Best Time to Visit Mozambique
Planning a trip to Mozambique? And wondering what time of the year is the best time to visit? Mozambique is best to visit during the dry winter months from May to November.
When to Go?
Best Time to Visit Mozambique
Due to its subtropical climate, Mozambique remains sunny and warm throughout majority of the year. The driest months range from April to September, and a humid rainy season occurs from December to March.
Hurricane season also falls within this period, specifically during January and February. Mozambique’s coolest time of year ranges from June – August, where the temperatures will drop during nighttime. The August – October window during the dry season proves to be the best time to visit, as it provides for constant sunshine, manageable temperatures, and little to no rain.
Seasons of Mozambique
Broadly speaking, these are the seasons of Mozambique:
- Dry Season: April to November
- Wet Season: December to March
Where to Go in Mozambique – Month by Month
- December to March: Rainy season, brought in by the South East Monsoon. Can expect cyclones in January – February. Bazaruto to be avoided.
- April: Beginning of the dry season with the occasional thundershower.
- May to November: Winter months. Peak dry season. These are also the coolest months.
- August to September: Best for wildlife viewing.
Still deciding where to go?
Knowing when to travel is half the decision; the other half is where. Our guide to African safari destinations puts every country we work in side by side — what each is best for, the best months to visit, how long to allow and what a trip starts at — so you can see how Mozambique compares before you commit.
Best time to visit Mozambique: common questions
When is the best time to visit Mozambique?
May to November is the dry season and the safe general answer, but Mozambique’s interest is overwhelmingly marine and its peak is not the dry season. Diving visibility actually peaks in April and May, right after the rains and right before the cold-water season, when conditions are clear and tranquil. June to October brings humpback whales and cooler, flatter, drier conditions, but colder water and more current at some sites.
When can I see whale sharks and manta rays?
Off Tofo, whale sharks and mantas are most concentrated from September to February; in the Bazaruto Archipelago the window runs October to April. Humpback whales are present June to October, with September a standout. Two honest caveats: whale sharks at Tofo are a resident aggregation rather than a migration with a start date, so sightings happen outside the window and can be poor inside it, and reported numbers off Tofo have declined significantly over the past fifteen years. We would not promise a sighting on any date.
When is cyclone season in Mozambique?
The southwest Indian Ocean cyclone season runs roughly November to April, peaking in January and February. Here is the thing nobody says: the peak whale shark window and the cyclone peak are the same season. The resolution is to travel in October or November — inside the whale shark window, ahead of the cyclone peak — or in April and May, when visibility is at its best and the risk has passed. Risk is also not evenly spread along a 2,500km coastline; the central coast around Beira has taken catastrophic direct hits that the Bazaruto area has not.
Which months should I avoid in Mozambique?
January and February. Peak cyclone risk, torrential rain, poor visibility, and the period when island lodges are most likely to close for annual maintenance. Even without a direct hit, a system passing offshore blows out diving for a week. Gorongosa and the terrestrial parks are at their worst from December to March and the park typically closes at the height of the rains.
When is Mozambique best value?
April and May — the best visibility of the year, cyclone risk past, and low-season rates before the June high season. That is the single best value window on the coast. November is the other one: warm, with mantas and whale sharks arriving, ahead of both the cyclone peak and the December holiday premium.