What's on in Ko Lipe (Koh Lipe), Thailand through the year

Peak crowds — Chinese New Year, High season, flat Andaman

• Holiday

  Chinese New Year

  20 Jan – 25 Feb · usuallyLunar New YearCrowdedBook early

  Malaysian and Singaporean visitors come in on the Langkawi ferry for the long break and the small island fills. Rooms on Sunrise go months ahead for that week. Source ↗

Still on: High season, flat Andaman (1 Nov – 15 May (usually))

Peak crowds — Chinese New Year, High season, flat Andaman

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Chinese New Year (20 Jan – 25 Feb (usually)), High season, flat Andaman (1 Nov – 15 May (usually))

Busy — High season, flat Andaman, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: High season, flat Andaman (1 Nov – 15 May (usually))

Peak crowds — Songkran, High season, flat Andaman

• Festival

  Songkran

  13–15 AprWater-festival New YearCrowded

  A small-island version: buckets on Walking Street and the boat crews joining in, without the scale of the mainland. Ferries either side are the busiest of the season. Source ↗

Still on: High season, flat Andaman (1 Nov – 15 May (usually))

Peak crowds — High season, flat Andaman, Long summer break in Thailand

• Season

  Southwest monsoon

  15 May – 15 Oct · usuallyRisk

  Swell on the west-facing beaches and days when nothing crosses from the mainland at all. The handful of places that stay open charge a third of the high-season rate.

• Closure

  Tarutao marine park closed

  16 May – 15 Oct

  The park shuts its islands for the monsoon every year. Ko Lipe itself is exempt and stays open, but the snorkelling stops, the speedboats thin to a weather-dependent service, and most resorts close. Source ↗

Still on: High season, flat Andaman (1 Nov – 15 May (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (15 May – 15 Oct (usually)), Tarutao marine park closed (16 May – 15 Oct)

Quiet — travelers describe it as quiet, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (15 May – 15 Oct (usually)), Tarutao marine park closed (16 May – 15 Oct)

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (15 May – 15 Oct (usually)), Tarutao marine park closed (16 May – 15 Oct)

Quiet — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (15 May – 15 Oct (usually)), Tarutao marine park closed (16 May – 15 Oct)

Busy — October semester break in Thailand, school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it

• Opening

  The island reopens

  15 Oct – 15 Nov · usuallyDry season

  Resorts and dive shops come back one at a time through late October as the ferry schedule is restored. Cheap, half-empty, and a gamble on the weather still turning. Source ↗

Still on: Southwest monsoon (15 May – 15 Oct (usually)), Tarutao marine park closed (16 May – 15 Oct)

Busy — High season, flat Andaman

• Season

  High season, flat Andaman

  1 Nov – 15 May · usuallyDry seasonCrowded

  Speedboats run daily from Pak Bara and Langkawi, the reef off Sunrise Beach is clear, and Walking Street is busy every night. Everything on the island is open, which is not true the rest of the year.

Still on: The island reopens (15 Oct – 15 Nov (usually))

Busy — High season, flat Andaman, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in December.

Still on: High season, flat Andaman (1 Nov – 15 May (usually))