Mariel in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Mariel sees average daytime highs around 26°C and overnight lows near 20°C, with 89 mm of rain over about 15 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 26°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 53% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels muggy.

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

Avg daytime high
26°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
20°C
Rainfall
89 mm
15 wet days
Avg wind
16 km/h
Travel score
7.8
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Mariel in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 26°C.

A typical winter day in Mariel reaches about 26°C and drops to 20°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.

15°20°25°30°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Mariel

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.

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

winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Mariel 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 daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 20°355.310.77.8
Feb26° / 20°284.211.28.0
Mar27° / 21°224.111.87.8
Apr29° / 22°304.612.56.8
May30° / 24°8810.413.15.4
Jun30° / 25°1271713.44.0
Jul31° / 26°7616.513.33.9
Aug31° / 26°10017.512.83.7
Sep30° / 25°12719.212.13.8
Oct29° / 24°9213.711.55.1
Nov27° / 22°367.210.97.1
Dec26° / 21°27510.67.7

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 53% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Mariel gets around 89 mm of rain over 15 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels muggy — 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 16 km/h across winter.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 42 min in early December to 11 h 30 min 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 4.2 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Mariel

In seasonPeak

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

Mariel sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

Mariel's rainy season runs May–October, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Mariel?

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.

7.8
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
7.4
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

winter is one of the better times to visit Mariel for general sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Mariel in Winter

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

In winter, Mariel sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 20°C. Worth packing: light clothes and sun protection. About 15 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

Sea temperature near Mariel in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 26°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 19 km away) is warmest in August at about 30°C and coldest in February near 26°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

24°26°28°30°32°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan26Warm
Feb26Warm
Mar26Warm
Apr27Warm
May27Warm
Jun28Tropical
Jul29Tropical
Aug30Tropical
Sep29Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov28Warm
Dec27Warm

UV index in Mariel in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages 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 Mariel peaks around June 20 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 16 at about 6 (high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecHighVery highExtremeVery highHighJun 20UV 12Dec 16UV 6
UV index (midday)Level
Jan7High
Feb8Very high
Mar10Extreme
Apr11Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep11Extreme
Oct9Very high
Nov6High
Dec6High

Air quality in Mariel 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 Mariel is worst in July — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.8× the cleanest month (November, 8 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1221 µg/m³Nov 218 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan9Good
Feb9Good
Mar11Good
Apr12Moderate
May13Moderate
Jun21Moderate
Jul21Moderate
Aug19Moderate
Sep14Moderate
Oct11Good
Nov8Good
Dec8Good
Location & terrain

Where is Mariel?

Mariel sits at 23.0°N, 82.8°W, 16 m above sea level, in Cuba. The nearest listed city is Guanajay, 10 km away.

Topography around Mariel

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Mariel has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 95 m around an average of 27 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 257 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 654 m.

The land around Mariel is covered by trees (27%), grassland (27%) and water (22%) within 3 km, water (36%), trees (31%) and grassland (24%) within 16 km, and water (55%) and trees (22%) within 80 km.

3 km
95 m
16 km
257 m
80 km
654 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetlandmangroves
Winter weather nearby: Guanajay 10 km · Artemisa 20 km · Bauta 21 km · Alquízar 27 km · San Antonio de los Baños 28 km · Balcón de la Lisa 32 km · Güira de Melena 33 km · Marianao 34 km

Cuba travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / B / C / L
110 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 39% of US
price level, 2011
GDP per capita
$9,605
2020
Happiness
5.4 / 10
World Happiness, 2011
Homicide rate
4.5
per 100k, 2019
Road deaths
8.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 515
Religion
Christian 59%none 23%folk religion 18%

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 Mariel (22.9898°, -82.7542°, elevation 16 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.