Being in tourism, people often ask me what is the best time of year to come to Tropical North Queensland and visit Cairns. Well.... we are approaching one of those times of year as I write this.
The shoulder seasons are the best time to visit for many reasons. These are:
May - After the Easter school holidays have finished
October/early November - After September/October school holidays have finished and before the silly season in December
Cairns has 2 distinctive seasons. A wet season and a dry season. Cairns is located in the tropics of Australia in the state of Queensland. We are 1884 kilometres (1171 Miles) south from the equator in the Southern Hemisphere and above the Tropic of Capricorn. To put that in perspective for you... Orlando, Florida is 1972.43 miles from the Equator in the Northern Hemisphere. See the map below.
Wet season technically runs from November until April/May (our "Off Season") and the dry season in the other months. When the country is in winter, especially in the southern states in June/July & August, because of our warmer climate in those months we are a very attractive holiday destination for Australians and are very busy (our "Peak Season"). We are particularly busy in the Australian June/July school holidays with lots a families visiting us. Our temperatures in the winter months are very agreeable to most. Those visiting from the south leave their winter world behind and in one flight are magically transported to spring/summer like days. For us locals, it's the one time of year we can wear our jeans! Check out the below stats. 👇
In May, we have cooler days & nights than in summer and mostly sunny days. The sea temperature is still warm if you are visiting the Great Barrier Reef. In tourism, it is traditionally one of our quietest months so all tour attractions are quieter than usual and hotels offer cheaper room rates. There is also an abundance of cars and campers to hire where as in other busier months they can be scarce.
The same goes for October/November (outside of the Australian school holidays). Days are warming up and are nice and sunny. The sea temperature is much cooler (it feels cold top us locals!) with very stable weather conditions overall.
*This collage of pics was taken not long before the pandemic hit and we all went into lock down. It's photos of the beautiful Cairns swimming lagoon, shaped like the state of Queensland we are in. Warm sunny days with fewer visitors.Just beautiful!
Now, I know I know... you can't get here right now during the pandemic... this is for your next trip next year 😜 You better start planning!
