Cook Islands Weather

IN SHORT...

The Cook Islands weather is typically tropical. Summer is hotter and more humid with a higher rainfall and the risk of tropical storms and sometimes cyclones (hurricanes). Winter is cooler and drier. Aitutaki and the northern islands are noticeably warmer than the capital island, Rarotonga, which accumulates cloud around its mountain peaks. Mangaia in the south is the coolest island; Penrhyn and Rakahanga in the North are the hottest as they're closer to the equator (typically 5-7 degrees celcius warmer than Rarotonga).

SUMMER: NOVEMBER TO APRIL

The summer rainy season begins in December and lasts until April. November to March is also the cyclone (hurricane) season. It can become hot and humid (29 degrees celcius/84 fahrenheit by day) with bright sunny mornings and late afternoon downpours around Rarotonga. As the heat accumulates over the Pacific Ocean during this season, depressions can form bringing with them thunderstorms, strong winds and the occasional tropical cyclone. According to the national newspaper, The Cook Islands News: "on Rarotonga we judge how hot the weather is by checking how much the tar seal on the roads has melted!"

WINTER: MAY TO OCTOBER
This is the "dry season". July is midwinter and the average daily temperature is 25 degrees celcius/77 fahrenheit. This drops to around 19 degrees celcius/66 fahrenheit at night. And on really cold nights, it can fall as low as 14 celcius/57 fahrenheit! The lowest winter temperature on record was in 1965 when the thermometer fell to just over 9 degrees C (48F)!!!

LATEST REPORTS

Other Islands

Rarotonga

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TYPICAL TEMPERATURES IN RAROTONGA
                      Jan      Feb      Mar     Apr     May     Jun     Jul     Aug     Sep     Oct     Nov     Dec
Maximum       29        29         29        28       27        29       25       25       25        26       27       28
Minimum        23        23         23        22       20        26       19       18       19        20       21       22
                              All temperatures are in degrees celcius (centigrade)

Approximate conversions from celcius to fahrenheit are as follows:
29C=84F, 28=82, 27=80, 26=78, 25=77, 24=75, 23=73, 22=71, 21=69, 20=68, 19=66, 18=64

CYCLONE SEASON
Cyclones (elsewhere called hurricanes or typhoons) are a fact of life in this part of the world. The cyclone season in the Cooks runs from November to March, and at worst they can bring winds around 200kph, very stormy seas, flooding and extensive damage. But the extreme ones are relatively rare. A Canadian professor who studied their history says that between 1820 and 2006 they averaged less than one a season. And 29% per cent occur in February.