Sarande in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Sarande sees average daytime highs around 10°C and overnight lows near 5°C, with 561 mm of precipitation over about 38 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 10°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Sarande's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Sarande's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
10°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
5°C
Precipitation
561 mm
38 wet days
Avg wind
9 km/h
Travel score
2.3
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Sarande in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 10°C.

A typical winter day in Sarande reaches about 10°C and drops to 5°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.

10°15°20°DecJanFeb

Sarande weather by month

How the three winter months (December, January and February) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan10° / 16412.11.29.52.1
Feb10° / 16311.71.710.42.3
Mar13° / 14812.30.611.73.4
Apr16° / 10°10511.50134.8
May20° / 14°719.8014.26.6
Jun24° / 18°345.3014.88.2
Jul27° / 20°193.4014.58.5
Aug27° / 20°213.5013.68.3
Sep23° / 17°1188.6012.37.5
Oct20° / 13°1659.7010.96.5
Nov15° / 26013.40.29.84.3
Dec11° / 23413.80.79.22.5

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 37% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Sarande gets around 561 mm of rain and snow over 38 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Winter

Winds average 9 km/h across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 24 min in early December to 11 hours by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Winter

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 2.3 kWh/m².

01234DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Sarande

In seasonPeak

In winter, Sarande overlaps its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Sarande's rainy season runs September–March, when most of the year's rain falls.

Rainy season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is winter a good time to visit Sarande?

Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

2.3
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Sarande.

What to pack for Sarande in Winter

From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In winter, Sarande sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 5°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 38 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

Sea temperature near Sarande in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 16°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in August at about 25°C and coldest in February near 15°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from May 27 to Nov 13 — about 5.6 months when the water holds above 20°C.

15°20°25°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan15Cool
Feb15Bracing
Mar15Bracing
Apr16Cool
May19Cool
Jun22Refreshing
Jul24Refreshing
Aug25Warm
Sep24Warm
Oct22Refreshing
Nov20Cool
Dec17Cool

UV index in Sarande in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Sarande peaks around July 24 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highHighModerateLowJul 24UV 9Dec 21UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5High
Apr7High
May7High
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug9Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Sarande in Winter

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Sarande is worst in April — around 15 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 1.9× the cleanest month (December, 8 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodApr 1915 µg/m³Dec 168 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan9Good
Feb12Good
Mar14Moderate
Apr15Moderate
May15Moderate
Jun13Moderate
Jul14Moderate
Aug14Moderate
Sep10Good
Oct10Good
Nov9Good
Dec8Good
Location & terrain

Where is Sarande?

Sarande sits at 39.9°N, 20.0°E, 23 m above sea level, in Albania. The nearest listed city is Gjirokastër, 25 km away.

GjirokastërCorfuDhërmiZagorochoriaIoánninaVlorëPatos FshatBerat

Topography around Sarande

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Sarande.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Sarande has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 464 m around an average of 98 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,494 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,461 m.

The land around Sarande is covered by water (32%) and grassland (31%) within 3 km, water (34%), grassland (29%) and trees (23%) within 16 km, and water (39%), trees (37%) and grassland (21%) within 80 km.

3 km
464 m
16 km
1,494 m
80 km
2,461 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Gjirokastër 25 km · Corfu 29 km · Dhërmi 44 km · Zagorochoria 74 km · Ioánnina 76 km · Vlorë 80 km · Patos Fshat 90 km · Berat 92 km

Albania travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 43% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$12,998
2025
Happiness
5.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
71%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
1.4
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
11.7
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 532
Religion
Muslim 57%Roman Catholic 10%Orthodox 7%other 6%

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Sarande (39.8753°, 20.0048°, elevation 23 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google.