Plan your trip
Panama weather in May
May brings the rainy season to the Pacific side. Panama City’s weather station averages 225 mm (8.9 in), more than three times April’s figure, with rain on about 15 days. Temperatures hardly change: around 94°F by day and 70°F at night at the station. San Blas has its wettest month of the year, at 368 mm (14.5 in).
May at a glance
Panama City The city, on the Pacific
Rainy
- High
- 94°F 35°C
- Low
- 70°F 21°C
- Rain
- 225 mm 8.9 in
- Rain days
- 15
- Sea
- 84°F 29°C
City weather station, 1971–2000. For comparison with the other places, NASA POWER’s area average: highs 86°F, lows 80°F, 283 mm, humidity 82%. Sea: Panama Bay (Pacific), NOAA OISST.
| Place | High | Low | Rain | Humidity | Cloud | Sea |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panama City weather station, 1971–2000 | 94°F | 70°F | 225 mm (rainy) | – | – | 84°F |
| Panama City NASA POWER, 2016–2025 | 86°F | 80°F | 283 mm (rainy) | 82% | 84% | 84°F |
Packing for May? Your list, for these places, with Shabbat and Yom Tov items for your dates.
What to packDay trips in May
- Panama City
- Rainy: 225 mm, wetter than April (65 mm); rain on about 15 days at the station. Sea about 84°F. From Paitilla or Punta Pacífica, the Cinta Costera waterfront is a walk, with no transport needed, so it works on Shabbat too.
- Boquete
- Rainy: 292 mm, wetter than April (157 mm). Too far for a day: fly to David or drive about six hours, and stay over with Chabad Boquete’s kosher food.
- Pacific beaches
- Rainy: 314 mm, wetter than April (162 mm). Sea about 84°F. No kosher food on the way: pack a cooler.
- Gamboa
- Rainy: 271 mm, wetter than April (131 mm). About 25 km from the city; go at dawn for wildlife, and bring all your food.
- San Blas (Guna Yala)
- Rainy: 368 mm, about as wet as April. Sea about 84°F. A very long day by 4x4 and boat from Cartí: bring every passport, all your food and drinking water.
- Bocas del Toro
- Rainy: 334 mm, wetter than April (188 mm). Sea about 85°F.
The Jewish calendar in May 2027
No Yom Tov, festival or fast falls in May 2027.
5 Shabbatot without Yom Tov. Times for each one.
The year at a glance
- Panama City is dry from January to March and rainy from May to June and from August to November. In April, July and December there is some rain.
Panama City through the yearCity weather station, 1971–2000
Show the numbers
| Month | High | Low | Rain | Rain days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 92°F | 65°F | 29 mm | 3 |
| February | 94°F | 65°F | 10 mm | 1 |
| March | 95°F | 65°F | 13 mm | 1 |
| April | 96°F | 67°F | 65 mm | 5 |
| May | 94°F | 70°F | 225 mm | 15 |
| June | 93°F | 70°F | 235 mm | 16 |
| July | 93°F | 70°F | 169 mm | 14 |
| August | 93°F | 70°F | 220 mm | 15 |
| September | 91°F | 70°F | 254 mm | 17 |
| October | 91°F | 69°F | 331 mm | 20 |
| November | 91°F | 69°F | 252 mm | 16 |
| December | 92°F | 67°F | 105 mm | 8 |
Questions people ask
- Does it rain in Panama in May?
- Yes, often: Panama City’s weather station averages 225 mm (8.9 in) of rain in May, with rain on about 15 days in a typical May (WMO, 1971–2000). NASA POWER’s 2016–2025 average for the area is 283 mm (11.1 in).
- How hot is Panama City in May?
- Panama City’s weather station averages 94°F by day and 70°F at night in May (WMO, 1971–2000). NASA POWER’s ten-year average for the area, which covers land and sea together, is milder: 86°F by day and 80°F at night. For Boquete, NASA POWER’s figures cover an area averaging 688 m up (81°F by day and 71°F at night); the town is at about 1,100 m, so it is cooler than that, especially at night.
- Is May a good month for the Caribbean islands?
- San Blas averages 368 mm (14.5 in) of rain in May and Bocas del Toro 334 mm (13.1 in): “rainy” at both by our bands (dry under 60 mm, rainy over 200 mm). The islands are warm all year: highs around 84°F at San Blas.
Another month
Where the numbers come from
- Monthly averages: NASA POWER daily data for 2016–2025 (fetched Tue, Nov 10, 2026), averaged by us: the average day’s high and low, the month’s total rain, humidity and cloud. Each figure covers a grid square of roughly 55 by 70 km of land and sea, so Panama City’s afternoons come out about 4.2°C cooler than at the city’s own weather station.
- Panama City’s figures lead with its weather station normals (1971–2000): World Meteorological Organization, from Panama’s weather service (IMHPA). A rain day there is a day with at least 0.1 mm.
- Left out on purpose: NASA POWER’s rain-day counts, because its model drizzles on most days and counts about 27 “rain days” in a wet-season month where Panama City’s station records 14 to 20; and its UV index, which is a 24-hour average far below the midday peak you feel. Rain days on these pages are the station’s, for Panama City only.
- Our rain bands: “dry” is under 60 mm in the month, “rainy” over 200 mm, and “some rain” in between.
- Forecasts: Weather data: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0), refreshed at most every half hour.
- Sea temperature: NOAA OISST v2.1 (NOAA NCEI’s daily 0.25° sea-surface temperature analysis, Version v02r01), 2016–2025, averaged by us for one grid cell per sea: Panama Bay (Pacific) (8.625°N, 79.375°W, the open bay south of Panama City); Guna Yala coast (Caribbean) (9.625°N, 78.875°W, off the San Blas islands); Off Bocas del Toro (Caribbean) (9.625°N, 82.125°W, just north of the Bocas del Toro islands). Fetched Tue, Nov 10, 2026. US government data, free to use.
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