Thai Fruit Season Calendar: What Is Actually Ripe When You Visit

Thai fruit is cheap, and it is spectacular. It is also seasonal, and a mango bought in the wrong month is an expensive disappointment.

Here is what is actually ripe, by month.

The short version

  • Mid-February to mid-May: mango, durian, rambutan, lychee.
  • Mid-May to mid-October: mangosteen, longan, pomelo, pineapple.
  • Mid-November to mid-February: rose apple, guava, sweet tamarind.
  • All year: pineapple, papaya, young coconut, white dragon fruit, Namwa banana.
  • Right now, in September: mangosteen and longan are at their best.

Thailand runs on three seasons and the fruit follows them. Work out which one your trip lands in and you know what you are eating.

Thai fruit by season

SeasonWhenWhat is best
HotMid-February to mid-MayMango, durian, rambutan, lychee
RainyMid-May to mid-OctoberMangosteen, longan, pomelo, pineapple
CoolMid-November to mid-FebruaryRose apple, guava, sweet tamarind
All year-Pineapple, papaya, young coconut, white dragon fruit, Namwa banana

If you want mango sticky rice

Come between mid-February and mid-May. That is the window. Outside it you will still be served mango sticky rice, and it will still be fine, but it will not be the thing people write home about.

Durian runs on the same calendar. Note that hotels and trains ban it, so do not buy one and carry it around.

If you are here in the rainy season

You get mangosteen, which is the best fruit in Thailand and this is not a close contest. Purple shell, white segments inside like cloves of garlic.

Longan comes in at the same time. Brown skin, translucent flesh, very sweet.

Pomelo too. It looks like an oversized grapefruit and tastes far less bitter. Locals eat it with a pinch of salt.


Buying it without being overcharged

Where to buy

WherePrice feelWorth it for
Street fruit cartCheapest, 20-40 baht a bagCut fruit, eat now
Fresh marketCheap by the kiloBuying a quantity
SupermarketDearerPrepared, hygienic, air conditioned
Outside a tourist siteTwo to three times moreNothing. Walk one block.

At markets, check whether the price on the sign is per kilo. It usually is.

For cut fruit, pick a stall keeping it on ice rather than one leaving it in the sun.

A young coconut costs 20 to 40 baht almost anywhere and is never a bad decision.

Taking fruit home

Fresh fruit is a quarantine item in most countries and airports do confiscate it. Check your own rules before you buy a bag at departures.

Dried fruit is generally the safer souvenir. Dried mango, durian and jackfruit all travel well and weigh nothing.


Season windows compiled from Thai agricultural sources, September 2026. Seasons shift with the weather in any given year, and prices vary by market.

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