Makassar (Sulawesi) weather by month

The best time to visit Makassar (Sulawesi) is July to September — 74/100 in August, 33°C and 11 rainy days. The best season is the dry season, May to October (64/100 on average).

The worst month is December at 44/100 — sweltering, soaked, muggy air. See December →

Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis

Planning the wider trip? Best time to visit Indonesia →

Makassar🇮🇩 Indonesia · Java, Bali & Nusa Tenggara · City74
  1. 45Jan
  2. 46Feb
  3. 49Mar
  4. 52Apr
  5. 55May
  6. 58Jun
  7. 65Jul
  8. 74Aug
  9. 70Sep
  10. 62Oct
  11. 51Nov
  12. 44Dec

Best season: May to October (64/100 on average) · worst December (44/100)

Days
33°C
Nights
22°C
Wet days
11
Sun
10.8 h
Humidity
78%
Daylight
12 h
Makassar, Indonesia
Photo: muallim nur · Pexels

Makassar, month by month

Comfort score out of 100 for the kind of trip Makassar is best for, the average high, rainy days and hours of sun a day from the climate normals, and how busy it tends to be.

MonthScoreTierHighRainSunCrowdsOn
Jan45F30°C29 d7 hPeak1
Feb46F30°C26 d7 hQuiet—
Mar49F31°C28 d8 hPeak1
Apr52D32°C27 d9 hBusy1
May55D32°C25 d10 hShoulder—
Jun58D32°C22 d9 hBusy1
Jul65C32°C16 d10 hBusy1
Aug74B33°C11 d11 hBusy2
Sep70B33°C14 d11 hBusy1
Oct62C33°C21 d11 hShoulder1
Nov51D32°C28 d9 hShoulder—
Dec44F30°C29 d7 hPeak1

What's on in Makassar through the year

Festivals, natural spectacles, holidays and the seasons to watch out for — curated and sourced. The month pages carry the detail.

March
  • Ramadan and Lebaran5 Mar – 15 Apr (usually)Holiday
June
  • Dry season1 Jun – 31 Oct (usually)Season
August
  • Independence Day17 AugHoliday
December
  • Christmas and New Year18 Dec – 5 JanHoliday

Crowds in Makassar in August

How busy the place itself is — school and mass holidays, the months an editor tagged, and how sought-after the weather makes them. Never part of the comfort score.

BusyIndependence Day, school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it(estimated)

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet

Good to know before you go to Makassar

Real experiences from travellers' own write-ups, quoted with a link to the original.

Getting around

A guide to getting around Makassar recommends the local pete-pete minibuses as a cheap, genuinely practical way to travel: flag one down on the street and call out your destination, and the driver will let you know if they're headed that way. Their seasonal tip: the dry season, May through September, brings lower humidity and minimal rainfall, making it the more comfortable window for exploring the Fort Rotterdam colonial quarter and the Losari Beach waterfront on foot.
Notes of Nomads · Read the original ↗

Traveller notes on Makassar

What people who have been say about the place — the year-round notes first, then month by month.

Forum posters discussing Indonesia's wider wet season note February typically runs a bit drier than January, though rain remains a real presence and some posters describe daily rain potentially continuing well into May depending on the year. It's worth noting Makassar's own 12-month climate record backs the drier-than-January comparison (about 26 rainy days in February versus January's 30) but doesn't support treating February as close to the season's end - the city's genuinely drier stretch doesn't arrive until around July-September. Posters describing Makassar itself note it runs hot in a similar way to Brisbane in December, with southern Sulawesi generally considered a reasonable place to be this time of year despite the rain. Posters generally rate February as still solidly wet season for Makassar, marginally better than January but far from the year's driest stretch.
Tripadvisor community · February · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗
Forum posters describe August as sitting in the region's drier season, with generally good conditions for travel compared to the wetter months, even though some rain remains part of the picture rather than a fully dry stretch. Temperatures are described by one poster as 'a bit hot, just like Brisbane in December' - warm and humid but not extreme. Posters recommend Makassar as a worthwhile stop for diving, fishing and jetboat activities on the water, generally framing it as an underrated base compared to more heavily-touristed parts of Indonesia, with August's drier conditions supporting a full slate of outdoor activities.
Tripadvisor community · August · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗

Add your own note from Makassar's card on the map.