Old San Juan Weather, Month by Month

Everything worth doing here is done outdoors, on unshaded stone, and that is what makes the weather a planning question rather than a comfort one. What follows is what each month does to a two-hour walk. The tours themselves are on the walking tours of Old San Juan listings.

What the weather does to a visit here

Three consequences, in order of how often they change a plan. Heat decides what time you start: guides on these routes time water stops and hunt shade, and the reviews say so more often than they say anything else. Rain is heavy and brief rather than all-day, so it soaks a group and rarely cancels one — one reviewer describes a downpour that drenched everybody and still rates the morning five stars. Hurricane season, 1 June to 30 November, changes almost nothing about a given day and a great deal about how you book it.

Old San Juan month by month

January

Outside hurricane season and the driest stretch of the year. No federal fee-free day falls this month, so adult entry is $10. Sunset comes at about 6:08 pm, an hour after the forts close. A morning walk and an afternoon on the wall both work.

February

Still dry, still outside hurricane season, and the busiest month for cruise calls. Presidents Day on 16 February is a federal fee-free day at both forts. Sunset is about 6:25 pm. Book the small-group walks further ahead than you would in autumn.

March

The last of the dry season and the longest run of reliable mornings. No fee-free day this month. Sunset reaches about 6:34 pm, giving ninety minutes of daylight after the forts shut. This is the easiest month to do both forts on one receipt.

April

Rain begins to build towards the end of the month and the heat starts climbing. No fee-free day. Sunset about 6:41 pm. Shade planning starts to matter on the afternoon walks, and the 9am starts fill up first.

May

Wetter, and the month before the season opens. Memorial Day on 25 May is a fee-free day at the forts. Sunset about 6:51 pm, nearly two hours after closing. Rain here is heavy and brief rather than all-day, so it rarely cancels a walk.

June

The Atlantic hurricane season opens on the first of the month and runs to 30 November. Flag Day on 14 June is fee-free. Sunset is at its latest, about 7:02 pm. Early activity in the season is uncommon, but this is when free cancellation starts earning its place.

July

Hot, humid and busy with local holidays. Independence Day weekend, 3 to 5 July, is fee-free at the forts and they are correspondingly full. Sunset about 7:04 pm. Take the earliest start on offer and treat every shade stop as part of the plan.

August

The hottest month on record: the National Weather Service's 1991-2020 normals give an average maximum of 89.1°F and 12.8 days at or above 90°F. The NPS birthday on 25 August is fee-free. Sunset about 6:51 pm. This is the month to book a seated tour if you are unsure.

September

The statistical peak of hurricane season, and the quietest month for visitors. Constitution Day on 17 September is fee-free. Sunset about 6:27 pm. Watch the forecast, book flexibly, and enjoy the emptiest forts of the year.

October

Still inside the season, still wet, and starting to cool. Theodore Roosevelt's birthday on 27 October is fee-free. Sunset about 6:02 pm, only an hour after the forts close. Plan the fort visit earlier in the day than you would in spring.

November

The season ends on the thirtieth and the cruise ships return. Veterans Day on 11 November is fee-free. Sunset about 5:47 pm, the earliest of the year. Afternoons are short, so put the wall walk before the fort rather than after.

December

Dry, mild and the start of the high season for visitors. No fee-free day this month. Sunset about 5:50 pm. The forts close on Christmas Day and New Year's Day, which is worth checking against your dates before you book anything.

The year in one table

Sunset matters here more than temperature, because the forts shut at five and the question every month is what is left of the day afterwards. Times are for the middle of each month in Atlantic Standard Time, which Puerto Rico keeps all year.

The seasons, and which one you want

December to April is the dry season and the high season, with the most reliable mornings and the most competition for the small-group walks. May to August is hot and wet, with the longest evenings of the year — sunset past seven in June and July gives you two hours of daylight after the forts close. September to November is the wettest and quietest stretch, and it is also when you will have the ramparts closest to yourself.

If the choice is open, March is the strongest single month: dry, not yet at its hottest, and with ninety minutes of daylight left after five o'clock.

Best time of day

Nine in the morning, without much competition. The forts open then and are quietest in the first hour; the heat is at its most manageable; and finishing a walk by eleven leaves the rest of the day to go back to whatever you wanted more of. The alternative is the late afternoon on the wall, which is the better light and the worse queue.

What does not work well is the middle of the day between May and September. That is the shape of morning travellers here struggle with most, and it is entirely avoidable.

What to carry, whatever the month

The list barely changes across the year, which is the useful thing about a tropical city. Water, more than you think, because the walk is exposed for most of its length. Closed shoes with grip, because the adoquín cobbles are uneven in the dry and slick in the wet. Sun protection, and note that two operators list hats, sunglasses and sunscreen in their own excludes columns as things to bring rather than things they supply.

Add a light waterproof between May and November and take it with you even on a clear morning. And carry a card rather than cash for the forts, which is on the visiting page along with everything else about the gate.

Frequently asked