We were in Phuket in August last year and it rained quite a lot...but the rain added to the lovely weather specially when u go from living in Dubai. Yes one cant go & do water sports but just sitting out under an umbrella or walking along patong beach market with the hotels provided big black umbrellas was great fun.
Samui is hot and sunny in July and August, may get short sharp showers, but last maybe 5-10 minutes and always in the afternoon for some reason. Phuket will be much the same. It is humid though.
I seem to think that the west coast tends to get more rain than the east - which is why we opted for Koh Samui over Phuket when travelling in SE Asia during July and August 2009. We found the weather to be generally lovely, although there was one day of fierce rain while on the island, together with an evening. It wasn't bad though, considering we stayed several days, and I would say that it made our visit a little more of an adventure! (Although it didn't always feel like it at the time - such as when the windscreen wiper on our hired jeep broke in the middle of nowhere!)
Spent more than a week in Thailand over that time (it was a good launchpad for travels to the rest of the region) and can only recall one other afternoon/early evening of ridiculously heavy rain (in Bangkok) so I wouldn't let it put me off returning at that time of the year.
We were in Phuket July 2007 - quite a bit of rain, but also lots of sun. We were unable to get out onto the water though, as it was pretty rough, and our kids were younger.
We still managed to get plenty of sun/swim time in...we just LOVED Thailand.
However, I think our next visit will not be during rainy season if we can help it.
We spent two weeks in Phuket last August and only had one day of rain. I had a friend who went in July and had 7 days straight of rain.
The beaches were open everyday, but probably due to the fact that they were not patrolled at the resort we stayed at. Some days the sea was okay, but other days much too rough and you wouldn't go near it.
OK hearing lots of conflicting stories about the weather in July/August. Is this a good place to go during these months or better to stay away.....keep getting told that the beaches close etc as the sea gets very rough. Don't mind the shower of rain but if it rains all day everyday then no good! Please advise - Ta x
And Thailand I'm meaning Phuket/Sumai or suchlike