Climate of Guadeloupe

Climate of Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe is an overseas department of France, located in the Caribbean Sea. Guadeloupe consists of a number of inhabited and uninhabited islands and has a tropical monsoon climate according to the Köppen-Geiger climate classification (type Am). Guadeloupe has about three thousand hours of sunshine on an annual basis, averages 1400 to 1700 millimeters of precipitation within a year and has an average daytime temperature that is around the tropical value of thirty degrees Celsius almost all year round. On the island of Basse-Terre you will find the volcano La Soufrière, which with a height of 1467 meters above sea level partly determines the climate of this largest island of Guadeloupe. On the volcano itself you have lower temperatures due to height differences, on the windward side the volcano provides more precipitation (it stops the depressions), while on the windward side considerably less precipitation falls due to the sheltered location. The capital Basse-Terre, located on the west coast, benefits from this, making this city one of the most pleasant places in Guadeloupe.

Precipitation

Guadeloupe is one of the wetter areas within the region. Even in the driest years there is still about a thousand millimeters of precipitation, the wettest years account for no less than twenty-five hundred millimeters of rainwater. The first months of the year are drier, without you being able to speak of a really dry season. From April, the amount of precipitation increases, with the months of September, October and November as the wettest months, with an average of more than two hundred millimeters of rain per month. The quantities can be very different across Guadeloupe.

Hurricanes

Hurricane season kicks off in early July, significantly increasing the chances of Guadeloupe being hit by tropical storms and even hurricanes. It is not the case that Guadeloupe is hit by a hurricane every year, but because of its location within the Lesser Antilles, Guadeloupe is an archipelago that is vulnerable to this natural disaster. The risk of tropical storms and periods of unsteady weather due to tropical depressions in the immediate vicinity lasts until early December.

Climate figures

The figures below are based on long-term average climate statistics. The temperatures are displayed in degrees Celsius (°C).

Maximum temperature Minimum temperature Hours of sunshine per day Days of rainfall per month Water temperature
January 28℃ 24℃ 7 16 27℃
February 28℃ 24℃ 7 11 26℃
March 28℃ 25℃ 8 11 26℃
April 29℃ 26℃ 8 12 27℃
May 30℃ 27℃ 8 14 27℃
June 31℃ 27℃ 8 15 28℃
July 31℃ 27℃ 8 16 28℃
August 31℃ 27℃ 8 17 28℃
September 31℃ 27℃ 7 18 29℃
October 30℃ 27℃ 7 19 29℃
November 29℃ 26℃ 7 18 28℃
December 28℃ 25℃ 7 18 27℃

Best time to visit Guadeloupe

Do you want to know when is the best time to travel to Guadeloupe? You can determine the best time to travel to a destination based on the weather and climate. In addition, there are other factors that are not directly related to the weather and that can influence the best travel periods for a travel destination. Think, for example, of holidays or festive periods, which makes traveling more interesting or not, because daily life comes to a standstill as a result. The archipelago of Guadeloupe is a French overseas department within the Caribbean. It is located within the Lesser Antilles or Windward Islands. Its location within the Caribbean ensures that the weather is almost continuously influenced by the eastern trade winds. This wind is almost always perceptible and ensures that rain is usually supplied from the east. As a result, the western chance of the islands is somewhat drier. The climate of Guadeloupe is a tropical monsoon climate with a drier and a wetter period.

Best months

The best time to travel to Guadeloupe is from January to March. These are the driest months of the year. The afternoon temperature in these months is around 28 to 31 degrees Celsius, the sun shows itself quite a lot and the relative humidity is somewhat lower in the first months of the year, so that the heat feels fine.

The months of December and April can also be great for a holiday in Guadeloupe. You can be unlucky in these months that the weather is less stable. It can rain more often in these two months and the amounts of precipitation within 24 hours can also be a bit higher. On the other hand, you can also be lucky enough to have great weather in Guadeloupe for a week with the occasional small shower.

The wet season

From May, the amounts of precipitation start to increase, as does the number of days in which it rains. June is statistically slightly drier, but the chance of stronger thunderstorms is increasing due to more instability in the atmosphere. The wet season is from July to November. It is also warmer and considerably clammier due to the high relative humidity. The wind hardly brings any cooling during this period. The wet season coincides with the hurricane season. During this period, depressions can develop over the Atlantic Ocean that develop into hurricanes. Guadeloupe is in the region where hurricanes can pass or pass.

Guadeloupe