People ask me this question all year round, which is partly funny and partly helpful — it means I’ve had to think carefully about every month rather than just recommending the obvious safe window.
The honest answer is more nuanced than most weather guides let on. Yes, the dry season (November to April) is the best overall window. But within the wet season, some months are excellent, some trips work better than others year-round, and the thing that matters most — crowd levels — doesn’t always move in the direction you’d expect with the seasons.
Here’s the month-by-month reality, from someone who’s been on this water through every season for twenty years.
This is my favourite time of year for boat trips, full stop. The southwest monsoon has finished, the sea has calmed down, and the visibility underwater is climbing back towards its best. The skies are clear, the light is extraordinary in the late afternoon, and the island hasn’t yet hit peak tourist density.
November in particular has something special about it — the air is cleaner after the rain season, the vegetation on the islands is still intensely green, and there’s a freshness to the water that the deep dry season eventually loses. I’d take November over any other month for the James Bond sunset trip — the light on the karst cliffs at that time of year is the best I’ve seen.
December fills up towards Christmas and New Year, when prices rise and the boats get busier. Book well ahead for late December departures, particularly for private charters.
The most popular months, and for good reason. The sea is at its calmest, the underwater visibility is often at its best — sometimes exceeding 20 metres at Phi Phi — and the weather is as reliable as it gets. Temperatures are slightly lower than the hottest months, which makes a full day on the water genuinely comfortable rather than just survivable.
The downside is that everyone knows this. January and February are the busiest months on the island. The popular spots at Phi Phi will have their largest crowds. Book early — good departure dates fill up weeks in advance in peak season — and go with a small group operator who can navigate around the crowds rather than joining them.
March is, in my personal opinion, slightly underrated. The sea is still excellent, the visibility is still superb, and the crowds start to thin out from their January-February peak. April runs warm — this is the hottest part of the year and the sun on the boat at midday is intense — but the sea conditions are still reliable and the water is beautiful.
Songkran (Thai New Year) falls in mid-April and brings its own energy to the island. If you’re on a boat trip during Songkran, you’ll come back to Phuket to find water fights in the streets. It’s chaotic and brilliant in equal measure.
May is when the southwest monsoon starts to build. Some years it comes in early and significantly; some years it’s barely noticeable until June. It’s the most variable month in the calendar for sea conditions.
On calm days in May, the water is still excellent and the trips run well. But it’s the month where you’re most likely to experience a rescheduled departure due to weather, and I’d advise building flexibility into your itinerary if you’re visiting in May. Don’t schedule your boat trip as the last thing before you fly home.
Here’s where I’ll push back gently on the travel guides that say “avoid the wet season.” June, July, and August in Phuket don’t look like the monsoon season you might be imagining. It’s not continuous rain. What it actually looks like is: warm, humid days with some cloud cover, shorter periods of heavy rain (often in the late afternoon rather than all day), and sea conditions that vary considerably by day.
The Phi Phi trip in the wet season requires more careful monitoring of conditions. On a good day — and there are many — the crossing is fine, the snorkelling spots are accessible, and the experience is excellent. On a rough day, we reschedule. The ratio of good days to rough days in June and July is better than most people assume.
Phang Nga Bay in the wet season is, somewhat counterintuitively, often very good. The bay is sheltered by the surrounding landscape, the sea caves are accessible in most conditions, and the vegetation is at its most vivid. The James Bond sunset trip runs through most of the wet season on suitable days.
What changes in the wet season: the light is different (more dramatic and atmospheric rather than postcard-clear), the visibility underwater is somewhat reduced compared to peak season, and the unpredictability requires more flexibility. What stays the same: the extraordinary natural environment is still entirely there.
These are the quietest months on the island, and honestly some of the most interesting for the right kind of traveller. September can bring the most significant sea conditions of the year — there are periods where the Phi Phi trip doesn’t run, full stop. But there are also completely calm stretches.
The upside of September and October: prices are at their lowest, the island is at its least crowded, and you have a genuine sense of having the place to yourself in a way that January never provides. If your priority is avoiding crowds above all else, and you have flexibility to work around weather, the shoulder season has a lot to recommend it.
Phang Nga Bay remains the most reliable option year-round. If you’re visiting in the wet season and you can only do one trip, that’s the one I’d prioritise.
Best overall window for boat trips: November through March. Peak sea conditions, best visibility, reliable weather. Book ahead from December onwards.
Best for avoiding crowds without sacrificing conditions: November and early March. The edges of peak season where the sea is good but the tourist density hasn’t peaked.
Best budget window: May to October. Lower prices, quieter island, but require flexibility around weather.
Most reliable trip year-round: the Phang Nga Bay trips. The sheltered bay gives them better year-round operability than the open-water Phi Phi crossing.
Most weather-dependent trip: Phi Phi Island full day. The open-water crossing means this trip is more sensitive to sea conditions than our Phang Nga Bay options. Worth it when conditions are right — and conditions are right for the majority of the year.
We check conditions before every departure and reschedule if it’s not suitable. We’ve been doing this long enough that we’re not going to put guests on a boat in conditions that aren’t right — the experience isn’t good and the safety margin isn’t where we want it. If a departure reschedules due to weather, we work with you to find the best alternative within your stay, or refund your deposit.
This is one of the reasons we recommend booking your boat trip towards the beginning of your stay. It gives us the flexibility to find the right weather window, and it means your trip is a highlight rather than a logistical stress.
For a broader guide to Phuket’s weather patterns by season, our Phuket weather guide covers everything from temperature and rainfall to what to pack.
— Captain Mark
Exceptional, uncrowded island day trips from Phuket. Family-owned and operated since 2004.
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