Nicosia in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Nicosia sees average daytime highs around 16°C and overnight lows near 9°C, with 158 mm of rain over about 25 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 16°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 49% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Nicosia's 3rd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Nicosia's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 16°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 9°C
- Rainfall
- 158 mm
- 25 wet days
- Avg wind
- 9 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.5
- 3rd-best season
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Nicosia in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 16°C.
A typical winter day in Nicosia reaches about 16°C and drops to 9°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Nicosia
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.
winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.
Nicosia 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.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15° / 8° | 57 | 8.7 | 9.9 | 5.1 |
| Feb | 16° / 9° | 47 | 7.6 | 10.7 | 5.5 |
| Mar | 19° / 10° | 36 | 6.4 | 11.7 | 7.0 |
| Apr | 23° / 13° | 29 | 5.1 | 12.9 | 8.0 |
| May | 28° / 17° | 30 | 4.5 | 13.8 | 7.5 |
| Jun | 32° / 22° | 7 | 1.8 | 14.3 | 5.3 |
| Jul | 35° / 24° | 2 | 0.5 | 14.1 | 3.5 |
| Aug | 35° / 25° | 3 | 1 | 13.3 | 3.5 |
| Sep | 32° / 22° | 11 | 2.6 | 12.2 | 5.3 |
| Oct | 27° / 18° | 37 | 5.5 | 11.1 | 7.4 |
| Nov | 22° / 14° | 38 | 5.5 | 10.2 | 7.7 |
| Dec | 17° / 10° | 54 | 8.5 | 9.7 | 6.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 49% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Nicosia gets around 158 mm of rain over 25 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 9 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 h 48 min in early December to 11 h 06 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 3.0 kWh/m².
Is winter a good time to visit Nicosia?
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.
winter is a reasonable time to visit Nicosia for sightseeing.
What to pack for Nicosia in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Nicosia sees daytime highs around 16°C and nights near 9°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 25 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Nicosia in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 18°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 23 km away) is warmest in August at about 28°C and coldest in February near 17°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from May 8 to Dec 5 — about 7 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 21 | 24 | 27 | 28 | 27 | 25 | 22 | 19 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Refreshing | Warm | Warm | Tropical | Warm | Warm | Refreshing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 17 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 17 | Cool |
| Apr | 18 | Cool |
| May | 21 | Refreshing |
| Jun | 24 | Warm |
| Jul | 27 | Warm |
| Aug | 28 | Tropical |
| Sep | 27 | Warm |
| Oct | 25 | Warm |
| Nov | 22 | Refreshing |
| Dec | 19 | Cool |
UV index in Nicosia in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Nicosia peaks around August 11 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 23 at about 3 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 3 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | Moderate |
| Feb | 4 | Moderate |
| Mar | 4 | Moderate |
| Apr | 8 | Very high |
| May | 8 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 10 | Very high |
| Sep | 8 | Very high |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 3 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Air quality in Nicosia in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Nicosia is worst in March — around 19 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Nicosia's WHO annual average of 14.5 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 15 | 15 | 19 | 16 | 16 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 12 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15 | Moderate |
| Feb | 15 | Moderate |
| Mar | 19 | Moderate |
| Apr | 16 | Moderate |
| May | 16 | Moderate |
| Jun | 13 | Moderate |
| Jul | 14 | Moderate |
| Aug | 14 | Moderate |
| Sep | 13 | Moderate |
| Oct | 13 | Moderate |
| Nov | 15 | Moderate |
| Dec | 12 | Good |
Where is Nicosia?
Nicosia sits at 35.2°N, 33.4°E, 155 m above sea level, in Cyprus. The nearest listed city is Stróvolos, 3.0 km away.
Topography around Nicosia
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Nicosia.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Nicosia has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 75 m around an average of 152 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 852 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,946 m.
The land around Nicosia is covered by artificial surfaces (72%) within 3 km, cropland (39%) and grassland (28%) within 16 km, and water (57%) within 80 km.
Cyprus travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type G
- 240 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 65% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $41,783
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.1 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 100%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 0.8
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 5.8
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 537
- 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 Nicosia (35.1728°, 33.354°, elevation 155 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.