Climate of Guinea-Bissau

Climate of Guinea-Bissau

Where is the country of Guinea-Bissau located? The Republic of Guinea-Bissau is a country on the west coast of Africa that should not be confused with neighboring Guinea. The country has been a colony of Portugal for a long time and only gained its independence in 1974. Politically unstable Guinea-Bissau has a landscape that mainly consists of grass savannas and hills. The coastal area partly consists of wetlands and mangroves.

Guinea-Bissau has a tropical savanna climate, with a local tropical rainforest climate in the southwest. Blue skies mixed with brightly contrasting cloudscapes are a common sight in Guinea-Bissau. During the rainy season, the blue parts in the sky are often displaced by heavy clouds, which can sometimes cause heavy rain showers.

Seasons

Guinea-Bissau actually has three seasons. The wet rainy season is clearly marked, which starts in June and ends in the second half of October after a significant peak between mid-July and mid-September. Then follows the dry season, during which the mercury rises slightly again and precipitation becomes quite rare. Around the turn of the year, the chance of the desert wind harmattan increases. This dry wind carries cooler air full of dust and sand from the Sahara. Guinea-Bissau is less affected by this desert wind than the countries bordering the Gulf of Guinea.

Temperatures

It is warm all year round in Guinea-Bissau, with relatively small fluctuations occurring within a calendar year. The temperature graph shows a wave pattern, with the December-January and June-September periods showing slightly lower temperatures and the February-May and October-November periods slightly higher maximums. Throughout the year, the mercury is around or slightly above the tropical limit of thirty degrees Celsius during the day and 20-22 degrees as the lowest temperature within 24 hours.

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 33℃ 18℃ 8 1 25℃
February 35℃ 19℃ 8 1 24℃
March 35℃ 20℃ 9 1 23℃
April 35℃ 21℃ 9 2 23℃
May 35℃ 22℃ 8 6 26℃
June 33℃ 23℃ 7 11 28℃
July 30℃ 23℃ 6 17 28℃
August 30℃ 23℃ 5 20 28℃
September 31℃ 23℃ 5 17 28℃
October 32℃ 23℃ 7 11 28℃
November 33℃ 21℃ 8 4 28℃
December 32℃ 19℃ 8 1 27℃

Best time to visit Guinea-Bissau

Do you want to know when is the best time to travel to Guinea-Bissau? 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 Republic of Guinea-Bissau is a country in West Africa, which is not to be confused with neighboring Guinea, located immediately to the south. Guinea-Bissau has a tropical savanna climate that guarantees high temperatures throughout the year and a fair amount of precipitation, which mainly falls within an approximately 6 to 7 month rainy season. Characteristic of the weather in Guinea-Bissau is that clouds can often be seen, which, in combination with a bright sun, create beautiful contrasts in the sky. In terms of temperature, Guinea-Bissau has two zones: the coastal area and inland. Along the coast, where the capital Bissau is located, the temperatures are slightly less extreme than in the interior. There, the mercury can easily rise to or around forty degrees prior to the monsoon.

Best months

Winter is the best travel season for a holiday in Guinea-Bissau. This makes the country primarily a winter sun destination. The period from mid-November to April is the best time to visit Guinea-Bissau. The months of November, December and also January are slightly less hot than the months of February, March and April, which mainly have to deal with high temperatures inland. Think of maximums of 35 to 40 degrees.

Rainy season

During the rainy season, which starts in June, precipitation increases considerably, which in turn causes a drop in temperature. In July the maximum temperature is on average around thirty degrees Celsius. The perceived temperature hardly drops, because the relative humidity creates a stuffy atmosphere. The sun is considerably less visible than during the first half of the year. In July and August it rains almost daily on the coast, which produces precipitation amounts of about five hundred to seven hundred millimeters per month. Inland, with about sixteen to twenty rainy days per month and three to more than four hundred millimeters of monthly precipitation, it is less wet than on the coast.

Guinea-Bissau