Hawaii Weather

Hawaii's favorable year-round climate and weather is one of the main reasons it is such a popular vacation destination.  Being located in the tropics and surrounded by the ocean is what gives Hawaii it's warm, tropical, and at times, humid climate.  The average temperature and rainfall for Hawaii's capital city of Honolulu is listed below and isn't much different for the rest of the islands:

By looking at the graph you can see that the average temperature all year-round in Hawaii is in the high 70's to low 80's, which is exceptional!

To understand Hawaii's weather and climate a little better you first need to understand Hawaii's climatic regions which play a very important role in Hawaii's weather and where it rains on the islands.  Hawaii has seven climatic regions, but it is important to only understand two of the more important of these regions - the leeward and windward regions.  When talking about the leeward and windward side of the islands keep in mind that Hawaii's trade winds blow from east/northeast to west/southwest in general.  The trade winds blow the moist air and rain clouds inward from the ocean.

The leeward side of all the Hawaiian Islands is, in general, the west and south side of the islands.  The leeward side is usually the much drier and hotter side of all the islands because the trade winds aren't able to blow the moist air and rain clouds over the mountains to the leeward side.  Don't misunderstand this though, the leeward side of the islands is actually the more favorable side of the islands with the much better weather.  In fact, the majority of hotels, resorts, and other hospitality areas are usually located on the leeward side of the islands.

The windward side of the islands is the north and east facing side of the islands.  This side of the islands usually receive the most rain due to the fact the trade winds blowing inward from the ocean carry with it the moist air and rain clouds.  In fact, most of the year there is some rain on the windward side of the islands.  Most of Hawaii's rainforests and thick vegetation are located on the windward side of the islands. 

When you come to Hawaii you will hear many of the locals using the terms "leeward side" and "windward side" in terms of location.  For example, they will sometimes say "I live on the windward side of Oahu", which those who have lived on the islands for a number of years can easily understand.  In general, the closer your staying to the windward side of an island the more rain you will experience.  You really don't have to worry about this though since, like we already mentioned, the majority of hotels and resorts are located on the leeward side of the islands.  On the other hand, if your looking for the secluded, tropical, rainforest type experience while in Hawaii then staying in a resort, hotel, or vacation cottage on the windward side of an island is the way to go.

Just remember that Hawaii has some of the best weather in all the world all year long and have fun while on vacation!