There are only two real seasons in Ecuador - the rainy season and the dry season - but there are significant variations among the geographical regions, and temperature is often a factor of altitude. Even during the rainy season, most days are sunny until the afternoon. Coastal Ecuador is cloudy most of the time but enjoys daily highs averaging around 30°C (86°F) year-round, and a short but quite damp wet season between January and April. The highland dry season is between June and the end of September. In the Oriente, it rains most months - August and December to March are usually the driest. The Galápagos Islands are unusually dry for their equatorial position. The official dry season, between June and December, is also cool and often misty.