VIETNAM
Main Festivals
- Most Vietnamese festivals are fixed by the lunar calendar: the majority take place in spring, and the days of the full moon (day one) and the new moon (day fourteen or fifteen) are particularly auspicious.
- Tet Nguyen Dan , or simply Tet isVietnam's most important annual event; it lasts for seven days and falls sometime between the last week of January and the third week of February, on the night of the new moon.
- Water Puppet Festival (Feb)
- Buddhist full moon festival (March-April)
- Tet Doan Ngo , the summer solstice (late May to early June)
- Trung Thu, (Sept-Oct)
North Vietnam: Hanoi
| Summer: May - October | ||
| Av tem | Av rainfall | Overview |
| 24 - 33 oC | 238mm | Hot and humid, especially inland, which is not touched by cool coastal breezes. Tropical rain showers and the occasional typhoon are also possibilities - light clothes and an umbrella are recommended. |
| Winter: November - April | ||
| Av tem | Av rainfall | Overview |
| 16 - 23 oC | 41mm | Remains fairly dry up until late February/March, when it starts to drizzle almost constantly and waterproofs become a necessity. Warm clothes are a must during the cool months, especially when travelling in the hill areas. |
Central Vietnam - Lowlands and Highlands: Dalat, Hue , Da Nang , Hoi An, Nha Trang
| Summer: May - October | |
| Av tem | Av rainfall |
| 23 - 24 oC | 210mm |
| Winter: November - April | |
| Av tem | Av rainfall |
| 17 - 23 oC | 95mm |
The central belt of Vietnam comprises the lowlands and the highlands. The weather is fairly similar across both, although the highlands tend to be slightly cooler with higher rainfall as the majority of rain normally falls on the mountains before arriving at the low coastal areas.
Lowlands Summer - the weather is warm and reasonably dry from May to September. The monsoon winds then change bringing above average rain during late September. This time is not ideal as rain can be fairly constant – flooding and, in extreme cases, typhoons are also a possibility.
Highlands Winter temperatures can fall slightly below the average and rainfall is higher than at lower elevations. However, most rain tends to fall during the summer months when it can be very wet - although these summer months do provide a respite from the often intense heat of other areas.
Southern Vietnam & Mekong Delta: Ho Chi Minh, Bin Thuen, Mekong Delta
| Summer: May - November | ||
| Av tem | Av rainfall | Overview |
| 24 - 31 oC | 265mm | Hot, humid and rainy but heavy downpours are usually short lived. |
| Winter: December - April | ||
| Av tem | Av rainfall | Overview |
| 22 - 33 oC | 25mm | Remains hot and humid, although humidity levels are more bearable between December and February. During April and May the southwest monsoon winds bring rain showers to the Mekong Delta and southern Vietnam. |
Information reproduced with permission from www.selectiveasia.com
A good page with current up-to-the-moment weather information for Ha Noi, Ho Chi Minh City and other major cities is on this Weather Page including an overview of regional climates and seasonal weather information.
