Maych’ew in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Maych’ew sees average daytime highs around 22°C and overnight lows near 9°C, with 79 mm of rain over about 18 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 22°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 57% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Maych’ew's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Maych’ew's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
22°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
9°C
Rainfall
79 mm
18 wet days
Avg wind
7 km/h
Travel score
7.6
2nd-best season
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Maych’ew in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

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

A typical winter day in Maych’ew reaches about 22°C and drops to 9°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

10°15°20°25°30°DecJanFeb

Maych’ew 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
Jan21° / 327.611.37.3
Feb23° / 10°337.511.67.4
Mar23° / 12°8013.711.96.6
Apr24° / 13°8613.312.36.7
May25° / 14°507.412.67.5
Jun25° / 14°7811.412.76.6
Jul22° / 13°2952912.74.0
Aug22° / 13°29929.412.43.9
Sep23° / 12°761112.16.8
Oct22° / 11°14311.78.2
Nov21° / 10°132.711.48.3
Dec21° / 133.111.38.1

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 57% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Maych’ew gets around 79 mm of rain over 18 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter 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 Winter

Winds average 7 km/h across winter.

0246810DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 18 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 5.8 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Maych’ew

In seasonPeak

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

Maych’ew's monsoon runs July–August, when most of the year's rain falls.

Maych’ew sees seasonal dust haze (June–August), heaviest in July.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Maych’ew?

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.

7.6
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
5.1
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

winter is one of the better times to visit Maych’ew for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Maych’ew in Winter

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

In winter, Maych’ew sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 9°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes. About 18 days see rain.

sun protectionlight clothes

UV index in Maych’ew in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Maych’ew peaks around March 19 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 12 at about 10 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highMar 19UV 15Dec 12UV 10
UV index (midday)Level
Jan12Extreme
Feb13Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr14Extreme
May13Extreme
Jun12Extreme
Jul10Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep13Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov10Extreme
Dec10Very high

Air quality in Maych’ew 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 Maych’ew is worst in June — around 33 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateJun 1732 µg/m³Nov 1922 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan25Moderate
Feb26Moderate
Mar27Moderate
Apr23Moderate
May27Moderate
Jun33Moderate
Jul29Moderate
Aug30Moderate
Sep30Moderate
Oct25Moderate
Nov22Moderate
Dec23Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Maych’ew?

Maych’ew sits at 12.8°N, 39.5°E, 2,400 m above sea level, in Ethiopia. The nearest listed city is Mehoni, 11 km away.

LalibelaĀbīy Ādī

Topography around Maych’ew

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Maych’ew has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 915 m around an average of 2,469 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,306 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,702 m.

The land around Maych’ew is covered by cropland (51%) and shrubs (24%) within 3 km, cropland (37%), shrubs (33%) and grassland (20%) within 16 km, and shrubs (33%), grassland (30%) and cropland (26%) within 80 km.

3 km
915 m
16 km
2,306 m
80 km
3,702 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
Winter weather nearby: Mehoni 11 km · Korem 31 km · Alamata 41 km · Sek’ot’a 58 km · Mekele 79 km · Dolo 80 km · Lalibela 100 km · Ābīy Ādī 106 km

Ethiopia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type C / E / F / L
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 37% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$933
2025
Happiness
4.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
14%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
8.5
per 100k, 2012
Road deaths
28.2
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Low
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 499
Religion
Ethiopian Orthodox 44%Muslim 31%Protestant 23%other 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 Maych’ew (12.7875°, 39.5422°, elevation 2,400 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.