These are notes on Vietnam weather in May 2023 and what to know before planning travel vacations to Vietnam in 2023, be it your family holidays or your travelers’ Vietnam tours if you are a tour company or travel agent.
General Weather Patterns in Vietnam in May
May is summer in northern Vietnam, the dry and hot season in the Central Coast of Vietnam. In some years, the cool Northeasterly Wind still has impact on these two regions, then Northern Vietnam may still enjoy lovely weather with mild sun and pleasant temperatures; the Central Region may have more tolerable temperatures. Without the cool Northeasterly Wind, then the two regions are to undergo strong sun with hot temperatures.
In the Central Highlands and Southern Vietnam, May is transitional time between the dry season and the rainy season. Depending on a specific year, that these two regions may or may not start having rain at the beginning of May. In the former case, the temperatures are more tolerable; in the latter one, it is very hot with daily temperatures surpassing 35oC.
First 10 Days of May 2023
At the end of April 2023, there were some spells of the cool Northeasterly Wind in Northern Vietnam which made the region enjoy lovely temperatures with breezes and mild sun.
The Central Coast of Vietnam, part of the Central Highlands of Vietnam on low altitudes, South of Vietnam underwent hot temperatures of 36oC to over 38oC.
The weather patterns and temperatures in different regions were as follows:
- Northeast of Vietnam: isolated rain, sun, clouds, 24-34oC; the temperatures got up to 36-37oC briefly for a couple of days before dropping again;
- Northwest of Vietnam: sun mostly, 24-34oC in Yen Bai and Lai Chau; 24-38oC Lao Cai, Hoa Binh, Son La and Dien Bien;
- Lowlands in northern Vietnam: clouds, sun, 26-33oC; the temperatures got up to 27-36oC for two days then dropped again;
- North of the Central Coast: sun, clouds, 28-34oC mostly, 28-37oC for two days;
- Central Coast from Quang Binh to Hue: sun, 28-38oC mostly, 28-41oC in Quang Binh;
- Central Coast from Da Nang to Quy Nhon: sun, 26-35oC in Quy Nhon, 26-37oC;
- Central Coast from Tuy Hoa to Nha Trang: sun, 26-36oC;
- Central Coast from Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet: sun, rain, 27-35oC;
- Central Highlands: clouds, sun, 23-37oC;
- Southern Vietnam: sun, showers, clouds, 26-34oC in the Mekong Delta, 28-38oC in Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Tay Ninh.
At the end of the first week of May there was a heat strike in all over Vietnam causing temperatures of over 37oC in most places; some places the temperatures reached over 40-41oC. The places with highest temperatures were Phù Yên (Sơn La) 41.6oC, Hồi Xuân (Thanh Hóa) 42.9oC, Tương Dương (Nghệ An) 43.1oC, Hương Khê (Hà Tĩnh) 41.3oC.
On 6-May there was a tropical depression 400km to the East Southeast of the Song Tu Tay Island (Truong Sa Islands, Vietnam). The moving path was west-northwest.
The weather patterns and temperatures in different regions during the heat strike were as follows:
- Northeast of Vietnam: sun, 25-41oC;
- Northwest of Vietnam: sun mostly, 26-38oC in most places; 26-40oC in Lao Cai;
- Lowlands in northern Vietnam: sun, 28-39oC;
- North of the Central Coast: sun, 29-43oC;
- Central Coast from Quang Binh to Hue: sun, 28-39oC in Hue, 28-31oC in Quang Tri and 28-43oC in Quang Binh;
- Central Coast from Da Nang to Quy Nhon: sun, 26-36oC;
- Central Coast from Tuy Hoa to Nha Trang: sun, 27-37oC;
- Central Coast from Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet: sun, rain, 27-38oC in Phan Rang and 27-35oC in Phan Thiet;
- Central Highlands: clouds, sun, rain, 23-34oC mostly, 24-37oC in some places in Dak Lak;
- Southern Vietnam: sun, showers, clouds, 27-36oC in the Mekong Delta, 28-38oC in Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh.
The heat strike caused an unprecedented high temperature of 44.2oC at Tuong Duong (Nghe An).
In the early morning of 8-May there was a weak spell of the cool Northeasterly Wind hitting Vietnam causing torrential rain across the Northern Region. At the tropical depression dissipated after 2-3 days since the formation.
The cool wind arrived when there had been a heat strike in Vietnam causing extreme weather including strong gusts of wind in several places in the inland of Nghe An Province and at sea off the coast of Quang Binh and Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue. Several houses were destroyed in Quy Chau, Que Phong and Ky Son of Nghe An Province. Several boats were sunken or missing in Quang Binh, Quang Tri and Thua Thien-Hue.
In mid afternoon of 8-May, there was torrential rain in several provinces in Southern Vietnam including Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai,… The rain cooled down the scorching heat which raged across the region for over a month. There was also heavy rain in the South Central Coast and the Central Highlands of Vietnam: Phước Hòa (Ninh Thuận) 88.6mm, Măng Tố (Bình Thuận) 79.6mm, Đắk Sin (Đắk Nông) 76.8mm, Đạ Tẻh (Lâm Đồng) 96.2mm,…
Second 10 Days of May 2023
The second 10 days of May 2023 started off with a spell of the cool Northeasterly Monsoon arriving in Northern Vietnam. The cool wind brought down temperatures and brought about light rain in the Northern Region and in the Central Region.
The Central Highlands and Southern Region enjoyed thunderstorms and pleasant temperatures. It seemed the rain in the first decade of May 2023 in Southern Vietnam and in the Central Highlands marked the start of the rainy season here.
The weather in different regions in Vietnam:
- Northeast of Vietnam: clouds mostly, some rain, 19-27oC;
- Northwest of Vietnam: clouds, rain, 21-28oC;
- Lowlands in northern Vietnam: clouds, light rain, 22-26oC;
- North of the Central Coast: clouds, rain, 23-27oC;
- Central Coast from Quang Binh to Hue: clouds, thunderstorms, 24-29oC mostly, 25-32oC in Quang Binh;
- Central Coast from Da Nang to Quy Nhon: thunderstorms, 25-32oC mostly, 25-30oC in Da Nang;
- Central Coast from Tuy Hoa to Nha Trang: clouds, rain, 26-33oC;
- Central Coast from Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet: clouds, thunderstorms, 26-33oC;
- Central Highlands: thunderstorms, 22-32oC mostly, 21-29oC Pleiku;
- Southern Vietnam: thunderstorms, 25-33oC in the Mekong Delta, 26-34oC in Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong and Tay Ninh.
Starting from 16-May there was a heat strike across Vietnam with exception of the Central Highlands. Places with high temperatures surpassing 40oC on 17-May include: City of Hòa Bình (Hòa Bình) 41.2oC, Việt Trì (Phú Thọ) 40.5oC, Bắc Mê (Hà Giang) 40.1oC, Hà Đông (Hà Nội) 41.3oC, Hồi Xuân (Thanh Hóa) 40.3oC, Đô Lương (Nghệ An) 40.3oC. The heat strike was a result of the growing hot air troughs in the atmosphere over the west of Vietnam.
The weather in different regions in Vietnam:
- Northeast of Vietnam: sun, clouds, some rain, 24-7oC;
- Northwest of Vietnam: sun, 26-38oC mostly, 23-34oC in Lai Chau;
- Lowlands in northern Vietnam: sun, 28-39oC;
- North of the Central Coast: clouds, rain, 28-38oC;
- Central Coast from Quang Binh to Hue: sun, 27-38oC mostly, 29-40oC in Quang Binh;
- Central Coast from Da Nang to Quy Nhon: sun, 27-36oC;
- Central Coast from Tuy Hoa to Nha Trang: clouds, rain, sun, 27-36oC;
- Central Coast from Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet: clouds, rain, 27-36oC;
- Central Highlands: clouds, rain, 22-34oC mostly, 23-35oC in Kon Tum;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh): thunderstorms, rain, sun 27-38oC;
- West of Southern Vietnam ( The Mekong Delta): clouds, rain, 26-32oC mostly, 27-35oC in An Giang.
Last 10 Days of May, 2023
The heat strike across different regions of Vietnam from 16-May continued into the last decade of the month. Highest recorded temperatures on 21-May: Mường La (Sơn La) 42,5oC, Sông Mã (Sơn La) 42.0oC, Hồi Xuân (Thanh Hóa) 41.2oC, Tương Dương (Nghệ An) 41.1oC.
Regional weather at the beginning of the last 10 days of May 2023
- Northeast : sun, clouds, 22-38oC;
- Northwest : sun, 23-36oC in Lai Chau; 24-38oC in Yen Bai, Hoa Binh, Son La, Dien Bien ; 27-42oC in Lao Cai;
- Lowlands in Northern Vietnam : sun, breezes, 27-39oC ;
- North of the Central Coast : clouds, sun, 28-39oC;
- Mid Central Coast to the north of Hai Van : sun, clouds, showers, 27-39oC in Quang Binh and 27-38oC in other places ;
- Mid Central Coast to the south of Hai Van : rain, 27-36oC;
- South Central Coast (Quy Nhon – Nha Trang): clouds, rain, 27-36oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet : rain, clouds, 26-37oC in Phan Rang, 26-34oC in Phan Thiet ;
- Central Highlands : clouds, rain, 22-34oC;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh): rain, sun 26-34oC;
- West of Southern Vietnam ( The Mekong Delta): clouds, rain, 25-32oC mostly, 26-34oC in An Giang.
On 23-May, there was a cool air mass moving southwards meeting with the hot air troughs at the latitudes of 22-23o which put an end to the heat strike in the North and part of the Central Coast and which caused rain across these regions. Right before the arrival of the cool air, high temperatures recorded on 23-May: Mường La (Sơn La) 42.5oC, Hồi Xuân (Thanh Hóa) 41.6oC, Tương Dương (Nghệ An) 42.1oC.
Rainfalls recorded from 2300hours on 23-May to 0800hrs 24-May: Đại Từ (Thái Nguyên) 180.6mm, Bắc Quang (Hà Giang) 159mm, Thanh Trì (Hà Nội) 133.6mm, Phù Yên (Sơn La) 104.4mm, Phan Thiết (Tuyên Quang) 104mm, Văn Lãng (Lạng Sơn) 92mm, Tam Sơn (Hà Giang) 89.2mm, Chợ Mới (Bắc Kạn) 88.8mm, Mai Châu (Hòa Bình) 76.8mm, Quan Hóa (Thanh Hóa) 65.6mm, Châu Thuận (Nghệ An) 74.4mm,...
In the Central Highlands and in Southern Vietnam, the rain had become daily making the temperatures more pleasant.
The weather in Vietnam after the arrival of the cool air mass on 23-May
- Northeast : clouds, rain, 24-32oC;
- Northwest : sun, rain, 24-37oC in Lao Cai and Dien Bien; 22-33oC in Yen Bai, Hoa Binh, Son La, Lai Chau;
- Lowlands in Northern Vietnam : clouds, rain, 27-33oC ;
- North of the Central Coast: sun, clouds, rain, 26-33oC;
- Mid Central Coast to the north of Hai Van : sun, clouds, showers, 26-36oC;
- Mid Central Coast to the south of Hai Van : rain, 26-34oC;
- South Central Coast (Quy Nhon – Nha Trang): clouds, rain, 26-36oC ;
- South Central Coast ( Phan Rang-Thap Cham to Phan Thiet : rain, clouds, 26-37oC in Phan Rang, 26-34oC in Phan Thiet ;
- Central Highlands : clouds, rain, 21-33oC;
- East of Southern Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Binh Phuoc, Tay Ninh): rain, sun, 26-34oC mostly, 26-36oC in Tay Ninh;
- West of Southern Vietnam ( The Mekong Delta): clouds, rain, 26-33oC.
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