May is summer in Northern Vietnam, is the dry season with hot temperatures in the Central Coast, is the beginnning of the rainy season with pleasant temperatures in the Central Highlands, the rainy season with more tolerable or pleasant temperatures in Southern Vietnam.
Monsoons and General Weather Patterns in Vietnam in May
1/ The General weather patterns in Vietnam in May
The North of Vietnam may receive a few weak spells of the Northeasterly Wind which cause pleasant temperatures (24-31oC) and light rain. Without the Northeasterly Wind the temperatures may range from pleasant to warm or hot (35-36oC). The humidity is often high in the North in May.
The Central Coast of Vietnam has mostly hot temperatures with strong sun.
The Central Highlands and Southern Vietnam are at the beginning of the rainy season. The temperatures in the Central Highlands are pleasant mostly while on some days it may be warm in places on low altitudes.
Southern Vietnam is mostly hot. The rain may come on a daily basis from the beginning of May or later in the month. The temperatures are often warm or hot until the rainy season officially starts.
2/ Monsoons in Vietnam in May
The prevalent winds which affect different places in Vietnam in May :
- The Southeasterly Wind in most of northern Vietnam : humid and pleasant temperatures, possibly showers sometimes.
- The Westerly Wind (foehn wind) in part of the Northweast of Vietnam (Hoa Binh, Son La, Dien Bien, Lao Cai), in most of the Central Coast of Vietnam from Thanh Hoa to Phu Yen: dry air and hot temperatures.
- In May, the Southwesterly Wind which is more likely to come from the Equartor than from the Bengal Bay (foehn wind) which have impacts on the Central Highlands (Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Lam Dong) and Southern Vietnam (Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai, Saigon Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Tay Ninh...), and in the Mekong Delta. The Southwesterly Wind from the Equator causes daily short-lived rain and pleasant temperatures in the Central Highlands and Southern Vietnam.
Adventure Travel, Nature Tours, Bird Watching Tours, Photo Tours in Vietnam in May
1/ Hiking Tours, Mountain Trekking Tours
May is not a good time for hiking tours or mountain trekking trips in Vietnam. The temperatures could be too hot or it could rain anytime anywhere in Vietnam in May. In the far north of Vietnam, the temperatures may be pleasant still but the rain could come anytime which makes hiking trails just slippery and muddy. The Central Highlands are the same.
2/ Adventure Tours
Northern Vietnam could be a good place for general adventure tours as the temperatures are more likely to be pleasant and the rain, if any, should not last that long. Be careful if you venture into regions with history of rockslides or landslides if the rain is heavy. On some days it may be hot with strong sun, then be prepared to drink enough water and to avoid traveling at mid day in strong sunshine.
In the Central Coast of Vietnam it could either be sunny with hot temperatures or rainy with pleasant temperatures. It is more likely to be the former but with climate change nowadays it could be anything.
In the Central Highlands, you get daily shortlived rain and pleasant temperatures. Most of the time you should get nice holidays in the region in May.
Southern Vietnam is to experience hot temperatures at the beginning of the month and daily short-lived rain with pleasant temperatures in the second half of the month.
3/ Birding Trips and Bird Watching Tours
May is not the best times for birding trips in Vietnam. In northern Vietnam it is the nesting and mating season and the birds are not that visible. In the Central Highlands and Southern Vietnam, you can still observe several bird species but more species are to be spotted during the dry season. Sudden rain in the North and in the Central Coast, daily rain in the Central Highlands and in southern Vietnam may also affect your birding trips slightly.
Birding sites in Vietnam in May :
- Cuc Phuong National Park (Ninh Binh) : resident birds mostly.
- Van Long Nature Reserve (Ninh Binh): resident storks and waterfowls.
- Bach Ma National Park (Thua Thien – Hue) : This is among the region with the top annual rainfalls in Vietnam. It is not recommended to visit the Bach Ma National Park when it rains or when it is wet and foggy.
- Da Lat, Bidoup Nui Ba National Park, Deo Nui Sam at Di Linh (Lam Dong, Central Highlands) : Birding at Da Lat and other sites in Lam Dong Province is still possible in May, but this is not the best time anyway.
- Cat Tien National Park (Dong Nai, Southern Vietnam) : May is not the best time for birdwatching at Cat Tien National Park but you will still be able to observe several bird species as well as primates.
4/ Family Tours
Generally speaking, families should have a good time traveling in Vietnam in May. Your family may like to take a family adventure in the far north, or a sightseeing family holiday in the lowland of the North, or a family beach vacation in Southern Vietnam... , then you are to have a wonderful time. Your family should enjoy a great vacation also in most places in the Central Coast of Vietnam.
May is not supposed to be a time with extreme weather and families should have a great time anyway.
5/ Island Holidays
May is the best time for island holidays all over Vietnam given pleasant temperatures, beautiful sunshine always. The sea is mostly calm all over the country and water sports as welll as sea exploration tours are operational... For the best island vacations, you may want to consider these: Co To Island and Quan Lan Island (Quang Ninh Province), Cat Ba Island (Hai Phong), Ly Son Island (Quang Ngai), Phu Quy Island (Binh Thuan), Con Dao Islands (Ba Ria-Vung Tau), Phu Quoc Island (Kien Giang).
6/ Beach Vacations
In Northern Vietnam, Sam Son Beach or the beaches on islands in Northern Vietnam have calm sea and pleasant temperatures with lovely sunshine mostly.
And those beaches in the South of the Central Coast have sunny weather mostly with pleasant or sometimes warm temperatures.
If you travel to Southern Vietnam then you may try Vung Tau Beach, Long Hai Beach and Ho Tram Beach (all in Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province). You can have pleasant temperatures mostly with beautifully bright sunshine.
Because May is a great time for beach holidays in Vietnam, do expect beaches are crowded mostly and especially during Vietnam public holidays.
Below are reviews of the Weather in Vietnam in May 2024 Monitored by AdventureGreen
1/ First week of May, 2024
The first week of May 2024 found the North of Vietnam under impact of a few successive spells of the Northeasterly Wind which caused light rain, heavy rain, and nice temperatures in the North.
The Central Coast had some rain with warm or hot temperatures.
The Central Highland and Southern Vietnam started having rain from the beginning of the month which caused pleasant or more tolerable temperatures.
Regional weather at the beginning of the first week of May 2024 was as follows :
- Northeast : clouds, rain, 20-30oC;
- Northwest : clouds, rain, 23-31oC in Hoa Binh, Yen Bai , 23-35oC in Lao Cai ; clouds, rain, 21-32oC in Son La, Lai Chau, 22-36/22-33oC in Dien Bien ;
- Lowlands in Northern Vietnam : clouds, rain, 25-29oC ;
- North of the Central Coast (Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh): sun, clouds, rain, 24-32/34oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the north of Hai Van (Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue) : clouds, rain, 26-34oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the south of Hai Van (Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-33/34oC ;
- South Central Coast (Quy Nhon – Nha Trang): sun, clouds, 26-34oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Ninh Thuan, Phan Rang-Thap Cham): sun, clouds, isolated rain, 27-34oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Binh Thuan, Phan Thiet Mui Ne): sun, clouds, rain, 27-34oC ;
- Central Highlands : sun, clouds, rain, 23-37oC ;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai) : sun, clouds, rain, 27-37oC ;
- West of Southern Vietnam (Mekong Delta) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-34/27-37oC.
Rainfalls measured in 7 hours from 7:00 A.M of 3-May-2024: Đầm Hà (Quảng Ninh) 55.6mm, Đông Hà (Quảng Trị) 117.4mm,…
Rainfalls measured in 6 hours from 10:00 A.M of 3-May-2024: Tiên Phước 82,4mm, Xuân Bình 60,2mm (Quang Nam Province), Ngok Wang 73,6mm, Đak Pxi 73mm (Kon Tum), Biển Hồ 48,2mm (Gia Lai),…
High temperatures on 3-May-2024: Sơn Hòa (Phú Yên) 38.2oC, Thủ Dầu Một (Bình Dương) 37.4oC, Tây Ninh (Tây Ninh) 38.8oC, Tà Lài (Đồng Nai) 38.8oC, Cao Lãnh (Đồng Tháp) 38.2oC, Châu Đốc (An Giang) 38.4oC...
Rainfalls measured in 8 hours from 19:00 A.M of 4-May-2024: Nậm Ban (Hà Giang) 226.8mm, Nam Quang (Cao Bằng) 32.4mm, Ha Lang (Tuyên Quang) 57mm, Nghiên Loan (Bắc Kạn) 43.2mm...
Rainfalls measured in 5 hours from 10:00 A.M of 5-May-2024: Bông Krang (Đắk Lắk) 67.2mm, Ô Lâm (An Giang) 110mm, Viên An (Sóc Trăng) 61.2mm, Tân Thành (Cà Mau) 92.2mm,…
High temperatures on 6-May-2024: Đồng Phú (Bình Phước) 37.1oC, Tà Lài (Đồng Nai) 38.3oC, Thủ Dầu Một (Bình Dương) 37.1oC, Vĩnh Long 37.5oC, …
Rainfalls measured in 24 hours from 14:00 hours of 8-May-2024: Nậm Cuổi 2 104.2mm (Lai Châu); Nghĩa Đô 194 mm (Lào Cai); Thịnh Hưng 92.8mm (Yên Bái); Mẫu Sơn 125.8mm (Lạng Sơn); Thái Cường 115.2mm (Cao Bằng);…
Rainfalls measured in 13 hours from 07:00 hours of 9-May-2024: Nậm Cuối (Lai Châu) 104.4mm, Mường Lèo (Sơn La) 79.8mm, Hồng An (Cao Bằng) 77.9mm, Tân Tri (Lạng Sơn) 77.9mm,…
2/ Second week of May, 2024
In the second week of May 2024, most of Vietnam enjoyed pleasant temperatures ; part of the Central Highlands and southern Vietnam still had high temperatures above 35oC. There was rain all over the country.
Northern Vietnam received some spells of the Northeasterly Wind which caused windy, cloudy weather with some rain and very lovely temperatures. The Central Coast enjoyed mostly nice temperatures with cloudy weather. The Central Highlands and southern Vietnam had rain which helped much with the serious drought.
Regional weather in mid of the second week of May was as follows :
- Northeast (Lang Son, Cao Bang, Bac Kan...): clouds, rain, 21-29oC;
- Northwest : clouds, rain, 23-30oC in Hoa Binh, Yen Bai, 24-31oC in Lao Cai; clouds, rain, 22-32oC in Son La, Dien Bien, 20-30oC in Lai Chau;
- Lowlands in Northern Vietnam (Hanoi, Ninh Binh...): clouds, isolated rain, 24-31oC ;
- North of the Central Coast : sun, clouds, rain, 26-31oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the north of Hai Van (Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-34oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the south of Hai Van (Da Nang to Quang Ngai) : sun, clouds, 26-33/35oC ;
- South Central Coast (Quy Nhon – Nha Trang): sun, clouds, 27-33/34oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet): sun, clouds, some rain, 27-35oC;
- Central Highlands (Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Lam Dong) : sun, clouds, rain, 22-36oC ;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai) : sun, clouds, rain, 25-36oC;
- West of Southern Vietnam (Mekong Delta : Can Tho, Long Xuyen, Chau Doc, Vinh Long, My Tho...) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-33/35oC.
Rainfalls measured in 24 hours from 14:00 hours of 8-May-2024: Nậm Cuổi 2 104.2mm (Lai Châu); Nghĩa Đô 194 mm (Lào Cai); Thịnh Hưng 92.8mm (Yên Bái); Mẫu Sơn 125.8mm (Lạng Sơn); Thái Cường 115.2mm (Cao Bằng);…
Rainfalls measured in 13 hours from 07:00 hours of 9-May-2024: Nậm Cuối (Lai Châu) 104.4mm, Mường Lèo (Sơn La) 79.8mm, Hồng An (Cao Bằng) 77.9mm, Tân Tri (Lạng Sơn) 77.9mm,…
High temperatures on 13-May-2024: Trị An (Đồng Nai) 38.1oC, Thủ Dầu Một (Bình Dương) 36.6oC, Đồng Phú (Bình Phước) 36.6oC…
Rainfalls measured in 3 hours from 15:00 hours of 13-May-2024: Đắk Man 75,4mm (Kon Tum); Phan Sơn 84mm (Bình Thuận);...
Rainfalls measured in 6 hours from 15:00 hours of 15-May-2024 in Quang Nam Province: Trà My 107,8mm, Trà Kót
27,8mm.
Rainfalls measured in 24 hours from 02:00 hours of 15-May-2024: Phú Vinh 229.2mm (Hòa Bình); Trương Lương 143.2mm (Cao Bằng); Trung Hội 133.6mm (Thái Nguyên); Ẳng Cang 2 123.8mm (Điện Biên); Pác Ma 119.6mm (Sơn La); Yên Lương 113.8mm (Phú Thọ); Mỏ Vàng 1 112.6mm (Yên Bái); Thọ Dân 93.2mm (Thanh Hóa); …
3/ Third week of May, 2024
In the third week of May, northern Vietnam continued to be under impact by weak spells of the Northeasterly Wind, the Central Coast of Vietnam had some rain with pleasant temperatures, the Central Highlands and southern Vietnam had daily heavy rain. Except for southern Vietnam where high daily temperatures reached 35-36oC, most of the country enjoyed pleasant temperatures.
The regional weather was as follows:
- Northeast (Lang Son, Cao Bang, Bac Kan...): sun, clouds, rain, 23-29oC;
- Northwest : sun, clouds, rain, 24-31oC in Hoa Binh, Yen Bai, 24-31oC in Lao Cai; clouds, rain, 22-32oC in Son La, Dien Bien, 21-28oC in Lai Chau;
- Lowlands in Northern Vietnam (Hanoi, Ninh Binh...): sun, clouds, rain, 24-32oC ;
- North of the Central Coast (Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh): sun, clouds, rain, 26-33oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the north of Hai Van (Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-34oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the south of Hai Van (Da Nang to Quang Ngai) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-35oC ;
- South Central Coast (Quy Nhon – Nha Trang): sun, clouds, 27-36/34oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet): sun, clouds, rain, 27-35/33oC;
- Central Highlands (Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Lam Dong) : sun, clouds, rain, 22-33oC ;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-36oC;
- West of Southern Vietnam (Mekong Delta : Can Tho, Long Xuyen, Chau Doc, Vinh Long, My Tho...) : sun, clouds, rain, 26-34oC.
Heavy rain was found in several places in Vietnam. Rainfalls measured in 13 hours from 19:00 hours of 18-May-2024: Trùng Khánh (Cao Bằng) 81.4mm, Mẫu Sơn (Lạng Sơn) 56.6mm, Bằng Lãng (Bắc Kạn) 52.2mm, Phương Đông (Quảng Ninh) 101.4mm, Cát Bà (Hải Phòng) 95mm, Bảo Sơn (Bắc Giang) 64.8mm, Đồng Văn (Nghệ An) 60.4mm, Ma Nới (Ninh Thuận) 60.7mm, Ia Đai (Kon Tum) 133mm, Ea Trang (Đăk Lăk) 115.6mm, Quảng Hòa (Đăk Nông) 103.6mm, An Phú (Bình Dương) 123.2mm,…
4/ Fourth week and last days of May, 2024
In the last week and last days of May 2024, northern Vietnam including the far Northwest continued to have nice temperatures mostly, sunshine mostly and some rain.
The Central Coast of Vietnam had sun, rain and nice temperatures mostly.
The Central Highlands and Southern Vietnam had sun, rain and nice temperatures mostly, some places had warm temperatures.
Regional weather in Vietnam in the last 10 days of May 2024
- Northeast (Lang Son, Cao Bang, Bac Kan) : sun, clouds, rain, 24-33oC;
- Northwest : sun, clouds, rain, 25-32oC in Yen Bai, Hoa Binh, Lao Cai, ; sun, clouds, rain, 22-30/29oC in Son La, Dien Bien, Lai Chau;
- Lowlands in Northern Vietnam (Hanoi, Ninh Binh, ...) : sun, clouds, some rain, 26-32/31oC ;
- North of the Central Coast (Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh): sun, clouds, rain, 26-33oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the north of Hai Van (Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue): sun, clouds, rain, 26-33oC ;
- Mid Central Coast to the south of Hai Van (Da Nang, Quang Ngai): sun, clouds, rain, 26-33oC ;
- South Central Coast (Quy Nhon, Tuy Hoa, Nha Trang): sun, clouds, isolated rain, 27-33oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet : sun, clouds, rain, 27-34oC ;
- Central Highlands (Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Lam Dong, Dak Nong): sun, clouds, rain, 22-33oC ;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Tay Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Dong Nai): sun, clouds, rain, 25-35oC .
- West of Southern Vietnam (Mekong Delta) : sun, clouds, 26-33/34oC.
Rainfalls measured in 8 hours from 07:00 A.M of 22-May in the Central Coast and Central Highlands of Vietnam: Xuân Sơn Nam (Phú Yên) 67.8mm, Bình Tân (Quảng Ngãi) 43.4mm, Lộc Thành (Lâm Đồng) 43.4mm, Ya ly (Kon Tum) 42.2mm,…
There was a brief heat strike in Vietnam at the end of May 2024 with high temperatures on 27-May: Bắc Mê (Hà Giang) 37.1oC, Bảo Lạc (Cao Bằng) 37.6oC, Láng (Hà Nội) 38oC, Sơn Hòa (Phú Yên) 39.2oC, Tuy Hòa (Phú Yên) 39.5oC, Đồng Phú (Bình Phước) 37.2oC, Biên Hòa (Đồng Nai) 37.2oC,…
Heavy rain was found in the Central Highlands and in southern Vietnam. Rainfalls measured in 8 hours from 19:00 hours of 27-May: Keo Yên (Cao Bằng) 40mm, Đạ Mri 1 (Lâm Đồng) 137mm, Đạo Nghĩa 2 (Đắc Nông) 132.4mm, Thanh Sơn 1 (Đồng Nai) 51.4m, Hồ Đá Bàng (Bà Rịa Vũng Tàu) 45mm,…
Rainfalls measured in 6 hours from 01:00 A.M of 28-May: Ia Me 72mm (Gia Lai); Đạo Nghĩa 102.4mm (Đắk Nông); Quốc Oai - Đạ Tẻh 96.8mm (Lâm Đồng); Cầu Tà Pao 104.3mm (Bình Thuận);...
At the end of May 2024, there was a tropical depression formed to the north of the Hoang Sa Islands of Vietnam (Paracel).
Disclaimer: Vietnam weather summary is for reviews of Vietnam weather by month on the basis as “it is” to the best of our knowledge. AdventureGreen does not guarantee the accuracy of our monthly reviews of Vietnam Weather. Our Vietnam Weather Reviews by month must not be used for making travel decisions or for any other purposes. AdventureGreen disclaims any liability in connection with with the use of our information.
