El Chalten weather in October

In October, El Chalten sees average daytime highs of 3°C and overnight lows near -4°C, with 228 mm of precipitation across 19.9 wet days and about 13.5 hours of daylight. It is the 7th-warmest and 7th-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 3°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in October, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 36 min at the start of October to 14 h 24 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, October is El Chalten's 2nd-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see El Chalten's year-round climate.

Daytime high
7th warmest
Overnight low
-4°
6th coldest
Precipitation
228 mm
19.9 wet days
Daylight
13 h 30 min
6:52 AM – 8:22 PM
Cloud cover
73%
2nd clearest
Wind
8 km/h
6th windiest
Solar energy
5.33 kWh/m²
Travel score
0.0
out of 10

Temperature in October

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 3°C through the month.

A typical October day in El Chalten reaches about 3°C in the afternoon and slips back to -4°C overnight — a 6°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 0°C and 6°C. Set against its neighbours, October runs about 2°C warmer than September and about 1°C cooler than November.

-10°-5°10°151015202531
Avg high (°C)Avg low (°C)
13-4
23-4
33-4
43-4
53-4
63-4
73-4
83-4
93-4
103-4
113-4
123-4
133-4
143-4
153-3
163-3
173-3
183-3
193-3
203-3
213-3
223-3
233-3
243-3
253-3
263-3
273-3
283-3
293-3
303-3
314-3

How October really feels in El Chalten

Once humidity and wind are folded in, October averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
31
wind chill below the day's low

The story in October is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

El Chalten weather by month

How October compares with the rest of the year at a glance. October is the 7th-warmest and 7th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan / 25222.819.515.60.8
Feb / 20217.813.614.21.1
Mar / -1°25020.917.312.50.5
Apr / -3°26820.418.810.60.0
May / -4°26520.3208.90.0
Jun-2° / -7°22119.720.680.0
Jul-2° / -7°21919.920.88.40.0
Aug-1° / -6°21520.421.49.80.0
Sep / -5°17919.220.511.60.0
Oct / -4°22819.920.413.50.0
Nov / -2°234212115.10.0
Dec / -1°26222.820.7160.2

Cloud cover in October

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 16% of the time in October.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 11% of October, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 73%.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Clearer (%)Cloudier (%)
12872
22773
32971
42971
52971
62872
72872
82773
92773
102773
112773
122872
132773
142773
152773
162773
172773
182773
192773
202773
212674
222674
232773
242773
252773
262773
272872
282872
292872
302872
312773

Chance of precipitation in October

Any precipitationSnow

El Chalten gets around 228 mm of rain and snow over 19.9 wet days in October. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 64% and peaks near 66% on the wettest days, and about 20 days bring snow.

0%20%40%60%80%151015202531
Rain chance (%)Snow chance (%)
16061
26061
36061
46062
56162
66163
76263
86264
96365
106466
116567
126568
136668
146669
156669
166669
176669
186669
196669
206669
216668
226668
236567
246567
256466
266466
276365
286364
296364
306364
316364

Humidity in October

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, October lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

0%25%50%75%100%151015202531
Dry (%)
1100
2100
3100
4100
5100
6100
7100
8100
9100
10100
11100
12100
13100
14100
15100
16100
17100
18100
19100
20100
21100
22100
23100
24100
25100
26100
27100
28100
29100
30100
31100

Wind in October

Winds average 8 km/h in October.

Across October, daily wind ranges from about 7 km/h on the calmest days to 8 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

0246810151015202531
Wind speed (km/h)Feels
17calm
27calm
37calm
47calm
57calm
67calm
77calm
87calm
97calm
107calm
118calm
128calm
138calm
148calm
158calm
168calm
178calm
188calm
198calm
208calm
218calm
228calm
238calm
248calm
258calm
268calm
278calm
288calm
298calm
308calm
318calm

Sunrise & sunset in October

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 36 min at the start of October to 14 h 24 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 108 minutes over October. Sunrise moves from 7:23 AM to 6:24 AM, and sunset from 7:58 PM to 8:46 PM.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AM151015202531
Daylight (h)Sunrise (AM)Sunset (PM)
112.67:237:58
212.67:217:59
312.77:198:01
412.87:178:03
512.87:148:04
612.97:128:06
712.97:108:07
813.07:088:09
913.17:068:10
1013.17:048:12
1113.27:028:14
1213.37:008:15
1313.36:588:17
1413.46:568:18
1513.46:548:20
1613.56:528:22
1713.66:508:23
1813.66:488:25
1913.76:468:26
2013.76:448:28
2113.86:428:30
2213.96:408:31
2313.96:388:33
2414.06:368:35
2514.06:358:36
2614.16:338:38
2714.16:318:39
2814.26:298:41
2914.36:288:43
3014.36:268:44
3114.46:248:46

Solar energy in October

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in October, about 5.33 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 0.97 kWh/m² to a high of 7.27 kWh/m² in December across the year — October's 5.33 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

0246151015202531
Solar energy (kWh/m²)Level
14.5Bright
24.5Bright
34.6Bright
44.6Bright
54.7Bright
64.8Bright
74.8Bright
84.9Bright
94.9Bright
105.0Bright
115.1Bright
125.1Bright
135.2Bright
145.2Bright
155.3Bright
165.3Bright
175.4Bright
185.5Bright
195.5Bright
205.6Bright
215.6Bright
225.7Bright
235.7Bright
245.8Bright
255.8Bright
265.9Bright
276.0Bright
286.0Intense
296.1Intense
306.1Intense
316.2Intense
Planning a trip in October

Is October a good time to visit El Chalten?

Our two travel scores rate October for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.0
Sightseeing
5th-best month of the year
Beach & pool
never really warm enough

October is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in El Chalten.

What to pack for El Chalten in October

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

In October, El Chalten sees daytime highs around 3°C and nights near -4°C. Pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 20 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gearsun protection

UV index in El Chalten in October

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in October peaks around 7 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in El Chalten peaks around December 23 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 19 at about 1 (low).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeModerateLowModerateHighVery highExtremeDec 23UV 12Jun 19UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan12Extreme
Feb11Extreme
Mar6High
Apr3Moderate
May2Low
Jun1Low
Jul1Low
Aug2Low
Sep4Moderate
Oct7High
Nov8Very high
Dec13Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is El Chalten?

El Chalten sits at 49.3°S, 72.9°W, 0 m above sea level, in Argentina. The nearest listed city is El Calafate, 121 km away.

Puerto NatalesRío GallegosCoyhaiqueLas HerasPuerto AysénPunta ArenasPico Truncado

Topography around El Chalten

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around El Chalten has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 458 m around an average of 530 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,616 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,553 m.

The land around El Chalten is covered by grassland (57%) and trees (23%) within 3 km, bare terrain (37%) and grassland (29%) within 16 km, and snow and ice (32%), grassland (25%) and bare terrain (23%) within 80 km.

3 km
458 m
16 km
2,616 m
80 km
3,553 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen
October weather nearby: El Calafate 121 km · Puerto Natales 268 km · Río Gallegos 362 km · Coyhaique 422 km · Las Heras 428 km · Puerto Aysén 437 km · Punta Arenas 448 km · Pico Truncado 462 km

Argentina travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type C / I
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 46% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$14,898
2025
Happiness
6.4 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
4.5
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
14.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
High
EF EPI 575
Religion
Roman Catholic 63%none 19%Evangelical 15%Jehovah's Witness and Church of Jesus Christ 1%

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 El Chalten (-49.3299°, -72.886°, elevation 0 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. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).