Best Time to Visit Dominican Republic

Dry season: December to April

For most trips, aim for the dry months. Punta Cana is at its best from December to April, Santo Domingo from December to March, and Santiago from January to March. Days are warm but not heavy, nights are comfortable, and you can plan a beach day without watching the sky.

It's also high season. Christmas and New Year are the busiest and priciest weeks, and Semana Santa (Holy Week, just before Easter) fills beach resorts with Dominican families. If you hate crowds, pick late January or early March instead.

Carnival runs through February, with the biggest parades on 27 February, Independence Day. La Vega and Santiago are famous for their horned, brightly masked devils called diablos cojuelos. Santo Domingo's Malecón, the seafront boulevard, gets lively too.

Hot, wet months: May to November

Rain doesn't mean a washout here. It often arrives as a short, heavy burst in the afternoon, then the sun returns. But it's sticky. Punta Cana is hottest and wettest in September, at 29°C and 119 mm of rain. Santiago is even warmer that month at 33°C, and inland air can feel thick.

Santo Domingo peaks at 32°C in August. Its wettest month is November, at 97 mm, and Santiago's is too, at 109 mm. So the south coast and the Cibao valley, where Santiago sits, stay damp later than you might expect.

This is also hurricane season, which runs June to November, with September and October the riskiest. Take travel insurance that covers storms. In return, you'll find cheaper rooms and quieter beaches.

Which city, which month?

Beach trip? Choose Punta Cana in the dry season. Want the Zona Colonial, the old walled quarter of Santo Domingo, with its cobbled streets and cathedral? December to March keeps the walking pleasant. Santiago suits you in the cooler early months, when its cigar factories and hilltop monument are easier to enjoy.

If you're flexible, late April to early June can be a nice gap. Crowds thin out, and the heaviest rain hasn't arrived.