Mexico's Climate and Weather

Mexico is a very popular vacationing spot for many people. Every year thousands of people plan trips to spend time in Mexico. But which parts are the best? For all the money being spent, you want to make sure you visit a good spot. When most people think of Mexico, they think of warm sunny beaches. Well if your going on spring break to the Yucatan Peninsula, than your right. However, the majority of Mexico is comprised of an arid landscape with nothing to see and even less to do.

Mexico is a very large country, spanning from the border of the United States to Central America. The Tropic of Cancer goes right through Mexico, marking a separation in climate type. North of the tropic, locations experience seasons. While the changes are not severe, there are still differences between seasons. Here the temperatures stay relatively warm throughout the year, with lows occurring during the winter months of December to March. As for precipitation, the northern part of Mexico gets very little. Because these locations are north of the monsoon rains in the summer, there is a dry arid climate. A little further south there are less seasonal changes in temperature and more precipitation. Where the northern part of Mexico had a desert climate, the middle part has a grassland climate. The southern parts of Mexico are the most consistently warm throughout the year. Temperatures here stay around 80 degrees and minimally fluctuate. Additionally, these locations receive the most annual precipitation , resulting in a tropical climate, especially along the coasts on the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean. Towards the southern tip of Mexico there are even some areas with a tropical rain forest climate. This is where the most precipitation falls annually. Because Mexico has a great number of mountain ranges, there is another climate type. These higher elevations have much colder and drier climates than their surrounding.

Mexico's size, topography, and proximity to water gives it an interesting climate. Each part has certain defining characteristics that separate them from the other. From a vocational standpoint, the best part to visit would be the eastern coast around the Yucatan Peninsula, or the southwestern coast on the Pacific, because this is where the most tropical, consistent climate is. Winter and spring months would be the best time to visit before the monsoon rains arrive. The rest of Mexico can be very unpleasant due to dry, desert conditions.