December is winter in the North of Vietnam, is the rainy season in the Central Coast, the dry season or about the dry season (depending on each year) in the Central Highlands and South of Vietnam.
The North of Vietnam may have rain each time a new spell of the cold Northeasterly Wind comes. Then it should get dry quickly. The temperatures are often at the lowest in the last ten days of December and the far-northern mountains may have frost or snow.
December is good for trekking tours thanks to relatively dry weather and cool temperatures. It is not an ideal time for mountain climbing tours though as there is often snow or frost in the high mountains in the far North of Vietnam.
It is not usual that there are typhoons or tropical depressions in December. In the case that there should be one, the strong and cold Northeasterly Monsoon is more likely to push any typhoons southwards melting them away before they could reach the inland of Vietnam. Typhoons, if any at this time, are less likely to affect the inland of the country.
December is still the rainy season in the Central Coast but it rains much less now compared to October and November. And you are advised to bring along rain coats/ponchos/umbrellas traveling outdoors like visiting Hoi An Old Town, Hue Imperial Citadel or Hue Royal Tombs... Due to climate change that there may be beautiful days in this region in December nowadays.
The Central Highlands and South of Vietnam are heading into the dry season in December. There may be some sporadic rains but they are light and just good enough to freshen up the air. Expect mild sunshine and pleasant temperatures in the South, chilly and cool temperatures in the Central Highlands. If you plan for a family vacation in the Central Highland or for luxury holidays in Saigon, Vung Tau or the Mekong Delta, then you should have a great time!
The offshore islands in the South of Vietnam have dry weather and pleasant temperatures in December. But Con Dao Islands and Phu Quoc Island often have strong winds and rough sea which is not good for sightseeing boat trip, snorkeling or scuba-diving.
Below you can find our review and statistics of the weather in different regions in Vietnam in December 2022.
1/North Vietnam
The North of Vietnam started having winter right from the very first day of December 2022, a bit later (10 days) compared to normal. It rained lightly in several places in the region and it was mostly short-lived rain. The temperatures were 8-13oC in the mountains and 12-17oC in the lowlands.
The North got a strengthening spell of the Winter Wind in mid of the first week sending the temperatures in the region lower.
Another strengthening spell of the cold wind arrived on 9-December brought brief light rain and lower temperatures to the North.
A very strong strengthening spell of the Northeasterly Monsoon hit northern Vietnam on 16 and 17-December bringing the temperatures to a new lower level. Frost started to appear on some mountain peaks on 18-December. The North enjoyed windy days with mild sunshine. The temperatures were 9-19oC in the lowlands and 5-18oC in the mountains.
Another strong spell of the cold wind hit northern Vietnam on 27, 28-December bringing the temperatures to lower levels, frost and snow were found on mountain peaks in the Far North. There was brief light rain for half a day. The winds were strong.
The temperatures were 9-13oC in the mountains, 12-16oC in the lowland.
2/The North of the Central Region (Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh)
The North of the Central Region of Vietnam started having winter from the first day of December 2022. It rained mostly in the region. The temperatures were 14-19oC.
The strengthening spell of the Winter Wind in mid of the first week caused more rain in this region.
Another strengthening spell of the cold wind arrived on 9-December lower temperatures to the region. Area to the north of this region started having less rain.
The strengthening cold wind on 18-December brought dry days to the region with lower temperatures: 11-19oC.
The cold wind on 23-December brought temperatures lower: 13-16oC. It was overcast mostly. . The winds were strong.
3/ The Central Coast of Vietnam (Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Hue, Da Nang, Quang Nam, Quang Ngai, Phu Yen, Binh Dinh, Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan)
It rained mostly in the Central Coast at the beginning of December 2022. The temperatures were 19-26oC. The temperatures were 2-4oC higher going southward from Binh Dinh to Binh Thuan.
More heavy rain from mid of the first week as a new spell of the Cold Wind hit the region.
Heavy rain was recorded from Quang Tri to Khanh Hoa. Rainfalls recorded during 24 hours from 4-December to 5-December-2022:
- Hải Lâm 185,2mm (Quảng Trị),
- Bạch Mã 269,8mm (Thừa Thiên Huế),
- Hồ Nước Ron 285,4mm (Quảng Nam),
- Trà Hiệp 137,2mm (Quảng Ngãi),
- Cát Tiến 115mm (Bình Định),
- An Hải 104,5mm (Phú Yên),
- Ninh Tân 105,7mm (Khánh Hòa).
A strengthening spell of the Winter Monsoon arrived on 9-December caused heavy rain in the Mid of the Central Coast. The South of the Central Coast (from Nha Trang to Phan Thiet) started to have less rain, more sunny and cloudy days.
The strong spell of cold wind hit the region on 18-December brought rain and strong winds, cold temperatures. The temperatures were 15-18oC to the north of the Hai Van Pass and 16-18oC to the south of the Hai Van; 20-24 in Quy Nhon, Nha Trang; 22-29oC in Phan Thiet. From Phan Thiet and region to the south, it was sunny and dry.
Strong winds were reported in Tuy Hoa City (Phu Yen Province) on 18-December. Flights to and from the Tuy Hoa Airport were canceled.
The spell of cold wind on 28-Dec and 29-Dec caused lower temperatures and rain from Quang Tri to Quang Ngai. The temperatures were 17-22 oCto the north of Hai Van, 19-24oC to the south of Hai Van, 21-28oC from Quy Nhon to Nha Trang, 22-30oC in Phan Thiet.
4/ The Central Highlands of Vietnam (Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Lam Dong)
The Central Highlands mostly had dry days with sunshine. Some heavy rain was found in the south of the Central Highlands at the beginning of December 2022 when it was under influence by a very cold spell of Winter Monsoon.
The temperatures were 19-29oC. Da Lat had rain or overcast skies with temperatures of 14-22oC.
From mid of December 2022, the Central Highlands had either cloudy days or sunny days with either cool or pleasant temperatures: 16-28oC.
The strong Northeasterly Winds on 18-December made the region windy, lovely sunshine and temperatures of 14-22oC. Unusually strong winds were reported in Pleiku.
The cold wind on 28-December brought nice weather to this region: 17-27oC, sunny and windy days.
5/The South of Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh, Vung Tau, Dong Nai, and the Mekong Delta)
There was some rain, the skies were overcast mostly. The temperatures were 24-29oC mostly, 2-3oC higher in Ho Chi Minh City.
In 2022, the weather pattern was unusual in Southern Vietnam as it still rained in December. Normally the rainy season may linger most to mid November. Meteorologists attributed this to La Nina oceanic and atmospheric phenomenon. Under the impact, it rains more with bigger rainfalls and the rainy season is longer.
From mid of December 2022, the South of Vietnam seemed to be entering into the dry season, much later than usual. The temperatures were pleasant : 21-32oC.
Due to impact by the strong Northeasterly Winds on 18-December, several flights to and from Phu Quoc Airport and Con Dao Airports were canceled. Boat trips to and from these islands were also canceled. The sea was rough in the whole of Vietnam. On the Phu Quoc Islands, several houses were destroyed due to strong winds, two boats were sunken while at harbor and one fishing boat ran aground due to strong waves. Waves of 2-3m high were reported at the Phu Quoc Island. It turned chilly in Ho Chi Minh City in the morning (20oC).
Successive strengthening spells of the cool Northeasterly Wind caused chilly weather in the South of Vietnam that the temperature of 19oC was found in most of the region!
Lovely weather prevailed at the end of the year when a new spell of Northeasterly Wind hit Vietnam on 28-December : sunny days with lovely temperatures of 21-33oC.
