The best time to visit Tulum is December to April, the dry season, with daily highs of 29 to 31°C and the least rain; March is the driest month. Avoid late August to October if you can: it is the wettest stretch and the peak of hurricane season. Cenotes stay about 24 to 25°C all year.
The best time to visit Tulum is December to April. That is the dry season: daily highs of 29 to 31°C, 33 to 60 mm of rain a month, and the sea at 26 to 27°C. March is the driest month. The time to avoid, if you can, is late August to October, when rain peaks and hurricane season is at its height. Sargassum seaweed usually hits the beaches between April and October. The cenotes are the constant: fresh water at about 24 to 25°C all year, untouched by seaweed.
Weather figures below are the official 1991 to 2020 normals for the Tulum station of CONAGUA’s national weather service (SMN), as republished by Climate-Zone. Sea temperatures come from WeatherSpark’s model-based averages.
| Month | Avg high | Avg low | Rain | Sea | What to expect |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 29°C | 18°C | 60 mm | 27°C | Coolest nights; busy to 6 January |
| February | 30°C | 19°C | 42 mm | 26°C | Dry; coolest sea |
| March | 30°C | 21°C | 33 mm | 27°C | Driest month; Easter crowds in 2027 |
| April | 31°C | 21°C | 40 mm | 27°C | Dry and hot; sargassum season can begin |
| May | 31°C | 22°C | 90 mm | 28°C | Rains start late in the month |
| June | 31°C | 23°C | 150 mm | 29°C | Hurricane season opens; sargassum often heavy |
| July | 32°C | 22°C | 98 mm | 29°C | Hottest month; sargassum often heavy |
| August | 31°C | 22°C | 91 mm | 29°C | Hurricane peak begins mid-month |
| September | 31°C | 22°C | 177 mm | 29°C | Hurricane peak around 10 September |
| October | 31°C | 21°C | 204 mm | 29°C | Wettest month |
| November | 30°C | 20°C | 92 mm | 28°C | Dry season returns; season ends 30 Nov |
| December | 29°C | 19°C | 42 mm | 27°C | Dry; holiday peak from 21 December |
Sources disagree on the details. WeatherSpark’s model makes September the wettest month (159 mm) and May the hottest; the SMN station record makes October wettest and July hottest. We use the station record.
This is when Tulum is at its most comfortable. WeatherSpark’s cool season, with average highs below 29°C, runs from 13 November to 9 February, and it rates late November to mid-March the best period for general outdoor activity.
It is also high season. Tulum’s hotels were 83.5% full in the week from 27 December 2025 to 2 January 2026, according to Quintana Roo’s tourism department. Expect the highest room prices at Christmas, New Year and Easter, and queues at Gran Cenote from the 8:00 opening. Mexico’s school holidays matter too: the 2026 to 2027 winter break starts on 21 December, and the Easter break runs from 22 March to 2 April 2027.
The rains start around late May. WeatherSpark dates the wetter season from 25 May to 2 November. June brings a first peak (150 mm), then July and August are a little drier before September and October, the wettest months. November is a transition: 92 mm on average, falling as the month goes on.
Hurricanes and seaweed make this the riskier half of the year:
The upside is space. Fewer visitors and easier hotel bookings. If you come for the cenotes rather than the beach, the wet season matters less than you might think: the water is the same 24 to 25°C, and the cenotes are fresh water, unaffected by seaweed.
Any time of year. Cenote water stays about 24 to 25°C, cooler than the sea, so a swim feels best in the hot months. What changes is light and crowds. Cenotes open around 8:00 or 9:00 and close at 17:00 or 18:00. Arrive at opening, or after about 14:30 at Gran Cenote, to avoid tour groups.
Our guides to Gran Cenote, Dos Ojos and cenote swimming cover timing at each site.
February and March, before the sargassum season usually starts in April. The sea is 26 to 27°C and the rain is at its lowest. In any month, check a sargassum tracker before you book a beach hotel, and keep a few cenotes in reserve.
| Dates | What happens |
|---|---|
| 12 December | Feast of the Virgin of Guadalupe |
| 21 December 2026 to 6 January 2027 | Mexican school winter holidays, Christmas, New Year |
| 31 December 2026 to 10 January 2027 | Zamna Tulum festival season; Day Zero on 9 January 2027 |
| 30 January to 1 February 2027 | Constitution Day long weekend |
| Late February | Tulum’s carnival (26 February to 1 March in 2026; 2027 dates not yet announced) |
| 13 to 15 March 2027 | Benito Juárez long weekend |
| 21 March to early April 2027 | Holy Week and the school Easter break (22 March to 2 April) |
The cooler months, December to February, are the easiest for sightseeing on foot. The Tulum ruins open from 8:00 to 17:00 with last entry at 15:30, and foreign visitors pay 265 MXN in total since July 2026 (100 MXN for Parque del Jaguar plus 165 MXN for the ruins and national park). The Cobá ruins open from 8:00 to 17:00, last entry 16:00. In any month, arriving at opening gives you the coolest hours of the day.
Our month pages cover the four most popular months in detail: weather, holidays and events, sargassum and cenote tips for December, January, February and March. For where to base yourself, see where to stay in Tulum, and for trips that save you the planning, our tours page.
4 hours
A morning run from central Tulum to Gran Cenote, the jump platforms at Cenote Zemway and the mangrove edge of Casa Cenote, with snorkel gear, towels and transport between stops.
No pickup: meet on site
from$135
Check availability8-8.5 hours
The most-reviewed cenote combo in the area: a guided walk round the clifftop Tulum ruins, then swims at open Cenote Mariposa and semi-cavern Chen-Ha; site and park fees of about $40 are paid in cash on the day.
Pickup: Riviera Maya hotels
from$29
Check availability1 day
Entry to the Casa Tortuga cenote park with a 90-minute guided swim through three open and two semi-open cenotes, then free time until closing; higher passes add a zip line and lunch.
No pickup: meet on site
from$26
Check availability6 hours
A ten-person van tour that reaches Casa Cenote before the crowds, moves on to Taak Bi Ha, and finishes with lamplit snorkeling in a private underground cenote after a vegetarian jungle lunch.
Pickup: Tulum
from$169
Check availabilityPrices and ratings were taken from GetYourGuide and can change. Booking through these links supports this site at no extra cost to you.
March, for most people. It is the driest month in the official 1991 to 2020 normals, at 33 mm of rain, with highs around 30°C, and the sea is about 27°C. Sargassum is usually lighter than in summer. Easter is the drawback: Semana Santa falls on 21 to 28 March in 2027, so book early or come in the first half of the month.
Late August to October is the stretch to avoid if you can. September and October are the wettest months, at 177 and 204 mm of rain, and hurricane activity peaks from mid-August to mid-October. Sargassum often reaches the beaches between April and October. The other time to avoid, for different reasons, is Christmas and New Year, when hotels are close to full and prices are highest.
Warm all year. Average highs in the official normals sit between 29°C in December and January and 32°C in July, and lows between 18°C in January and 23°C in June. Rain varies more: 33 mm in March against 204 mm in October. The sea runs from about 26°C in February to 29°C from June to October, and the cenotes stay at about 24 to 25°C.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November. NOAA's National Hurricane Center puts the peak around 10 September, with most activity between mid-August and mid-October. If you travel then, buy insurance that covers weather cancellations and watch the forecasts in the days before you fly.
It is hot, wet and often seaweedy, but quieter. June has 150 mm of rain on average and July the highest average high, 32°C. Sargassum is usually heaviest from June to August, so the beaches can disappoint. Summer is a good time for cenotes, though: they are fresh water, unaffected by sargassum, and the shade and 24 to 25°C water feel best in the heat.
December is one of the best months for Tulum: dry, with average highs of 29°C, lows of 19°C and 42 mm of rain, and hurricane season over on 30 November.
January is Tulum's coolest month: average highs of 29°C, lows of 18°C and about 60 mm of rain, with the sea at 27°C.
February is one of Tulum's driest, most settled months: average highs of 30°C, lows of 19°C and about 42 mm of rain.
March is Tulum's driest month, with only about 33 mm of rain, average highs of 30°C, lows of 21°C and the sea at about 27°C.
Sargassum, a floating brown seaweed, usually reaches Tulum's beaches between April and October, heaviest from June to August.