When to visit Mauritius, month by month.
Keyed to the circuit most operators sell: Whole island, beach and resort. For the best all-round experience, go Sep-Oct. For the lowest prices and thinnest crowds, go Feb-Mar.
Two windows, because they answer different questions. Best experience scores the weather, the headline sights and low crowds; cheapest and quietest scores only airfare and how empty it is. Special-interest seasons (skiing, Christmas markets, aurora, festivals) are kept out of the experience score and flagged on their own line, so a niche winter draw never masquerades as the best all-round month. If you care most about one thing, read that column below.
Weather and cost, month by month
| Weatherthe island | Costflights + hotels | |
|---|---|---|
| January | Hot, wet | Post-NYE dip |
| February | Wettest, cyclone | Low season |
| March | Hot, showery | Low season |
| April | Warm, transition | Rising |
| May | Warm, drying | Airfare up |
| June | Dry, mild | Holiday airfare |
| July | Coolest, dry | Euro peak |
| August | Cool, dry | Euro peak |
| September | Dry, warming | Good value |
| October | Driest, warm | Value window |
| November | Warm, mostly dry | Climbing |
| December | Hot, humid | Peak prices |
The Mauritius attraction calendar
When each headline draw is actually at its best, or shut.
| Beaches & sealagoon | Diving & snorkelreefs | Interior & hikinggorges | Watersportskitesurf | Crowdsempty is good | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Warm, wet | Warm water | Hot, muddy | Marlin peak | Fairly busy |
| February | Warmest sea | Storm risk | Wettest month | Marlin, cyclone | Moderate |
| March | Warm, humid | Warm, clearer | Green, wet | Marlin season | Moderate |
| April | Warm, calmer | Warm, clear | Green, drying | Fishing tail | Quieter |
| May | Dry, pleasant | Still clear | Cooler, green | Kite starts | Thin |
| June | Sheltered north | Cooler, breezy | Cool, dry | Kite peak | Emptiest |
| July | Cool sea, dry | Cold, choppy | Cool, clear | Kite peak | Euro summer |
| August | Breezy, dry | Cool, windy | Cool, clear | Kite peak | Easing |
| September | Dry, calm | Improving | Cool, dry | Kite peak | Quieter |
| October | Warm, calm | Peak clarity | Dry, clear | Kite and fish | Busy shoulder |
| November | Warm, calm | Warm, clear | Warming, dry | Fishing builds | Busy |
| December | Warm, humid | Warm water | Hot, wet | Marlin peak | Busiest |
What each month actually gives you
Skippable for weather: January is hot, humid, one of the wettest months and sits inside cyclone season, though the warm sea suits divers and marlin anglers.
Avoid for weather: February is the wettest month and the peak of cyclone season, so book only for the warm-water diving and marlin if you accept the disruption risk.
Mixed: still hot and wet with cyclone risk into the month, but conditions start easing late March, and diving and fishing stay strong.
A warming shoulder month: cyclone risk fades through April and the weather improves, though rain still lingers early and Indian school holidays begin to lift prices.
One of the sweet-spot months: dry, mild winter weather sets in, cyclone season ends mid-month and the crowds thin, though airfare from India can rise with summer holidays.
The quietest month and reliably dry: cool winter weather, sheltered north and west beaches and the start of peak kitesurf, though the sea is cooler and the east and south are windy.
Cool, dry and good value on the sheltered coasts, with peak kitesurf winds, but it is the coolest, breeziest time and the European summer brings a crowd bump.
Much like July: cool, dry and windy, excellent for hiking and kitesurf, less so for swimming in the coolest sea, with European crowds still around.
A top all-round month: dry, warming and calm on the beaches, great for diving, hiking and kitesurf, with good value and among the thinner crowds.
Arguably the best month overall: October is the driest month of the year and falls just before cyclone season opens, with warm calm beaches, superb diving and great hiking.
A warm, mostly dry, good-value month for beaches and diving, but note cyclone season officially opens on 1 November, so early-season storm risk begins.
The most expensive and most crowded month, and it sits inside cyclone season: December suits divers and marlin anglers who accept storm risk, not value-seekers.
Worth noting
- • Mauritius's OWN cyclone season, as defined by its national disaster agency, runs 1 November to 15 May, not the 15 November start of the regional RSMC convention. It peaks January to March and overlaps the Christmas and New Year booking peak, so the busiest, priciest weeks are also the stormiest.
- • A cyclone Class III warning opens emergency shelters and stops public transport within about three hours, and excursions shut down; the airport can close. A direct hit is not certain in any given year, but the disruption when a warning is issued is real and island-wide.
- • Mauritius is Southern Hemisphere, so the best weather is its WINTER (roughly May to October): drier, less humid and cooler (~24-26C on the coast). October is the driest month of the year.
- • The kitesurf and windsurf season at Le Morne is May to October, peaking June to September, which is the winter and the exact OPPOSITE of the beach-lounging peak. The same southeast trade winds that power the kites make the east and south coasts windy, while the north and west stay sheltered.
- • The wettest, windiest coast is the east: the east-coast station (Fuel) averages ~334mm of rain in February versus ~182mm on the drier west coast (Medine), so where you stay changes your weather as much as when you go.
- • Diving and snorkelling are best in the warm summer (November to April) for water temperature and visibility, but that is cyclone season; the shoulder windows of October-November and March-April give warm, clear water with far less storm risk.
- • The quietest months are May, June and September (June had the fewest arrivals of any month in 2019), while December is by far the busiest. So the value-and-space sweet spots (May, June, September) are also good weather, and the crowd peak (December) is also cyclone season.
- • Indian passport holders get 60 days visa-free on arrival in Mauritius, free of charge, with no pre-application; you only complete the free online All-in-One Travel form before flying. That removes a cost and a hassle many other beach destinations impose.
Got a Mauritius package on the table?
Check its dates against this chart, and everything else your operator did not spell out. We read the fine print so you do not have to.
Conditions verified July 2026. Confirm operator and attraction dates for the year you are travelling.