When to go

To a great extent, the physical terrain in Mexico determines the climate – certainly far more than the expected indicator of latitude. You can drive down the coast all day without conditions changing noticeably, but turn inland to the mountains, and the contrast is immediate: in temperature, scenery, vegetation, even the mood and character of the people around you. Generalizations, therefore, are difficult.

Summer, from June to October, is in theory the rainy season, but just how wet it is varies wildly from place to place. In the heart of the country you can expect a heavy but short-lived downpour virtually every afternoon; in the north hardly any rain falls, ever. Chiapas is the wettest state, with many minor roads washed out in the autumn, and in the south and low-lying coastal areas summer is stickily humid too. Along the beaches, September through mid-October is hurricane season – you’ll usually get wet weather, choppy seas and mosquitoes, if not a full-on tropical storm. Late winter is the traditional tourist season, and in the big resorts like Acapulco and Cancún, December through April are the busiest months. Mountain areas, though, can get very cold then; in fact, nights in the mountains can be extremely cold at any time of year.

In effect, visitors come all year round – sticking on the whole to the highlands in summer and the coasts in winter. November is probably the ideal time to visit, with the rains over, the land still fresh and the peak season not yet begun. Overall, though, the climate is so benign that any time of year will do, so long as you’re prepared for some rain in the summer, some cold in winter and the sudden changes which go with the altitude at any time.