Time of year is something that is massively important depending on where you are going on holiday, as can unfortunately be seen in the Caribbean at the moment.
Apart from just bad luck as weather can be unpredictable there are some of my dos and donts and sort of in betweens that I think could/should be followed based on places Ive been!
Southern hemisphere
In the southern hemisphere, April – October is Winter and November to March is summer so here are a few guidelines on places down there.
Skiing at the Remarkables New Zealand (July)
New Zealand
- is very definitely cold at this time of year, they have skiing on in the north and south island so thats what youre up against
- it is when the scenery is at its best in my humble opinion. Lord of the rings snow capped mountain type scenery isnt really around in the warm summer months + you cant get involved in the avant/apres ski in Queenstown either which is AWESOME!!
Australia
- Funnily enough the tropical north of Australia is just that, tropical and they get tropical storms and cyclones and monsoon in the summer months (October-March) so actually the great barrier reef at Cairns during this time is not so great even though its probably the busiest time to go and cruises ships do buzz around up here then. Darwin and the far north is potentially a complete write off as a lot of things up there close down!!
- The summer season does see more rain generally, Ive been twice in July and
Also at the Remarkables NZ from a heli drop. (August)
August in the winter and not had a drop on the Gold Coast, Queensland and Sydney way. It is though mild during the day and gets cold in the evening and I mean “jumpers” cold, even in sunny Queensland!
Ayers Rock during at the end of the wet season (April)
South Africa is in winter too during May – September, which are the same as OZ/NZ, that said there are amazing deals to be had on safari and flights during this time for all the places listed (apart from school hols obviously) so I would still go personally!
South East Asia
Is a weird one, they have different monsoons all over depending how far south or east you get. Rule of thumb is western Thailand for example is better November-March/April then hits monsoon after that. Funnily enough that is when the cruise ships are in but if you go South East to Borneo or Indonesia it is technically the monsoon season. Its a strange phenomenon and people envisage rain that lasts all day and all night for 2 weeks. That doesnt tend to be the norm from the times I have been during monsoon, there has been the odd day where we’ve been rained out but that can happen in the “dry” season as well. I think its more a case of being unlucky than anything else and hedging your bets by going during the dry season but monsoon is not necessarily a bad thing in Asia from the times I’ve been in April, June, July and August as its quieter and prices are better.
General rule of thumb is (from places Ive been)
“monsoon” season, Krabi Thailand
Phuket, Penang, Langkawi (west) best November through to end of March/April
Koh Samui, Hua Hin, (east) fine all months apart from September, October, November and maybe December
Bali/ Indonesia (south) dry season is April -October, monsoon is November – March, generally thought of as good year round though.
South Pacific and Polynesia
This follows a similar pattern to Bali in that the best time generally to go is May through to September/October. They have a similar problem to the Caribbean in that they tend to have cyclones, usually between February and March but it can cover any time in what is their summer months. I went to Tahiti in September and it was fantastic just the right temperature and not too hot or cold.
Lake Nakuru Kenya during one of their wetter months, November!
Dubai and the Middle east
Our summer months are also the hottest months here, Dubai can get up to the 50degree mark in June and July which is why some of the beautiful 5 star hotels drop their prices by over half sometimes. People still go though and its popular as its a cheap time to get a luxury stay at a rock bottom price, the ability to be able to go out and do things is important to me though and I dont think I would in that sort of heat, so its not for me!!
So there’s a few of my suggestions and guidelines, everywhere in the world has different little things in terms of their weather patterns and temperatures. Either way I think this should always be a consideration when planning a holiday and is something I always try and advise! Saying that I wouldnt always discount a time of year just because of the threat of a bit of rain as as the pictures above sometimes prove its not always the case!