The south is hot and dry between November and February. The main rainy season is from July to October. Temperatures in the north vary. On the Adamaoua Plateau, temperatures drop sharply at night; the rainy season is from May to October. Grassland areas inland are much cooler than the coast with regular rainfall.

Lightweight cotton clothes, canvas or light leather shoes or sandals. Waterproofs are advised for coastal areas.

Situated on the west coast of Africa, Cameroon is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Guinea, to the northwest by Nigeria, to the northeast by Chad (with Lake Chad at its northern tip), to the east by the Central African Republic and to the south by Congo, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. The far north of the country is a semi-desert broadening into the vast Maroua Plain, with game reserves and mineral deposits. This is bordered to the west by the lush Mandara Mountains. The Benue River rises here and flows westwards into the Niger. The country to the northwest is very beautiful; volcanic peaks covered by bamboo forest rise to over 2,000m (6,500ft), with waterfalls and villages scattered over the lower slopes. Further to the south and west are savannah uplands, while dense forest covers the east and south. The coastal strip is tropical and cultivated. Cameroon derives its name from the 15th-century Portuguese sailor Fernando Po’s description of the River Wouri: Rio dos Cameroes (‘river of shrimps’).