sioFont

Hello!
I've just start planning a possible trip to SE Asia late Sept-early Oct this year.
As I love big cities, I want to visit Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok and Hong Kong.
I'm thinking of adding 2 non-urban visits. One to Angkor, another to a beach.
But I'm worried about weather. I have read early Autumn could be rainy in all SE Asia.

Do you know if there is any coastal area in Malaysia or Thailand where there is less possibility of rain? Do you think is it too risky, so it's better to concentrate in cities and forget the beach? (I'm a Spaniard and we have some nice beaches here, but I was thinking about a 'paradisiacal' one)
I see that weather in Hong Kong in October is not very rainy, but I don't know if there are nice beaches (as we see in Thailand) in South China.

Thanks for your help in advance!

glinky_slinky

Late September to early October should be alright for Malaysia. The monsoon season starts in November for the east coast of Malaysia penisular while there is no raining season as such in the west coast, if it rains it only last for an hour or so. The beaches in the east coast are nicer than the west coast and less commercialised too.

Cicerone

I agree that the beaches on the east coast of Malaysia are lovely, and in late Sept and early October, you should be OK for rain if you stick to SOUTHERN islands off the east coast like Rawa. I would not go too far north on the east coast as you will hit rain; that is, I would probably avoid anthing from Kuantan north. I think October will be rainer than September, so perhaps go to the beach first. See weatherbase.com and use the town of Mersing in Malaysia to see if you are OK with possible rain amounts. See Kuantan and Kuala Terrenganu for comparison. I don’t like Tioman at all, as it is too developed. That is part of the problem with the southern islands; other than Rawa (which is lovely) some of the others are overdeveloped and don’t have nice beaches (like Bintan). For Rawa, see rawasfr.com

Don’t know how much time you have, but you could certainly consider Bali. They have some very nice, if not exactly idyllic, beaches, but also a fascinating culture and beautiful hilly geography. Good weather in late Sept and early Oct.

You might also consider the Philippines; however I think November is better for this than October, and September would definitely be rainy so would not be good there. So if you have flexibility and want to see some really idyllic beaches (esp Palawan or Borocay), you could consider November. As a Spaniard, you may find the Spanish influence there to be interesting as well. As you like cities, you could include a day or two in Manila, which very few tourists (at least on this board) go to.

Late October and November area actually better for Bangkok as well, as it will be drier then. Of course in a city it does not make such a big difference. Cambodia is also drier in November and the water festival is celebrated then (marks the end of the rainy season), which might be an interesting time to be in Cambodia. The best weather all year in Hong Kong is generally in November, but late October is usually pretty good too. Conversely, Singapore and KL will be a little rainier in November, but again for cities perhpas this is not so much of an issue.

I have to say that Hong Kong has some really lovely beaches as well. But none with hotels on them. But some very pretty ones indeed, and you can do a day trip to them by public transport and in some cases, taking a very nice hiking trail. And from mid-October through January we usually have no rain but still very pleasant temperatures.

In terms of holidays, Ramadan starts this year in mid-August and runs through mid-September. This will not hugely affect things in Malaysia, although you may find some restaurants closed during the day, but basically for the tourist you should not find things to be disrupted. It might be interesting to be in KL or in Singapore for the end of Ramadan, which is a major feasting and festival time. September 22 is the Mid-Autumn Festival in Hong Kong, when people eat mooncakes and walk around with lovely paper lanterns. October 1 is National Day in Hong Kong and there are sometimes fireworks in the harbour, which are spectacular (not sure if anyone has offered to pay for them this year) .