Seychelles
climate CALENDAR
Peak of the rainy
season
January|
January coincides with the peak of the rainy season in Seychelles. It is an extremely wet and
humid month with occasional outbreaks of showers day or night with a slight preference for rain
in the late morning/afternoon hours. These showers are sometimes accompanied by
thunderstorms.
 As is common in the tropics, it is not all gloom even in the rainy season, you can still enjoy a
fair amount of sunshine and if you’re in luck, you can even get away with 3 or 4 consecutive
days of gorgeous tropical weather.
 This is also the peak of the Cyclone Season over the Southwest Indian Ocean; however these
storms normally re-curve southwards and rarely affect the Seychelles or at least the main
granitic islands.
 The Northwest Monsoon reaches its peak during this same period; however these winds do
not have a very high constancy leading to occasional lulls in wind.
Cyclone Season is still at
its peak
February|
Precipitation is usually on the decrease in February, but still fairly wet and humid.
 The amount of precipitation is largely influenced by the level of Cyclonic activity over
the Southwest Indian Ocean, the latter affecting the latitudinal position of the ‘rain
belt’.
 It can get extremely wet like in 2001 (low cyclonic activity) or extremely dry like in
1982 (high cyclonic activity).
 Increase in sunshine and temperature as the proportion of dry to wet days also
increases.
 The Northwest monsoon still the predominant wind, however conditions at sea is
fairly good.
March|
End of the rainy season
A significant decrease in precipitation is observed as we approach the end of the
‘rainy season’.
 You should enjoy lots of sunshine, however be on the lookout for the odd tropical
showers which normally show a clear prevalence for the early afternoon.
 It’s also getting fairly warm as the sun moves overhead.
 The Northwest Monsoon starts to weaken and consequently conditions at sea
become more pleasant.
April|
month of the monsoon reversal
This is the month of the monsoon reversal, considered as the transition between the
phasing out of the Northwest Monsoon and the onset of the Southeast Trade winds.
 It is characterized by light and variable winds, (conditions at sea can’t get more
pleasant than this – ideal for fishing).
 This period also marks the end of the ‘rainy season’, however like in March be
prepared for the occasional tropical showers particularly in the afternoons.
 April can get uncomfortably warm with maximum temperatures occasionally reaching
32°+.
 The Cyclone Season is officially over
may|
sunniest TIME of the year
You should be able to enjoy long sunny days – in fact this is the sunniest part of the year.
 The Southeast Trades set-in, winds pick-up, however the sea is not yet forbidding.
 Precipitation further decreases as we enter the drier period of the year, May normally
experiences only few rain days.
 May offers a slight relief from the oppressive heat as a gentle southeast breeze brings
slightly cooler air from the south.
 We’re actually approaching the cool season in the south.
June|
cooler winds are rolling in
June is relatively dry, any precipitation is usually short-lived and light in nature.
 In most cases it shouldn’t disrupt outdoor activities to any great extent.
 The diurnal pattern shows a clear preference of rain during the pre-dawn hours with
lowest probability of rain in the afternoons.
 The Southeast Trades is usually well established and gets quite windy with choppy seas
particularly towards the end of the month.
 Ideal conditions for windsurfing and sailing as the winds are pretty steady.
 It’s also getting cooler as the islands are bathed in the southeast winds originating over
the cool oceans of the south.
July coolest & driest part of the year
|
July represents the coolest and driest period of the year. Like June precipitation is normally
very light in nature and short-lived.
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Those light drifting showers shows prevalence for the predawn hours and late afternoons.
It can get a bit chilly at night for those not used to sub-25°C temperatures.
July gets very windy with the Southeast Trades approaching its peak.
Conditions at sea can get pretty rough. Amateurs at sea should probably limit themselves
to the near-shore area.
 The beaches exposed to the southeast winds (south and southeast) are not very pleasant
with high incidence of weeds washed onshore.
 The sheltered beaches of the west and northwest coast offer are more pleasant. (This
condition are prevalent between June and September).
august|
seas are very rough
We’ve reached the peak of the Southeast Trades. Gets rather cool and very
windy with rough seas.
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The sea is certainly forbidding for amateurs.
Precipitation is usually on the increase but still relatively dry.
The rainfall regime is rather similar to July.
August is noted for its extreme variation in rainfall – can get extremely
wet like in 1997 or extremely dry like in 1990.
September|
Rains & warmer weather beg
If you enjoy a hot & humid beach holiday to enjoy all that these tropical islands with
their pristine beaches have to offer, then September will not disappoint.
 It gets slightly wetter and warmer than August, but the pattern of showers means
they fall mainly in the early morning hours or late afternoon.
 The south-east trade winds on the wane, but expect some incidence of strong winds
and resulting rough seas to still prevail.
 The ambience weather-wise is hot and fairly sultry.
October|
dry season is all but over
The ‘dry season’ draws to a close as the ‘rain belt’ approaches from the north.
 Relief as the winds weaken considerably but still maintain a predominantly
southeasterly direction.
 October is the month with the highest number of dry days (16), unusual though it
may seem considering it’s at the end of the rainy season.
 The Seychelles in October are hot, humid, calm and the sea temperature is almost
as warm as the air, with great visibility, making it perfect conditions for divers and
snorkelers.
November|
the start of
summer
We’re approaching the summer in the southern hemisphere, it’s getting warmer
and the rains set-in.
 There are still lots of sunshine around as indicated by the number of dry days
below.
 The winds drop significantly and swing to the west.
 Conditions at sea quite pleasant.
 The average air temperature during the day is only a few degrees warmer than
the sea, at around 30°C, and there is very little breeze.
generally wet & humid
December|
It’s well into the ‘rain season’. Generally wet and humid with occasional outbreaks of rain
showers day or night, however there seems to be a clear prevalence of showers in the early
afternoon.
 Quite common in the tropics is that even in the rainy season dry and sunny spells is still
fairly frequent.
 On average December experiences at least 10 dry days and even during the rain days it
doesn’t necessarily rain throughout the day.
 Although the Northwest monsoon seems to be well established, we normally experience
fairly light winds (the only exception is with the presence of tropical cyclones to the south
which can stir up moderate winds for a couple of days). Outside of this, condition at sea is
quite pleasant.
 It is summer down south and with the high humidity conditions can get a bit oppressive at
times.