Weather in Niue

The location of Niue in the tropics means weather that varies all year round. It can be dry for weeks and then cloudy skys comes out from nowhere and the rain lasts for the whole week. It is really impossible in Niue to have a slogan similar to the Gold Coast Australia, which says..." Beautiful today perfect tomorrow". In Niue, the weather goes more or less like this.." "Fantastic today don't know tomorrow".  Nobody knows.

Niue has basically two season, wet and dry, meaning that the chances of raining in one season is larger than the other, nothing else. Oh yes there is something else. The chances to have a cyclone between December and May is much larger than the rest of the year. It is said that in Niue rains more than Auckland, and that could be true, but Auckland has much more grey skys than Niue (the name Aotearoa isn't for nothing). It really is like a roulette game if you want to count on good weather or want to know what the best time of the year is to travel in Niue, because anything can happen anytime. As an example, there was a couple who went to Niue at the end of October because it was still dry season and had an entire week of heavy rain. On the other hand, we spent two weeks in the middle of November (limit of the season) and had the most gorgeous days imaginable. It rained one day and another night and that was it.

There are years in Niue (and around the world) that summer is hotter and drier and winter is wetter and warmer. One year ahead things are completely different and everything changes, especially with global warming on our necks and El Niño, La Niña phenomena swapping places all the time. In other words, go to Niue at any time of the year and pray to the gods to give you nice days there. Winter, between June and September the weather is milder than summer which is better for people adapted to cold weathers like people from Invercargill, New Zealand or Finland. In November 2007 (month we were in Niue) the nights were fresh. There was no need for air conditioning and a single fan in the room was enough for both of us. We had really pleasant nights and warm enough days to make the snorkelling time in Limu pools and other wet activities very prolonged and enjoyable.

Even to walk on the tracks or on the road, the sun and heat weren't that bad. A hat is an advantage, specially if you are bald like I am. A cotton white T-shirt will keep you fresh under the sun and sun block is a must any time of the year. Just take it with you and drink plenty of water if doing tracks or if you are walking a lot. Just don't dehydrate. (Snorkelling dehydrates you very much due to the salt in the sea and the physical effort even if you are not sweating).

Well, many people already wrote about Cyclone Heta in 2004 and we are not planning to extend on the subject here, but we will let you know a couple things you will see with your own eyes during your visit to Niue.

• The first one which impressed us a lot was the number of houses demolished by Heta. Everywhere on the Island you will see a not so poetic picture of houses broken apart and left for time to take care of it. The number of houses that are damaged and abandoned is huge, and gave us a sensation of sadness. Some are standing by a string, others have weeds and plants living inside without roof or side walls. You will see a lot of concrete bases and nothing else on it. Of course nobody lives in these houses any longer.

• The second one regards the corals on the West side of the Island (The side is badly hit by Cyclone Heta). The bottom of the sea is literally shaved out of corals. In some parts they are re-growing, in other parts they aren't too damaged. (local dive operators know where to find beautiful corals). On the reef flats we've notice a new generation rising up from the ashes. This was a good sensation we had, I mean, seeing that  nature is taking its course and the corals are growing back again.

Concluding on the topic, the best time of the year to go to Niue is anytime along the year. Between May and November (dry season) is not so hot as from December to the end of April (wet and cyclone season). But this doesn't mean that it will not rain during the dry season, either you will face a cyclone during the wet season. Only luck and time will tell. Of course staying two weeks instead of only one will enhance the chances of beautiful days.

Beautiful days during two weeks in November 2007. The normal is for their to be some clouds floating around.	Rain was more than welcome to refresh the Island (and us). In two weeks we had only two days of rain
2007 - Three yeas after the Cyclone, a concrete base is what is left from a house.	Many houses are abandoned after Cyclone Heta. The owner probably moved to New Zealand.