Seasonal Dive Planner

Kenya: The right time for land packages with game viewing is a complicated affair; animal migrations are scheduled by rain, not calendars. The diving is simpler: September through March is when the winds should be favorable. Whale sharks often cruise the coast about February.

South Africa & Mozambique: The Western Cape province (Cape Town), though it is running out of fresh water, enjoys a Mediterranean-like climate with equable winters and warm summers, but the water is exceptionally cold at around 57°F (14°C). Remember, this is in the southern hemisphere so seasons are reversed to what you might be used to. The country has a 1700-mile (2735km) coastline. As you move north up the Indian Ocean coast, it becomes more tropical. The cold waters of the south Atlantic give way to the warmer Indian Ocean, which is why South African divers head for Sodwana Bay and Aliwal Shoal or continue on to Mozambique and eventually to Inhambane (Tofo). There, the diving is good all year round and water temperature peak at 82°F (28°C) and never go below 72°F (22°C). The Indian Ocean has some huge swells, and surf launches of the boat can be more than exciting.

Anguilla is low and dry, with an annual rainfall of about 40 inches (100cm). The dry season starts in January and runs through April. The rainy season is from August to November. However, there is little run-off, so diving is generally not affected by the rain. The odds of hurricanes are small; the average is only one every 20 years (see Caribbean below).

The dry season is typical for the Caribbean - from January to April, with the rainy season from August to November. Antigua is a relatively dry island, with an annual rainfall of 44 inches (1.2m). Odds of a hurricane are small; on average, Antigua experiences only one hurricane every 20 years (see Caribbean below).

With no more than three degrees °F difference between summer and winter air temperature averages and low annual rainfall, the main factor affecting diving in Aruba is the wind. The trade winds blow year-round but are highest from January through April. Bad weather on the coast of Venezuela can also cause a decrease in water visibility.

Australia's winter is during the Northern Hemisphere's summer. Summer weather in the tropical north, including Queensland, is sultry and oppressive, with tropical showers . . . Water temperature is below 80°F (27°C) and cooler in their winter, so bring rubber. Visibility can be in the 50ft (15m) range. That's the easy part. From there, it gets increasingly complex. Queensland's diving areas are vast. Cyclone season is January through March; April, May, and June see heavy trade winds. The best season to dive Queensland on a liveaboard (really the only way to see the best) is July through November. Best vis at Osprey Reef, in the northern Coral Sea, is between June and September.

On the other side of the country, 2250 miles away in Western Australia, whale sharks congregate at Ningaloo Reef during March and April. Summers (December to February) are hot and dry (63°-86°F/17°-30°C) while winters are relatively cool at 53-74°F (11-23°C).

New South Wales (inc. Sydney) is cooler, with the average highs 79°F (26°C) in summer (though many days exceed 100°F/38°C), to as low as 44°F (7°C) in winter, with an average high of 58°F (14°C) in Victoria, where snow falls over high ground, and Tasmania is even colder.

The Bahamas are not in the Caribbean but the sub-tropical Atlantic. May through November is summer in the Bahamas. During these months, the most rain falls and air temperatures average about 81°F (27°C). Winter can bring surprisingly cool weather, with averages reduced to about 70°F (21°C), and cooler water means more rubber. You won’t go far wrong with a 5mm wetsuit and hood. Northerlies can disrupt diving during winter months. The islands south of Nassau (such as Great Exuma, San Salvador, and Long Island) usually stay a degree or two warmer. Easterly trade winds predominate for most of the year, but there is usually a lee to be found for diving.

The dry season runs from March through May. The most predictably good weather for diving is from April through June when the winds are normally light. Hurricanes hit Belize an average of once every six years. Major hurricanes have hit roughly every two decades. During winter months (mainly December, January, and February), Belize is also subject to north winds that blow down and may disrupt diving for several days. Water temperature may dip as low as the 70°F (21°C) in the winter and reach as high as 85°F (30°C) in the summer.

This solitary island is in the Atlantic, 900 miles dues east of Fripp Island South Carolina. Winds blow out of the south for most of the summer. In the winter, storms from the west and northwest are common. Water temperature varies from low 60s°F (15°C) during the winter to summer highs in the 80s°F (27°C). The average yearly rainfall of 57 inches (1.4m) is evenly distributed throughout the year.

Once a lush tropical island until Europeans arrived, the desert island of Bonaire has terrain and climate something like southern Arizona. Air temperatures are in the low to mid-70s°F (21°C) at night, and the high 80s°F or low 90s°F (26-32°C) during the day. But with the trade winds and moderate humidity, it rarely feels as hot as it is.

Rainfall is usually scant, consisting of a few brief showers in the early morning, except during November and December, when occasionally it is overcast and rainy for a day or more. Total annual rainfall is about 20 inches (50cm), but every eight to ten years there's a peak year, with total rainfall of two to three times the normal amount.

Bonaire's protected western coast offers almost ideal conditions
365 days a year -- calm, warm, and clear water with gentle currents. The sky is usually dotted with puffy fair weather clouds that give a welcome respite from a tropical sun, which can get intense, especially in May, June, and September. Winds are always from the east at a brisk 15-20 mph from January through August. They slow the last four months of the year, with occasional calm days that permit diving on the island's exposed eastern coast and the rare opportunity to see the huge sponges, gorgonia, coral heads and fish of the northern and eastern coasts.

The water temperature in Bonaire ranges from 78-81°F (25-27°C). About three years out of every five, upwellings of cold, nutrient-rich water from the deep Atlantic spill into the Caribbean over the relatively shallow shelf that connects Trinidad with the Grenadines, and then it circulates westward to Bonaire. When this happens --usually during July -- water temperature can drop into the low 70s°F (22°C), and visibility everywhere can fall to 30ft (9m) or less. These conditions can last from one or two days to a week or more.

Year-round daytime air temperatures on the equator are in the mid to upper 80°F (30°C), 70°F (21°C) at night. March and July are quite windy, and April, May, and June are the wettest months. Water temperatures run 78-79 °F (25-26C). Best time of the year is from July to November for beginners, all year round for advanced divers. December to February is the top of the high season with lots of people and high prices. Some years, December and January can be too rough to dive.

Most British Columbia diving takes place from late spring to early fall. The waters of Vancouver’s Inside Passage are protected from the wind but there can be strong localized currents, and water temperature can be as low as 55°F (13°C). In Nova Scotia, the Gulf Stream warms the ocean surface to 64°F (18°C) in summer, but it’s much colder at depth. Canadian diving is snug drysuit diving with a thick hood and gloves.

Temperatures between summer and winter don't normally vary more than 5°F (1 or 2°C) in the Caribbean. The average temperature is about 80°F (27°C) year-round. Naturally, southern islands tend to be a little warmer than the northern ones. For example, Curacao’s southern location keeps its summer average at 83°F (28°C) and winter at 80°F (27°C), while the northern Bahamas (inc. Nassau) are north of the Caribbean in the Atlantic and vary from a summer average of 80°F (27°C) down to a cool 69°F (20°C) average in the winter. There is a wet and dry season, with most rain falling between May/June and October/November.

However, location and topography, such as rain shadows created by mountains, can play an important role in local weather conditions. Keep in mind that those cold fronts in the U.S. that dip down from the north can keep right on dipping to most of the northern islands, bringing cooler temperatures and rough water in their wake.

The Caymans' hottest period is from May to November. During winter, temperatures can drop down to the low 70°F (21°C+). Rainy season starts in May and peaks in October. Rains are normally short and intense. Run-off has little effect on Grand Cayman's water clarity, which may hit 135ft (40m) horizontally on the deeper reefs. Both Little Cayman and Cayman Brac boast even higher visibility. Water temperatures vary, from the upper 70°F (26°C) in the winter to low 84°F (29°C) during the summer. Tradewinds are out of the northeast in the winter and the southeast during the summer. Northwesterly storms can occur from December through April.

Easter Island’s subtropical water temperatures average 70°F, with the warmest waters (72°F) from September to February. Air temperatures range from highs of 68°F (20°C) in winter months to 79°F (26°C) in summer (bearing in mind the seasons of the Southern Hemisphere). Conditions make for easy diving in the winter, but rough waters can limit choices of dive sites in the summer.

These islands experience little fluctuation in climate and have moderate temperatures and humidity. It does rain, however, with the rainy season beginning in December and running through March. Water temperature varies from a mean of 81°F (27°C) in the summer (December being the middle of summer) to 78°F (25°C) during their winter (August being the middle of winter). Whale season is September and October. Hurricanes mainly develop from January to March, with the more severe ones hitting only about once every twenty years and lesser ones once every five years.

Dominica is covered with rain forest and has 365 rivers. As you would expect, it’s wet. It gets about 70 inches (1.75m) of rain a year along the coast and up to 400 inches (10m) on the interior mountains! Ask a taxi driver on the island how many times a day it rains during the dry season, and he’ll reply, “Once or twice, but during the rainy season, it sometimes rains 12 times a day. Other times it starts and doesn't stop for days.”

Fiji's weather presents a real mixed bag. The usual choice is between good visibility and cool water or warm water and calmer seas with reduced visibility. June through October is the dry season when the water is the clearest, but it's also at its coldest, and the winds kick up. Water temperatures can sink to 73°F (23°C) this time of the year, making it necessary to drag out the full wetsuits. November brings a transition period. The water warms up, the winds die down, and the plankton blooms, lowering the visibility. By January and February, the water has warmed back up to 83°F (28°C). The rains pick up and the hurricane season is on (December through March). Counting Tonga and Samoa, the area gets about five cyclones a year. It's a risky time to try to catch good diving weather. Because the winds kick up so much in February and March, some resorts pick these months to close down for repairs. During April and May, the wind and therefore the seas become calmer and the water remains warm, but the plankton bloom cuts down on the underwater visibility. Of course, this offers the best odds of seeing large plankton eaters. The best time to go depends on your preferences: warm, calmer, cloudy seas, or clear but cold water.

The water temperature is generally about 70°F (21°C) from January to April (the rainy season) and about 66°F (19°C) the rest of the year. Land temperatures also rise during the rainy season, resulting in some uncomfortably hot weather (average daily high is 88°F (31°C), but it can get much hotter). Otherwise, the climate is equable. Visibility tends to drop during the rainy months of February, March, and April. Best months for diving are December and January, then again in May and June. October is probably the worst month since it could be cold and windy. More whale shark sightings are reported during May and June.

This spice island stays at about 80°F (26-27°C) year-round. The dry season is January to May. During the rainy season (June through December), there are usually brief showers daily. Hurricanes are infrequent.

Temperatures in Hawaii vary little from island to island, remaining around 85°F (29°C) most of the year. From November through March, occasional cool spells drop temperatures down to 72°F (22°C) and rarely lower. Winds become more variable, and storms are more likely. Water temperatures vary from 70-84°F (21-29°C) The weather is warmest and driest from May to October, with persistent winds. There is no set hurricane season as there is in the Caribbean. The tourist off-season is from September to early December and again from mid-April to early June. Humpback season is from November to May.

The best time to visit either the Andaman Islands or Nicobar Islands for scuba diving is from November to April when underwater visibility can exceed 115ft (35m). The dive centers are closed during the wet monsoon from May to September when diving Lakshadweep is an option. Goa offers its best diving from October to May.

The thousands of Indonesian islands are spread out over a mainly equatorial tropical climate, but the season for diving Indonesia is as complex as everything else about this diverse amalgam of a country. Your diving Indonesia experience will probably be enhanced if you plan around the wet monsoon season, generally December through the middle of March, in many areas, though Raja Ampat diving is generally better and more popular then due to calmer seas. The dry monsoon of southeast winds curtails the diving in Flores during July and August. The Moluccas, however, have their wet monsoons the reverse of everywhere else, in July and August, and diving should be avoided then. Depending on your specific destination, April-May and September are the best all-around months to dive Indonesia (except Raja Ampat as noted).

Borneo/Kalimantan: Malaysia’s Sipadan Island is famous for its large year-round population of green turtles, with the highest concentration in August, when there's a whole lot of mating going on.

The island is limestone and sand with no rivers, so runoff has little effect on water clarity. However, water clarity seems as unpredictable as the currents. After a heavy lightning storm off in the direction of the mainland, the water visibility can drop dramatically from 100ft (30m) to 50ft (15m). The ocean is roughest between November and February. The best season is between April and September, but diving is year-round.

Layang Layang is a remote reef with only an airstrip, so there is no run-off, but occasional squalls of heavy rain can be intense and reduce surface visibility to almost zero, so take a visible surface marker.

(See Caribbean)

The most southerly sub-tropical islands of Okinawa are popular with divers from Southeast Asia, but few westerners trek there. Those who do, rave about it. There’s good diving from February to November with underwater visibility ranging from 33-130ft (10-40m) and water temperatures from 70-86°F (21°-30°C) but the best time to visit is between June and September although there may be tropical storms. High winds in October can be avoided by choosing the lee side of the islands.

These Pacific islands experience little fluctuation in climate and have moderate temperatures and humidity. It does rain, however, with the rainy season beginning in December and running through March. Water temperature varies from a mean of 81°F (27°C) in the summer (December being the middle of summer) to 78°F (25°C) during their winter (August being the middle of winter. Cyclones mainly develop from January to March, with the more severe ones hitting only about once every twenty years and lesser ones once every five years.

Borneo/Kalimantan: Malaysia’s Sipadan Island is famous for its large year-round population of green turtles, with the highest concentration in August, when there's a whole lot of mating going on.

The island is limestone and sand with no rivers, so runoff has little effect on water clarity. However, water clarity seems as unpredictable as the currents. After a heavy lightning storm off in the direction of the mainland, the water visibility can drop dramatically from 100ft (30m) to 50ft (15m). The ocean is roughest between November and February. The best season is between April and September, but diving is year-round.

Layang Layang is a remote reef with only an airstrip, so there is no run-off, but occasional squalls of heavy rain can be intense and reduce surface visibility to almost zero, so take a visible surface marker.

It is possible to dive around the Maldives all year, but the wet monsoon brings wind and rain squalls in May through to November, with the current passing through the atolls from the northeast. The dry monsoon is from December to April when seas look calm, but ocean currents are at their strongest. The current flows then in from the southwest, with clear water from the Indian Ocean, when underwater visibility in the western atolls can exceed 100ft (30m).

The season for calmer water is May through to September when air temperatures can get very hot (100°F/37°C) yet the water below the thermocline can stay at 57°F (14°C) so Mediterranean divers will be seen wearing thicker wetsuits (or even drysuits) than you would expect.

A one-word description of Sea of Cortez diving: variable. Water temperature and visibility vary dramatically. Two divers returning from the Baja only weeks apart can give such different reports that you have a difficult time believing they've been to the same destination.

In the southern part of the Sea of Cortez, the temperature of the upper 30ft (9m) of water or so remains warm enough year-round (70-80°F/21-26°C) to support tropicals and several varieties of hard coral. Below that depth, winter and spring water temperatures in the 55-65°F/13-°18 C freeze out the tropicals. From mid-summer through November, water temperature is 80°F (26°C) or higher for as deep as sport divers would care to go.

During spring and summer, the surface water temperature rises, of course, but the big change is the lowering of the thermocline. This is a complex and uneven process. During a June visit, the thermocline can be at 45-50ft (13-15m). Sometimes the change is gradual or of small magnitude, but on one dive a plunge in temperature from the surface, at 76°F (23°C) might be recorded, with a thick layer of 60°F (18°C) planktonic green gloom at 50ft (16m) and deeper. Later in the season, the water is 80°F (24°C) plus all the way past 100ft (30m).

Another seasonal variable is the plankton concentration. Sometimes the more plankton-rich waters can be observed as distinct layers and masses. Generally, June visibility is 30-40ft (9-12m). Later in the summer, it's usually 80-100ft (25-30m).

After the first of December, north winds often make diving difficult because of rough seas. Sport diving effectively ceases until May. By spring the thermocline is shallow, and a 7mm wetsuit is recommended (some sort of protection from jellyfish is recommended year-round). Tropical storms can occur during summer and fall, just as in the Caribbean. On average, they are most likely from mid-September to mid-October. La Paz and its water tend to be protected from storm swells by a projection of land on the east and by large islands such as Isla Cerralvo.

Visiting divers head for the sub-tropical Bay of Islands in North Island and the unique diving of the Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve, off New Zealand’s Tutukaka Coast. It isn’t hot with southern hemisphere water temperatures ranging from 60°F (16°C) in November to 72°F (22°C) in February and March. Most Kiwi divers wear drysuits, and it gets even colder as you go farther south.

The rainy season runs from mid-May to late November and the dry season is from December to May. However, September and October usually have the driest weather and flattest seas, even though it is the wet season. Average air temperature is around 90°F (27°C) during the day and 72°F (22°C) at night. Winter winds create choppy seas, which may prevent the dive pangas from getting to some sites. Visibility can range from 20 to 80 ft. (6-25m), depending on conditions. Water temperatures are in the low to mid-80°F (27-29°C) year round.

People head to these northern European fjords to dive on war wrecks and with pods of orca and humpback whales that follow the herring migration, but the water is cold and often murky. Strangely enough, the best time to go is mid-winter because the plankton levels are reduced, and expeditions are planned to chime with the aggregation of baitfish. You'll need a warm drysuit with maybe a heated undersuit because the water is frigid. If you want to know how frigid, consider that you will be within the Arctic Circle!

Bordered by desert and the Arabian Gulf on one side and the Indian Ocean to the south, this is a sun-blasted country where daytime temperatures can pass 100°F (40°C) in summer. All the buildings and cars are air-conditioned, and nobody goes out in the heat unless you are diving, in which case you will often be disappointed by poor visibility in green water that’s as warm as the soup it looks like. Even in the notional winter, air temperatures stay around 95°F (35°C). That’s what Middle Eastern deserts are about!

There is some interesting diving around Coiba Island and its National Park, off the Pacific coast of tropical Panama. It’s good to dive at any time of year. Water temperature varies between 78°F and 85°F (26-29°C) with a colder layer under a thermocline of 75°F (24°C) at 65ft (20m).

PNG is a very mountainous country, and its weather is dependent on local topography. Heat and humidity are reasonable considerations. Only in the Highlands does it get cool at night. The driest time of year is May through October, but it rains considerably even then. During the rest of the year, plankton blooms are more common. Although Walindi Plantation Resort (New Britain) accommodates guests year-round, January, February, and March are the wettest months. Some boats beat the rainy weather by moving to the other side of the mountains at Kandrian, miraculously transporting to a dry climate. It's a bit of a steam for the crew, but for guests, it's a quick flight over the mountains by Twin Otter. The water temperature is a wonderfully warm 84°F (29°C), and the nights are T-shirt comfortable. The heaviest rains occur in the New Ireland (Rabaul) between January and April. The weather can be as different near Port Moresby as it is between the fjordland area (Tufi) and Madang to the north.

There are only two seasons in the Philippines; wet and not so dry. There are still monsoon rains even on summer months from March to June and from there on typhoon it’s season until the December. That said, locals also assert there is a third season, the cold season, when temperatures drop to around 48°F-60°F (9-16°C). It occurs between October and February. Visitors are under the impression that it is always summer but locals consider that to be April to May when average air temperatures are 80°F ((27°C) matched by a similar sea temperature.

Red Sea (Egypt): It rarely rains in the desert but when it does it floods. The Egyptian coast is not tropical, but the Red Sea is unique in that it is heated by the submarine thermal vents of the African Rift, of which it forms a part of this far north. This explains why it has the most northern coral reefs of anywhere in the world.

Sudan: The Sudanese coast has arguably the best diving in the Red Sea but the weather can be oppressively hot in the summer and the seas particularly rough and uncomfortable in winter thanks to a powerful wind (usually Force 8 or stronger) blowing off the desert. Surface water temperatures can get as high as 91°F (33°C) although it cools down to a balmy 84°F (29°C) at depth. The summer sea is calm.

On Saba's mountaintop, it can drop to 65°F (18°C) at night, so travel with a jacket or sweater is recommended. Daytime temperatures range from the upper 70s°F to mid-85°F (25-29°C). The most rain falls during the month of November, but run-off doesn't affect the diving that much because the best sites are offshore seamounts. Saba is in the hurricane belt (see Caribbean).

The islands of the Seychelles are widely spread out in the Indian Ocean, resulting in greatly varying winds, currents, and rainfall. For instance, the main island of Mahe has an annual rainfall of approximately 100 inches (2.5m), while the western atoll of Aldabra receives only 39 inches (1m) a year. Generally speaking, the wettest months are December, January, and February. Land temperatures are consistent throughout the year, rarely dropping below 76°F (24°C). Rain, algae blooms, and winds affect the diving conditions. The Seychelles are mostly unaffected by cyclones. Diving is possible year-round; the best months are considered to be April/May and October/November.

The Solomons are hot and humid year-round, with the most rain falling between December and March. Annual rainfalls are well above 100 inches (2.5m), but mountainous islands do produce rain shadows resulting in much less rainfall on some coasts. Between December and April winds blow periodically out of the west (calm spells are broken by storms). The southeast trades blow from the end of April to November. The better months to travel are probably July through September when the rainfall (and therefore malarial mosquitoes), heat, and humidity are lowest, or in November when there's a good chance the seas are flatter.

(Leeward Islands: see Antigua & Caribbean)

(Leeward Islands: see Antigua & Caribbean)

Tonga's 170 islands cover a long distance in latitude, but the individual climate doesn't differ all that much. The average air temperature in the northern islands is 80°F (27°C) while the southern islands average 74°F (23°C), ranging from a cool 59°F (15°C) in the winter (July to September) to a high around 85°F (29°C) the summer (December to April). By November, the water temperatures reach mid 80°F (29°C), and then drop down as low as 70°F (21°C) during their winter months. December through April is also the rainy season, with the most rain falling in February and March. Tonga is prone to tropical cyclones, getting an average of a couple each year. They usually develop in the south and move north, meaning that the odds go up in the northern islands. Cyclones happen as late as May but are most likely from November to March.

Florida: It's where many American learn to dive and the best time to dive the reefs and wrecks of the Florida Keys or the wrecks of the east coast is during the summer May to September when the seas are mainly calm (unless there is a hurricane) and the water temperature varies between 83° and 87°F (27-33°C). See also the Bahamas.

May to October is the dryer, cooler season, but trade winds can be erratic and strong. Depending on your location in north or south Vanuatu, winter air temperatures average from 63°F (17°C) to 68°F (20°C). The summer months of November to April are rainy with extremely high humidity and air temperatures in mid-80°F (29°C) but generally light winds. Water temperatures run from 83°F (28°C) in February down to as low as 68°F (20°C) in September (the northern islands have slightly warmer temperatures than the southern islands). Cyclones average about one per year, occurring generally between December and March, with the peak month being January.

With a similar weather pattern to the Dutch Antilles (Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao) and Tobago, the Caribbean coast of Venezuela suffers poorer visibility thanks to the outflowing of the massive Orinoco river.