Ecuador Coast Weather and Water Temperature

[GEORGE MINTON]

I received this as part of a email reply regarding the Salinas area but was curious about the water temperature further north of Salinas.
Salinas has very good infrastructure by Ecuadorian standards, as does most of the southern coast.
That means municipal water and electricity, a big farmers market, grocery stores, medical care and
just about everything you need on a day to day basis.
There is an oil refinary in La Libertad, the town adjoining Salinas. That one is being upgraded.
The new one I have heard about is much further north.

As far as weather goes this part of the coast has two seasons. December to May is the warmer time of year.
Daytime highs are typically in the mid to high 80s and in the nights it is in the low to mid 70s.
The rest of the year many of the days are overcast to partly sunny, but not rainy.
The daytime temperatures are usually in the mid 70s and in the low 60s at night.
This area is semi arid, so we get about 5 inches of rain a year.
Most of that comes December to May in the form of occasional showers.
High season for Ecuadorian tourism is late Dec – April.

I understand the water temperature near Ecuador changes from warm to cold at certain times of the year due to currents in the area.
Is there an area with warm water most of year on the coast?
Is the whole area along the coast semi-arid like in Salinas?
Also, I understand a new refinery is being planned in Ecuador and that Salinas has one of these as well.
Is there a better area where we would not be affected by any oil spills?
What about water safety? I saw a video where a large fish consumed a ten year old boy in Ecuador.
How often do events like this occur in Ecuador?
Are there better cities up the coast where the water temperature is better for a longer period of time?

[SUZAN HASKINS]

I think the refinery will be built about 30 minutes south of Manta. And I’ve not heard that killer fish are much of a problem here. 🙂

Other than that, I can’t be very helpful with answers to your other questions. Anyone out there have any input?

[JAMES CHANDLER]

Research the “Humboldt Current” to answer your question about the temperature of the water and how arid the coast will be.
My wife and I did the “North Coast Real Estate” tour from Manta to just north of Jama in August and it was greener and more humid the farther north we went.

[SUZAN HASKINS]

Yes, some say the “sunniest” beach is Playas — but the southern coast tends to be more arid while the northern coast is greener (more rain an humidity). BUt I am uncertain of the difference in water temps although the Humboldt is a factor. That’s why the coast of Ecuador, despite being on the equator, is not beastly hot. It gets hot at times, yes, but no more so than other coastal locations farther north or south.

[GEORGE MINTON]

Thank you both. I saw the video on you tube. sorry to bring it up…

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