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Climate and Average Weather Year Round in French Polynesia French Polynesia

The climate in French Polynesia is hot, oppressive, windy, and partly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 72°F to 88°F and is rarely below 68°F or above 90°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best time of year to visit French Polynesia for hot-weather activities is from late May to early October.

Climate in French Polynesia

hotwarmhotJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecNowNow78%78%21%21%overcastclearprecipitation: 7.4 inprecipitation: 7.4 in0.8 in0.8 inmuggy: 100%muggy: 100%79%79%beach/pool score: 7.8beach/pool score: 7.84.64.6
French Polynesia weather by month. Click on each chart for more information.

The temperature in French Polynesia varies so little throughout the year that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss hot and cold seasons.

Average High and Low Temperature in French Polynesia

Average High and Low Temperature in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0°F0°F10°F10°F20°F20°F30°F30°F40°F40°F50°F50°F60°F60°F70°F70°F80°F80°F90°F90°F100°F100°FAug 183°FAug 183°FMar 2588°FMar 2588°F72°F72°F77°F77°FJan 2187°FJan 2187°FJun 2484°FJun 2484°FSep 2184°FSep 2184°F76°F76°F76°F76°F73°F73°F73°F73°FNowNow
The daily average high (red line) and low (blue line) temperature, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted lines are the corresponding average perceived temperatures.
AverageJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
High 87°F87°F88°F87°F86°F85°F84°F83°F84°F85°F86°F86°F
Temp. 81°F81°F82°F81°F80°F78°F77°F77°F78°F79°F80°F81°F
Low 76°F77°F77°F76°F75°F73°F72°F72°F73°F74°F75°F76°F

The figure below shows you a compact characterization of the entire year of hourly average temperatures. The horizontal axis is the day of the year, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the color is the average temperature for that hour and day.

Average Hourly Temperature in French Polynesia

Average Hourly Temperature in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMNowNowcomfortablewarmhotcomfortable
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The average hourly temperature, color coded into bands. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.
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In French Polynesia, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in French Polynesia begins around May 14 and lasts for 5.2 months, ending around October 21.

The clearest month of the year in French Polynesia is August, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 77% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around October 21 and lasts for 6.8 months, ending around May 14.

The cloudiest month of the year in French Polynesia is December, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 77% of the time.

Cloud Cover Categories in French Polynesia

Cloud Cover Categories in French PolynesiaclearercloudiercloudierJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%Aug 2078%Aug 2078%Dec 2921%Dec 2921%May 1449%May 1449%Oct 2150%Oct 2150%NowNowclearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercast
0% clear 20% mostly clear 40% partly cloudy 60% mostly cloudy 80% overcast 100%
The percentage of time spent in each cloud cover band, categorized by the percentage of the sky covered by clouds.
FractionJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cloudier 76%74%67%63%49%34%26%23%30%48%65%77%
Clearer 24%26%33%37%51%66%74%77%70%52%35%23%

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in French Polynesia varies significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 6.0 months, from October 31 to April 28, with a greater than 32% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in French Polynesia is December, with an average of 14.8 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 6.1 months, from April 28 to October 31. The month with the fewest wet days in French Polynesia is August, with an average of 3.6 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in French Polynesia is December, with an average of 14.8 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 53% on December 16.

Daily Chance of Precipitation in French Polynesia

Daily Chance of Precipitation in French PolynesiawetwetdryJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%Dec 1653%Dec 1653%Sep 1110%Sep 1110%Oct 3132%Oct 3132%Apr 2832%Apr 2832%NowNowrain
The percentage of days in which various types of precipitation are observed, excluding trace quantities: rain alone, snow alone, and mixed (both rain and snow fell in the same day).
Days ofJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Rain 13.8d11.4d9.1d8.8d7.5d5.0d4.2d3.6d3.7d7.8d10.3d14.8d

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. French Polynesia experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in French Polynesia. The month with the most rain in French Polynesia is December, with an average rainfall of 7.0 inches.

The month with the least rain in French Polynesia is September, with an average rainfall of 1.0 inches.

Average Monthly Rainfall in French Polynesia

Average Monthly Rainfall in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 in0 in5 in5 in10 in10 in15 in15 inDec 257.4 inDec 257.4 inSep 30.8 inSep 30.8 inJul 311.2 inJul 311.2 inNowNow
The average rainfall (solid line) accumulated over the course of a sliding 31-day period centered on the day in question, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted line is the corresponding average snowfall.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Rainfall 6.4″5.1″3.7″3.3″2.5″1.6″1.1″1.0″1.0″2.7″4.0″7.0″

The length of the day in French Polynesia varies over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 11 hours, 14 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 20, with 13 hours, 1 minute of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in French Polynesia

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 hr24 hr4 hr20 hr8 hr16 hr12 hr12 hr16 hr8 hr20 hr4 hr24 hr0 hr12 hr, 6 minSep 2212 hr, 6 minSep 2213 hr, 1 minDec 2013 hr, 1 minDec 2012 hr, 7 minMar 1912 hr, 7 minMar 1911 hr, 14 minJun 2011 hr, 14 minJun 20daydaynightNowNow
The number of hours during which the Sun is visible (black line). From bottom (most yellow) to top (most gray), the color bands indicate: full daylight, twilight (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and full night.
Hours ofJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight 12.9h12.6h12.2h11.7h11.4h11.3h11.3h11.6h12.0h12.4h12.8h13.0h

The earliest sunrise is at 4:39 AM on November 21, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 7 minutes later at 5:46 AM on July 8. The earliest sunset is at 4:56 PM on June 1, and the latest sunset is 1 hour, 1 minute later at 5:57 PM on January 20.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in French Polynesia during 2024.

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in French Polynesia

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PMNov 214:39 AMNov 214:39 AM5:57 PMJan 205:57 PMJan 20Jun 14:56 PMJun 14:56 PM5:46 AMJul 85:46 AMJul 8daySolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunsetNowNow
The solar day over the course of the year 2024. From bottom to top, the black lines are the previous solar midnight, sunrise, solar noon, sunset, and the next solar midnight. The day, twilights (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and night are indicated by the color bands from yellow to gray.

The figure below presents a compact representation of the sun's elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon) and azimuth (its compass bearing) for every hour of every day in the reporting period. The horizontal axis is the day of the year and the vertical axis is the hour of the day. For a given day and hour of that day, the background color indicates the azimuth of the sun at that moment. The black isolines are contours of constant solar elevation.

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in French Polynesia

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AM0000101010102020202030303030404040405050505060606070708000001010101020202020303030304040404050505050606060707080805290NowNow
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth over the course of the year 2024. The black lines are lines of constant solar elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon, in degrees). The background color fills indicate the azimuth (the compass bearing) of the sun. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries of the cardinal compass points indicate the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in French Polynesia

The time in which the moon is above the horizon (light blue area), with new moons (dark gray lines) and full moons (blue lines) indicated. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

French Polynesia experiences some seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 11 months, from August 28 to July 20, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 84% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in French Polynesia is March, with 30.9 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in French Polynesia is August, with 25.0 days that are muggy or worse.

Humidity Comfort Levels in French Polynesia

Humidity Comfort Levels in French PolynesiamuggymuggyJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%Aug 379%Aug 379%100%Mar 22100%Mar 22NowNowmiserablemiserableoppressiveoppressivemuggymuggyhumidhumid
dry 55°F comfortable 60°F humid 65°F muggy 70°F oppressive 75°F miserable
The percentage of time spent at various humidity comfort levels, categorized by dew point.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Muggy days 30.9d28.9d30.9d29.8d30.1d27.0d26.0d25.0d26.4d29.1d29.5d30.9d

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in French Polynesia experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.7 months, from May 29 to October 20, with average wind speeds of more than 11.5 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in French Polynesia is July, with an average hourly wind speed of 12.5 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.3 months, from October 20 to May 29. The calmest month of the year in French Polynesia is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 10.5 miles per hour.

Average Wind Speed in French Polynesia

Average Wind Speed in French PolynesiawindyJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 mph0 mph2 mph2 mph4 mph4 mph6 mph6 mph8 mph8 mph10 mph10 mph12 mph12 mph14 mph14 mph16 mph16 mph18 mph18 mphJul 2912.8 mphJul 2912.8 mphApr 410.3 mphApr 410.3 mphMay 2911.5 mphMay 2911.5 mphOct 2011.5 mphOct 2011.5 mphNowNow
The average of mean hourly wind speeds (dark gray line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Wind Speed (mph) 11.511.510.610.511.211.912.512.212.411.811.210.9

The predominant average hourly wind direction in French Polynesia is from the east throughout the year.

Wind Direction in French Polynesia

Wind Direction in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%NowNoweastnorthsouthwest
northeastsouthwest
The percentage of hours in which the mean wind direction is from each of the four cardinal wind directions, excluding hours in which the mean wind speed is less than 1.0 mph. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries are the percentage of hours spent in the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

French Polynesia is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 3.6 months, from January 18 to May 5, with an average temperature above 83°F. The month of the year in French Polynesia with the warmest water is March, with an average temperature of 84°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.3 months, from July 8 to October 18, with an average temperature below 80°F. The month of the year in French Polynesia with the coolest water is August, with an average temperature of 79°F.

Average Water Temperature in French Polynesia

Average Water Temperature in French PolynesiawarmcoolJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec77°F77°F78°F78°F79°F79°F80°F80°F81°F81°F82°F82°F83°F83°F84°F84°F85°F85°F86°F86°FMar 2084°FMar 2084°F79°FAug 1379°FAug 13Jan 1883°FJan 1883°FMay 583°FMay 583°FJul 880°FJul 880°FOct 1880°FOct 1880°FNowNow
The daily average water temperature (purple line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
WaterJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Temperature 83°F83°F84°F83°F82°F81°F80°F79°F79°F80°F81°F82°F

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in French Polynesia throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit French Polynesia for general outdoor tourist activities is from mid June to late September, with a peak score in the third week of August.

Tourism Score in French Polynesia

Tourism Score in French Polynesiabest timeJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810107.97.93.73.7NowNowtemperaturetemperature cloudscloudsprecipitationprecipitationtourism score
The tourism score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit French Polynesia for hot-weather activities is from late May to early October, with a peak score in the last week of August.

Beach/Pool Score in French Polynesia

Beach/Pool Score in French Polynesiabest timeJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810107.87.84.64.6NowNowtemperaturetemperature cloudscloudsprecipitationprecipitationbeach/pool score
The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

Temperatures in French Polynesia are sufficiently warm year round that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss the growing season in these terms. We nevertheless include the chart below as an illustration of the distribution of temperatures experienced throughout the year.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in French Polynesia

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%100%Jan 1100%Jan 1100%Jul 2100%Jul 2NowNowcomfortablewarmhot
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The percentage of time spent in various temperature bands. The black line is the percentage chance that a given day is within the growing season.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

Growing Degree Days in French Polynesia

Growing Degree Days in French PolynesiaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0°F0°F2,000°F2,000°F4,000°F4,000°F6,000°F6,000°F8,000°F8,000°F10,000°F10,000°FJul 490°FJul 490°FAug 3900°FAug 3900°FJun 3010,742°FJun 3010,742°FNowNow
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of the year, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.7 months, from September 13 to December 4, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.1 kWh. The brightest month of the year in French Polynesia is October, with an average of 6.5 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.1 months, from April 21 to July 25, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.8 kWh. The darkest month of the year in French Polynesia is June, with an average of 4.4 kWh.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in French Polynesia

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in French PolynesiabrightdarkJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWh9 kWh9 kWhOct 196.6 kWhOct 196.6 kWhJun 174.4 kWhJun 174.4 kWhDec 46.1 kWhDec 46.1 kWhApr 214.8 kWhApr 214.8 kWhJul 254.8 kWhJul 254.8 kWhNowNow
The average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground per square meter (orange line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Solar Energy (kWh) 5.75.55.44.94.54.44.75.46.26.56.45.9

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of French Polynesia are -15.000 deg latitude, -140.000 deg longitude, and 0 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of French Polynesia is essentially flat, with a maximum elevation change of 0 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 0 feet. Within 10 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet). Within 50 miles is also essentially flat (0 feet).

The area within 2 miles of French Polynesia is covered by water (100%), within 10 miles by water (100%), and within 50 miles by water (100%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in French Polynesia, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

The details of the data sources used for this report can be found on the Fa'a'ā International Airport page.

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

Please review our full terms contained on our Terms of Service page.

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