Discover the best time of year, based on historical climate, temperature, and precipitation.
The best weather in Puerto Vallarta is from January, March, April, but considering flight prices and crowds, the best months to visit are January, April, May. — consistent weather climate
⛈Hot & rainy
| Score | 97 | 95 | 97 | 100 | 92 | 68 | 45 | 38 | 37 | 61 | 90 | 96 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Climate | Pleasant | Pleasant | Pleasant | Pleasant | Pleasant | Hot & rainy | Hot & rainy | Hot & rainy | Hot & rainy | Hot & rainy | Pleasant | Pleasant |
| Temperature | 18–26°C | 18–27°C | 17–27°C | 19–28°C | 21–29°C | 24–30°C | 25–31°C | 25–31°C | 25–30°C | 24–30°C | 22–29°C | 19–27°C |
| Feels like | 19–29°C | 19–30°C | 19–30°C | 20–32°C | 24–34°C | 29–35°C | 30–38°C | 30–38°C | 30–37°C | 29–36°C | 25–34°C | 21–30°C |
| Precipitation | 13mm 2 days | 30mm 3 days | 22mm 1 days | 1mm 0 days | 7mm 1 days | 117mm 13 days | 203mm 16 days | 240mm 19 days | 269mm 20 days | 147mm 13 days | 22mm 3 days | 17mm 3 days |
| Sunshine | 9.7h ☀︎ 88% | 10.3h ☀︎ 90% | 11.5h ☀︎ 95% | 11.8h ☀︎ 93% | 11.8h ☀︎ 90% | 9.5h ☀︎ 71% | 7.5h ☀︎ 57% | 6.4h ☀︎ 50% | 6.4h ☀︎ 52% | 9.7h ☀︎ 83% | 10.2h ☀︎ 91% | 9.5h ☀︎ 87% |
| Wind | SE · 12 km/h | SW · 13 km/h | SW · 15 km/h | SW · 15 km/h | SW · 16 km/h | SW · 15 km/h | S · 12 km/h | NE · 11 km/h | NE · 11 km/h | NE · 11 km/h | SE · 12 km/h | E · 12 km/h |
| Humidity (%) | 80% | 81% | 79% | 78% | 79% | 83% | 86% | 87% | 88% | 86% | 82% | 81% |
| Day length | 11.0h | 11.5h | 12.0h | 12.6h | 13.1h | 13.4h | 13.2h | 12.8h | 12.2h | 11.7h | 11.2h | 10.9h |
| Tourist Crowds | High season | High season | High season | Shoulder season | Shoulder season | Shoulder season | Shoulder season | Low season | Low season | Shoulder season | High season | High season |
Puerto Vallarta's month-long anniversary celebration fills the malecon and downtown with fairground rides, concerts, coc…
One of Latin America's largest LGBTQ+ pride events fills Puerto Vallarta's Zona Romantica with parades, beach parties, a…
For twelve days leading up to December 12, Puerto Vallarta hosts one of Mexico's most elaborate Virgen de Guadalupe cele…
Puerto Vallarta does not play tricks with its calendar: the winter-to-spring dry season genuinely delivers the Pacific paradise you picture, peaking in April with immaculate, cloudless days just as the midwinter crush begins to thin.
Where the jungle-cloaked mountains of Jalisco tumble directly into the broad blue curve of Bahía de Banderas, Puerto Vallarta lives outdoors. Life here is defined by salt air drifting across the Malecón, cobblestones radiating afternoon heat, and the rhythm of Pacific surf breaking against the sand. Because the town is wedged between towering coastal peaks and the ocean, geography dictates everything about your stay. When the dry air holds, the city feels effortless, breezy, and alive; when the summer storms roll off the sierra, it transforms into an intensely humid steam bath where every errand is interrupted by torrential downpours.
Winter along Bahía de Banderas is as good as beach weather gets, and the world knows it. From December through March, clear skies settle over the coast day after day. Mornings begin with a brisk, crystalline clarity that begs for early walks through El Centro before the sun climbs over the ridge. By midday, temperatures sit comfortably in the upper twenties, warm enough to lounge in the sand at Playa Los Muertos without the oppressive stickiness that arrives later in the year. Ocean breezes pick up reliably in the late afternoon, cooling the stone streets just as the sunset crowds gather.
December opens on a vibrant, community-centered note. The first twelve days of the month bring the Virgen de Guadalupe Festivities, when rhythmic drumming, floral processions, and nightly fireworks spill into the heart of downtown, filling the streets around the central parish with domestic pilgrims and street stalls. It gives the city an authentic pulse before the international holiday high season arrives in earnest.
By February and March, the town reaches peak saturation. The boardwalk is shoulder-to-shoulder, water taxis ferrying passengers south toward Boca de Tomatlán book up fast, and the energy in the Zona Romántica runs on high voltage. March is the busiest month on the calendar. If you crave quiet, the dense crowds and constant hum of activity can feel relentless, but there is no denying that the atmosphere is intoxicating: golden sunsets, dry air, and a town running at full throttle.
April is the undisputed crown jewel of the year. While popular imagination assumes the destination starts overheating after Easter, the reality on the ground is sublime. The winter crowds thin out significantly, leaving room to breathe along the waterfront. The sky remains an unbroken vault of blue, rain is virtually nonexistent, and the air stays remarkably comfortable despite the warming afternoons. You get nearly twelve hours of brilliant sunshine every single day, with tranquil waters and empty stretches of sand that feel a world away from March’s chaos.
May begins the slow tilt toward summer. The humidity starts to stir and the afternoons feel heavier, but the monsoon rains are still weeks away. It is also one of the most culturally energetic months of the entire year. The city throws itself into the Fiestas de Mayo, a month-long celebration marking its anniversary with live concerts, street rides, and cultural showcases along the Malecón.
Toward the end of May, the energy shifts into overdrive with Vallarta Pride, one of Latin America's premier LGBTQ+ gatherings. The Zona Romántica explodes with rainbow flags, street block parties, and beach celebrations, bringing an influx of international travelers who treat the humid late-spring nights as one continuous open-air celebration.
Come June, the Pacific monsoon breaks over the Jalisco coast, and the character of the city changes overnight. The mountains trap thick tropical moisture, driving apparent temperatures into the high thirties. The air feels heavy enough to wear, and stepping away from ocean breezes means immediate perspiration. Walking the steep hillsides of the old town quickly becomes exhausting before sundown.
By July and August, the rain arrives with dramatic power. These are not gentle coastal mists; they are colossal, anvil-headed thunderstorms that boil up over the mountains in the late afternoon and unload torrents of water on the bay. Streets turn to temporary rivers, lightning tears across the horizon, and beach plans are washed away in minutes. August and September represent the absolute low point for outdoor comfort, with September enduring the highest rainfall of the year.
Unless you come specifically for dramatic storm-watching, cheap off-season rates, and lush green hillsides, this period requires heavy compromise. October begins the sluggish exit from the wet season, but the oppressive stickiness clings to the bay well into the month before the mountain breezes finally push the humidity out to sea.
November marks the triumphant return of dry season living. The relentless downpours vanish, leaving the Sierra Madre mountains draped in an astonishing, jungle-green coat that slowly fades in the winter months ahead. The air feels clean, crisp, and dramatically lighter than in October, signaling the return of long, lazy beach days and alfresco dining.
Travelers begin returning in steady numbers throughout the month, but the frantic pace of the deep winter high season has not yet gripped the bay. It is a brief, generous window to experience Puerto Vallarta at its most refreshed: the sea is still wonderfully warm from the summer months, the foliage is vibrant, and the evening breeze off Bahía de Banderas is cool enough to linger on the sand long after dark.