Region
Best time to dive the Caribbean
44 scuba diving destinations across 15 countries, scored month by month from sea temperature, wave height, wind, rain and storm records. The season is short: May is the peak, so check the month against the place you have in mind rather than the region. Storm season runs Jul–Nov.
Compare all 44 destinations →Dive conditions · Caribbean
September
Conditions in September
GoodAmong this site's best monthsModerateWorkable, not the peakPoorOff seasonSame all yearNo month stands outClosedSeasonal closureNot ratedNo month ranking
44
Destinations
Across 15 countries
23
Marine species
Recorded within 60 km of a dive area
24–31 °C
Sea temperature
Monthly surface means, coldest to warmest
12/12
Months in season
Months at least one destination calls its best
Diving in the Caribbean month by month
May is the strongest month in the Caribbean: 20 of the 30 rated destinations are at their peak. August is the thinnest, with none. There is somewhere worth diving all year.
| Month | In best conditions | Sea temperature | Where to go |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 10 of 30 | 24–28 °C | Guadeloupe, Martinique, Andros / Nassau, Bahamas |
| February | 14 of 30 | 24–28 °C | Guadeloupe, Martinique, Andros / Nassau, Bahamas |
| March | 15 of 30 | 24–28 °C | Guadeloupe, Martinique, Andros / Nassau, Bahamas |
| April | 18 of 30 | 25–29 °C | Martinique, Guadeloupe, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands |
| May | 20 of 30, 1 closed | 27–29 °C | Martinique, Guadeloupe, Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands |
| June | 13 of 30, 1 closed | 28–30 °C | Guadeloupe, Martinique, Key West, Florida Keys |
| July | 10 of 30, 1 closed | 28–30 °C | Dry Tortugas, Florida Keys, Guadeloupe, Martinique |
| August | 0 of 30, 1 closed | 28–31 °C | Utila, Curacao, Bonaire |
| September | 0 of 30, 1 closed | 29–31 °C | Roatan, Utila, Little Cayman, Cayman Islands |
| October | 2 of 30, 1 closed | 28–30 °C | Bonaire, Curacao, St. Croix |
| November | 4 of 30, 1 closed | 27–29 °C | Martinique, Guadeloupe, Curacao |
| December | 8 of 30, 1 closed | 25–28 °C | Martinique, Guadeloupe, Curacao |
"In best conditions" means the month ranks in the top third worldwide, not just against the rest of this region. Only the 30 rated destinations count towards it.
What you can see scuba diving in the Caribbean
Schooling fishat 7 destinationsGoliath grouper
Whale sharksat 5 destinationsWhale shark
Sharksat 2 destinationsTiger shark
Counted from OBIS records within 60 km of each dive area. Presence-only data: an animal absent from a month may simply not have been logged there.
Every dive destination in the Caribbean
| Destination | Country / area | Best time | Conditions | What you'll see |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Martinique | Caribbean | Jan–May | Good | |
| Guadeloupe | Caribbean | Jan–May | Good | |
| Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands | Caribbean | Jan–May | Good | |
| Dry Tortugas, Florida Keys | USA | Mar–Jul | Good | |
| Key West, Florida Keys | USA | Mar–Jul | Good | |
| Andros / Nassau, Bahamas | Bahamas | Jan–May | Good | |
| Dominica | Caribbean | Jan–May | Good | |
| St. Croix | USVI | Sep–Oct | Good | |
| Exumas, Bahamas | Bahamas | Feb–Jun | Good | |
| Curacao | Caribbean | Nov–Mar | Good | |
| Turneffe, Belize | Belize | Jan–May | Good | |
| Roatan | Honduras | Mar–Jul | Moderate | |
| Puerto Rico | Puerto Rico | Apr–Jul | Good | |
| BonaireBonaire's shore-diving fringing reef | Caribbean | Any month | Same all year | |
| Statia (St. Eustatius) | Caribbean | Feb–Jun | Good | |
| Little Cayman, Cayman Islands | Caribbean | Mar–Jul | Good | |
| Saba | Caribbean | Jul–Sep | Moderate | |
| Utila | Honduras | Apr–Aug | Moderate | |
| Blue Hole / Lighthouse, BelizeThe Blue Hole and Lighthouse Reef walls | Belize | Jan–May | Moderate | |
| Aruba | Caribbean | Dec–Apr | Moderate | |
| British Virgin Islands | BVI | Jan–May | Moderate | |
| Cancun / Riviera MayaWhale shark | Mexico Caribbean | Jun–Aug | Moderate | |
| Isla MujeresWhale shark | Mexico Caribbean | Jun–Aug | Moderate | |
| Silver BankHumpback whale | Dominican Rep. | Feb–Mar | Moderate | |
| Key Largo, Florida KeysGoliath grouper | USA | Aug–Sep | Moderate | |
| Gladden Spit, BelizeWhale shark | Belize | Mar–May | Good | |
| Bimini, BahamasGreat hammerhead | Bahamas | Jan–Feb | Good | |
| Tiger Beach, BahamasTiger shark | Bahamas | Oct–Jan | Moderate | |
| Jupiter / Palm BeachGoliath grouper | USA | Aug–Oct | Poor | |
| Turks & CaicosHumpback whale | Turks & Caicos | Jan–Feb | Moderate | |
| Barbados | Caribbean | Mar–May | Not rated | |
| Bocas del Toro | Panama | Jan–Apr | Not rated | |
| Cenotes (Tulum / Playa)Cavern and cave systems | Mexico Caribbean | Any month | Not rated | |
| Corn Islands | Nicaragua | Jan–May | Not rated | |
| CozumelThe drift walls of Palancar and Santa Rosa | Mexico Caribbean | Feb–May | Not rated | |
| Grand Bahama / Freeport, Bahamas | Bahamas | Feb–Jun | Not rated | |
| Grenada | Caribbean | Mar–May | Not rated | |
| Guanaja | Honduras | Dec–Apr | Not rated | |
| Jamaica | Caribbean | Dec–Apr | Not rated | |
| Jardines de la ReinaThe Caribbean reef sharks, silkies and goliath grouper of the marine reserve | Cuba | Feb–Jun | Not rated | |
| Providencia | Colombia | Mar–May | Not rated | |
| St. Kitts & Nevis | Caribbean | Feb–Jun | Not rated | |
| St. Lucia | Caribbean | Jan–May | Not rated | |
| Tobago | Caribbean | Jan–May | Not rated |
Schooling fishWhale sharksSharks
Best-scoring first. Rating a place against the rest of the world needs enough marine life recorded nearby, and 14 of these 44 do not have it yet — those read "Not rated" and are listed after, alphabetically. Their months, temperatures and sea state are measured the same way as everywhere else.
Dive areas in the Caribbean
Diving in the Caribbean: common questions
- When is the best time to dive the Caribbean?
- May, and the window is narrow. 20 of 30 rated destinations peak then, and it falls away either side. With 15 countries in the region, check the month for the place you have in mind rather than the region.
- What is the worst month to dive the Caribbean?
- August, when none of the rated destinations are at their best. You can still dive: Utila, Curacao, Bonaire hold up best that month.
- How warm is the water in the Caribbean?
- Between 24 °C and 31 °C, depending where you go and when. That is a 5 mm full suit at the cold end and a skin or 3 mm shorty at the mildest. Those are surface numbers; it is cooler at depth.
- Does the Caribbean have a hurricane or cyclone season?
- Yes, Jul–Nov. It peaks in August, when a destination in the Caribbean has roughly a 22% chance of a storm passing nearby in any given year. Measured from NOAA storm tracks since 1980.
- Where can you dive the Caribbean year-round?
- Bonaire, Cenotes (Tulum / Playa). The weather barely changes across the year at both, so pick your month on wildlife or on price.
- What marine life can you see scuba diving in the Caribbean?
- Schooling fish at 7 destinations, whale sharks at 5, sharks at 2 — those are the animals the Caribbean is known for. 23 species in all have been recorded near a dive area. The records only show what people logged, so a quiet month may just mean nobody logged a record.
- How many dive destinations are there in the Caribbean?
- besttimetodive.com logs 44 across 15 countries. Not an exhaustive list — these are the sites we hold verified data for.