions when diving from here from your liveaboard.  Most liveaboards depart from Phuket or the harbor of Thap Lamu.  You will board your boat in the late afternoon or evening, then sleep the night away while the crew sails you to your dive destination.

Now if you've been surfing the web, researching you own escape to Thailand, I know you will find there are operators with speed boats out there that will take you to offshore dive sites, but I hope you enjoy long, bumpy rides, not getting you to the best sites, to get in some pretty good diving.

Compared to other parts of the world 20° above or below Equator, the weather in Thailand is not harsh. They rarely suffer typhoons or hurricanes, or even tropical depressions. Except for the consistent high temps, Thailand has some of the best, safest and most predictable weather in the world.  Because the Andaman Sea is basically surrounded by land and thanks to weather patterns, during the months of February through April, liveaboard operators boast the sea is like glass for the most part.  More often than not you can look over the side and see your own reflection.  Sounds like a great time to me to plan an adventure to the "Land of a Thousand Smiles" and put a smile on your own face.

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