Pemba weather by month

The best time to visit Pemba is June, July and September — 95/100 in September, 29°C and 3 rainy days. The best season is the dry season, May to November (92/100 on average).

The worst month is January at 67/100 — sweltering, soaked, clean air. See January →

Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis

Planning the wider trip? Best time to visit Mozambique →

Pemba🇲🇿 Mozambique · Eastern South Africa & Mozambique · Beach95
  1. 67Jan
  2. 72Feb
  3. 74Mar
  4. 79Apr
  5. 90May
  6. 94Jun
  7. 93Jul
  8. 93Aug
  9. 95Sep
  10. 91Oct
  11. 86Nov
  12. 77Dec

Best season: May to November (92/100 on average) · worst January (67/100)

Days
29°C
Nights
21°C
Wet days
3
Sun
11.1 h
Humidity
76%
Daylight
12 h
Pemba, Mozambique
Photo: Ton Rulkens from Mozambique · CC BY-SA 2.0

Pemba, month by month

Comfort score out of 100 for the kind of trip Pemba 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
Jan67C31°C25 d10 hQuiet1
Feb72B31°C22 d10 hQuiet1
Mar74B31°C23 d10 hQuiet1
Apr79B30°C20 d10 hShoulder1
May90S30°C6 d11 hShoulder1
Jun94S29°C4 d10 hBusy2
Jul93S28°C4 d11 hBusy2
Aug93S28°C4 d11 hShoulder3
Sep95S29°C3 d11 hBusy3
Oct91S30°C4 d12 hShoulder3
Nov86A31°C9 d12 hShoulder3
Dec77B31°C19 d11 hShoulder2

What's on in Pemba through the year

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

May
  • Dry season1 May – 15 Nov (usually)Season
June
  • Whale migration1 Jun – 15 Nov (usually)Nature
August
  • Sailfish season25 Aug – 15 Dec (usually)Season
December
  • Cyclone season1 Dec – 15 Apr (usually)Hazard

Crowds in Pemba in September

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.

Busyschool holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its best months for weather(estimated)

JFMAMJJASOND

Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet

Traveller notes on Pemba

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

Forum posters name June as a strong pick for diving here, sitting inside the dry winter season (roughly June through September) that brings the clearest water of the year. Posters are consistent that March, April and May count as the genuine rainy season to avoid, with June marking a clean transition into the more reliable dry stretch. Pemba is consistently named as a strong base and springboard for exploring the wider Quirimbas Archipelago, with direct flights from Johannesburg and Maputo making it a practical gateway. Posters generally rate June through October, alongside December-February, as the two best windows overall for diving conditions here.
Tripadvisor community · June · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗
Mozambique forum threads describe December in the Pemba/Cabo Delgado region as genuinely hot midsummer, commonly 30C+, with rain when it comes usually arriving as short, sharp storms in the late afternoon or early evening rather than settling in for the day. Several posters noted the heavier rainfall in this region typically doesn't arrive until mid-January into February, so December often means just the occasional rainy day breaking up a run of sunshine - locals described an odd rainy day as a welcome relief after a stretch of nonstop heat rather than a disruption. The consistent read: come prepared for real heat, with rain gear as a minor backup rather than the main concern.
CaboDelgadoRegular · December · 1 month ago · Read more on Tripadvisor ↗

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