Climate and average weather in Salvaleón de Higüey

In Salvaleón de Higüey, the weather is muggy, hot, wet, and partly cloudy and remarkably steady, with daytime highs holding near hot levels all year. The wettest stretch peaks around September.

Best: early January to mid April

Over the course of the year, the temperature in Salvaleón de Higüey typically varies from 22°C to 31°C, and is rarely below 21°C or above 32°C. August is the hottest month of the year, while January is the coldest.

Based on the travel score, the best times of year to visit Salvaleón de Higüey for warm-weather activities are from early January to mid April and late November to late December.

Hottest
Aug
31°
Coldest
Jan
22°
Wettest
Sep
107 mm
Driest
Feb
23 mm
Rain / yr
788 mm
166 wet days
Daylight
10.9–13.1 h
shortest–longest
Elevation
95 m
18.6°N
Clearest
Feb
38% cloud

Salvaleón de Higüey is capital city of La Altagracia Province, Dominican Republic.

Density
61/km²
people per km²
Founded
1503

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

Salvaleón de Higüey weather by month, at a glance

The whole year in one picture — sky, rain, humidity, temperature and travel score. Click any band to jump to its full chart.

Each stripe is one measure across the whole year, stacked so a single day reads top to bottom. The sky band runs overcast grey on top down to clear blue at the base — more blue means sunnier — followed by the rainfall curve, the humidity band, a temperature strip that tints each stretch of the year by how warm its average high is, and the travel-score line at the foot. Scan straight down any date to read that day across every measure at once; the score climbs highest around early January to mid April.

Temperature through the year

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Daily average highs and lows in Salvaleón de Higüey, from 1991–2020 of climate data. The shaded bands show the range most days fall in — 10th to 90th percentile.

Temperatures in Salvaleón de Higüey stay fairly even through the year, without a distinct hot or cool season. The warmest month is August, with an average high of 31°C and low of 25°C; the coolest is January, with an average low of 22°C and high of 28°C.

Days typically run about 6°C warmer than nights year-round.

20°25°30°35°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
Jan2822
Feb2822
Mar2922
Apr2923
May3024
Jun3125
Jul3125
Aug3125
Sep3125
Oct3024
Nov2924
Dec2923

How hot and cold Salvaleón de Higüey really feels

Feels-like highFeels-like lowactual air temp

The felt-temperature range through the year — heat index on the day's high (summer humidity), wind chill on the night's low (winter wind). The dashed lines are the plain thermometer; the gap is how much hotter or colder it really feels.

On the hottest afternoons, once humidity is folded in, Salvaleón de Higüey feels like about 37°C (around August 29). About 227 days a year carry some heat stress, peaking in August.

20°25°30°35°40°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdangerous heat
Feels-like high (°C)Air high (°C)Feels-like low (°C)Air low (°C)
Jan30282222
Feb30282222
Mar31292222
Apr32292323
May34302424
Jun36312525
Jul36312525
Aug37312525
Sep37312525
Oct36302424
Nov33292324
Dec31292323

Average hourly temperature in Salvaleón de Higüey

A compact picture of the whole year, hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled average temperature. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

Read left to right for the day of the year and top to bottom for the hour of the day; the color is the modeled temperature, cool blues through to hot reds on the same scale as the other charts. A vertical slice is a single day's swing — coolest just before dawn, warmest in the mid-afternoon — while a horizontal slice follows one hour across the seasons. The darker overlay marks night and the lighter one the twilight around sunrise and sunset. Colors run warmest on August afternoons, near 31°C, and coldest before dawn in January, near 22°C.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM

Salvaleón de Higüey weather by month

Every month at a glance. Click a month for its detailed page.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan28° / 22°279.1116.3
Feb28° / 22°237.811.46.3
Mar29° / 22°318.611.96.0
Apr29° / 23°4912.112.45.1
May30° / 24°981612.94.3
Jun31° / 25°661413.14.1
Jul31° / 25°7314.9134.1
Aug31° / 25°881712.63.8
Sep31° / 25°10718.212.13.6
Oct30° / 24°10720.311.63.7
Nov29° / 24°821611.14.6
Dec29° / 23°3811.610.95.8

Chance of rain

How likely it is to rain on a typical day, and how that shifts across the wetter and drier seasons.

Salvaleón de Higüey gets about 788 mm of precipitation a year. On a typical day the chance of rain is very wet, but that rises and falls sharply with the seasons.

The wetter season lasts 4.7 months, from around Jul 5 to Nov 23, peaking in October at about 68% chance on a given day. The drier stretch runs the rest of the year, bottoming out around Mar 11.

September is the wettest month by volume, with 107 mm over about 18 wet days; February is the driest, with 23 mm.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdrierwetterdriermostly drysome rainoften wetvery wetOct 11 · 68%Mar 11 · 25%
Rain on a day (%)Rain days
Jan309
Feb288
Mar289
Apr4012
May5116
Jun4814
Jul4815
Aug5517
Sep6118
Oct6620
Nov5416
Dec3712

Monthly rainfall

Over a full year, Salvaleón de Higüey collects about 788 mm of rain across 166 wet days — roughly 66 mm in an average month.

It doesn’t fall evenly. September is the wettest month with 107 mm, while February is the driest at just 23 mm. The three wettest months alone bring about 40% of the year’s total.

0255075100125JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec27233149986673881071078238
Rainfall (mm)Rain days
Jan279
Feb238
Mar319
Apr4912
May9816
Jun6614
Jul7315
Aug8817
Sep10718
Oct10720
Nov8216
Dec3812

Clouds and sunshine

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

How often the daytime sky is clear, partly cloudy or overcast.

In Salvaleón de Higüey, the average share of the sky covered by clouds shows significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year begins around November 20 and lasts for 5.2 months, ending around April 27. The clearest month is February, when the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 86% of the time on average.

The cloudier part of the year begins around April 28 and lasts for 6.8 months, ending around November 19. The cloudiest month is September, when it is overcast or mostly cloudy 54% of the time.

0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecFeb 8 · 88%May 27 · 38%clearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercastclearercloudierclearer
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
Jan8515
Feb8614
Mar8119
Apr7129
May4753
Jun4852
Jul5941
Aug5347
Sep4654
Oct5248
Nov6337
Dec8020

Daylight, sunrise and sunset

DaylightNight

Hours of daylight through the year, with sunrise and sunset times.

The gold band is daylight — sunrise runs along its lower edge, sunset along the upper — so it widens toward summer and pinches toward winter, with night the dark area above and below. The longest day, around June 4, brings about 13 h 06 min of light; the shortest, around January 1, only 10 h 54 min — a swing of roughly 2 h 12 min.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
Jan11.07:146:14
Feb11.47:086:31
Mar11.96:486:41
Apr12.46:226:48
May12.96:056:57
Jun13.16:027:08
Jul13.06:107:11
Aug12.66:206:58
Sep12.16:266:32
Oct11.66:336:07
Nov11.16:475:53
Dec10.97:045:58

Sunny days

How many genuinely sunny days each month brings — days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — banded into plain-language zones.

Salvaleón de Higüey averages about 12 sunny days a month — counting the days the sky stays clear or mostly clear — with a clear seasonal swing between 6 and 19 days.

The sunnier stretch runs 4.9 months, from around Nov 21 to Apr 18. The sunniest month is February, with roughly 18 sunny days (bright).

The greyest month is May, down near 7 sunny days — about 61% fewer than the February peak.

0510152025JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecsunniergreyersunniergloomymixedbrightbrilliantFeb 919 daysMay 256 days
Sunny daysSky
Jan19Bright
Feb17Bright
Mar16Bright
Apr12Mixed
May7Gloomy
Jun9Mixed
Jul13Mixed
Aug11Mixed
Sep8Mixed
Oct9Mixed
Nov12Mixed
Dec17Bright

Humidity comfort

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Share of days at each humidity comfort level, based on the dew point — the measure that tracks how muggy it actually feels.

Humidity comfort is graded by the dew point — the temperature at which the air would be fully saturated — because it tracks how muggy it actually feels far better than relative humidity does. A low dew point feels dry and crisp; a high one feels sticky and oppressive no matter the reading on a humidity gauge.

Salvaleón de Higüey is humid all year round — on a typical day the air feels at least humid, and there is no real dry season to wait for.

The stickiest month is April, when it feels muggy, oppressive or miserable about 95% of the time. Even in March, the mildest month, the air is dry or comfortable only 2% of the time.

0%10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%90%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecmiserableoppressivemuggyhumid
Comfortable (%)Humid (%)Muggy (%)Oppressive (%)Miserable (%)
Jan1658350
Feb2966230
Mar21158290
Apr0434602
May0187714
Jun0016633
Jul0006238
Aug0004753
Sep0004060
Oct0005446
Nov0197416
Dec0528651

Wind

Average wind speed through the year, banded into plain-language speed zones so a number reads as 'breezy' or 'calm' without knowing the scale.

This is the average sustained wind speed at the standard 10 metres above open ground — the steady flow a weather station reports, not the sharper gusts that come and go, which can run half again as fast. It's the number that says whether a place is generally breezy or calm.

Across the year, average wind speed in Salvaleón de Higüey is typically calm, near 11 km/h, and varies little with the seasons.

The windier part of the year lasts 3.9 months, from around Nov 25 to Mar 23. The windiest month is January, averaging about 12 km/h (light breeze).

The calmer part of the year runs from around Aug 20 to Nov 24, with October the calmest month at about 9 km/h.

05101520JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwindiercalmerwindiercalmlight breezeJan 1 · 13 km/hOct 11 · 9 km/h
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
Jan12light breeze
Feb12light breeze
Mar12calm
Apr11calm
May11calm
Jun11calm
Jul12light breeze
Aug12calm
Sep10calm
Oct9calm
Nov11calm
Dec12light breeze

Hazard calendar for Salvaleón de Higüey

In seasonPeak

When the seasonal hazards worth planning around — the rainy season, tropical-cyclone risk and dust haze — are active through the year.

Salvaleón de Higüey sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

Atlantic hurricane
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Best time to visit Salvaleón de Higüey

TravelBeach/poolTemperatureCloudsPrecipitation

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Salvaleón de Higüey throughout the year, we compute two travel scores — one for general sightseeing, one for beach and pool weather.

Around early April, Salvaleón de Higüey is still near the tail of its best-weather window — great conditions with the peak-season crowds already thinning.

Inferred from the travel-score curve; month-by-month visitor numbers are a planned addition.

The travel score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 18°C and 28°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Salvaleón de Higüey for general outdoor tourist activities is from late November to mid April, with a peak score in the third week of January.

0246810JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timetravel scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationJan 18 · 6.4

The travel score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

Travel score (0–10)Rating
Jan6.3good
Feb6.3good
Mar6.0good
Apr5.1fair
May4.3fair
Jun4.1fair
Jul4.1fair
Aug3.8fair
Sep3.6fair
Oct3.7fair
Nov4.6fair
Dec5.8good

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with daytime highs between 24°C and 34°C. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Salvaleón de Higüey for hot-weather activities is from mid November to early May, with a peak score in the second week of March.

024681012JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbest timebest timebeach/pool scoretemperaturecloudsprecipitationMar 14 · 7.6

The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

What to pack for Salvaleón de Higüey, by month

EssentialRecommendedOptional

Month by month, what's worth putting in the bag — from the temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind. Tap a month for a quick packing note.

Salvaleón de Higüey packs about the same all year — highs hold near 31°C. Across the year the things worth having are light clothes, rain gear and sun protection.

Light clothing
Warm layer
Winter coat
Rain gear
Sun protection
Windbreaker

In August, Salvaleón de Higüey sees daytime highs around 31°C and nights near 25°C. Pack light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 17 days see rain.

Sea temperature near Salvaleón de Higüey

Average ocean temperature at the nearest coast, month by month, banded into swim-comfort zones — the other half of the beach question.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 30 km away) is warmest in September at about 29°C and coldest in February near 26°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

24°26°28°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan26Warm
Feb26Warm
Mar26Warm
Apr27Warm
May27Warm
Jun28Warm
Jul28Tropical
Aug29Tropical
Sep29Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov28Tropical
Dec27Warm

UV index (midday) in Salvaleón de Higüey by month

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV index through the year, shaded by the WHO exposure levels — how much sun protection each month calls for.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Salvaleón de Higüey peaks around August 16 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 7 (high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highAug 16UV 12Dec 15UV 7
UV index (midday)Level
Jan8Very high
Feb10Very high
Mar12Extreme
Apr12Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct10Very high
Nov8Very high
Dec7High

Average hourly UV index in Salvaleón de Higüey

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Modeled clear-sky UV for every hour of every day — when in the day sun protection actually matters.

The whole year hour by hour: each column is a day, each row an hour, and the color is the modeled clear-sky UV index — the midday peak scaled down as the sun sits lower in the sky. Darker overlays mark night, lighter ones the civil-twilight hours around sunrise and sunset.

UV falls off far faster than brightness as the sun drops, so even in August the burn window is concentrated in the middle of the day: about 8 hours a day reach index 3 (protection recommended), and 6 hours reach 6 or more. Mornings and late afternoons stay comparatively gentle year round.

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AM
UV ≥ 3 (h/day)UV ≥ 6 (h/day)
Jan6.54
Feb75
Mar86
Apr86
May8.56
Jun8.56.5
Jul8.56
Aug86
Sep86
Oct75
Nov6.53.5
Dec62.5

Air quality in Salvaleón de Higüey by month

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see which months the air is worst, not just the yearly average.

Air quality in Salvaleón de Higüey is worst in June — around 27 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.5× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJun 2327 µg/m³Dec 218 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan8Good
Feb10Good
Mar11Good
Apr11Good
May18Moderate
Jun27Moderate
Jul27Moderate
Aug23Moderate
Sep18Moderate
Oct18Moderate
Nov11Good
Dec8Good
Almanac & agriculture

Growing season

Chance of a frost-free dayFrost-free year round

Salvaleón de Higüey is frost-free year round — even the coldest nights rarely reach freezing, so there is no start or end to the growing season.

0%25%50%75%100%JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecfrost-free year round
Frost-free chance (%)Frost nights
Jan1000
Feb1000
Mar1000
Apr1000
May1000
Jun1000
Jul1000
Aug1000
Sep1000
Oct1000
Nov1000
Dec1000

Growing degree days

Degree days (base 10°C)Frost-free shaded

Growing degree days tally heat above 10°C: each day adds however many degrees its average temperature runs over that threshold, and cold days add nothing. Salvaleón de Higüey banks about 6,073 degree days a year, and the running total — which growers use to time plantings and predict maturity — climbs fastest around August.

02,0004,0006,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Growing degree days (°C·days)
Jan466
Feb422
Mar478
Apr484
May524
Jun531
Jul558
Aug561
Sep536
Oct536
Nov492
Dec484

Solar energy

Average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground, banded into brightness zones so the number means something at a glance.

Solar energy is how much sunlight actually reaches the ground each day, measured in kilowatt-hours per square metre (kWh/m²) — the combined effect of how long the sun is up, how high it climbs, and how much cloud gets in the way. It's the raw fuel a solar panel has to work with: for scale, 1 kWh/m² a day is dim and wintry, while 7+ is desert-bright.

Salvaleón de Higüey receives about 5.6 kWh/m² a day of solar energy on average — bright — with a clear seasonal swing between 4.3 and 6.5 kWh/m².

The brighter stretch of the year lasts 6.7 months, from around Mar 2 to Sep 21. The brightest month is June, averaging about 6.4 kWh/m² (intense).

The dimmest month is December, down near 4.3 kWh/m² — roughly 33% less than the June peak.

012345678JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecdimmerbrighterdimmerdimmoderatebrightintenseJun 306.5 kWhDec 204.3 kWh
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
Jan4.5Bright
Feb5.2Bright
Mar5.9Bright
Apr6.3Intense
May6.2Intense
Jun6.5Intense
Jul6.4Intense
Aug6.2Intense
Sep5.7Bright
Oct5.1Bright
Nov4.5Bright
Dec4.3Bright

Where is Salvaleón de Higüey?

Salvaleón de Higüey sits at 18.6°N, 68.7°W, 95 m above sea level, in Dominican Republic. The nearest listed city is Punta Cana, 32 km away.

Punta CanaLa RomanaSanta Cruz de El SeiboMichesHato Mayor del ReySan Pedro de MacorisQuisqueyaSanta Barbara De Samana

Topography around Salvaleón de Higüey

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Salvaleón de Higüey.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Salvaleón de Higüey has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 93 m around an average of 99 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 562 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 683 m.

The land around Salvaleón de Higüey is covered by artificial surfaces (44%) and grassland (40%) within 3 km, grassland (72%) and trees (21%) within 16 km, and water (60%) and grassland (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
93 m
16 km
562 m
80 km
683 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
Nearby: Punta Cana 32 km · La Romana 35 km · Santa Cruz de El Seibo 39 km · Miches 54 km · Hato Mayor del Rey 60 km · San Pedro de Macoris 66 km · Quisqueya 74 km · Santa Barbara De Samana 93 km

Dominican Republic travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / B / C
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 39% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$11,059
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
45%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
10.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
64.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 503

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 Salvaleón de Higüey (18.615°, -68.708°, elevation 95 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. Tropical-cyclone seasons are the published climatological basin seasons (NOAA National Hurricane Center / regional warning centres). Sea temperatures are the NOAA OISST v2.1 1991–2020 monthly climatology (public domain), sampled at the nearest ocean point. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).