Punakha weather in December

In December, Punakha sees average daytime highs of 10°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 116 mm of precipitation across 18.8 wet days and about 10.3 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 11th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 12°C in the first days to 9°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 21% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 10 h 24 min at the start of December to 10 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Punakha's 3rd-clearest and 4th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Punakha's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 10°; 10th warmest
Overnight low: 1°; 3rd coldest
Precipitation: 116 mm; 18.8 wet days
Daylight: 10 h 18 min; 6:49 AM – 5:05 PM
Cloud cover: 67%; 3rd clearest
Wind: 3 km/h; 4th windiest
Solar energy: 2.64 kWh/m²
Travel score: 2.0; out of 10

Punakha is city in Bhutan.

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← November Punakha year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 12°C in the first days to 9°C by the end.

A typical December day in Punakha reaches about 10°C in the afternoon and slips back to 1°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 7°C and 14°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 3°C cooler than November and about 2°C warmer than January.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	12	12	12	12	12	12	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	9	9	9	9	9	9
Avg low (°C)	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	12	3
2	12	3
3	12	3
4	12	3
5	12	3
6	12	3
7	11	3
8	11	2
9	11	2
10	11	2
11	11	2
12	11	2
13	11	2
14	11	2
15	11	2
16	10	1
17	10	1
18	10	1
19	10	1
20	10	1
21	10	1
22	10	1
23	10	0
24	10	0
25	10	0
26	9	0
27	9	0
28	9	0
29	9	0
30	9	0
31	9	0

How December really feels in Punakha

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 6 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

wind chill below the day's low

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

Punakha weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 11th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	8° / -1°	162	20.9	14.1	10.5	1.1
Feb	10° / 1°	192	22.7	11.3	11	1.4
Mar	13° / 3°	242	27.1	4.9	11.8	2.1
Apr	16° / 7°	208	26.6	0.2	12.6	3.1
May	19° / 10°	265	28.5	0	13.3	3.5
Jun	20° / 13°	501	29.5	0	13.7	3.2
Jul	20° / 14°	735	30.9	0	13.6	3.1
Aug	20° / 14°	571	30.4	0	13	3.2
Sep	19° / 12°	385	27.9	0	12.2	3.4
Oct	17° / 8°	185	21.7	0	11.3	4.0
Nov	14° / 4°	111	17.4	0.4	10.6	3.2
Dec	10° / 1°	116	18.8	5.8	10.3	2.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 21% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 14% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 65%. Skies tend to open up as the month goes on.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	30	30	29	30	30	30	30	30	31	31	31	32	34	34	34	33	34	35	35	37	37	38	39	40	40	41	40	40	41	41	40
Cloudier (%)	70	70	71	70	70	70	70	70	69	69	69	68	66	66	66	67	66	65	65	63	63	62	61	60	60	59	60	60	59	59	60

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	30	70
2	30	70
3	29	71
4	30	70
5	30	70
6	30	70
7	30	70
8	30	70
9	31	69
10	31	69
11	31	69
12	32	68
13	34	66
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	33	67
17	34	66
18	35	65
19	35	65
20	37	63
21	37	63
22	38	62
23	39	61
24	40	60
25	40	60
26	41	59
27	40	60
28	40	60
29	41	59
30	41	59
31	40	60

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Punakha gets around 116 mm of rain and snow over 18.8 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 60% and peaks near 63% on the wettest days, and about 6 days bring snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	62	62	62	63	63	63	63	63	63	62	61	61	61	60	60	60	60	59	59	58	58	58	58	58	58	58	58	59	59	60	60
Snow chance (%)	6	7	8	8	9	10	11	12	12	13	14	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	62	6
2	62	7
3	62	8
4	63	8
5	63	9
6	63	10
7	63	11
8	63	12
9	63	12
10	62	13
11	61	14
12	61	14
13	61	15
14	60	16
15	60	17
16	60	18
17	60	19
18	59	20
19	59	21
20	58	22
21	58	23
22	58	24
23	58	25
24	58	26
25	58	27
26	58	28
27	58	29
28	59	30
29	59	31
30	60	32
31	60	33

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

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

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in December

Winds average 3 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 3 km/h on the calmest days to 3 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	3	calm
2	3	calm
3	3	calm
4	3	calm
5	3	calm
6	3	calm
7	3	calm
8	3	calm
9	3	calm
10	3	calm
11	3	calm
12	3	calm
13	3	calm
14	3	calm
15	3	calm
16	3	calm
17	3	calm
18	3	calm
19	3	calm
20	3	calm
21	3	calm
22	3	calm
23	3	calm
24	3	calm
25	3	calm
26	3	calm
27	3	calm
28	3	calm
29	3	calm
30	3	calm
31	3	calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 24 min at the start of December to 10 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 6 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 6:39 AM to 6:55 AM, and sunset from 5:02 PM to 5:12 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	10.4	10.4	10.4	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3	10.3
Sunrise (AM)	6:39	6:40	6:40	6:41	6:42	6:42	6:43	6:44	6:44	6:45	6:46	6:46	6:47	6:48	6:48	6:49	6:49	6:50	6:50	6:51	6:51	6:52	6:52	6:53	6:53	6:54	6:54	6:54	6:55	6:55	6:55
Sunset (PM)	5:02	5:02	5:02	5:02	5:02	5:02	5:02	5:02	5:03	5:03	5:03	5:03	5:04	5:04	5:04	5:05	5:05	5:05	5:06	5:06	5:07	5:07	5:08	5:08	5:09	5:09	5:10	5:10	5:11	5:11	5:12

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	10.4	6:39	5:02
2	10.4	6:40	5:02
3	10.4	6:40	5:02
4	10.3	6:41	5:02
5	10.3	6:42	5:02
6	10.3	6:42	5:02
7	10.3	6:43	5:02
8	10.3	6:44	5:02
9	10.3	6:44	5:03
10	10.3	6:45	5:03
11	10.3	6:46	5:03
12	10.3	6:46	5:03
13	10.3	6:47	5:04
14	10.3	6:48	5:04
15	10.3	6:48	5:04
16	10.3	6:49	5:05
17	10.3	6:49	5:05
18	10.3	6:50	5:05
19	10.3	6:50	5:06
20	10.3	6:51	5:06
21	10.3	6:51	5:07
22	10.3	6:52	5:07
23	10.3	6:52	5:08
24	10.3	6:53	5:08
25	10.3	6:53	5:09
26	10.3	6:54	5:09
27	10.3	6:54	5:10
28	10.3	6:54	5:10
29	10.3	6:55	5:11
30	10.3	6:55	5:11
31	10.3	6:55	5:12

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 2.64 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.64 kWh/m² to a high of 4.96 kWh/m² in April across the year — December's 2.64 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.7	2.7	2.7	2.7	2.7	2.8	2.8	2.8	2.8	2.8	2.9	2.9	2.9
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	2.6	Moderate
2	2.6	Moderate
3	2.6	Moderate
4	2.6	Moderate
5	2.6	Moderate
6	2.6	Moderate
7	2.6	Moderate
8	2.6	Moderate
9	2.6	Moderate
10	2.6	Moderate
11	2.6	Moderate
12	2.6	Moderate
13	2.6	Moderate
14	2.6	Moderate
15	2.6	Moderate
16	2.6	Moderate
17	2.6	Moderate
18	2.6	Moderate
19	2.7	Moderate
20	2.7	Moderate
21	2.7	Moderate
22	2.7	Moderate
23	2.7	Moderate
24	2.8	Moderate
25	2.8	Moderate
26	2.8	Moderate
27	2.8	Moderate
28	2.8	Moderate
29	2.9	Moderate
30	2.9	Moderate
31	2.9	Moderate

Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Punakha

In seasonPeak

None of Punakha's seasonal hazards are active in December. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do peak.

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

Rainy season

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Is December a good time to visit Punakha?

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

2.0

Sightseeing

10th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

10th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Punakha.

What to pack for Punakha in December

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

In December, Punakha sees daytime highs around 10°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer and rain gear. About 19 days see rain.

a warm layerrain gear

UV index in Punakha in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Punakha peaks around July 12 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 23 at about 5 (moderate).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	5	7	10	11	13	14	15	13	12	9	6	5
Level	Moderate	High	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	High	Moderate

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	5	Moderate
Feb	7	High
Mar	10	Very high
Apr	11	Extreme
May	13	Extreme
Jun	14	Extreme
Jul	15	Extreme
Aug	13	Extreme
Sep	12	Extreme
Oct	9	Very high
Nov	6	High
Dec	5	Moderate

Air quality in Punakha in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Punakha is worst in February — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.4× the cleanest month (September, 4 µg/m³).

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

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
PM2.5 (µg/m³)	7	16	15	15	10	6	4	4	4	4	5	6
Level	Good	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good

	PM2.5 (µg/m³)	Level
Jan	7	Good
Feb	16	Moderate
Mar	15	Moderate
Apr	15	Moderate
May	10	Good
Jun	6	Good
Jul	4	Good
Aug	4	Good
Sep	4	Good
Oct	4	Good
Nov	5	Good
Dec	6	Good

Location & terrain

Where is Punakha?

Punakha sits at 27.6°N, 89.9°E, 1,293 m above sea level, in Bhutan. The nearest listed city is Thimphu, 27 km away.

Topography around Punakha

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Punakha has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,103 m around an average of 1,495 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,669 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 7,227 m.

The land around Punakha is covered by trees (62%) and grassland (21%) within 3 km, trees (88%) within 16 km, and trees (59%) within 80 km.

3 km

1,103 m

trees 62%

16 km

2,669 m

trees 88%

80 km

7,227 m

trees 59%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainsnow and icewatermoss and lichen

← November Punakha year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Thimphu 27 km · Paro 49 km · Trongsa 63 km · Tsirang 68 km · Jakar 86 km · Phuentsholing 95 km · Mongar 139 km · Trashigang 168 km

Bhutan travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 1; Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs: Type C / D / F / G / M; 230 V · 50 Hz
Prices: ≈ 23% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $4,493; 2025
Happiness: 5.1 / 10; World Happiness, 2018
Safe drinking water: 66%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 2.5; per 100k, 2020
Road deaths: 16.2; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: Lower middle; World Bank
English: Low; EF EPI 473
Religion

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 Punakha (27.5914°, 89.8774°, elevation 1,293 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. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	12	3
2	12	3
3	12	3
4	12	3
5	12	3
6	12	3
7	11	3
8	11	2
9	11	2
10	11	2
11	11	2
12	11	2
13	11	2
14	11	2
15	11	2
16	10	1
17	10	1
18	10	1
19	10	1
20	10	1
21	10	1
22	10	1
23	10	0
24	10	0
25	10	0
26	9	0
27	9	0
28	9	0
29	9	0
30	9	0
31	9	0

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	30	70
2	30	70
3	29	71
4	30	70
5	30	70
6	30	70
7	30	70
8	30	70
9	31	69
10	31	69
11	31	69
12	32	68
13	34	66
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	33	67
17	34	66
18	35	65
19	35	65
20	37	63
21	37	63
22	38	62
23	39	61
24	40	60
25	40	60
26	41	59
27	40	60
28	40	60
29	41	59
30	41	59
31	40	60

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	62	6
2	62	7
3	62	8
4	63	8
5	63	9
6	63	10
7	63	11
8	63	12
9	63	12
10	62	13
11	61	14
12	61	14
13	61	15
14	60	16
15	60	17
16	60	18
17	60	19
18	59	20
19	59	21
20	58	22
21	58	23
22	58	24
23	58	25
24	58	26
25	58	27
26	58	28
27	58	29
28	59	30
29	59	31
30	60	32
31	60	33

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	12	3
2	12	3
3	12	3
4	12	3
5	12	3
6	12	3
7	11	3
8	11	2
9	11	2
10	11	2
11	11	2
12	11	2
13	11	2
14	11	2
15	11	2
16	10	1
17	10	1
18	10	1
19	10	1
20	10	1
21	10	1
22	10	1
23	10	0
24	10	0
25	10	0
26	9	0
27	9	0
28	9	0
29	9	0
30	9	0
31	9	0

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	30	70
2	30	70
3	29	71
4	30	70
5	30	70
6	30	70
7	30	70
8	30	70
9	31	69
10	31	69
11	31	69
12	32	68
13	34	66
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	33	67
17	34	66
18	35	65
19	35	65
20	37	63
21	37	63
22	38	62
23	39	61
24	40	60
25	40	60
26	41	59
27	40	60
28	40	60
29	41	59
30	41	59
31	40	60

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	62	6
2	62	7
3	62	8
4	63	8
5	63	9
6	63	10
7	63	11
8	63	12
9	63	12
10	62	13
11	61	14
12	61	14
13	61	15
14	60	16
15	60	17
16	60	18
17	60	19
18	59	20
19	59	21
20	58	22
21	58	23
22	58	24
23	58	25
24	58	26
25	58	27
26	58	28
27	58	29
28	59	30
29	59	31
30	60	32
31	60	33

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	12	3
2	12	3
3	12	3
4	12	3
5	12	3
6	12	3
7	11	3
8	11	2
9	11	2
10	11	2
11	11	2
12	11	2
13	11	2
14	11	2
15	11	2
16	10	1
17	10	1
18	10	1
19	10	1
20	10	1
21	10	1
22	10	1
23	10	0
24	10	0
25	10	0
26	9	0
27	9	0
28	9	0
29	9	0
30	9	0
31	9	0

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	30	70
2	30	70
3	29	71
4	30	70
5	30	70
6	30	70
7	30	70
8	30	70
9	31	69
10	31	69
11	31	69
12	32	68
13	34	66
14	34	66
15	34	66
16	33	67
17	34	66
18	35	65
19	35	65
20	37	63
21	37	63
22	38	62
23	39	61
24	40	60
25	40	60
26	41	59
27	40	60
28	40	60
29	41	59
30	41	59
31	40	60

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	62	6
2	62	7
3	62	8
4	63	8
5	63	9
6	63	10
7	63	11
8	63	12
9	63	12
10	62	13
11	61	14
12	61	14
13	61	15
14	60	16
15	60	17
16	60	18
17	60	19
18	59	20
19	59	21
20	58	22
21	58	23
22	58	24
23	58	25
24	58	26
25	58	27
26	58	28
27	58	29
28	59	30
29	59	31
30	60	32
31	60	33

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100