Biscayne National Park in November: Weather, Sea Temperature, Crowds and a Two-Day Plan

FLORIDA · BISCAYNE NATIONAL PARK · NOVEMBER

Biscayne National Park sits almost entirely on water, so a November trip here comes down to the bay: how warm it is, how often the sky interrupts it, and how much light you get to enjoy it. November is when South Florida swaps its wet season for its dry one, and the Atlantic hurricane season runs its final weeks.

For a snorkeler or a paddler, that swap is the appeal. The rain retreats from its October totals while the sea keeps most of its summer warmth, and the mornings turn gentle enough for a kayak before the boats head out. If you are still deciding on the park itself, our guide to Florida’s national parks sets it beside the Everglades and Dry Tortugas.

On this page

• Biscayne weather in NovemberHighs of 81.3°F, lows of 68.3°F, 4.7 rain days
• Can you swim at Biscayne in November?Sea at 81.7°F, an average of daily maxima
• Crowds, booking and hotel tax in NovemberDry-season start, refundable booking, the boat seat
• Things to do at Biscayne in NovemberConvoy Point, Boca Chita Key, Elliott Key, Stiltsville
• A two-day Biscayne itinerarySunrise at 6:37 a.m., back at the dock by 5:30 p.m.
• November vs October and DecemberHighs of 85.9°F, 81.3°F and 78.2°F side by side
• Is November a good time to visit?Yes for snorkelers, December for the cautious

Most visitors fly into Miami (MIA) or Fort Lauderdale (FLL), the same airports that serve the Everglades and the Keys, as our Florida flights guide lays out. You will want a car, covered in getting around Florida. Our two-day plan assumes two nights near the park’s mainland shore, and where to stay in Florida helps you pick the base.

Biscayne National Park weather in November: average highs, lows and rain days

NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information put the average November high at 81.3°F and the low at 68.3°F, with 3.53 inches of precipitation, in their official 1991-2020 normals. Those are station normals from a real thermometer at NOAA’s Miami station (GHCN ID USW00012839), immediately north of the park, rather than a gridded reanalysis. The park itself is almost all water, and open water swings less than a city does in either direction. Read every figure here as the mainland reading: out on the bay, afternoons tend to run a little milder and nights a little softer.

An average November logs 4.7 days with at least 0.10 inch of rain, roughly one day in six. Over a two-night trip, the odds lean toward dry boat days, and a tenth of an inch usually means a shower you wait out indoors at the visitor center before heading back out. Keep one day of the plan movable so a wet morning shifts the boat trip instead of canceling it.

Lows average 68.3°F against highs of 81.3°F, a 13-degree spread. On land that means shorts at noon and a light long-sleeve layer after dark. A boat ride back across the bay in the evening adds wind to that cooler air, so pack a windbreaker along with reef-safe sunscreen, a wide-brimmed hat and a dry bag for your phone and car keys.

On November 15 the park gets about 10 hours 55 minutes of daylight, according to sunrise-sunset.org. Sunrise comes at about 6:37 a.m. and sunset at about 5:33 p.m. Eastern Standard Time, converted from 11:37 and 22:33 UTC. Clocks fall back an hour in early November, pulling sunset well before dinner, so plan to be off the water and tied up at the dock before 5:30 p.m.

Can you swim in Biscayne National Park in November? Sea temperature and what it feels like

Open-Meteo’s Marine API puts the sea surface off Biscayne National Park at 81.7°F in November, averaged over 2015-2024. That figure is a mean of daily maxima, the warmest reading of each day, so a 24-hour average sits a shade lower. Tables built on daily means will print a smaller number, and both can be right. It also comes from a different source and period than the NOAA air normals, and we credit each one separately for that reason.

Yes, you can swim. At its daily peak the water runs warmer than the average afternoon high of 81.3°F on land, so the first step in feels mild rather than bracing. Most swimmers find water in the low 80s comfortable without a wetsuit, and a thin rash guard does more against the sun than against the cold. The catch comes after you climb out: wet skin in 68.3°F evening air chills quickly, so keep a towel and a dry layer in the boat bag.

We could not read a wind or swell series for Biscayne in November, so we give no wind speed or wave height. Check the National Weather Service marine forecast for Biscayne Bay the evening before, then confirm with your boat operator that morning. Wind shapes snorkel visibility on the reefs far more than the calendar does.

How busy is Biscayne National Park in November? Crowds and prices

November sits at the hinge of Florida’s calendar. The dry season runs November through April, and the Atlantic hurricane season closes on November 30, both per the National Weather Service and NOAA summaries in our Florida overview. That puts the month at the opening of the season, a calendar fact. We found no occupancy or hotel-rate series for the towns near the park, so we crown no month the cheapest or the priciest.

We found no booking-window data either, so we give no number of weeks. Two statewide patterns still hold: holiday weeks are Florida’s annual price peaks, and a trip inside hurricane season is best booked refundable. November carries both, so reserve your room, your rental car and any boat seat on flexible terms, and compare totals with our Florida trip-cost guide.

We could not verify the lodging-tax rate for Miami-Dade County hotels near the park, so we give no percentage. Read the tax and fee lines on the booking screen before you pay.

If you spend more anywhere in November, spend it on the boat. Without one you see the park from the mainland shore at Convoy Point. With one you reach Boca Chita Key, Elliott Key, Stiltsville and the reefs. We could not verify November schedules or fares for the park’s boat concession or private charters, so contact operators directly when you book and ask what happens if wind cancels the trip.

Things to do in Biscayne National Park in November

November lets you pair a snorkel morning with a dry afternoon more often than October allows, with half the rain days, and in water nearly three degrees warmer than December’s. The cooler dawns also suit paddling the mangrove shoreline before the sun climbs.

On the mainland, the Dante Fascell Visitor Center at Convoy Point is the park’s base, with exhibits on the bay and a jetty walk out over the water. By boat, Boca Chita Key draws visitors to its ornamental lighthouse and small harbor, and Elliott Key offers a campground and a trail through hardwood forest. Stiltsville’s houses on stilts rise from the shallows at the bay’s northern edge, and the Maritime Heritage Trail links shipwreck sites for snorkelers and divers.

The gap between air and water shifts with the season. In October the air’s average high of 85.9°F runs above a sea at 84.5°F. In November the order flips: the sea’s daily peak averages 81.7°F against an air high of 81.3°F, and nights at 68.3°F fall well below the water. The late-morning swim is the warmest part of the day, and the evening boat ride is the coolest.

We could not verify the park’s entrance fee or any fee-free day falling in November, so we name neither. The sun rises at about 6:37 a.m. over the open bay east of the mainland, and the shoreline at Convoy Point faces it directly.

Biscayne National Park in November: a two-day itinerary

Day one. Reach Convoy Point by 7 a.m., shortly after the 6:37 a.m. sunrise, and paddle the mangrove edge while the air is still near its 68.3°F low. At 9:30, tour the visitor center exhibits and check in for your boat. From late morning into early afternoon, head out to Boca Chita Key or a reef snorkel while the water is at its daily peak. Aim to be back at the dock by 5 p.m., half an hour before the 5:33 p.m. sunset, then drive to dinner in Homestead.

Day two. Take the second boat option: Elliott Key’s trail if day one was Boca Chita, or the Maritime Heritage Trail if you came to snorkel. If the marine forecast turns windy or one of November’s 4.7 rain days lands, swap the order and keep the boat for whichever day looks calmer. If both days turn rough, trade the bay for the Anhinga Trail in the Everglades, an hour west of Miami.

Biscayne National Park in November vs October and December

From October to November, the average high drops 4.6°F and the low 5.9°F. Rain falls from 7.65 to 3.53 inches, less than half, and rain days nearly halve from 9.0 to 4.7. The sea loses 2.8°F, from 84.5°F to 81.7°F. December cools further, with a high of 78.2°F and a low of 64.3°F, and trims rain to 2.44 inches over 3.7 days. Its sea slips another 2.6°F to 79.1°F.

Moving four weeks earlier gains you the warmest water of the three and costs you roughly twice the rain, deeper in hurricane season. Our October guide covers that trade. Moving four weeks later closes the hurricane season and removes about one rain day, but swimmers give up the 80°F mark and every night runs 4°F cooler.

Is November a good time to visit Biscayne National Park?

Yes for snorkelers, paddlers and first-time visitors pairing the park with the Everglades: the water stays above 80°F and the rain eases sharply after October. It is a weaker fit if you can only book non-refundable, because the hurricane season runs until November 30, or if the warmest possible water is your only goal.

If November is a no, pick by the reason. Choose December if hurricane-season risk is the worry, since the season has closed and rain days drop to 3.7. Choose October if water temperature matters most, at 84.5°F, and accept 7.65 inches of rain with it. The seasonal picture across the state is in our best time to visit Florida guide.

Of the three months, November is the only one to combine under 4 inches of rain with a sea averaging above 80°F at its daily peak.

The last word

At Biscayne, the water is the park, so book the boat before the bed and give yourself two days rather than one. That cushion covers the real November threat: an average November at the Miami station logs 1.0 day with an inch or more of rain, and a two-day trip with one movable boat day keeps that downpour from costing you the reef.

Sources & data for this guide

• November air normals, precipitation and rain days · NOAA NCEI monthly normals 1991-2020, station USW00012839 (Miami) · checked Sep 24, 2026
• October and December air normals · NOAA NCEI monthly normals 1991-2020, same station · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Sea surface temperature, October to December · Open-Meteo Marine API, mean of daily maxima 2015-2024 · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Daylight, sunrise and sunset on November 15 · sunrise-sunset.org, converted from UTC to Eastern Standard Time · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Dry season and hurricane season dates · National Weather Service and NOAA National Hurricane Center, via our Florida overview · checked Sep 24, 2026
• Our admission: we could not verify entrance fees, visitor center hours, boat schedules and fares, wind and swell data, or the lodging-tax rate for November, and we give no figure for any of them. Place descriptions and the itinerary are editorial · check the park and operators when you book.

To plan your stay

• Best Time to Visit Biscayne National Park: Month-by-Month Weather, Sea Temperature and the Month to Skip
• Biscayne National Park in October: Weather, Sea Temperature and Rain Days vs September and November
• Biscayne National Park in December: Weather, Sea Temperature and Crowds
• Biscayne National Park in January: Weather, Sea Temperature, Crowds and a Two-Day Plan

Nearby places

• Big Cypress National Preserve: Dark Sky Park, Swamp Buggies and the $100 ORV Permit
• Miami Travel Guide: Miami or Miami Beach, Neighborhoods, Beaches and Getting Around Without a Car
• Fort Lauderdale Travel Guide: State Park Beaches, FLL and the 12% Hotel Tax