Where to travel in May 2027 from Singapore

Labour Day is a Saturday

May starts with a holiday that gives most people nothing extra. Labour Day is Saturday 1 May, and Singapore doesn’t move a Saturday holiday to the Monday. If Saturday is your day off and you’re covered by the Employment Act, you’re owed another day off or an extra day’s pay instead (how that works).

Schools do close on Monday 3 May in lieu, so school families get a three-day weekend, and our Causeway jam outlook has the crossing busier from Saturday 1 to Monday 3 May.

Hari Raya Haji and Vesak: nine days for three

Two holidays three days apart. Hari Raya Haji on the Monday gives you a free three-day weekend, Saturday 15 to Monday 17 May. Fill the three workdays around Vesak Day and it becomes nine:

If you can’t spare three days, two make six: take Tuesday 18 and Wednesday 19 May, and you’re off from Saturday 15 to Thursday 20 May, Vesak Day included:

Many of your colleagues will want the same days, so ask early: by our six-weeks-ahead rule, the date is Thursday 1 April.

Who else is on holiday

Hari Raya Haji and Vesak Day are both public holidays in Malaysia and Indonesia too, and in 2027 Indonesia adds to them:

• Indonesia: the government’s 2027 list has Idul Adha on Monday 17 May, collective leave days on Tuesday 18 and Wednesday 19 May, and Waisak on Thursday 20 May, so many Indonesians are off from Saturday 15 to Thursday 20 May (joint ministerial decree, signed 15 September 2026). Collective leave is optional for private companies, but expect busy Batam and Bintan ferries and Bali flights. Ascension Day, Thursday 6 May, is a holiday there too.
• Malaysia: Johor has Monday 17 and Thursday 20 May off, and its schools break from Saturday 15 May straight into their mid-year holidays, which run to Sunday 6 June. The Causeway is heavy on Friday 14 and Saturday 15 May going out, and on Monday 17 May coming back.
• Hong Kong: its Buddha’s Birthday holiday is a week earlier, on Thursday 13 May (gov.hk), so the Vesak week is an ordinary one there.

Our ranking still puts three Indonesian places first, because they’re in season and need no leave at all. Book them early:

• #1 pick · Sat 15 – Mon 17 MayBali3 days off · no leaveTrip plan
• #2 pick · Sat 15 – Mon 17 MayBatam3 days off · no leaveTrip plan
• #3 pick · Sat 15 – Mon 17 MayBintan3 days off · no leaveTrip plan

Da Nang is the pick if you’d rather avoid the holiday crowds: it’s at its best in May, it isn’t a holiday in Vietnam, and it’s a four-day trip, so Friday 14 May as leave covers it with the free weekend.

Where’s in season

Five of our 14 destinations are at their best in May:

Bali is a month into its best season, and Batam and Bintan have been in season since March. Kuala Lumpur, Langkawi, Penang, Ho Chi Minh City, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Melaka and Taipei are OK rather than at their best. Phuket is the one to skip: its rainy season starts in May, after its best month in April.

1. JJanuary: Wet
2. FFebruary: Wet
3. MMarch: OK
4. AApril: Best
5. MMay: Best
6. JJune: Best
7. JJuly: Best
8. AAugust: Best
9. SSeptember: Best
10. OOctober: Best
11. NNovember: OK
12. DDecember: Wet

1. JJanuary: Best
2. FFebruary: Best
3. MMarch: Best
4. AApril: Best
5. MMay: Wet
6. JJune: OK
7. JJuly: OK
8. AAugust: OK
9. SSeptember: Wet
10. OOctober: Wet
11. NNovember: Best
12. DDecember: Best

The school holidays start on the 29th

The June school holidays begin on Saturday 29 May, and the Causeway is heavy again on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 May as families head out. If you’re travelling with children, see where to travel in June.

Questions