Martinique
Weather locations in Martinique
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Martinique illustrated weather map
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Climate of Martinique
Country climate guideMartinique is a volcanic island in the Lesser Antilles, less than 70 km long, and the mountains — Pelée rising to 1,397 metres at the north end — do more to shape its weather than anything else. The trade winds blow onshore almost continuously, so the eastern, windward coast is wet and green while the western shore lies in their rain shadow. The result is a tropical climate with two very different halves.
Main climate types
Köppen classifies the lowlands as tropical rainforest, the drier western coastal strip as tropical wet and dry, and the upper slopes of Pelée as montane tropical. Rain arrives mostly out of the north-east, and the greatest totals fall on the windward north-eastern slopes. Nothing about the climate is entirely stable: Martinique sits squarely in the path of tropical cyclones, which can affect the island from August to October, although a direct hit is rare.
Temperatures
Temperatures change little through the year. Fort-de-France, on the sheltered west coast, averages about 25 °C in January and about 26 °C in July, with sea breezes and the trade winds making the coast feel cooler than the thermometer suggests. The highlands are appreciably cooler: at 500 metres the mean drops several degrees, and on the upper slopes of Pelée it is often below 10 °C and windy. Humidity is high everywhere.
Rainfall
Annual totals run from about 1,000 mm on the dry western coast to over 2,000 mm on the windward slopes, especially around Fonds-Saint-Denis. The dry season, from January to April, is the usual time for beaches, and it may not bring rain for weeks. The wet season runs from June to December. Tropical downpours can drop large amounts in a couple of hours, and flash flooding in the steep valleys of Pelée is the main hazard.
When to go
Between January and April the trade winds are steady, evenings are comfortable and the sea is calm, which makes it the favourite season with visitors and sailors alike. Summer and autumn bring heavier rain and the cyclone risk, which peaks in September. For hillwalking and the rainforests of the north, the wet season is worth accepting, since the cloud forest on the slopes of Pelée is at its best then.