[Andrea J.]

from BUDGET TRAVELER

Aruba Weather – When To Go, When To Stay Away
May 2, 2010
By admin

Anyone planning a Caribbean vacation usually should avoid going there in the fall, but that’s not necessarily true of Aruba.

The Caribbean’s annual hurricane season officially starts June 1 and ends November 30. Tropical storms and hurricanes increase in frequency until they reach a peak in September and October. Most Caribbean destinations see high amounts of rain those months, even if they don’t experience a hurricane.

Aruba is a different situation. It lies 15 miles from the coast of Venezuela, so it is located south of the hurricane belt. It feels the affects of nearby tropical storms and hurricanes, such as hurricane Omar in 2008, but to a far lesser degree than the rest of the Caribbean.

The least popular month to visit Aruba is September, which is the same for all Caribbean locations, according to the Caribbean Tourism Organization. But the decline is moderate. October and November, which usually are unpopular months for vacationing in the Caribbean, are just as popular with visitors to Aruba as May and June.

That’s because the average monthly rainfall is only about 2.5 inches in October and three inches in November, compared to nine inches or more for some other destinations. Rainfall averages less than 1.4 inches per month throughout the year.

Because Aruba is one of the most southern Caribbean islands, it is closest to the equator and warmer than most.

The average monthly high temperature is nearly 89 degrees Fahrenheit and the average monthly low is 78 degrees, according to the Meteorological Service of Netherland Antilles and Aruba. Average high monthly temperatures exceed 90 degrees in August and September and drop to a low of 86 in January and February.

The water temperature averages 81 degrees during the year and rarely varies more than a few degrees, which makes swimming in the ocean more comfortable during the winter months than northern locations.

Anyone planning an Aruba vacation will find that the weather historically is good from January through July. However, August and September will be warmer and more uncomfortable than the rest of the year for shopping, hiking and other outdoor activities.

Although the risk of bad weather in Aruba is low compared to elsewhere in the Caribbean, September through December do have a higher risk of above-average rainfall and the remote possibility of a tropical storm or hurricane — more likely passing to the north of the island than passing over it directly.