So, it's September! Many websites list September as the wettest month on average in Phuket, although my rainfall averages for Phuket show that October is wetter. Anyway, I was thinking that we were due some rain, as much of August was very sunny. It has felt like this low season has been dry, but I see high water at the reservoir where I go for exercise, and it had been really low earlier in the year, so I think the low season has been wet enough.

The last update on the Phuket weather blog was August 25th, and it was pretty much all blue skies in the preceding 2 weeks, only a little rain in the night and a couple of not-really-sunny days. In any case, if your holiday to Phuket was at the end of August, well played! Now a summary of the weather since August 25th up until today (September 10th) ....

For (almost) daily updates on weather, news, Phuket gossip etc... you can follow me on :

Twitter: jamiemonk
Instagram: phuketblog

August 26th .... lovely day!

 

(above) 2 photos taken around Karon beach on August 26th.

August 27th ... I Tweeted "Another beautiful sunny Phuket morning. August has been a really nice month. It's gotta rain sometime though!"

Went running at the reservoir in the evening and this is the sunset as seen from there :



August 28th ... A weather Tweet "This morning started grey with light drizzle. Sunny again now :)" (was a sunny afternoon) - my rain gauge measured 28mm for the day.

August 29th ... a change is gonna come. Tweet "After so much sun and hot weather this August, looks like weather is changing ... 28mm of rain overnight. Today has started grey."

August 30th ... started with sun, blue sky and dark clouds coming in ...



(above) Karon Beach, morning of 30th August 2013 .. but the rain did come ...

"Phuket weather update ... it's a-raining. Yeh, looks like the long sunny spell is over for a while."

31st August - no rain .. nice day actually :)

We were at the Phuket Wake Park in the afternoon, our kids current favourite thing to do ....



1st September ... started with "Another lovely sunny day!" and then later "the sunny morning has turned into a wet lunchtime."

A normal low season day ... you can get sun and rain and then sun again! Not many days are wet all day.

Oh and on this day 2 people died of note .. Sir David Frost and Luang Pu Supha.

2nd September ... "Blue skies and sunshine this morning."

3rd September ... "Lovely sunny morning"

4th September, sad day for our family. I went outside just before 8am and found our lovely cat, Giacomo, aka Jack. Dead in the road. I saw his final death twitch. Must have been hit by a car or bike, but I did not see any car or bike. Only poor Jack. RIP.



(above) Giacomo, our lovely cat. Dead now. Poor cat.

And the weather was nice ... see below :



5th September ... "A grey, damp start to Thursday in Phuket ... been sunny all week, but I have a day off today. Bloody typical!"

6th September .. a wet morning! Some big puddles on the roads as I drove to work, not "flooding" exactly, just big puddles!





(above) 6th September, 2 photos of wet roads near Patong beach

7th September ... a decent enough day, not really sunny, but not really wet ... until the night ... there was a lot of rain in the night, especially in the small hours. Some minor flooding in a few areas of Phuket Town, which lasted a few hours.

8th September ... So it was a wet start! Nice to see that some people don't moan about the rain - I saw a quote on Twitter "Awoke this morning to tropical rain. Wonderful to sit on the balcony with a cuppa & relax", thank you Rod! The rest of the day was fairly dry actually.

9th September (yesterday) ... "Weather today was decent .... getting some light rain now (9:45pm). Forecast maybe a bit wet next 2 days then getting sunnier."

10th September (today!) Yeh, pretty wet all day as predicted the day before ... tomorrow likely to be similar, then better towards the weekend. Here's a little video from Instagram I took at lunchtime, looking out from the little restaurant where I was eating lunch ...



Have a good September everyone!

If you are coming to Phuket soon - I suggest looking at Agoda for Phuket Hotels - and let's hope you have nice weather :)

Don't forget to look at Jamie's Phuket Blog for lots of Phuket information too!

Oops, the last update on the Phuket weather blog was nearly 2 weeks ago (on August 12th), sorry about that! Well the first part of August had been mixed, with about 150mm rainfall in 11 days, but sunny days too. Since the 11th I have measured a total of 33mm of rain at my house (in 13 days). There is very often a calm period in the middle of the low season, though exactly when is impossible to predict. It's been mostly really nice weather from the 12th until now (25th). Although the weather blog is not updated so often these days, please do follow me on Twitter, as I tend to mention the weather almost daily. And thanks to Twitter, I can remember what the weather was like recently by following my Tweets!

12th August we did have a little rain in the night (15mm) and then on the 13th "Weather this morning : None. No sun, no rain, no wind. Just grey." .. normal to have a slightly grey start after some rain.

August 14th - sun, sun, sun. A little video below which I did on Instagram.



Blue skies, sunny, but see the waves can still be quite big and if there are waves, especially at Karon beach, you should not try to go swimming in the sea. There area also warning signs at Karon like the one below :



August 15th "Today's weather in Phuket was perfect. Hot, but not too hot. Sunny. Slight breeze"

August 16th "It's a beautiful sunny morning in Phuket :)"

August 17th (Saturday) we visited the Phuket Bird Park on a very hot morning. Well worth the visit, though we had to rush a little to get the kids to music class on time.





(above) at the Phuket Bird Park, August 17th 2013.

And later, we were at the Phuket Wake Park which the kids are enjoying just about every weekend at the moment!



(above) At the Phuket Wake Park / Cable Ski

18th August - perfect weather again. Though I was at work and not out enjoying the weather. Did manage to grab another little video. Again, note the waves. Nice day, but please swim in the pool.



19th August (morning) "Looks like it's going to be another beautiful sunny day in Phuket." and a bit later "We just had some light rain. Thought you might like to know. It is "rainy season" after all, but the last few days have been hot and sunny."

20th August, yes the weather continued great. At Karon beach I saw a useful sign just in case you can't find the sand ...



(above) at Karon Beach

Oh, by the way, Karon is the beach I tend to take quick photos of because I work at Sunrise Divers, Karon Beach :)

And another little video from August 21st - again, blue skies and big waves.



August 22nd "After a run of nice sunny days in Phuket, this morning has started grey."

But it was nice enough later. We visited the Logos Hope, a floating book shop / charity organisation which was visiting Phuket. And we spent 1000 Baht on books too!



August 23rd "After a slightly grey start, the sun is out .. but weather looks like it will be mixed in the next few days"

August 24th "It's been a lovely sunny day in Phuket."

And today (25th) ...



And this is low season in Phuket :)

You can't predict exactly what the "rainy season" weather will be like in Phuket, I hope this weather blog makes it clear enough that you tend to get more sun than rain. Sure you can be unlucky, but generally weather is OK, or better than OK.

Well, the last update on the Phuket weather blog was on August 24th, one day before my Mother's 70th birthday. Having been in England for 3 weeks already in July and August, I headed back again on the night of August 26th knowing that Mum was not going to be around much longer. This is a weather blog, so I won't dwell on the details, but Mum died on the night of August 28th. Cancer finally got her at the 4th attempt more than 20 years after she was within death's reach when cancer struck the first time. We didn't think she'd live to be 50. But she made 70. That's 20 years of fight. I gotta say I was not paying much attention to the Phuket weather news while I was in England. I heard something about rain and I guess some days were nice too. And while I was "back home" (although I feel very conflicted now about the definition of "home"), the weather was mostly very nice, a little cold for my taste, and some days with English style drizzle, but at least the day of the funeral was a perfect sunny day.

And now if you don't mind, a few photos of my Mum (and Dad) enjoying Thailand. My parents came over here many times. First time in 2002, and the last time in 2013.







Sadly, my Dad will not be coming again either. He was OK last year, but he has had a rapid onset of dementia. And unbelievably, just a few days after Mum passed away, Dad managed to fall over at his care home and break his hip. He's still in the hospital now. Oh, and let's add one more layer - a couple of days before Mum died, an uncle of mine died. And although it was unplanned, his funeral was at the same location with 45 minutes between his and Mum's funeral. So despite the sadness, it was a huge gathering of family and friends. In the sun. In England.

So, I have no weather news from August 27th to September 11th. I got back to Phuket last Thursday night, the runway was wet, but it was not actually raining. Weather was OK on the 12th, but rather wet for most of Saturday 13th. On a wet morning, what do we do? Head to the Central Festival mall! We had lunch there on Sunday, visited the bank and did some light shopping. I then slept half the afternoon catching up with the flight, having been to work all day on Friday. On Saturday evening, the weather looked just about OK for a visit to The Beach Bar at Cape Panwa, just opened after the low season. They normally wait until October and might be wishing they had! We were the only ones eating dinner, although one guy stopped for a beer. There was no sunset for lovely photos and a light rain did start to fall as we were finishing our meal.



(above) At the Beach Bar, 13th September

And the last 2 days have been mostly wet and windy. Really windy at times, knocked over a few trees, like this one I saw in the Phuket Gazette...



Nobody hurt thankfully. My garden is a bit of a mess too. And I know lots of tours like boat trips and diving have been cancelled the last 2 days.

The forecast says that tomorrow will be wet and windy too and then things get better for a while. I doubt this is the end of the low season, it's a bit too early for that. I imagine more wet weather will come during the vegetarian festival which starts on the 23rd.

Next weather blog update will be a little more detailed.

A reminder that you can always see what the weather is like in Phuket by checking these live webcams ...

• Karon Beach Webcam
• Patong Beach Webcam

Or use any of the links on the left of the page for weather information.

And for photos and regular Phuket news, photos and weather updates, please do follow me on Twitter and Instagram.

See you in Phuket!

Wow, so it's 2014 already! The last few weeks have been a bit of a blur - this is the busiest time of year in the dive shop. Lots of people on holiday for Christmas and New Year and most dive trips get booked up well in advance. It's still really busy now, but it will go quiet again in a few days until we get to Chinese New Year (31st January). So I have not updated this weather blog since December 16th - the weather was settling down in mid December, and actually since then, for the last 3 weeks we have had mostly hot, sunny, dry weather, some days a bit breezy, some days a bit hazy, but 95% perfect weather! Not much to report really .. just sun and more sun!

For regular mentions of the weather, pretty much daily plus Phuket news and anything else I feel like saying .. please do follow me on Twitter - https://twitter.com/jamiemonk. I normally post something on there daily. And of course ... please do check Jamie's Phuket Blog, online since 2006 where you can find ideas for things to do, hotels, places to eat, info about festivals and temples and lots of photos!

So, the very quick summary of the last few weeks - hot and sunny. Now a brief look back using quotes from my Tweets and some photos ...


December 17th "Blue skies over the dive shop today"



December 18th "Phuket weather this morning ... blue skies and it's going to be a hot one, though temperature was only 25 C when I woke up"

Yes, the "cool" mornings are normal at this time of year. In other parts of Thailand it did get chilly - down to 16 degrees in Bangkok and there was frost on the ground in parts of Northern Thailand. In Phuket, about 23 - 24 degrees is the absolute minimum, but to me that feels nice and cool in the morning!

December 19th - what arrived in the post today? My free copies of "To Thailand With Love" - a travel guide / story book which includes 2 stories by me :)



(above) To Thailand with Love - you can buy at Amazon.com :)

December 20th "Quick #Phuket weather update - it's a hot and sunny afternoon"

December 21st "#Phuket weather report ... This (see photo below) is the sky above my house ... Blue skies and a strong NE breeze = perfect"



December 22nd "#Phuket weather today - sunny, blue skies, quite windy, choppy seas."

December 22nd is the shortest day. In Phuket we don't get long summers and short winters, but between the longest and shortest day there is an hour difference in daylight. For me, very noticeable that we have long evenings in June, July and August. Now it's the deep midwinter. Ha Ha Ha :)

December 23rd "Weather in Phuket today : Perfect"

December 24th "Morning weather report : Perfect"

Oh yes, perfect! And on the evening of the 24th we had dinner at The Beach Bar, one of our favourite places to hang out.



(above) Just got there in time for sunset! Christmas Eve for us, or Christmas Day for some people.

December 25th, and a Merry Christmas to you. We had a very nice family day. How is Christmas in Phuket? Well, it's up to you .. this was my Christmas breakfast ...



(above) This is called Khao Yam .. they do a great one at a little restaurant near our house.

We drove up to Phang Nga for the day, stopped at a temple, a cafe/viewpoint, and the new Dairy Hut Farm, a place for local tourists to see animals. These kind of farms are very popular near Bangkok, this is the first in this local area.



(above) Wat Manee Sri Mahathat in Phang Nga, we visited on Christmas Day.

Between Christmas and New Year, work, work work!

I'll skip the Tweets for a few days, but believe me, it was all blue skies and sunshine!

Let's fast forward to New Year!

Weather was great of course and we were at The Beach Bar again, lots of fireworks at midnight and a Happy New Year to all!



2014! Here we Go! It's got to be a good one ... hope the trouble in Bangkok stays under control. Thailand, stay calm please!

January 1st - great weather again, but no early starts! I was the first of the family to wake up .. at 10am. We soon kicked into gear and headed to Laem Hin Seafood for lunch.



(above) Part of a very tasty New Year lunch .. this is Yam Kai Pla, salad made with cooked fish eggs. Really, very tasty.

January 2nd "Phuket weather - same again - sunny, breezy, slightly hazy, fairly hot"

January 3rd "Actually had a few drops of rain last night, first rain for weeks. This morning, clear skies, looks like another perfect day on the way"

January 4th "Rain on the way ... #Phuket ... Not had a wet day for weeks" and then "Rain did not stick around long ... afternoon has been hot and sunny, sky is clear and blue #Phuket #weather"

And today I have been so busy in the dive shop, I don't know which way is up! January 5th, we're 5 days into the new year. Hope you have a good one. 2013 was pretty good, you can see a Review of 2013 on Jamie's Phuket Blog. See you in Phuket!

Oh, and if you need a hotel ... and you probably do ... you can book here.

Happy New Year!

Wow, nearly the end of May already. And the low season does not seem to have kicked in properly. We have had a few rainy days, a few damp, grey days, but also a lot of sunshine since the last weather blog update on May 13th. That last post was mostly talking about our holidays in the Phuket and Khao Lak area, a lovely 2 weeks of sunshine, beaches, jungle and family time. I want more holidays!

In the last 2 weeks, we've been getting back to 'normal' life - I am working, and despite low season there is a lot of work to do at Sunrise Divers, mostly website related. Well, most of the major things will be completed this week, but I have been staring at a monitor screen for most of the last 2 weeks! And the kids are back at school, so this means early wake-ups every day, not like holiday at all! We're normally up at 6:30am, and they start school 7:45am. So, we're back in the very normal routine, a normal every day life .... I think maybe some people get the idea with my blogs that I am on constant holiday, but honestly, it's a normal life!

The Phuket Blog continues, I have added several new pages recently related to our holidays ...

• Ton Prai Waterfall
• Day trip to Koh Tachai Island
• Khao Lak Tsunami Memorials

A few details of the weather in the last 2 weeks ... I have to go back and check my Twitter feed, the weather is normally mentioned every day. Good idea to follow me on Twitter if you want regular Phuket news and weather updates.

13th May : Yesterday was rather wet and grey, but today is sunny. That's typical low season weather .. rarely stays wet for long.

So true! A tropical storm called Mahasen was in the Indian Ocean, headed for Bangladesh, it may have caused some rain on the 12th, but the 13th was lovely. Low season had not arrived yet!



(above) Sunset as seen from our house, 13th May

14th May : This morning's weather in Phuket .... blue skies again :)

15th May : Just had about 10 minutes of rain, and the air became so thick it was hard to breathe. Very hot and humid today.

16th May : hazy start to the day, but the sun is burning through already. It's going to be a hot day. No sign of low season!

And on the 16th the bloody aircon compressor at the dive shop broke! And it was HOT .. did not get fixed until the 17th in the afternoon.

17th May : Weather report ... it's hot, of course .. sun is disappearing and dark clouds appearing, I do hope we get a little rain.

19th May : Rainy Day in Phuket ... and later Still raining .... nothing too heavy, it's just a grey, drizzly day. The first day like this for a long time.

Did not last long again!

20th May : Plenty of rain yesterday, but this morning is grey, but bright and warm.



21st May : Grey morning ... just had some light rain. The day could go either way ... might clear up, might get wetter.

And in the evening of the 21st, the big power cut. We were eating some food at Kopitiam in Phuket Town, and the power went off. Well, that's not too unusual, except we then heard from my wife's family that the power was off in Chumphon also, 400km from Phuket. Turned out that the power had gone off over the whole of South Thailand! It only lasted a few hours, but damn! See news report on the Bangkok Post.



(above) on Thalang Road in old Phuket Town



(above) Candlelight only on 21st May!

22nd May : And after some light rain early this morning, it's quite sunny right now

And here's my low season weather mantra. If anyone asks me what the weather will be like in June, July, August, September, October, I say:

Some low season days are sunny, some cloudy, sometimes it rains a bit, sometimes it rains a lot

23rd May : This morning's weather ... Mostly sunny



(above) Sky on May 23rd

24th May : we're getting some heavy rain right now at Karon Beach. and It's a wet one!

With a sudden change, as is normal in low season, we went from a sunny 23rd to a wet 24th.



I measured 41mm of rain at our house on the 24th, then the 25th had a little more, plus some stronger winds and the 26th about 29mm. Finally, some rain and proper low season weather! Photo above - outside the dive shop on the 24th.

25th May : the morning is cloudy with some sun, or is it sunny with some cloud? but later Sunny (ish) morning, but the rain has arrived now and finally Wet 'n' windy! I think I can say that low season has finally arrived.



(above) 25th May in the morning .. it got wet later.

25th May was worse in Krabi - longtail boats damaged and capsized - see news in the Phuket Gazette.

26th May : Typical low season weather today - looked sunny, rained, cleared up, rained again.

And the last 3 days have been sunny again. That's what you get in low season! Can't predict, if you ask me, I will say "some sun, some rain". Bring a small umbrella, bring sun lotion. And enjoy what you get! One great thing about Phuket in low season - hotel prices are way down on high season. You can get some real bargains.

• Check Phuket Hotels at Agoda.com - best rates, so they say!



(above) Sunny view in my wing mirror, 27th May in the morning, on the way to work ...

And today (30th) looks good too, I will take a photo later and post on Twitter!

See you in Phuket!