Dominican Republic / Weather

Blessed with a tropical climate, there is little change in temperatures throughout the year, although in the mountains expect very cool evenings in winter. Like the rest of the world, the Dominican Republic’s weather pattern has been changing in the last few years and you can no longer rely on clear-cut rainy and dry seasons. Traditionally May/June to September was the hotter, wetter season, particularly in the south, although usually just showers, while the winter months remained dry. This is no longer the case, and unseasonal rains are now falling in January. The east coast (Punta Cana area) tends to be drier, benefiting from the prevailing southeast winds, and the arid south-west hotter, while the central mountains of the Cibao catch the rain clouds and the north coast catches the trade winds. Hurricane season is from June to November, but most hit in August or September, although they are rarely major.

Like Haiti, the Dominican Republic is on a tectonic fault line so it does experience occasional tremors. These rarely exceed 5 on the Richter scale; the last serious earthquake, in 1946, registered 8 on the Richter scale, effecting the north coast and Samana.