time of year to visit cambodia

[garygx]

I received some advice recently that I might reconsider an April visit to Cambodia based on weather/temperature at that time.  Does anyone else have feedback/experience regarding this?

[Enchanted_Elixir]

That is considered the hottest month of the year in Cambodia so be warned.

[a-447]

I was in phnom pehn in April last year.

Living in Western Australia, I'm used to the heat, but PP was on a different scale. The heart radiating up from the pavement and coming from the surrounding buildings was unbearable. At one stage I felt dizzy as I was walking and had to duck into a coffee shop to cool down.

I survived for about a week and then had to come home.

[Keithambrose]

5 hours ago, a-447 said:

I was in phnom pehn in April last year.

Living in Western Australia, I'm used to the heat, but PP was on a different scale. The heart radiating up from the pavement and coming from the surrounding buildings was unbearable. At one stage I felt dizzy as I was walking and had to duck into a coffee shop to cool down.

I survived for about a week and then had to come home.

I was told to avoid April to June, by a local.

[garygx]

ok it looks like I got some great advice. I know this is not the Vietnam forum.... but how about Ho Chi Minh in April? Maybe for a week?

 

[macaroni21]

If you look at a map, you will see Bangkok, Phnom Penh and Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) roughly at the same latitude (10 - 13 degrees north). Many of us are familiar with Bangkok in April which, aside from the madness that is Songkran, is also unbearably hot (35 degrees and higher). Phnom Penh and Saigon would be similar, in the same way that Port of Spain (10 degrees north) and Barbados (13 degrees north) would be similar.

In Southeast Asia, it's not just the temperature, it's also the humidity. Even in the dry months, humidity remains medium-high unless one is a considerable distance from the sea. Bangkok, Phnom Penh and Saigon are quite close to the coast. So 35 degrees is nothing at all like 35 degrees in Perth, Australia.

For better temperatures in April -- warmish but not too hot -- look for a place about 20 - 30 degrees north. That means somewhere between Hanoi and Hangzhou (or Shanghai). However, the economics of sex in these rich cities would be quite different from that of the poor cities in Southeast Asia -- which may be an important consideration for you.

 

[a-447]

1 hour ago, macaroni21 said:

In Southeast Asia, it's not just the temperature, it's also the humidity. Even in the dry months, humidity remains medium-high unless one is a considerable distance from the sea. Bangkok, Phnom Penh and Saigon are quite close to the coast. So 35 degrees is nothing at all like 35 degrees in Perth, Australia.

I'm not sure if I get your point.

Perth is on the coast - in fact, I live just across the road from a marina, situated on the beautiful Indian Ocean. The sunsets at the moment are spectacular!

However, Perth is not humid in summer; it's a very dry heat, and you can cool off a little if you stand in the shade. The wind blows in from the east, across the hot desert. We sometimes get a cooling sea breeze in the afternoon.

Phnom penh wasn't humid, either; just searingly hot. There were few trees where I could seek shelter - just concrete everywhere.

Humidity is the real killer for me, and it's why I never go back to Japan in June/July, which is the hot rainy season.

[macaroni21]

It does sound as if you do get my point. The "very dry" heat of Perth summer is the kind of low humidity (desert air) that cities in the Bangkok to Saigon belt don't experience. While the humidity in March and April in the latter cities is not as high as in the wet season, it's still palpable when compared to cities at the edge of deserts. That's why I described it as "medium high". OK, "medium" might be a better description.

What you're also describing is the wind created by the temperature differential between inland and a huge ocean. The very hot desert air (50 degrees and more) tends to move, whereas in southeast Asia, the air is more likely to sit and cook.

Agree about Japan (and much of China). Late June to late August is impossible for me too.

What we need is a sex paradise somewhere like 10 to 15 degrees south of the equator for the midyear period.

Perhaps northern Madagascar?

I can't find climate data for northern Madagascar, but I can find data for Comoros Islands (12 degrees south). The coolest month there is August, with average day maximum 28 degrees and minimum 21 degrees. Sounds nice. 

[Keithambrose]

2 hours ago, a-447 said:

I'm not sure if I get your point.

Perth is on the coast - in fact, I live just across the road from a marina, situated on the beautiful Indian Ocean. The sunsets at the moment are spectacular!

However, Perth is not humid in summer; it's a very dry heat, and you can cool off a little if you stand in the shade. The wind blows in from the east, across the hot desert. We sometimes get a cooling sea breeze in the afternoon.

Phnom penh wasn't humid, either; just searingly hot. There were few trees where I could seek shelter - just concrete everywhere.

Humidity is the real killer for me, and it's why I never go back to Japan in June/July, which is the hot rainy season.

We sometimes get a cooling sea breeze in the afternoon.

 

The Fremantle Doctor!