Best Time to Visit Malacca

Hot and wet all year, with a slightly easier start

Malacca doesn't have a cold season or a true dry one. It sits close to the equator, so it's warm and sticky every month. Highs stay around 29 to 31°C, and nights hardly cool down.

January and February score best here, and February is the drier of the two. You'll still get showers, but there's more chance of a dry stretch for walking the old town. Don't expect clear blue skies, though. Even the best months are cloudy and humid.

The wet months and what to do about them

November is the wettest month, with December close behind. Rain falls on almost every day, often in heavy afternoon bursts. Mornings can be fine, so do your outdoor sightseeing then, such as climbing St. Paul's Hill and wandering around the Dutch Square (Red Square).

From March to October the picture is much the same: warm, damp and often grey. April and May are the hottest and most humid. If the rain starts, duck into the Baba & Nyonya Heritage Museum, the Maritime Museum or a kopitiam (old-style coffee shop) for a bowl of laksa or a plate of chicken rice balls. Rain here usually passes within an hour or two. The Melaka River cruise is lovely when it's cloudy, because you're not baking in the sun.

Crowds, holidays and festivals

Malacca is busy on weekends all year, mostly with day-trippers from Kuala Lumpur and Singapore. The Jonker Street Night Market runs Friday to Sunday evenings and gets packed. If you hate crowds, come midweek.

Public holidays push visitor numbers up more than the weather does. Chinese New Year, usually in late January or February, is a big one. Hotels fill, and Jonker Street and the Cheng Hoon Teng temple are lively. Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the end of Ramadan, and Malaysian school holidays also bring long-weekend crowds. Christmas and the year-end break are busy too, even though December is soaked.

Want the quietest visit? Pick a weekday outside these holidays and accept the rain. Want the best odds of a dry walk? Aim for February, ideally just before or after Chinese New Year.