Cape Coast has a tropical climate with two rainy seasons. The dry season from November to March is the best time to visit — warm days (28-32 °C), low humidity, and the harmattan wind from the Sahara that brings hazy skies in December and January.
April to mid-July is the main rainy season, with heavy thundery showers most afternoons but few full washouts. A second shorter rainy spell hits in September and October. The sea is often rougher and the canopy walkway at Kakum more impressive in the wet months.
The standout event is the Oguaa Fetu Afahye in early September — Ghana's most spectacular Fante festival, with chiefs paraded through town in palanquins, asafo company flags flying, and a week of music and ritual. Pan-African Historical Theatre Festival (PANAFEST), held biennially in July or August, brings African diasporans from across the world for performances and ceremonies at the castle. Both are worth timing for; both fill the town.