Where to go in Asia in September: Silk Road, Beijing and Hanoi

September at a glance

These six trips are the ones where September's weather works in your favour. The table compares them, with the mid-range cost of a day.

Every daily cost on this page is the mid-range figure from the country's trip-cost guide: its all-in total divided by its days, per person, for two people sharing a room. That covers rooms, every meal, local transport, sights, a SIM and a 10% buffer; only the international flight is extra. Each guide prices its own route in the season it names, so the figures show the level of a country, not a quote for your dates. Euro amounts use the rate each guide states.

Uzbekistan and Almaty

September brings back the good season on the Silk Road. The Japan Meteorological Agency's 1991-2020 normals give Samarkand a September mean of 20.9°C, Bukhara 21.6°C and Urgench, near Khiva, 19.7°C, with almost no rain: 0.4-2.5 mm. Almaty, across the border, averages a high of 23.4°C and a low of 11.0°C.

Our Uzbekistan in 10 days covers Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva and Shahrisabz; Central Asia in 14 days continues by night train to Almaty and on to Bishkek.

Uzbekistan costs about EUR 95 a day all-in at mid-range (EUR 75 on a budget, 135 in comfort), from our Uzbekistan trip-cost guide. Kazakhstan costs about EUR 90 a day all-in at mid-range (EUR 65 on a budget, 135 in comfort), from our Kazakhstan trip-cost guide.

Independence Day, 1 September, is Uzbekistan's main national holiday, with festivities, fairs, concerts and fireworks across the country. Domestic train tickets go on sale 60 days ahead, so book the Samarkand and Bukhara legs early. See the Uzbekistan festivals calendar.

Beijing, Xi'an and the Great Wall

Beijing's best months are April to May and mid-September to October. In September it averages a high of 25.8°C and a low of 14.2°C, with 49 mm of rain, in the 1961-1990 normals that Taiwan's Central Weather Administration publishes. Shanghai is warmer and wetter, with 156 mm.

Our China in 7 days covers Beijing, Xi'an and Shanghai, with the Great Wall and the Terracotta Army.

China costs about EUR 135 a day all-in at mid-range (EUR 100 on a budget, 210 in comfort), from our China trip-cost guide.

Golden Week, the National Day break, starts on 1 October. By law only 1 to 3 October are days off, and the State Council's yearly holiday notice moves weekend working days to stretch the break to about a week. Treat the whole break as peak, and travel the week before or after it. Mid-Autumn is one statutory day, on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, in September or early October; our Mid-Autumn Festival guide and the China festivals calendar give the dates.

South Korea: Seoul, Gyeongju and Busan

September is the start of Korea's autumn. The Korea Meteorological Administration's 1991-2020 normals give Seoul a high of 26.2°C, a low of 17.7°C and 141.5 mm of rain, down from 348.2 mm in August, and Busan a high of 26.4°C.

Our South Korea in 7 days runs Seoul, Gyeongju and Busan by KTX; South Korea in 10 days adds Jeonju and Yeosu.

South Korea costs about EUR 160 a day all-in at mid-range (EUR 95 on a budget, 300 in comfort), from our South Korea trip-cost guide.

Chuseok, the harvest festival, is a three-day holiday: the 15th day of the eighth lunar month and the days either side. It usually falls in September, and in some years in early October. Millions of Koreans travel home, trains and express buses fill up, and some shops and restaurants close for several days, so travel either side of it. Our Chuseok guide gives the dates.

Northern Vietnam: Hanoi and Ha Long Bay

Northern Vietnam has clear, cooler weather from September to November. Vietnam's tourism authority says September to November brings sunny skies and around 25 degrees in Hanoi, and that Ha Long Bay gives sunny skies and pleasant temperatures from September to November, though tropical storms can sometimes cause cruise cancellations. The central coast is a different story: its storms and floods are most likely from September to November.

Our Vietnam in 7 days covers Hanoi, Ha Long Bay and Ninh Binh; the Sapa guide covers the mountains.

Vietnam costs about EUR 90 a day all-in at mid-range (EUR 50 on a budget, 155 in comfort), from our Vietnam trip-cost guide.

National Day, 2 September, marks independence and brings two days off, which the government's yearly holiday schedule often joins to a weekend. The Mid-Autumn Festival (Tet Trung Thu) falls normally in September or October. See the Vietnam festivals calendar.

Bali and Java in the dry season

September is still the dry season in southern Indonesia. Indonesia's Ministry of Tourism says that in most of the country, Java and Bali included, the dry season runs from April to October, though it calls both seasons relative. Its Bromo page says the sunset is best during the dry season from July to October.

Our Bali in 7 days splits the week between Ubud and the south coast; Indonesia in 14 days starts in Yogyakarta and crosses to Bali by ferry.

Bali costs about EUR 90 a day all-in at mid-range (EUR 55 on a budget, 180 in comfort), from our Bali trip-cost guide.

Indonesia's Islamic holidays follow the lunar calendar, so their dates move from year to year; the Indonesia festivals calendar lists them. See the best time to visit Indonesia guide for the other islands.

Mongolia's Gobi, early in the month

September is the last month of Mongolia's camp season. In the World Meteorological Organization's 1981-2010 figures, Ulaanbaatar averages a high of 16.8°C and a low of 3.5°C in September, and Dalanzadgad in the Gobi a high of 20.8°C and a low of 8.2°C. Gobi ger camps are fully open from 15 May to 20 September. In the north, Khatgal's nights fall below freezing on average from September.

Our Mongolia in 10 days covers Ulaanbaatar, a Terelj day and a six-camp loop through the Gobi to Kharkhorin.

Mongolia costs about EUR 255 a day all-in on a private tour (EUR 175 on a group tour, 320 in comfort), from our Mongolia trip-cost guide.

September has no national holiday in Mongolia. See the best time to visit Mongolia guide.

Also good in September

Three more places suit September, with conditions.

• Hokkaido: Sapporo averages a high of 22.8°C, though with 142.2 mm of rain. In Tokyo, the Grand Sumo September Tournament runs for 15 days from mid-September, and Respect for the Aged Day (the third Monday of September) and Autumnal Equinox Day (22 or 23 September) are holidays. See Hokkaido in 7 days.
• Sri Lanka's Cultural Triangle: Sri Lanka Tourism says May to October is a popular time to visit Minneriya for the elephant gathering. Binara Poya, the September full-moon day, is a public holiday, when alcohol, meat and fish are not sold. The south-west coast is still in its rainy season. See the best time to visit Sri Lanka guide.
• Kyrgyzstan, early in the month: Destination Karakol's trekking high season runs to early September, and the UK Foreign Office warns that snow blocks trekking routes, particularly in autumn and winter. See the best time to visit Kyrgyzstan guide.

Where not to go in September, and why

In these places September works against an ordinary trip.

• Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau: typhoon season; Taipei averages 315.2 mm of rain in September and Hong Kong 321.4 mm, and Macau's tourism office names July to September as the months most seriously affected by tropical cyclones. See the best time to visit Macau guide.
• Vietnam's central coast: Hue, Hoi An and Nha Trang enter the season when storms and floods are most likely, from September to November.
• Thailand's Andaman coast: the Tourism Authority of Thailand singles out September as the month that bears the brunt of the south-west monsoon. See the best time to visit Thailand guide.
• Nepal and Bhutan: the monsoon runs to September; the Nepal Tourism Board says the clearest skies come in October and November. See the best time to visit Bhutan guide.
• The Philippines, Cambodia and Laos: the wet season; Baguio averages 537.3 mm of rain in September and Phnom Penh 266.2 mm.
• The Maldives: the south-west monsoon, which the Maldives Meteorological Service dates from mid-May to November.