Otavalo weather by month
The best time to visit Otavalo is July to September — 90/100 in August, 20°C and 11 rainy days. The best season is the dry season, June to September (87/100 on average).
The worst month is April at 68/100 — nice, soaked, clean air. See April →
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
Planning the wider trip? Best time to visit Ecuador →
Best season: June to September (87/100 on average) · worst April (68/100)
- Days
- 20°C
- Nights
- 9°C
- Wet days
- 11
- Sun
- 10.4 h
- Humidity
- 70%
- Daylight
- 12 h

Otavalo, month by month
Comfort score out of 100 for the kind of trip Otavalo 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.
What's on in Otavalo through the year
Festivals, natural spectacles, holidays and the seasons to watch out for — curated and sourced. The month pages carry the detail.
- February
- Carnaval14–17 FebFestival
- Pawkar Raymi5 Feb – 5 Mar (usually)Festival
- March
- Semana Santa3–5 AprHoliday
- June
- Inti Raymi19–29 JunFestival
- Drier highland months15 Jun – 15 Sep (usually)Season
- September
- Fiesta del Yamor4–13 SepFestival
- November
- Dia de los Difuntos1–2 NovHoliday
- December
- Kapak Raymi19–23 Dec (usually)Festival
- Ano Viejo effigies28–31 DecHoliday
Crowds in Otavalo 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.
Busyone of its best months for weather(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Traveller notes on Otavalo
What people who have been say about the place — the year-round notes first, then month by month.
Otavalo forum threads describe February as sitting near the wettest stretch of the local rainy season, though rain is typically limited to a few hours, usually in the afternoon, rather than dominating the whole day. Daytime highs were described as reaching into the mid-70s Fahrenheit with genuinely cool nights - sweater weather most evenings - and the high-altitude setting keeps humidity low even during rain spells. None of this was framed as a reason to skip the famous Saturday market, which draws vendors from across the region for one of the Andes' most significant indigenous markets, alongside the smaller daily produce market.
Forum posters name June through August as Ecuador's preferred travel window overall, including the Andean sierra where Otavalo sits, though posters are careful to note the region's 'dry season' label doesn't mean an absence of rain - just less of it than the wetter months. Typical August temperatures in the northern highlands run roughly 45F at night up to 65-75F by day, with real day-to-day variability driven by altitude and local microclimates. Posters recommend waterproof hiking shoes and a rain layer regardless of the generally favorable season, citing personal experience getting caught in rain in this exact region even during the preferred June-August stretch. Otavalo's famous Saturday market is the clear year-round draw, unaffected by which side of the wet/dry line a given week falls on.
Add your own note from Otavalo's card on the map.