Seychelles: When to Go

You should plan your trip to the Seychelles around what you want to do. Windsurfing and sailing are best at the start and end of the trade winds, usually around May and October. Some beaches are better during the monsoon season, others during the trade winds. Diving is best in March to May and September to November. Hotel prices shoot up and accommodation can be hard to find during the peak seasons from December to January and July to August. Easter can also get busy.

Weather

The Seychelles' seasons are defined by the trade winds. These blow from the northwest from October to April, bringing warm, wet weather. From May to September the southeast trades usher in cooler, drier weather but the winds whip up the waves and you'll want to find protected beaches. The turnaround periods (March through April and October through November) are normally calm and windless. The annual temperature range fluctuates between 24°C (75°F) and 31°C (88°F) and the humidity sweats at around 80%.

The rain generally comes in sudden, heavy bursts. January is the wettest month, and mountainous Mahé and Silhouette get the most rainfall. July and August are the driest. Although the Seychelles lies outside the cyclone zone, cyclone activity elsewhere in the Indian Ocean can still bring unseasonably grey, windy weather between December and March.