When to visit

Is Thailand better in April or May?

Updated 5 June 2026

Short answer

It depends where you're going. For the Andaman coast (Phuket, Krabi), April is better because May brings the monsoon. For Bangkok and Chiang Mai, May is actually better: the extreme April heat breaks and the burning season ends. For the Gulf coast (Samui, Tao), both months are fine with May slightly better for diving. Price-wise, May is significantly cheaper across the board.

This is a genuinely useful comparison because the answer isn't the same for every part of Thailand.

The Andaman coast: April wins

If Phuket, Krabi, Koh Lanta, or Phi Phi is the destination, April is better. May brings the monsoon and the beach experience becomes unreliable. April is the last month of dry season. The Similan Islands are still open. Sea conditions are good. Yes, April is hot and gets pre-monsoon squalls toward the end of the month, but it's still recognisably beach-holiday territory.

May on the Andaman coast is genuinely wet. You can still go, and if the price reduction is significant, it may be worth it. But if beach conditions are the goal, April wins.

Bangkok: May wins

April is the hottest month of the year in Bangkok, hitting 37-39°C with high humidity. It's the hardest month for outdoor exploring. May brings the rains, which break the heat. Temperatures drop 2-3°C and the humidity becomes more manageable even though it's technically higher. A rainy-season Bangkok day is often more comfortable than a hot-season Bangkok day because the rain cools everything down.

If you're doing Bangkok for temples, markets, food, and nightlife rather than beach trips, May is a more comfortable operating environment than April.

Chiang Mai: May wins clearly

Early April is still the burning season in the north. Air quality in Chiang Mai can be poor through the first half of April. The rains arrive in May and clear the air within days. The north goes from hazy, smoky, and obscured to green, clear, and properly photogenic in a matter of weeks. May is when Chiang Mai becomes worth visiting again after the spring low point.

If northern Thailand is part of the plan, May is the better month.

The Gulf coast: roughly equal, May slightly ahead

Koh Tao, Koh Samui, and Koh Phangan are in their dry season through both April and May. Dive conditions on Koh Tao build toward peak visibility in May. Samui's rainfall is low in both months. For Gulf island purposes, either works; May is slightly ahead for diving.

The price argument

May is 30-50% cheaper on the Andaman coast and 20-30% cheaper in Bangkok and the north compared to April. If budget matters, May wins almost everywhere. The trade-off is Andaman coast beach quality, which is the one area where April is clearly better.

For the full comparison by destination, see our guides for Thailand in April and Thailand in May.