Weather

Weather

Fiji’s temperate climate has long-established it as the perfect year-round holiday destination for visitors escaping both the northern and southern hemisphere winters.

Ok, I’m sold – when should I come?

The best time of year to visit Fiji is during its ‘winter’ or dry season from April to November. Besides offering the best beach weather, this time of the year provides less ‘tourist-melting’ highs of temperature and humidity, less rainy days, and less probability of wet-season cyclones.

For most of the year Fiji enjoys a mild and stable climate with average maximum temperatures rarely moving outside of the 21c to 31c temperature range. This is due to the vast expanses of open ocean surrounding the islands of Fiji, with the general rule of thumb being that the smaller the island, the less rainfall it receives (location also being factor), with the two main islands receiving the most rain during the wet season.

A cool breeze

A prevailing trade wind cools Fiji from the easterly and south-easterly direction for most of the year. As it rushes over the peaks of the larger islands’ mountains, clouds are produced and greater rainfall occurs on their windward slopes. Typically, this prevailing wind has blown itself to a gentle whisper by evening time, and has worked itself back up again by mid-morning.

Fiji’s wet season

The wet season in Fiji is a product of the southerly movements of the South Pacific Convergence Zone and normally extends from December to April (though rainfall is not exclusive to the wet season and occurs througout the year). Temperatures during the day average around 25C (77F) with generally high humidity. Most of Fiji’s annual rainfall occurs during the wet season in the form of characteristically heavy but brief local showers.

Tropical cyclones can develop between December and April, but they rarely warrant significant alarm. The main islands of Fiji (Viti Levu & Vanua Levu) receive between 2000mm – 3000mm of rainfall annually on coastal and low-lying regions and upwards of 6000mm in the mountains