Fiji · Month comparison

March vs May

May ranks #1 overall vs March at #9. Dry season begins — 90mm of rain, 7 hours of sunshine, and the best diving conditions returning.

Fiji March — the green hillside of Viti Levu in late wet season with rain clearing over a turquoise bay

March

#9 of 12 months

Strong option

Cyclone risk easing, rain still heavy — but the transition toward the dry season is beginning.

  • ↑Cyclone risk diminishing from February levels: March is still within the cyclone season but statistically the risk is reducing — the transition period suits those with genuine schedule flexibility
  • ↑Budget resort pricing: March is cheaper than the dry season months by 25–35%, and the lower occupancy means personalised service at even the larger Mamanuca resorts
Fiji May — clear water around a coral reef in the Mamanuca Islands as the dry season begins

May

#1 of 12 months

Best match

Dry season begins — 90mm of rain, 7 hours of sunshine, and the best diving conditions returning.

  • ↑Dry season properly underway: 90mm versus 154mm in April — the pattern shifts to occasional light showers rather than heavy rain, and multi-day stretches of clear weather become normal
  • ↑Diving visibility recovering to dry-season clarity: 15–25 metres of visibility in the Somosomo Strait (Taveuni) and the Mamanuca outer reefs as river runoff subsides
FactorMarchMay
Weather score
3
8
Value score
7
6
Crowd score
8
6
Events score
3
4
Atmosphere
6
8
Avg high temp30°C28°C
Monthly rain241mm90mm
Daily sunshine5.5hrs7hrs

March trade-offs

  • ↓241mm of rain: still a very wet month — Nadi and the western side of Viti Levu receive heavy rainfall, though the eastern and interior areas are generally drier
  • ↓5.5 hours of sunshine: cloud cover is persistent and diving visibility is still affected by wet-season runoff in coastal areas
  • ↓The shoulder season gap: not cheap enough to be the budget month of choice, not dry enough to be a confident weather choice

May trade-offs

  • ↓90mm is still light rain: May is not reliably dry, and island transfers to the more exposed Yasawa Islands still carry occasional weather delays
  • ↓Cooler evenings by Fiji standards: 22°C lows mean a light layer is useful after dark — nothing dramatic, but a shift from the wet-season warmth
  • ↓Visibility still building toward its best: while dramatically better than March–April, May's visibility is below the July–August peak at many dive sites
See all 12 months for Fiji →March in detail →May in detail →
Scores compare months within Fiji. Climate data: Open Meteo ERA5 30-year normals (1991–2020). Methodology →