April Phuket weather question

[Dangerous Brian]

HI all,

I went to Phuket last year in Feb and dived at a few local sites. At the time there was a plankton bloom so the vis was not as good as it should have been (I think) I would like to go back but do not know what the diving conditions would be like mid april. Is it rainy season and if so how much rain and sun is there? I loved Phuket when I was there and dont realy mind what the weather is like as long as it is warm and the diving is OK.

Thanks for any advise.

DB

 

[Batfish]

April is the hottest month of the year and is generally dry, though as things get hot you can expect some typically tropical downpours and thunderstorms some days, these lasting for just an hour or less. The "rainy season" starts sometime in May, until (approx.) early October. Also expect calm seas - perfect for diving, just remember your sun cream and drink lots of water.

Mid April is the Thai New Year celebration, Songkran, which involves a lot of water throwing (traditionally you should sprinkle people with water to wish them good luck for the new year, but these days it is more of a mass water fight for a whole day). For some, a welcome relief from the heat, for others, a day to stay indoors and avoid the madness! The crazy day is the 13th. It used to be wet for several days, but last year the local governor made a rule for water throwing only on the 13th.

Links

Songkran

Weather

 

[Dangerous Brian]

Sawadee Sunrise. Thanks for the info. I will start to book my flights straight away. Cant wait to get back. People say that thailand is a place that once you have been and experienced the friendliness of the people you just want to go back and live there. I agree.

 

[aquamarin]

Gee, I'm glad to hear that.........going to Phuket in 2 weeks, only time of the year for holiday ))))))))

 

[jedah]

We were in Phuket in late April of last year and the weather was great!

Visibility in both Koh Doc Mai, King Cruiser and the Similans was > 60 feet, w/o currents. It did rain a couple of days in the late afternoon and at night.

Try to head out to Richeliu rock and Koh Tachai, north of the similans, for a day trip. You may get to see a whaleshark and/or mantas this time of year.

Enjoy your trip!

J.

 

[Dangerous Brian]

Cant believe I am finaly going. Thanks for the info I want to go to Richeliu rock and Koh Tachai, so I will take a look at booking it when I am there. does anyone know if i can get a dvd film done over there? Or hire a video housing for my camcorder? I want to remember this holiday! Also can anyone tell me a rough price to go to Richeliu rock and how long does it take? I will be staying in Kata

 

[jedah]

You can do a day trip to both Richelieu rock and Koh Tachai. We went with IQ divers, they are based in Khao Lak, but we booked through Diego at Dive the World in Patong (great, resourceful dive shop in Patong, and they can book different trips for different days).

Basically, they pick you up at your hotel early in the morning, then you go by minivan to Khao Lak (1.5h), and from there you get on a catamaran to Koh Tachai and Richelieu rock (1h), you do 1 dive at each site, and then the trip back. I think you can rent a camcorder or camera from your dive shop in Phuket.

If I remember correctly, these dives were only marginally more expensive than the regular dives at Koh Doc Mai (great wall) an King Cruiser (shallow wreck near Phuket). I think it was about $60-70 for the day. Including lunch.

You could also look into doing a day trip to the Similans, we did 3 dives there in 1 day with Marina Divers, also based in Khao Lak, but booked through Diego at DTW. They also picked us up in Phuket.

Hope this helps!

J.

www.dive-the-world.com

 

[Dangerous Brian]

Thanks jedah,

Think I will do both as I dont know when I will be able to go there again. I will pop into Patong and book the trips.

Last time I was there I dived king cruser, that was the most prickly wreck I had ever seen, scorpion and stone fish with urchines in the spaces between! I even saw an albino stone fish (or was it a fake stonefish). Have you ever been on one of those jungle trecks? I would not mind seeing some rain forest as well. Any tourise traps I should be wary on?

Steve

 

[TeqP]

I will be staying in Kata

Where are you staying in Kata and when?
I will be in Kata 15Apr2005. I am doing a liveaboard to the Similans and plan to get some local diving in as well.

Hope you & I both enjoy are trips.

Phil

 

[Dangerous Brian]

I am landing in Phuket on the 15th April too. Staying in Kata for 5 days then I dont know what. We can meet at the south end of the beach if you want. Have you been to Kata before? Swap some dive trips. I have done about 10 dives when I was there before. If not have a nice time and you never know we might be on the same boat!