In what direction do hurricanes typically travel across the Atlantic Ocean? They typically travel westward. Trade winds near the tropics blow from east to west, steering many Atlantic storms away from Africa toward the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and eastern North America.
This westward motion is also influenced by the subtropical ridge, a broad area of high pressure that commonly sits over the subtropical Atlantic. Storms usually form south of this ridge, where easterly winds guide them westward. Earth’s rotation adds a secondary influence called beta drift, which generally nudges tropical cyclones slightly poleward and westward.
Westward does not mean every hurricane follows a straight westbound path. If a storm reaches the western edge of the subtropical ridge, it may turn northward and then curve northeastward, a process called recurvature. That is why some hurricanes head into the open Atlantic or pass near Bermuda instead of striking the United States.