Tulum Weather by Month: How Dry December to April Really Is, and When the Rain and Hurricanes Come

What is the weather in Tulum, in one minute?

Tulum has a dry half and a wet half, and the dry half is shorter than the brochures suggest. February to April is the sunniest and driest. December and January are warm and mostly sunny but do see rain. From June to October it is humid with heavy rain, and the Atlantic hurricane season overlaps almost exactly with it. A rainy day here is a day with at least four millimetres of rain, so a brief shower does not count.

Averages 2015-2025 · Source: Open-Meteo, CHIRPS · How we measure

Read the rain line from the left: a small bump in January, then three low months, then May as the switch, then a wet half with two peaks (June and October) and a dip in July.

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Is December to April dry and warm enough?

Warm, yes, in every one of those months, with highs of 27° to 30° and nights of 22° to 24°. Dry depends on the month. February, March and April are the clean ones, and March has the lowest cloud cover of the year (34 percent). January is the wettest month of the dry season, with nearly three times February's rain, and December is not far behind.

So if you want a winter with a good chance of unbroken sun, plan February to April, with March at the centre. December and January are still a good choice if you want it a little cooler, and a grey day or two will not wreck a month of work.

When are the rainy months in Tulum?

June to October is the wet half, with May and November on either side. The rain mostly comes as afternoon downpours and storms, in humid heat of 80 to 84 percent. June is the wettest month in our data (266 mm), then October (259 mm). July is a lighter break, with 93 mm and about 6 rainy days, before September, which has the most rainy days (about 13). May is the switch month, and November still has 177 mm and about 7 rainy days, so the dry season does not really begin until December.

What about hurricane season?

The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June to November, and the Yucatan coast is exposed to it. What our data can show is the rain around it: June, August, September and October each have 11 to 13 rainy days. It cannot show storm risk. We hold monthly averages for rain, cloud and wind, not storm tracks, so we do not give a chance of a hurricane in a given month, and rain on its own does not mean a storm.

If you book in the season, book flexible, read the national weather service forecast for the week you travel, and know what your accommodation does in a power cut.

What are "nortes", the winter cold fronts?

A norte is a cold front that pushes down over the Gulf of Mexico in the cooler months and reaches the Yucatan peninsula, usually bringing a few days of cloud, wind, rain and a drop in temperature. Local press reports fronts hitting Quintana Roo from autumn to spring (Riviera Maya News), and they sometimes keep small boats in harbour.

We hold monthly averages, not front counts, so we cannot tell you how many nortes a given winter will bring. What the averages do show is the effect over many years: the grey, wetter spells make December and January the cloudier, wetter part of the dry season. The coolest night averages 22°, so a norte is a jumper evening, not a cold winter.

How does Tulum compare with Playa del Carmen and the Pacific coast?

Tulum is almost the same as Playa del Carmen up the road, within a degree or so by day and with a similar dry season. The Pacific coast has a steadier one, and January shows it:

See Puerto Escondido for the Pacific side. Inland, Oaxaca is dry with cool nights, and Mexico City is colder; for the whole country by month, see the best time to go to Mexico for weather. The Tulum place page has the live month-by-month view.

What does this mean for working from Tulum?

In the dry months the weather is rarely the problem: the days are warm, the humidity is lower than in summer, and the sun is strong, so work in the shade. In the wet months, afternoon storms can bring power and internet cuts, so ask your host about backup. January to April is also the busiest part of the year on this coast, so book ahead for a month's stay.