January in Cairns — the hardest end of the year
Hardest · 4.1/10January averages 27°C (81°F) with humidity around 82%, so the practical pattern is early mornings, a long midday break, and evenings back outside.
483 mm of rain puts this in monsoon territory — about 24 sunny days across the whole month, and multi-day washouts are normal.
It scores 4.1/10 here, 12th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are light for this destination.
Pack the lightest breathable clothing you own, a hat, and more water than feels necessary, a proper rain shell rather than an umbrella, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 4.9 points higher on the same scale.
February in Cairns — the hardest end of the year
Hardest · 4.2/10February averages 27°C (81°F) with humidity around 82%, so the practical pattern is early mornings, a long midday break, and evenings back outside.
362 mm of rain puts this in monsoon territory — about 22 sunny days across the whole month, and multi-day washouts are normal.
It scores 4.2/10 here, 10th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect low-season pricing, and crowds are light for this destination.
Pack the lightest breathable clothing you own, a hat, and more water than feels necessary, a proper rain shell rather than an umbrella, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 4.8 points higher on the same scale.
March in Cairns — the hardest end of the year
Hardest · 4.2/10March averages 27°C (80°F) with humidity around 81%, so the practical pattern is early mornings, a long midday break, and evenings back outside.
319 mm of rain puts this in monsoon territory — about 26 sunny days across the whole month, and multi-day washouts are normal.
It scores 4.2/10 here, 11th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect low-season pricing, and crowds are light for this destination.
Pack the lightest breathable clothing you own, a hat, and more water than feels necessary, a proper rain shell rather than an umbrella, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 4.8 points higher on the same scale.
April in Cairns — the hardest end of the year
Hardest · 4.6/10April averages 26°C (78°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
327 mm of rain puts this in monsoon territory — about 27 sunny days across the whole month, and multi-day washouts are normal.
It scores 4.6/10 here, 8th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect low-season pricing, and crowds are light for this destination.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, a proper rain shell rather than an umbrella, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 4.4 points higher on the same scale.
May in Cairns — reliably good (6th best month)
Good · 7/10May averages 24°C (75°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
Rainfall runs 99 mm, so plan one flexible day in three; you still get about 29 sunny days and 11.3 hours of daylight.
It scores 7/10 here, 6th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are moderate.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, a packable rain layer, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 2 points higher on the same scale.
June in Cairns — the year's strongest window
Best window · 8.6/10June averages 22°C (72°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
Rainfall runs 56 mm, so plan one flexible day in three; you still get about 28 sunny days and 11.1 hours of daylight.
On our climate-comfort scale this is the top-ranked month of the year for Cairns at 8.6/10 — the reference point every other month on this page is measured against.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are moderate.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, a packable rain layer, footwear you can get muddy.
July in Cairns — the year's strongest window
Best window · 8.6/10July averages 22°C (71°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
Rainfall runs 63 mm, so plan one flexible day in three; you still get about 29 sunny days and 11.2 hours of daylight.
On our climate-comfort scale this is the top-ranked month of the year for Cairns at 8.6/10 — the reference point every other month on this page is measured against.
Expect peak pricing, and this is one of the busiest months here. You are paying the year's highest rates for the year's best conditions — book early or shift a few weeks either side.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, a packable rain layer, footwear you can get muddy.
August in Cairns — the year's strongest window
Best window · 9/10August averages 22°C (71°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
Rainfall runs 50 mm, so plan one flexible day in three; you still get about 29 sunny days and 11.6 hours of daylight.
On our climate-comfort scale this is the top-ranked month of the year for Cairns at 9/10 — the reference point every other month on this page is measured against.
Expect peak pricing, and this is one of the busiest months here. You are paying the year's highest rates for the year's best conditions — book early or shift a few weeks either side.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, a packable rain layer, footwear you can get muddy.
September in Cairns — reliably good (4th best month)
Good · 8.2/10September averages 23°C (74°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
Rainfall runs 59 mm, so plan one flexible day in three; you still get about 29 sunny days and 12 hours of daylight.
It scores 8.2/10 here, 4th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are moderate.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, a packable rain layer, footwear you can get muddy.
October in Cairns — reliably good (5th best month)
Good · 7.9/10October averages 25°C (78°F) — warm enough for beach and boat plans, still short of the heat that pushes sightseeing into early morning.
Expect 41 mm of rain — occasional showers rather than washed-out days — alongside about 31 sunny days and 12.5 daylight hours.
It scores 7.9/10 here, 5th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are moderate.
Pack light clothing, swimwear and real sun protection, footwear you can get muddy.
November in Cairns — workable with trade-offs
Trade-offs · 6.7/10November averages 27°C (80°F) with humidity around 75%, so the practical pattern is early mornings, a long midday break, and evenings back outside.
Rainfall runs 72 mm, so plan one flexible day in three; you still get about 30 sunny days and 12.9 hours of daylight.
It scores 6.7/10 here, 7th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are moderate.
Pack the lightest breathable clothing you own, a hat, and more water than feels necessary, a packable rain layer, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 2.3 points higher on the same scale.
December in Cairns — the hardest end of the year
Hardest · 4.3/10December averages 27°C (81°F) with humidity around 79%, so the practical pattern is early mornings, a long midday break, and evenings back outside.
395 mm of rain puts this in monsoon territory — about 26 sunny days across the whole month, and multi-day washouts are normal.
It scores 4.3/10 here, 9th of 12 months, against 9/10 in the destination's best month.
Expect mid-season pricing, and crowds are light for this destination.
Pack the lightest breathable clothing you own, a hat, and more water than feels necessary, a proper rain shell rather than an umbrella, footwear you can get muddy.
If your dates are flexible, August is materially better in Cairns — 4.7 points higher on the same scale.
