Vietnam’s climate is complex, variable, and very local, explains Vietnam Coracle. “Many people assume that Vietnam is bathed in tropical sunshine year-round, country-wide,” but in reality the weather includes “tropical monsoons, extended dry seasons, chilly winters, and the crachin (the name French colonials gave the grey drizzle hanging over the Red River Delta during Lunar New Year).” As a long, narrow country -- “with a spine of mountains to the west, a curving coastline to the east, and flat river deltas in the north and south” -- Vietnam’s weather is “anything but predictable.”
The country’s long thin shape offers three varying weather climates, writes AWOL -- “down south, subtropical temperatures welcome sun chasers between the months of December and February … the canals of the Mekong Delta that wind past lush green jungle and the backpacker-approved Nha Trang party beach are two favourite summer spots … for a slower pace, head in the direction of Cambodia for Phu Quoc Island -- but as February draws to a close, so too does the warm weather … from March through to August, sun-seekers make the pilgrimage towards central Vietnam.” But be warned, says AWOL: “July is hot, hot, hot.” Finally, in October, “it’s time to swap the rain of the south for the hot and dry temperature of the north.”
My personal preference is the period between July and October, says Mark Bowyer at Rusty Compass. “It can be hot and wet, but I love the lush greens, the big storms and the deep blue skies,” he writes, and it’s definitely the best time “if you want beautiful colours.”