Is it normally this cold in Thailand in January?
Thailand is a country known for its beaches, nightlife, and sun. Countless people escape their home places to take solace in the Kingdom’s warmth in both the environment and with its people. However, Thailand is pretty cold right now and it is as much of a surprise for those living in a major city like Bangkok where the morning (January 13 as of the time of this article’s publication) temperature reached a cool temperature as low as 18 degrees!
“What’s the big deal?”
You might be thinking of as you came in from colder countries in Europe, America, and even Russia in which this weather is nothing compared to your hometown.
However, it still begs the question though, is Thailand normally this cold or is this an anomaly?
Is it normal for Thailand to be this cold?
Although you will never find Bangkok to be encased in a blanket of snow, January is one of the coldest months in Thailand. According to the Thai Meteorological Department and announced as of today, they have predictions on what the temperature will be like for the rest of the month.
However, it usually is not this cold every January and this year, it is a bit of an outlier.
“Cool with strong wind and a slight drop in temperature. The minimum temperature will be 16 to 19 °C and the maximum temperature will be 26 to 31 °C. Northeasterly winds 10 to 30 km/hr.”
This is the case in Bangkok which is located more central to Thailand and closer to the equator. On the flip side, if we head up more north, we can find that the temperature can drop 5 to 7°C compared to Bangkok and its neighbouring provinces with a less severe dip of 2 to 5°C.
Although this is the forecast for now, was it ever the case in the past? The answer is surprisingly yes but not to the degree that you might be familiar with.
There have been two notable instances in the past where the temperature has dipped to such a low degree. The first notable instance was back in January of 1955 when the temperature dipped as low as a staggering 9.9°C! Even during this time, the Chiang Rai province actually saw some snow too.
The other notable time when the temperature dropped low, would have been in January 2014 when the temperature was at 15.6°C. Although not too far off the prediction for this year’s forecast, it is alarming to see that the forecast for this year is higher than in 2014. At the same time, the lowest in 2014 is significantly higher than that of 1955.
This can signal global warming to some extent that even when experiencing the coldest time so far, it’s always higher than the previous years.
Why is it happening right now?
Other than the trend that countries north of the equator tend to be colder during January, think of Western countries for example, there is one factor that is causing this year’s cooldown. The answer is China and the winds.
Since China is further north of Thailand, and much bigger which leads to more diversity in weather in each region, China does experience cold winters commonly with snow even. According to the Thai Meteorological Department, there is a strong and icy breeze that is sweeping southwards from China towards Thailand which brings in the cooler temperatures and also potentially heavy rainfall as well.
What’s causing these winds is the high-pressure air in China swooping down to the lower-pressure air down south below since nature loves balance and hates it when things are too much or too little.
Combine that with the fact that January is often cold in Thailand, we have a result of even cooler temperatures and cold snaps in places that are commonly warm such as Bangkok. At the same time, I have heard first-hand reports and experience winds that sweep past now and then which contributes to the cold weather and confirms the report of the China to Thailand breeze.
How to deal with the Thai cold?
Since this is a phenomenon that’s not so common in Thailand, considering the country is either scorching hot or wet and warm all year round, most people are unprepared. Some ways you can deal with it are:
- Keep an eye on the forecast: Especially for the mornings since that’s when it is the coldest.
- Use your air conditioning less: Now that Thailand is cooler, your AC will make things much cooler which can be bad for your health.
- Keep a sweater, windbreaker or hoodie handy: Even though it will get cold, it will get pretty warm towards the noon and afternoon period so have something you can don and remove at any time’s notice. no need for big fluffy jackets unless that’s your style (Don’t let me stop you).
- Watch out for the sun: Although it gets cooler, the sun does not shine any less brighter. Use the same precautions that you have standing in the sunlight in the summer.
- Most importantly, enjoy it!: This is the coolest that Thailand will be for a while before things get scorching hot maybe even for the foreseeable future. Enjoy it and use it as an opportunity to get outside more without dying from the heat.
FAQs about how cold Thailand can be
Which is the coldest month in Thailand?
Typically, the coldest month in Thailand happens to be January, which also follows the trends of other countries that are north of the equator.
Does it snow in Thailand?
It typically never snows in Thailand. Although you can find frost or hail in the northern regions in the cooler times od the year, snowfall is not expected at all. However, there was an instance in January 1955 where Thailand experienced snowfall in Chiang Rai.
What is the best time to be in Thailand?
Typically it depends on person to person but knowing that people want to escape the rainy season, anytime thats not May to October. For escaping the hear, December and January provide the coolest weather of the year if you can handle it.
How cold can it get at night for Thailand?
It could drop to be as low as 25°C year round however, in some parts of the year such as January, it can be as low as 15°C.
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