Climate

General information on the weather and climate of Curaçao and the other islands of the Dutch Leeward Islands:

The Dutch Leeward Islands, Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire (ABC Islands), extend from 68 to 70 degrees west, and from 12 to 13 degrees north. These islands are situated in the so-called Southern Caribbean Dry Zone, and are characterised by their semi-arid to arid climate (BS for Bonaire and Curaçao and BW for Aruba on the Köppen classification scheme), with a distinguishable dry and rainy season, and sustained moderate to fresh easterlies. The dry season runs from February through June, whereas the rainy season starts in September and ends in January. The months of July and August can be considered as transitional months. During the rainy season, rain showers occur usually during the early morning or early to late evening hours. The climate on these islands sets itself apart from the climate at comparable latitudes due to the very often light and undependable nature of the rains (thunderstorms mainly occur in October, with the climatic average of this month equal to 7 days a month) and their suppression during the high-sun (northern hemisphere summer) months, when ordinarily precipitation at these latitudes is at its maximum. Furthermore, the islands are characterised by warm, tropical temperatures, with the highest mean temperatures occurring in September. The seawater around the islands averages around 27°C and is coldest (Av. 25.9 °C) around February-March, and warmest (Av. 28.2 °C) around September-October. The skies are, in general, mostly clear to partly cloudy. (© Meteorological Department of Curaçao)