Sapa is located on the highland of Lao Cai Province, which is a mysterious and peaceful land. The combination of the picturesque landscape of Sapa and the creativity of people has created such a marvelous picture with the harmonious layout of the mountainous terrains, evergreen forests and colorful flowers. From the city center, you can see all the beauty of this magnificent scenery.

Many tourists, who intend to visit Sapa, Lao Cai, still wonder how the weather in Sapa Vietnam is. Keep reading our article to know exactly the best time to visit Sapa.

What is the best time to visit Sapa?

Located at the height of 1600 meters from the sea level, Sapa has both temperature climate and subtropical climate. The atmosphere of Sapa is cool all over the year.

The town’s weather includes the featured climate of four seasons during a day. In the morning, the climate is as warm and pure as the spring while in the afternoon, the weather is the same as the summer’s climate with warm sunshine.
On the other hand, in the evening, the sky is cloudy and the atmosphere is misty, just as the cool climate of the autumn. At night, it is very cold, just as the featured weather of the cold winter. The average temperature of Sapa is about 15⁰C per year.

In the summer, the town is not as hot as the delta region. The average temperature of those days is just from 13⁰C to 15⁰C at night and between 20⁰C and 25⁰C during the day.

In the winter, the sky is usually cloudy and the weather is cold and misty. The temperature of these days may be lower than 0⁰C, and sometimes, it may be snowy. The rainy season usually begins in May and finishes in August.



Therefore, the perfect time to pay a visit to this beautiful town is from September to November or from March to May. Because at these months, the weather of Sapa is gentle, the day is dry and the night is cold.

In the summer

In April and May, the ethnic groups plant rice on the rice terrace. This is also the blossoming season of many beautiful flowers. The labor of ethnic people and blossoming flowers are always interesting topics of many photographers.
If you love taking beautiful photos, then you should not forget to pay a visit to this wonderful place in the summer.


 

In the ripe rice season

In September and October, all the fields of Sapa are covered in the yellow color of the ripe rice. This is a perfect time for you to visit this beautiful destination.
The whole town is so energetic and gorgeous in the ripe rice season. However, you should travel to Sapa in the middle or the end of September because, in October, the rice has already been harvested.

In the winter

In December, the weather is very cold, and sometimes, it may be snowy. This is also the blossoming season of the cherry blossom trees.
Many teenagers decide to visit Sapa at this time because it is an ideal moment to see the falling snow and contemplate the beauty of the cherry blossom trees in Vietnam.


See top things to do in Sapa

Climate and weather of Sapa

Due to the strong affection of complex terrains, the climate of Sapa has some certain features:

Temperature

The average temperature of Sapa during a year is about 14,5⁰C. In the summer, the average temperature is from 18⁰C to 20⁰C while in the winter, it usually ranges between 10⁰C and 12⁰C.
The highest temperature of this town is 33⁰C in April, especially in the lower region. The lowest temperature is 0⁰C in January.
In some years, the temperature may be lower than -3.2⁰C. However, due to the terrain’s features of different regions, they will not share the same temperature at the same time.

Sunshine

The total average hours of sunlight of Sapa ranges between 1400 hours to 1460 hours per year. The hours of sunlight are not even between every month of the year.
In the summer, the daily sunshine hour is greater than other seasons. There is an average of 180 to 200 hours of sunlight in April.
In the October, the sunshine hours is the least, which is just about 30 to 40 hours.

Humidity

The average humidity per year of Sapa is from 85 to 90%. In April, the humidity is the lowest, which is only 65 to 70%.

Precipitation rate

The rain season of Sapa begins in May and finishes in October and constitutes 80% of the total rain per year. In other months, the average rainfall is about 50 to 100 millimeters per month. The hail usually happens in February, March, and April.

Fog

The fog is very popular in Sapa, especially, in the winter, the fog rate is very high. In the cold season, many valleys and mountainous regions often suffer from snow, ice, and frost. Those bad weather usually last for 2 to 3 days and they are also very harmful to agricultural and forestry producing.