Even if you’re vacationing during the rainy season in Hawaii, you’ll likely still be able to enjoy a good amount of sunshine. Still, a rainy day is the best time to discover local Hawaii businesses. Here’s what to do if the idealized “day at the beach” isn’t in the forecast during your Hawaii vacation.
When is the Rainy Season in Hawaii?
Hawaii sees the most rain from November through March, though there is a chance of rain any time of year. This rainy season in Hawaii is also when we enjoy (somewhat) cooler temperatures, refreshing breezes, and winter surf swells.
The rainy season in Hawaii mostly affects the windward side of the islands, which is one of the reasons most islands have their resort areas on their southern sides, where there is less rain and more sun.
So, if you’re staying in Waikiki, Ko Olina, or resort areas of other islands, you likely won’t feel as much of the rainy season during your vacation.
Hawaii Winter Weather
During the winter months in Hawaii, we sometimes experience days or even weeks of sullen skies and dampened days. Those days don’t stop business as usual, unless unusually severe weather knocks out power or closes roads. (That happens in vacation destinations around the world, all the time.)
For visitors from almost anywhere, it never gets cold in Hawaii. It may get chilly or snow on the 13,000-foot summit of Mauna Kea. But it certainly beats the frigid cold, snow, and frost that Hawaii visitors are escaping during winter.
Hawaii residents will still set up tents and campgrounds when the wind and rain blow sideways. If the waves are good, we’re out there to ride them.
“Should I Still Plan a Vacation During the Rainy Season in Hawaii?”
This is a question we get a lot, and we say there’s no reason to avoid the rainy season when you’re planning your vacation. Heavy, long-lasting rain is very rare, and you’ll still likely enjoy lots of sunshine.
Plus, if you avoid the rainy season in Hawaii, you’ll miss seeing big-wave surfers, baby whales breaching not far offshore, snow on the top of the volcanoes, and incredible lush greenery along the coasts. And, of course, there are the incredible rainbows that grace our skies throughout Hawaii’s rainy season.
What To Do During a Rainy Hawaii Day
On a wet day during the rainy season in Hawaii, many of us will seek out restaurants, galleries, museums, and other indoor attractions to stay out of the rain and still get out of the house. There are such places on every island, and they are all worthy of the minor effort of getting to them.
Sustained, rainy, and windy weather in Hawaii is not typical during our winter months. And any wet weather almost never lasts long. The sun is always bound to shine on our shores and verdant valleys. Rainbows abound. Sometimes, though, a stubborn weather front will wander through and cloak the Aloha State with cloud cover and not-so-perfect weather conditions.
This is most likely during the rainy season in Hawaii.
It’s during those atypical times that local knowledge about escaping the wind and rain makes a big difference. Discovering hidden gems and indoor attractions will help make your Hawaii vacation especially unique. It’s part of the “real Hawaii” that many, if not all, Hawaii visitors are after.
When the wind blows and the skies pour down, there is something special about settling into a local restaurant. Perhaps with a steaming cup of coffee grown and roasted on the Big Island, or a fine, warm rum cocktail made with homegrown sugarcane, or a thick burger made from free-range beef raised in the whispering grasses of quiet rural Hawaiian pastures.
Rainy winter weather in Hawaii is as much a part of the Aloha State experience as a Mai Tai on the beach on a fiery and cloudless sunset evening.
In fact, most of us who live here know that it’s always just “passing, brah.” Instead of making for the beach, we’ll head for the nearest sushi joint, noodle house, or neighborhood watering hole. Art museums and galleries welcome throngs of visitors and residents alike, all seeking the real Hawaii without getting drenched. Unless, of course, you plan to simply stay in the water (you’re wet anyway, so why fret over the rainy season in Hawaii?).
Planning a Vacation During Any Season
We here at Hawaii Aloha Travel can make your Hawaii vacation your best-ever travel choice, rain or shine. We’re excited to talk to you about your vacation plans, whether you’re visiting during the rainy season in Hawaii or during our dry summers.
