[dunmop01]

I am going on holiday in SEPT and want to come to HK is it a bad time to visit ?

[carang]

from the gov't website for last september(2004)... this should give you some idea of what it's like here at that time of year...

All tropical cyclones originating from the western Pacific did not come close to Hong Kong during the month. As a result, September 2004 was drier than usual. The monthly rainfall of 167.3 millimetres was about 44 percent below the normal figure of 299.7 millimetres. The accumulated rainfall since the beginning of the year was 1735.9 millimetres, about 14 percent below the normal of 2007.1 for the same period.

It was mainly fine with long hours of sunshine in the first five days of the month apart from some showers on 3 September.

Associated with Typhoon Songda in the East China Sea, a trough of low pressure formed over the coast of Guangdong and brought thundery showers to the territory on 6 September. A tornado developed amidst the thunderstorms and struck the Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok. In a span of just a few minutes, gusts in excess of 60 kilometres overturned a van, injuring one person. Some cargoes were tossed towards a cargo plane while it was being refueled, damaging a fuel pipe and causing oil spill. In the ensuing three days, unsettled weather persisted as the trough of low pressure continued to linger along the coast. A heavy downpour on 8 September brought over 100 millimetres of rainfall to Ho Man Tin and Kwun Tong.

The rain eased off on 10 September when a dry continental airstream arrived at the coast. While it remained cloudy in the next two days, the weather became sunny and dry on 13 September. Generally fine weather continued in the next five days. Under light wind conditions, it was hazy on 15 and 16 September with the visibility falling to below 2000 metres in some parts of the territory.

Showers and thunderstorms returned on 19 September and resulted in over 70 millimetres of rainfall in parts of the Kowloon and Hong Kong Island.

The weather improved with plenty of sunshine on 20 September. Although it remained sunny during the day on 21 September, the weather deteriorated with frequent thunderstorms that night when a cold front moved across the south China coast. The clouds dispersed gradually the next day as the continental airstream behind the cold front dominated over southern China. Apart from a few showers on 25 and 30 September, the weather remained generally fine for the rest of the month.

A total of four tropical cyclones occurred in the western North Pacific in the month. An overview of these tropical cyclones is presented in "Tropical Cyclones Reports and Publications" webpage.

Details of issuance and cancellation of various warnings/signals in the month are summarized in Tables 1.1 to 1.4. Monthly meteorological figures and departures from normal for September are tabulated in Table 2.


Warnings and Signals issued in September 2004
Table 1.1 Rainstorm Warning Signals Colour Beginning Time Ending Time
Day/Month HKT Day/Month HKT
Amber 21 / 9 2025 21 / 9 2130


Table 1.2 Thunderstorm Warning Beginning Time Ending Time
Day/Month HKT Day/Month HKT
2 / 9 1337 2 / 9 1505
3 / 9 1100 3 / 9 1545
6 / 9 0545 6 / 9 0845
6 / 9 1615 6 / 9 2200
7 / 9 1450 7 / 9 1650
8 / 9 0115 8 / 9 1415
8 / 9 1715 8 / 9 1940
8 / 9 2100 8 / 9 2300
9 / 9 0340 9 / 9 0620
9 / 9 0830 9 / 9 1030
17 / 9 1115 17 / 9 1600
18 / 9 0210 18 / 9 0610
18 / 9 1010 18 / 9 1145
18 / 9 1210 18 / 9 1410
19 / 9 0655 19 / 9 1600
20 / 9 1207 20 / 9 1407
21 / 9 1405 21 / 9 1605
21 / 9 1850 21 / 9 2250
22 / 9 1525 22 / 9 1725


Table 1.3 Fire Danger Warnings Colour Beginning Time Ending Time
Day/Month HKT Day/Month HKT
Yellow 25 / 9 0630 27 / 9 0600
Red 27 / 9 0600 28 / 9 0600
Yellow 28 / 9 0600 28 / 9 1245
Red 28 / 9 1245 29 / 9 0600
Yellow 29 / 9 0600 30 / 9 0445


Table 1.4 Special Announcement on Flooding
in the Northern New Territories Beginning Time Ending Time
Day/Month HKT Day/Month HKT
9 / 9 0916 9 / 9 1130


Table 2 Figures and Departures from Normal - September 2004 Meteorological Element Figure of the Month Departure from Normal
Mean Daily Maximum Air Temperature 29.9 degrees C 0.4 degree below normal
Mean Air Temperature 27.6 degrees C normal
Mean Daily Minimum Air Temperature 25.9 degrees C 0.4 degree above normal
Mean Dew Point 23.1 degrees C 0.2 degree below normal
Mean Relative Humidity 77 % 1 % below normal
Mean Cloud Amount 62 % 1 % below normal
Total Rainfall 167.3 mm 132.4 mm below normal
Total Bright Sunshine Duration 190.5 hours 8.8 hours above normal
Mean Daily Global Solar Radiation 15.09 Megajoule / square metre 1.40 Megajoule below normal
Total Evaporation 134.1 mm 16.2 mm below normal


Remarks : All measurements were made at the Hong Kong Observatory except sunshine, solar radiation and evaporation which were recorded at King's Park Meteorological Station.


daily values of selected meteorological elements for HK for September 2004

[angiebaby80]

GOOD JOB, carang!!!

[dunmop01]

So is it not an ideal time to travel to Hong Kong then?!

[prashanthbk]

Well my friend any time is good to travel if you have the flame burning in you. That is the spirit of travel...

[Lok Man Loong]

Just avoid Chinese New Year if you want to eat cheaply & shop till you drop. Mind you, the end of the year is a good, cooler, time to come. Jul/Aug/Sept arrival will have you enveloped in a lot of soggy - sweaty - under garments.

[timklip]

i wouldn't completely agree with the above. while it's not the best time of year to come (prob. oct. nov/march april) sept. can be nice too. its drying out, and still very hot (if you like that) and no big holidays like mid autumn/cny/xmas so not so crowded (aside from the 7 million locals!)

[wing]

Usually after the Mid-Autumn festival (somewhere after Sept 15), the weather turns cooler and dryer. IMHO, the best time is from the Mid-September to the Mid-April. Summer time is too cold inside and too hot/humid outside.

Hong Kong's typhoon season usually runs from June to September.

[discobay]

I always advise my overseas friends that September to October is the best time to visit. Most people do not take to the extreme heat that we get here in the height of the summer.
Whatever you think it is certainly better than this time of year!

[tsuiwah]

Agree that October (and November) are great times to visit HK (and China as well). Summertime sucks big time...unless you like rain, more rain, and humidity.