Climate and Weather

Trinidad and Tobago experiences two annual seasons; the wet season and the dry season. The dry season is from January to May, the wet season runs from June to December, with a short dry spell of a few weeks during September or October. This does not mean that during the dry season there is no rain, nor during the wet there are no sunny days. During the wet season there are very few days when it is really rained out. In the many years of doing tours we have had only 1 tour cancelled due to weather conditions. We will just dodge around rain when birding; the good thing is that the birds are more active after a rain. If hiking, just go prepared for rain (its called a rainforest for a reason), put your optics in plastic bags etc., the rain is warm and shows the rainforest in all its glory. Your journey home will be comfortable if you make sure that you have dry clothes waiting in the car for you. In Trinidad we describe most of our rain as “Passing Clouds”, which means just wait a bit and there will be sun. Most find the rain warm, cleansing and fun. Its just another aspect to the experience, for what is a rainforest without some rain?

Daily high temperatures range from 29°C (84.2°F) to 35°C (95°F) in the shade, so in direct sun it can get very hot. Sunscreen is highly recommended for when in direct sun and not so direct sun. Sunburn can ruin a vacation and can cause skin cancer! In the rainforest there is no need for sunscreens. Hats also assist in keeping out both sun and rain. For the wider trails or roadside birding, umbrellas are quite useful.

Nightly lows range from 17°C (62°F) to 25°C (77°F). Paria Springs is usually about two to five degrees cooler than the plains.

As Trinidad lies just south of the hurricane belt it very rarely experiences tropical storms or hurricanes.

Paria Springs Eco-Community is located on the windward slopes of the highest mountains of the Northern Range, surrounded by rain forest. Thus the area experiences higher than average rainfall, resulting in luxuriant vegetation and a great diversity of species.