When to go
The best time to visit Jamaica as a whole, whether you intend to visit cities and go on excursions, or to swim and sunbathe, runs
from January to April. In fact, it is the driest and coolest period. The least rainy months are February and March, while December is still quite rainy in the easternmost region and on the northern slopes of the Blue Mountains (otherwise, in the south December would be fine as well).
In
summer, and in general during the rainy season, the heat is sweltering and annoying, but the breeze blows and the sun shines for a few hours per day; in addition, in Kingston and on the southern coast, in July it usually does not rain much, so if you want to choose the summer, you can go in this month, also because the risk of hurricanes is lower than in August.
What to pack
From
November to April: bring light clothes, sun hat, sunscreen, but also a sweatshirt for the evening. For the mountains, bring a jacket and hiking boots.
From
May to October, bring tropics-friendly, lightweight clothing, and possibly a light sweatshirt and a light raincoat for thunderstorms. Sun hat and sunscreen can be useful too. For the mountains you can add a sweatshirt or sweater.
Back to the climate of
Jamaica