Santa Marta in Spring
In spring (March, April and May), Santa Marta sees average daytime highs around 27°C and overnight lows near 26°C, with 167 mm of rain over about 15 wet days across the season. It is the 3rd-warmest season and the 3rd-wettest season.
Across spring, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 27°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across spring, and the air most often feels oppressive.
Spring is Santa Marta's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. Santa Marta has little temperature swing across the year, so its calendar seasons blur — the season framing matters less here than for a place with four distinct seasons. For the whole year in context, see Santa Marta's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 27°C
- 3rd-warmest season
- Avg overnight low
- 26°C
- Rainfall
- 167 mm
- 15 wet days
- Avg wind
- 25 km/h
- Travel score
- 7.2
- 2nd-best season
- Months
- Mar · Apr · May
Temperature in Santa Marta in Spring
Across spring, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 27°C.
A typical spring day in Santa Marta reaches about 27°C and drops to 26°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is May, the coolest March.
Santa Marta weather by month
How the three spring months (March, April and May) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26° / 25° | 4 | 0.3 | 11.4 | 8.7 |
| Feb | 26° / 25° | 3 | 0.6 | 11.6 | 8.7 |
| Mar | 26° / 25° | 5 | 1.1 | 11.9 | 8.3 |
| Apr | 27° / 26° | 33 | 3.3 | 12.2 | 7.3 |
| May | 27° / 26° | 129 | 10.9 | 12.5 | 5.9 |
| Jun | 28° / 26° | 95 | 11.1 | 12.6 | 5.8 |
| Jul | 28° / 26° | 78 | 8.4 | 12.6 | 6.2 |
| Aug | 28° / 26° | 84 | 11.9 | 12.4 | 5.7 |
| Sep | 28° / 26° | 140 | 16.4 | 12.1 | 5.0 |
| Oct | 27° / 26° | 199 | 19.8 | 11.7 | 4.8 |
| Nov | 27° / 26° | 129 | 12.1 | 11.5 | 6.0 |
| Dec | 27° / 26° | 22 | 2.7 | 11.4 | 7.9 |
Cloud cover in Spring
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across spring.
Chance of precipitation in Spring
Santa Marta gets around 167 mm of rain over 15 wet days across spring. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Spring
Most of spring feels oppressive — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Spring
Winds average 25 km/h across spring.
Sunrise & sunset in Spring
Daylight runs from about 11 h 48 min in early March to 12 h 36 min by late May. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Spring
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across spring, about 6.0 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Santa Marta
In spring, Santa Marta overlaps its monsoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Santa Marta sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.
Santa Marta's monsoon runs May–June, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is spring a good time to visit Santa Marta?
Our two travel scores rate spring for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
spring is one of the better times to visit Santa Marta for general sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.
What to pack for Santa Marta in Spring
From spring's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In spring, Santa Marta sees daytime highs around 27°C and nights near 26°C. Pack light clothes, sun protection and a windbreaker. Worth having: rain gear. About 15 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Santa Marta in Spring
The nearest coast averages about 26°C across spring — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 17 km away) is warmest in September at about 29°C and coldest in February near 25°C.
The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 26 | 25 | 26 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 27 |
| Comfort | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Warm |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26 | Warm |
| Feb | 25 | Warm |
| Mar | 26 | Warm |
| Apr | 26 | Warm |
| May | 28 | Warm |
| Jun | 28 | Warm |
| Jul | 28 | Warm |
| Aug | 28 | Tropical |
| Sep | 29 | Tropical |
| Oct | 29 | Tropical |
| Nov | 28 | Tropical |
| Dec | 27 | Warm |
UV index in Santa Marta in Spring
Clear-sky midday UV across spring averages around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Santa Marta peaks around April 11 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 12 at about 9 (very high).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Extreme |
| Feb | 13 | Extreme |
| Mar | 13 | Extreme |
| Apr | 13 | Extreme |
| May | 12 | Extreme |
| Jun | 13 | Extreme |
| Jul | 12 | Extreme |
| Aug | 12 | Extreme |
| Sep | 12 | Extreme |
| Oct | 11 | Extreme |
| Nov | 10 | Very high |
| Dec | 9 | Very high |
Air quality in Santa Marta in Spring
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where spring falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Santa Marta is worst in June — around 19 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (November, 8 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Santa Marta's WHO annual average of 13 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 9 | 12 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 18 | 14 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 8 |
| Level | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 9 | Good |
| Feb | 12 | Good |
| Mar | 15 | Moderate |
| Apr | 16 | Moderate |
| May | 17 | Moderate |
| Jun | 19 | Moderate |
| Jul | 18 | Moderate |
| Aug | 14 | Moderate |
| Sep | 11 | Good |
| Oct | 10 | Good |
| Nov | 8 | Good |
| Dec | 8 | Good |
Where is Santa Marta?
Santa Marta sits at 11.2°N, 74.2°W, 14 m above sea level, in Colombia. The nearest listed city is Ciénaga, 26 km away.
Topography around Santa Marta
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Santa Marta.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Santa Marta has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 299 m around an average of 36 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,745 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,612 m.
The land around Santa Marta is covered by artificial surfaces (58%) within 3 km, water (50%) and trees (38%) within 16 km, and water (48%) and trees (33%) within 80 km.
Colombia travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 3
- Reconsider Travel
- Power plugs
- Type A / B
- 120 / 240 V · 60 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 38% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $8,562
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.0 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 74%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 24.9
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 15.4
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 480
- Religion
Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Santa Marta (11.2386°, -74.1943°, elevation 14 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.