Weather in Peru
Peru has three distinctive regions with three distinctive climates. The coastal region, which is mainly desert has a dry, hot climate for most of the year, with a few places reaching temperatures of up to 40°C (104°F) from December through April. Further inland in the highlands of the Andes, there are two distinctive seasons the wet season from December through to the end of February and the dry season from March through November. Finally the tropical jungle region of Peru is humid all year round, with the humidity and rain intensifying from December through March.
Best Time to Travel
May through August is considered peak season, and the most popular attractions including Machu Picchu can expect to receive visitors in excess of 2,000 people per day. It is also worth remembering that for most of the year Peru is very dry with little rain if any. In the highlands The City of Cusco, The Sacred Valley and Machu Picchu become very dry and the colors of the countryside turn form lush greens to dry browns. During the rainy season, fewer travelers visit Peru although a fair number still comes to the country.
In our opinion the ideal time to travel is after the rainy season and before peak season, when the countryside is lush and green, the rainy season has passed and the bulk of the tourists have yet to descend on Peru. So just to re-cap, the months of April and May are excellent months to travel.
Rainy Season in the Amazon Jungle
For those that wish to travel into the Amazon Jungle region of Peru, it is worth noting that during the rainy season that the heavy rains cause the ground and river banks to become very soft and boggy, making embarking and disembarking river boats all the more difficult and often a little dangerous. Click here for more detailed information on the rainy season in The Amazon Jungle of Peru
