Arta in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Arta sees average daytime highs around 28°C and overnight lows near 19°C, with 39 mm of rain over about 12 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 51% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels humid.

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

Avg daytime high
28°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
19°C
Rainfall
39 mm
12 wet days
Avg wind
13 km/h
Travel score
7.4
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Arta in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C.

A typical winter day in Arta reaches about 28°C and drops to 19°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

15°20°25°30°35°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Arta

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.

Arta 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
Jan27° / 19°175.511.47.4
Feb28° / 20°112.711.67.1
Mar30° / 21°204.511.95.7
Apr32° / 23°356.912.24.4
May36° / 26°153.412.52.3
Jun40° / 28°20.412.70.2
Jul39° / 29°103.112.60.8
Aug38° / 28°245.212.41.3
Sep37° / 27°134.112.11.7
Oct33° / 23°17511.74.4
Nov29° / 21°174.111.56.5
Dec28° / 19°123.711.37.7

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 51% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Arta gets around 39 mm of rain over 12 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 humid — 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 13 km/h across winter.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 24 min in early December to 11 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 Winter

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 5.1 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Arta

In seasonPeak

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

Arta sees seasonal dust haze (June–September), heaviest in July.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Arta?

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.

7.4
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
7.9
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

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

What to pack for Arta in Winter

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

In winter, Arta sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 19°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: sun protection. About 12 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

Sea temperature near Arta in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 27°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in June at about 31°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
Jan27Warm
Feb26Warm
Mar27Warm
Apr29Tropical
May31Tropical
Jun31Tropical
Jul30Tropical
Aug30Tropical
Sep31Tropical
Oct31Tropical
Nov29Tropical
Dec28Warm

UV index in Arta in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 10 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Arta peaks around March 22 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 12 at about 9 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeVery highMar 22UV 14Dec 12UV 9
UV index (midday)Level
Jan11Extreme
Feb12Extreme
Mar14Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul9Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep11Extreme
Oct11Extreme
Nov9Very high
Dec8Very high

Air quality in Arta 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 Arta is worst in July — around 42 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.1× the cleanest month (November, 20 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateJul 1741 µg/m³Nov 1520 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan25Moderate
Feb26Moderate
Mar26Moderate
Apr22Moderate
May25Moderate
Jun36Poor
Jul42Poor
Aug37Poor
Sep29Moderate
Oct21Moderate
Nov20Moderate
Dec21Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Arta?

Arta sits at 11.5°N, 42.9°E, 684 m above sea level, in Djibouti. The nearest listed city is Balbala, 28 km away.

BalbalaTadjouraDjiboutiAli SabihObockSaylacDikhil

Topography around Arta

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Arta has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 529 m around an average of 494 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 849 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,924 m.

The land around Arta is covered by bare terrain (92%) within 3 km, bare terrain (71%) and water (27%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (73%) and water (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
529 m
16 km
849 m
80 km
1,924 m
shrubsgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Balbala 28 km · Tadjoura 29 km · Djibouti 33 km · Ali Sabih 44 km · Obock 68 km · Saylac 70 km · Dikhil 70 km · Asaita 154 km

Djibouti travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type C / E
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 46% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$3,906
2025
Happiness
4.4 / 10
World Happiness, 2014
Road deaths
23.5
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
Religion
Sunni Muslim 94%other 6%

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 Arta (11.5264°, 42.8519°, elevation 684 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.