DRY TORTUGAS · NOVEMBER · THE MONTH GUIDE
In November the rain drops away around Fort Jefferson. NOAA’s Key West normals fall from 7.6 wet days in October to 3.0 in November, and the sea off Dry Tortugas still averages 81.2°F at its daily peak. For a trip that hangs on one crossing from Key West and a day on Garden Key, those are the two numbers to plan around.
The park lies seventy miles west of Key West, so every trip starts in town: fly into Key West or drive the Overseas Highway, sleep there, then cross. Two nights in Key West around the park day is a workable shape (est.). Our Key West guide covers the town and our Florida flights guide sorts the airports.
THE MONTH AT A GLANCE · DRY TORTUGAS
November gives Dry Tortugas swimmable water at 81.2°F with only about three wet days, so it suits snorkelers who want October’s sea without October’s rain.
DRY SEASON OPENS · HURRICANE SEASON ENDS NOV 30 · AIR NORMALS FROM KEY WEST, 70 MILES EAST
Go for: snorkeling off Garden Key in water above 80°F, a fort walk without October’s downpours, and a crossing with far better odds of dry weather.
Think twice before: booking non-refundable early in the month, since the Atlantic hurricane season runs through November 30.
Air: NOAA NCEI, Key West station · Sea: Open-Meteo Marine · Light: sunrise-sunset.org · full sources at the end
On this page
- Dry Tortugas weather in November81.0°F highs, 72.2°F lows and 3 rain days
- Is the water warm enough to swim?An 81.2°F sea, measured as daily maxima
- Crowds and prices in NovemberDry season opens, hurricane season ends Nov 30
- Things to do in NovemberFort Jefferson and Garden Key’s 81.2°F water
- A two-day Dry Tortugas itineraryTwo days built around a 5:41 pm sunset
- November vs October and DecemberHow highs of 85.8°F, 81.0°F and 77.7°F compare
- Is November a good time to visit?Who should go, and which month to pick instead
Every figure here for air and rain comes from a thermometer on Key West, and the island you are visiting is windier and more exposed. We read those normals as the best official guide available, a notch rougher for open water. Still weighing months? Our Florida best-time guide sets the year, and Dry Tortugas in October covers the wetter month before this one.
Dry Tortugas weather in November: average highs, lows and rain days
| November normal | Value |
|---|---|
| Average high | 81.0°F |
| Average low | 72.2°F |
| Precipitation | 2.05 in |
| Days with 0.10 in or more | 3.0 |
| Daylight on Nov 15 | 10 h 59 min |
| Sunrise / sunset, Nov 15 | 6:42 am / 5:41 pm EST |
NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information put the 1991–2020 November normals at an average high of 81.0°F, a low of 72.2°F and 2.05 inches of rain. They come from an official station, USW00012836 at Key West, a real thermometer seventy miles east, not a reanalysis grid cell. Dry Tortugas stands alone in open Gulf with nothing between it and the weather, so pack for the same temperatures with more wind across the fort’s walls.
Measurable rain, 0.10 inch or more, falls on 3.0 days in an average November: roughly one day in ten. On a trip with two nights in Key West, the odds favor a dry crossing by a wide margin. Put the park day early in your stay, so a wet morning leaves room to move the boat to the next day if your operator allows the change.
Highs and lows sit 8.8°F apart, 81.0°F against 72.2°F. That gap matters most on the water at dawn and after dark if you camp. Bring a long-sleeve layer for the early crossing and the evening, a swimsuit and sun cover for the afternoon, and a light rain shell for the one wet day in ten.
November 15 carries about 10 hours 59 minutes of daylight. The sun rises at 6:42 am and sets at 5:41 pm, converted from UTC to Eastern Standard Time. Campers on Garden Key should have a headlamp within reach by 6 pm (est.), and day-trippers heading back to Key West will finish the crossing near or after dark (est.).
Can you swim in Dry Tortugas in November? Sea temperature
Yes. Open-Meteo’s Marine API puts the November sea surface off Dry Tortugas at 81.2°F, averaged over 2015–2024. That figure is a mean of daily maxima, the warmest reading of each day, so it runs a shade warmer than a 24-hour mean. Other tables that average around the clock may show a slightly cooler number, and both can be right.
In practice the water sits within a fraction of a degree of the afternoon air, 81.2°F against 81.0°F. It also runs about 9°F warmer than the 72.2°F night low, so an early snorkel can feel warmer in the water than on the beach (est.). Most swimmers go in without a wetsuit at that temperature, and a thin rash guard handles sun and long sessions.
Our sources carry no wind or swell series for November, so we cannot give a figure for either. We know only that the island is windier than Key West and fully exposed to open water. Check the marine forecast the evening before your crossing, and keep the swimming to the sheltered side of Garden Key if the breeze is up.
How busy is Dry Tortugas in November? Crowds and prices
November opens Florida’s dry season, which runs through April, and it closes the Atlantic hurricane season on November 30, both covered in our Florida orientation. Those are calendar facts. We found no occupancy or fare series for the park or for Key West, so we rank no month as cheap or expensive.
Book the crossing once your dates are firm, and book refundable where you can while hurricane season is still officially open. We have no booking-lead data, so we give no week count. Holiday weeks are Florida’s annual crowd peaks, and our Florida trip-cost guide lays out what a Key West base adds per night.
We could not verify a lodging-tax rate for Key West hotels, so we give no percentage. Ask for the total with taxes and resort fees before you confirm a room.
The one spend that changes November is time on the island. A day trip crosses seventy miles each way and shares Garden Key with the rest of the boat, while an overnight in the park campground adds the 6:42 am sunrise and the 5:41 pm sunset. We could not verify 2026 camping fees or permit rules, so confirm both with the park before you plan around a night.
Things to do in Dry Tortugas in November
November pairs a sea above 80°F with about three wet days. October keeps warmer water at 84.2°F but brings 7.6 rainy days, and December cuts the rain to 3.1 days while the sea slips to 77.6°F. Among the three, only November clears both bars.
Fort Jefferson fills most of Garden Key: walk the upper tier for the view over the reefs, then the moat wall around the outside. The swimming beach on Garden Key sits next to the fort’s walls, and the snorkeling there runs in that same 81.2°F water. We could not verify 2026 entrance fees or fort hours. Our Florida national parks guide carries park fees and passes.
The water barely moves between October and November, dropping 3.0°F. The air drops faster: the average high falls 4.8°F, from 85.8°F to 81.0°F. That brings air and sea level with each other, so a long walk on the fort’s sun-baked brick and a long swim feel equally comfortable in the same afternoon.
Once you are on Garden Key, the moat-wall walk, the beach and the 5:41 pm sunset cost nothing extra. We found no free-entry dates for November, so we list none.
Dry Tortugas in November: a two-day itinerary
Day one, the crossing. Leave Key West at your operator’s departure time with a layer for the cool water breeze. Walk Fort Jefferson’s upper tier on arrival, before the midday sun heats the brick. Snorkel off the Garden Key beach from late morning into the early afternoon, when air and water both sit near 81°F. Campers take the moat wall by 5:15 pm for the 5:41 pm sunset, and day-trippers board with the return boat.
Day two, the island morning or Key West. Campers get the 6:42 am sunrise over the fort and a second snorkel before the boat arrives. Day-trippers spend it in Key West. If the one wet day in ten lands on this day, the fort’s covered galleries give campers shelter, and anyone who moved the crossing uses it for the park instead.
Dry Tortugas in November vs October and December
| Normal | October | November | December |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average high | 85.8°F | 81.0°F | 77.7°F |
| Average low | 76.8°F | 72.2°F | 68.3°F |
| Precipitation | 5.67 in | 2.05 in | 2.16 in |
| Days with 0.10 in or more | 7.6 | 3.0 | 3.1 |
| Sea surface (daily maxima, 2015–2024) | 84.2°F | 81.2°F | 77.6°F |
From October to November, NOAA’s Key West normals drop the high 4.8°F and the low 4.6°F, and rain falls from 5.67 to 2.05 inches, with wet days cut from 7.6 to 3.0. The Open-Meteo sea figure loses 3.0°F, from 84.2°F to 81.2°F. From November to December the rain holds almost level at 2.16 inches and 3.1 days, while the high loses 3.3°F and the sea 3.6°F, down to 77.6°F.
Shift four weeks earlier and you gain 3.0°F of water but more than double the rainy days, inside the busiest weeks of hurricane season. Shift four weeks later and hurricane season is over, and early December is one of Florida’s quiet bargain windows per our Florida orientation. The price is a sea below 78°F and nights at 68.3°F.
Is November a good time to visit Dry Tortugas?
Yes for snorkelers and first-time visitors who want warm water and good odds of a dry crossing, and for campers who like cool 72.2°F nights. Travelers who want certainty with nonrefundable plans should lean later, since hurricane season still runs through November 30.
If November does not fit, pick early December for the rain odds at 3.1 wet days and the end of hurricane season, and accept water at 77.6°F. Swimmers who want the warmest sea should choose October at 84.2°F and plan a spare day for its 7.6 wet ones, as our October guide sets out.
Of October, November and December, November alone pairs a sea above 80°F with about three rainy days.
The last word
The decision that counts is the crossing date, so put it early in your Key West stay and keep one day loose. The weather is on your side: the Key West station logs a day with an inch or more of rain only 0.5 times in an average November, a real soaking about every other year. Pack the rash guard, book refundable, and aim to be on the moat wall when the sun goes down at 5:41 pm.
Sources & data for this guide
- November, October and December air normals, precipitation and rain days · NOAA NCEI monthly normals 1991–2020, station USW00012836 (Key West, seventy miles east of the park) · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Sea surface temperature, mean of daily maxima 2015–2024 · Open-Meteo Marine API · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Daylight, sunrise and sunset on November 15, converted from UTC to EST · sunrise-sunset.org · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Dry season and hurricane season dates · our Florida orientation, after NOAA National Hurricane Center · checked Sep 24, 2026
- We could not verify ferry fares, park entrance fees, camping fees, fort hours, lodging-tax rates or wind and swell data for November. Figures marked (est.) are editorial estimates. Check operators and the park when you book.