Vicuña in Summer

In summer (December, January and February), Vicuña sees average daytime highs around 22°C and overnight lows near 14°C, with 28 mm of rain over about 10 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 22°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 87% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels dry.

Summer is Vicuña's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Vicuña's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
22°C
warmest season of the year
Avg overnight low
14°C
Rainfall
28 mm
10 wet days
Avg wind
5 km/h
Travel score
8.5
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Vicuña in Summer

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 22°C.

A typical summer day in Vicuña reaches about 22°C and drops to 14°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is January, the coolest December.

10°15°20°25°DecJanFeb

Vicuña weather by month

How the three summer 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
Jan22° / 15°103.6013.78.5
Feb22° / 15°93.6013.18.5
Mar21° / 13°132.6012.28.5
Apr19° / 10°163.1011.37.8
May16° / 334.40.710.56.2
Jun14° / 474.61.810.14.7
Jul13° / 4052.210.34.4
Aug14° / 404.71.710.95.1
Sep16° / 275.40.711.86.0
Oct18° / 234.80.212.77.1
Nov20° / 12°123.2013.58.0
Dec21° / 14°92.6013.98.6

Cloud cover in Summer

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 87% of the time across summer.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Summer

Any precipitation

Vicuña gets around 28 mm of rain over 10 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Summer

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of summer 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 Summer

Winds average 5 km/h across summer.

0246810DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Summer

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 13 h 48 min in early December to 12 h 42 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Summer

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 8.2 kWh/m².

02468DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in summer

Is summer a good time to visit Vicuña?

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

8.5
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
5.8
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

summer is one of the better times to visit Vicuña for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Vicuña in Summer

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

In summer, Vicuña sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 14°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes. About 10 days see rain.

sun protectionlight clothes

Sea temperature near Vicuña in Summer

The nearest coast averages about 17°C across summer — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 65 km away) is warmest in February at about 17°C and coldest in August near 13°C.

The water stays below 20°C all year — cool enough that most swimmers want a wetsuit.

12°14°16°18°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcool
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan17Cool
Feb17Cool
Mar17Cool
Apr16Cool
May15Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul13Bracing
Aug13Bracing
Sep13Bracing
Oct14Bracing
Nov14Bracing
Dec15Cool

UV index in Vicuña in Summer

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 15 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Vicuña peaks around January 20 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 19 at about 4 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeHighModerateHighVery highExtremeJan 20UV 15Jun 19UV 4
UV index (midday)Level
Jan15Extreme
Feb15Extreme
Mar12Extreme
Apr7High
May5Moderate
Jun4Moderate
Jul4Moderate
Aug6High
Sep8Very high
Oct12Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec14Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Vicuña?

Vicuña sits at 30.0°S, 70.7°W, 616 m above sea level, in Chile. The nearest listed city is La Serena, 54 km away.

AlbardónVilla General San Martín

Topography around Vicuña

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Vicuña has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 615 m around an average of 709 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,066 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 6,071 m.

The land around Vicuña is covered by bare terrain (48%) within 3 km, bare terrain (49%) and grassland (34%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (55%) and grassland (29%) within 80 km.

3 km
615 m
16 km
3,066 m
80 km
6,071 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Summer weather nearby: La Serena 54 km · Coquimbo 61 km · Ovalle 78 km · Vallenar 162 km · Illapel 183 km · Los Vilos 222 km · Albardón 261 km · Villa General San Martín 261 km

Chile travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / F / L
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 48% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$17,995
2025
Happiness
6.3 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
98%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
6.3
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
14.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 517
Religion
Catholic 57%none 26%Evangelical or Protestant 16%other Christians and traditions related to 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 Vicuña (-30.0354°, -70.7127°, elevation 616 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.