Best time to visit Macau: weather, typhoons, crowded weeks

October to December: dry air and clear days

Macau has what its weather bureau calls a subtropical monsoon climate. In winter, dry northerly air comes down from the Asian continent; in summer, south-westerly winds bring heat and heavy rain off the sea, first a rainy season and then a second one with more typhoons and storms. Autumn, with less rain and easterly winds, is the season the bureau describes as clear and refreshing. The Macao Government Tourism Office (MGTO) calls October and November the ideal months to visit, with mild temperatures and dry weather.

The figures agree. Over 1991-2020, October averaged 75 mm of rain, November 39 mm and December 31 mm, against 374 mm in June. Humidity falls from about 85% in spring and early summer to 71-73% from October to December, and October has more sunshine than any month except July. The old city is a walking city: the climb to Mount Fortress, the steps of St Paul's and the lanes of Taipa and Coloane are far easier at 25°C and dry than at 31°C and 85% humidity.

December is cooler, with highs around 20°C and lows around 14°C, and January cooler still; MGTO notes that the winter months from December to March are often sunny but can feel cold, so bring a warm layer. In December the old city also lights up for Light Up Macao, the festival of light installations, which runs from 5 December 2026 to 10 January 2027. If you can choose only one month, choose November or early December, outside Grand Prix week.

Macau's weather month by month

The table gives the Macao Meteorological and Geophysical Bureau's (SMG) 1991-2020 averages: the mean daily high and low, the monthly rainfall with the average number of rain days, the mean relative humidity and the hours of sunshine in the month. Over the year the mean temperature is 22.8°C, and about 1,967 mm of rain falls on about 131 days.

January and February are the coolest months and usually dry, with Lunar New Year falling in one of them (6 February in 2027). March and April are mild but damp: humidity peaks at 85-86%, sunshine is at its lowest, and March has the most fog, on about 7 days. May to September brings the heat and most of the rain, with thunderstorms on about 10 days a month in June and August. October to December is the dry season.

Typhoon season and what Signal No. 8 changes

MGTO gives the typhoon season as May to November, with July to September the peak period; the UK government's travel advice also puts it from May to November. Most weeks pass without a storm, but when one comes close, SMG hoists numbered signals. Signal No. 1 means a tropical cyclone is within 800 km and may affect Macau. Under Signal No. 3, winds of 41-62 km/h are expected, with gusts that may exceed 110 km/h.

Signal No. 8 changes the day. It means winds of 63-117 km/h, with gusts that may exceed 180 km/h. MGTO's advice is to stay indoors as far as possible, away from exposed doors and windows, and to suspend all outdoor and marine activities; the bridges across the sea may close at any time. Public offices shut. The crossings from Hong Kong stop too: Cotai Water Jet and TurboJET suspend their ferries at No. 8, and the bridge (HZMB) shuttle bus may stop when the bridge closes in bad weather; Cotai Water Jet may also stop under Signal No. 3. The Macao Museum and its sister venues close all day if No. 8 is up before 09:00, close at once if it goes up during opening hours, and stay closed for the afternoon if it is lowered after 14:30. Signals No. 9 and No. 10 mean the storm is closer still.

If you travel between May and November, and above all from July to September, book a ferry or flight you can change, keep a spare evening before an onward flight, and follow SMG's warnings. Storm surge warnings, from blue to black, give the expected water level above the roads around the Inner Harbour; when one is issued, MGTO advises keeping away from low-lying streets, basements and underground car parks.

The crowded weeks: holidays, the Grand Prix and the fireworks

Macau's busiest days follow the mainland Chinese holidays. Over the five-day Labour Day holiday of 1-5 May 2026, the city counted about 873,000 visitor arrivals, a record 248,000 on 2 May alone, and an average hotel occupancy of 92.7%. Over the National Day and Mid-Autumn holiday of 1-8 October 2025, arrivals reached 1.144 million, with 191,000 on 4 October and hotels 87.9% full. Rooms are scarce on those days. Avoid the first week of May and of October unless the crowds are the point.

Lunar New Year falls on 6 February 2027, and 6-8 February are holidays in Macau. In 2026 the city added drone and fireworks shows and a parade over the holiday weeks, so expect busy streets around the date.

The Macau Grand Prix is held every November on the city's street circuit; the 2026 race runs on 19-22 November, and the 2027 dates have not been announced. Book a room early if you want to watch, and choose another week if you do not. The Macao Food Festival is held in November too: its 25th edition opened on 14 November 2025.

The Macao International Fireworks Display Contest usually takes place on several Saturdays in September and October and on National Day, 1 October; in 2026 the nights were 12, 19 and 25 September and 1 and 4 October. Teams from around the world compete, and the contest is one of the year's big draws. Our festivals and events calendar for Macau gives the 2027 public holidays and the other festivals month by month.

A plan for hot or wet days

Start early in summer. A-Ma Temple and the gardens of Mount Fortress open at 07:00, so walk the hills before the midday heat and keep the afternoon for indoor stops. In ordinary rain, the same order works the other way round: museums when it pours, streets when it stops.

The Macao Museum, at Mount Fortress, tells the history of the city and the lives of its residents from different countries and cultures; it opens from 10:00 to 18:00 (last entry 17:30), closes on Mondays except public holidays, and costs MOP 15, free on Tuesdays and the 15th of each month. Below the Ruins of St Paul's, the Museum of Sacred Art and Crypt is free and opens from 09:00 to 18:00, closing at 14:00 on Tuesdays. In Taipa, the five Taipa Houses hold a free museum of Macanese domestic life, open 10:00-19:00 and closed on Mondays. The observation decks of the Macau Tower, on levels 58 and 61, cost MOP 208 for an adult and open at 10:00.

Cotai's resort shopping malls, such as the Shoppes at Venetian, are the other rainy-day choice. Our Macau where-to-stay guide compares sleeping on the peninsula with a Cotai resort, and Macau in 2 days sets out the museum swap on its rain-day plan.

Which month for which trip

• Walking the old city in comfort: October to early December, outside Grand Prix week; October has the most sunshine, November and December the least rain.
• Lowest prices and fewer crowds: weekdays outside the holiday weeks; the first week of May and of October are the busiest of the year.
• Cool, sunny days: December and January, with highs of 19-20°C and a warm layer for the evenings.
• Festivals: Lunar New Year (6 February 2027), the Drunken Dragon and Fatima procession in May, the fireworks contest in September and October, the Grand Prix and the Food Festival in November.
• Summer: hot and humid with frequent showers; plan early starts, museum afternoons and a ferry you can change. Our first-trip guide to Macau keeps the route short enough to adapt.