When planning any tropical vacation, or any vacation for that matter, it’s absolutely crucial that you research the best time of year to visit your ideal destination. While everyone wants to travel to Turks and Caicos during their native winter, that won’t always be the best time to visit our islands.
So when is the best time to travel to Turks and Caicos? Truly, this place is great to visit year-round, but in our opinion, the best time to visit Turks and Caicos is during the months of April and May. Why? These months offer the ideal combination of avoiding huge crowd sizes, keeping travel costs down, enjoying a variety of water sports, and staying away from the rainy season.
High and Low Season in Turks and Caicos
As with any tropical destination, certain times of year are much busier than others in the Turks and Caicos Islands. Of course, every traveler is different, so you’ll have to decide how important crowd sizes are to you. The one major impact that crowd sizes will have is on your wallet—the busier the time of year, the more expensive your trip will be.
The busiest time of year for tourists in Turks and Caicos takes place between December and April. Traditionally, rates during these months can climb as high as 30% to 50% higher than you would find during low season. Not only are rates higher, you may have more trouble booking accommodations or booking activities.
The lowest season for travelers takes place between July and October. Not coincidentally, this time period is also hurricane season in the Turks and Caicos. As most people want to avoid the possibility of having their trip canceled by a hurricane, the end of summer and early fall tend to be far and away the cheapest time of year to plan a trip. If you’re willing to be flexible, you can save a lot of money by visiting between July and October.
Turks and Caicos Weather
As the Turks and Caicos are fairly close to the equator, the temperature doesn’t vary much from season to season. The coldest month of the year is December, although cold is a relative term, as the average temperature in Turks and Caicos in December is a pleasant daily high of 80°F (27°C) and daily low of 73°F (23°C).
August and September are the warmest months of the year, typically experiencing daily highs of 88°F (31°C) and daily low of 80°F (27°C). Therefore, in terms of temperature, there’s never a bad time to visit.
Turks and Caicos Rainy Season
The Turks and Caicos rainy season typically takes place between the late-summer to early-winter months, from late August to early December. According to the National Climatic Data Center, November is the rainiest month, with an average precipitation of 3.7 inches, or 94 millimeters. Therefore, you may want to avoid travelling to the islands during this time.
That being said, on average, Turks and Caicos experiences some of the least amount of rainfall in the Caribbean, with an average of only one rainy day every 8.5 days in Providenciales. Even in the rainiest months, there’s only an average of 5-6 rainy days per month. With sunny skies almost every day of the week, it’s hard to go wrong here.
When Is Hurricane Season in Turks and Caicos?
Unsurprisingly, hurricane season coincides with the rainy season. The Atlantic hurricane season ranges from July to October, although hurricanes affecting the Turks and Caicos are actually quite rare.
What does this mean for your vacation? It’s actually still quite possible to plan a trip during these months, as long as you’re willing to be flexible. In terms of weather warnings, there’s normally at least a week’s notice when it comes to hurricanes. This means that you can open yourself to some of the lowest seasonal fares if you purchase weather insurance coverage on your airline ticket, or buy a flexible fare.
Most local accommodations are willing to offer refunds in the event of a hurricane or tropical storm, but if you’re booking during hurricane season, make sure to check your hotel’s weather policy before you book.
Best Time to Travel to Turks and Caicos By Month
December & January – December and January have some of the best weather of the year, with a near-perfect temperature and completely dry conditions. These months also have higher-than-average wind speeds and choppier water conditions, which make them perfect for kiteboarding, surfing, and windsurfing. The downside is that December and January are the busiest months of the year, and therefore, the most expensive.
February & March – The weather stays strong into February, with choppy ocean conditions and high wind speeds. February tends to be the best month of the year for whale watching in the Turks and Caicos, with spottings ending in March. Surprisingly spring break doesn’t hit the Turks and Caicos as hard as other Caribbean destinations, so prices start to drop in these months.
April – Above we picked April and May as the best times to visit the Turks and Caicos. The temperature is great, the ocean warms up, the winds are still strong enough for watersports, sportfishing is strong, the mosquitoes stay away, and crowds tend to die down.
May – The weather starts to warm up in the month of May, and the winds tend to die down. This makes May the ideal time to enjoy calmer water activities like stand up paddle boarding, kayaking, snorkeling, and diving. Prices also tend to get fairly low during May, making it a great time to visit.
June & July – June and July mark the start of hurricane season, although the average day is still calm and hot. As a result, these months tend to have some of the best conditions for enjoying the ocean.
August & September – These are the hottest months of the year. They can also be wet and full of mosquitoes. The ocean tends to be quite flat at these times of year, making them perfect for diving and snorkeling. These are some of the quietest times of the year, and therefore the least expensive.
October & November – At the heart of rainy season, these months can be heavy on mosquitoes. Every water sport is enjoyable at this time of year, assuming the skies are clear. The islands tend to get busier starting in November.
For more information about booking activities in the Turks and Caicos, or to learn more about local accommodations, contact Big Blue Collective today!
