The Climate In Barbados

The envy of our Northern neighbors, Barbados enjoys a year round tropical climate that is perfect for going to the beach. The weather is generally sunny and warm with only brief occasions of intense rain that occurs generally clearing back to sunshine very shortly afterwards. Our summer temperatures hit average highs of 32ºC and our winters hit average temperatures of around 28ºC. The great thing is that we have constant wind blowing off the Atlantic that keeps the island's daytime temperatures at very comfortable levels. Barbados' dry season starts in January and ends in June when the generally wetter conditions start and we head into the hurricane season.

Barbados sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt, however, we've been very fortunate to have been bypassed by many of the severe storms that have passed through the region over the past years. Many a Barbadian boast that God must be a Bajan in jest but we all know that one day "the big one will come". The official hurricane season runs from June 1 - November 30 with August and September being the peak months for intense hurricane action.

During the "wet" season, the island experiences spectacular tropical storm displays in the evenings of lightning and sometimes thunder that can be seen offshore as they pass by. Every once in a while one will pass over the island. Again such storms usually pass quickly and rarely cause too much disruption with the exception of some flooding in low lying areas. Over the past years the Barbados Government has achieved great success in being able to divert water from heavily populated areas like in Holetown, St. James where flooding was a predominate part of yearly living. Other areas that have flooded recently can be attributed to wells and drains not being maintained .

Average Rainfall

Barbados receives the lowest amount of rainfall during its "dry season" lasting through the months of January to June. By June we go into our wet season which sees normal rainfall increase and persistent cloud conditions ideal for rainfall. During the summer months Barbados also experiences the effect of Sahara dust that blows across the Atlantic. The dust leaves conditions hazy and reduces visibility over the island.

Average Days of Sunlight

Our island enjoys an average of 9 hours of sunshine per day from November to March and 8 hours per day between the months of April to October. During summer, the sunset can get started around 6:30pm and rises around 5:44am. During the winter months the sun sets much earlier in the afternoon around 5:00pm.

Average Maximum Temperature

While the average temperature of Barbados seems quite hot we have a gentle Atlantic breeze that blows across the island with a very cooling effect. As the sun sets evenings are cool times and during Christmas "it gets fairly cold" according to locals. In December a Bajan will wrap up tight in bed covers to keep warm during the "cold" nights... temperatures only hitting an average of around 23ºC.

Average Minimum Temperature