Why go to Vietnam in the low season (May, June, September)?

When we talk about the low season for Vietnam, we think of May, June, and September when tourist numbers are the lowest of the year. A perfect time for travellers who don't like crowds, especially since during this season prices are lower, particularly for accommodation, transport, and excursions. The premises are also more open and will have more time for you and during these months, the weather is quite good, even very good. So don’t hesitate to go to Vietnam during May, June, and September, you absolutely won’t regret it!

1. The advantages of low season in Vietnam

+ The first big advantage is that there are fewer tourists and you can therefore enjoy places that are very busy in high season, having them all to yourself or almost. A real pleasure for discovery!

+ Accommodation prices are lower and sometimes negotiable downwards.

+ International and domestic flight prices are generally cheaper. If you take a guide and a driver, your agency may also agree to a discount.

+ Excursions are also often less expensive and even if they are shared with other travellers, don’t hesitate to negotiate, within reason.

+ If you are travelling independently, you can improvise your trip from day to day without needing to book everything in advance. Whatever your route, you will always find room to sleep or on transport.

+ Contact with the locals is much better and hotel staff are often very attentive because they have more time to devote to you and want to pamper their rare customers. For more authenticity, it is also better to travel in low season.

+ It is also the ideal season (not at the very beginning) to visit the national forest parks, the water level in the rivers and waterfalls being high and the nature lush thanks to the rains.

2. An excellent time to discover the rice terraces (in May - June - September)

In the rice-growing valleys of Mai Chau, Tam Coc, and Nghia Lo as well as in the sublime Pu Luong Nature Reserve, the rice fields are very beautiful in May. The rice begins to ripen and announces an imminent harvest. In the steeper and higher mountain ranges, where there is only one rice harvest per year, in May, the amphitheatres of rice terraces offer a striking spectacle of beauty.

In May, the rice terraces are flooded so that the rice can be transplanted in a few places. They then form immense mirrors in which the sky is reflected. A natural enchantment that you can admire in Sapa, Mu Cang Chai, or in Ha Giang Province known for sheltering the most spectacular rice terraces in Vietnam.

In June, the transplanting will begin and even if it begins at this time, we do not shy away from the pleasure of hiking in these grandiose settings to observe the farmers devoting themselves to their centuries-old agricultural task.

We also advise you to visit Northern Vietnam towards the end of September to enjoy the autumn colours of Hanoi and especially to admire the rice terraces which in this season are a hypnotic yellow. It is the beginning of the harvest, the rice fields buzz with laborious energy, and nature is electric green after the rains of the summer monsoon.

3. Visit Vietnam during the flower season

Let contemplatives rejoice, the months of May, June, and September inevitably evoke the flower season, particularly in the North and Centre.

The South of Vietnam enjoys favourable climatic conditions all year round, flowers grow there almost all year round. In May, the avenues and streets of Hanoi take on splendid bright red tones, the flamboyants are in flower and saturate the urban landscape with their shimmering colours.

In the Centre, as in the ancient imperial city of Hue, listed as a UNESCO site, frangipani trees and hibiscus exude their delicate scents. Nothing is more graceful than the tombs of the emperors of the Nguyen dynasty framed by flowering frangipani trees. In Hoi An, it is the bougainvillea that drapes the old wooden houses in pink.

4. Seaside stay in Vietnam in low season

May, until mid-June and the end of September, the conditions are ideal for a cruise in the majestic Halong Bay. You can also prolong the pleasure by staying on the nearby Cat Ba Island or extend your cruise to the neighbouring bay of Lan Ha where the few people will make your travel experience in the middle of this limestone enchantment even more stunning.

The Centre deploys its long beaches, often deserted, to offer wonderful moments of relaxation. Don't linger too long either because from mid-September, the rains start to arrive in Central Vietnam. If the rough seas and rains affect Phu Quoc Island in the far South, the Con Dao archipelago offers its best face with its calm and translucent waters. It’s the start of sea turtle nesting, a truly touching spectacle!

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