Florida Weather

Guide to Florida Seasons & Weather

Florida does nothing by halves. Famously, it boasts more sun than most corners of the U.S., but it also has more than it's fair share of rain and thunderstorms.

Plan your Florida vacation with the local climate in mind.  Florida's climate is best described as subtropical with mild winters and quite warm summers. Sunshine and blue skies are almost always a fact of life in Florida. Florida is a hot-humid region and for 6 months of the year temperatures can be above 90°F. The most pleasant weather is usually found during winter months between October and May when temperatures are more likely around 75 degrees and the humidity becomes much less noticeable.

The seasons in Florida are actually determined more by precipitation than by temperature with the mild to cool, relatively dry winter / autumn time considered to be the dry season and the hot and wet spring / summer time being the wet season.

Florida's nickname is the "Sunshine State," but severe weather is a common occurrence in the state. Central Florida is known as the lightning capital of the United States, as it experiences more lightning strikes than anywhere else in the country. Florida is among the wettest states in the U.S. with most areas receiving at least 50 inches of rain annually. Most of this rain activity is in the form of afternoon thundershowers and is usually over in an hour or two, but they can be quite intense, so be prepared. The panhandle has the most rain; the Florida Keys the least. The rainy season runs from May to as late as November. South Florida gets 70% of its annual rainfall during these months. The hurricane season is between June and November.

Summer in the south (Orlando and below) is humid with afternoon storms; the peak travel season for this region is in the winter when temperatures are warm and there is little humidity. North of Orlando, summer is the peak season, and temperatures are usually comfortably warm, though humid.

The Gulf coast between St. Pete Beach and Clearwater Beach enjoys an average of 363 sunny days every year. From 1967-69 an amazing 768 consecutive days of sunshine were recorded here.