Heraklion in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Heraklion sees average daytime highs around 14°C and overnight lows near 8°C, with 197 mm of precipitation over about 34 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 14°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 27% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Heraklion's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Heraklion's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 14°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 8°C
- Precipitation
- 197 mm
- 34 wet days
- Avg wind
- 9 km/h
- Travel score
- 4.2
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Heraklion in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 14°C.
A typical winter day in Heraklion reaches about 14°C and drops to 8°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest February.
Heraklion 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 | 14° / 8° | 68 | 12 | 9.9 | 3.9 |
| Feb | 14° / 8° | 64 | 10.5 | 10.7 | 4.2 |
| Mar | 17° / 9° | 54 | 8.3 | 11.7 | 5.6 |
| Apr | 20° / 11° | 36 | 5.6 | 12.9 | 7.3 |
| May | 25° / 15° | 31 | 4.3 | 13.8 | 8.3 |
| Jun | 28° / 19° | 13 | 1.9 | 14.3 | 7.9 |
| Jul | 30° / 21° | 5 | 0.7 | 14.1 | 7.2 |
| Aug | 29° / 22° | 6 | 0.7 | 13.3 | 7.2 |
| Sep | 27° / 19° | 19 | 2.9 | 12.2 | 8.1 |
| Oct | 24° / 16° | 38 | 5.9 | 11.1 | 7.8 |
| Nov | 19° / 12° | 45 | 7.1 | 10.1 | 6.6 |
| Dec | 15° / 9° | 64 | 11.3 | 9.7 | 4.5 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 27% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Heraklion gets around 197 mm of rain and snow over 34 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 2.8 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Heraklion
None of Heraklion's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Heraklion sees seasonal dust haze (May), heaviest in May.
Is winter a good time to visit Heraklion?
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 Heraklion for sightseeing.
What to pack for Heraklion in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Heraklion sees daytime highs around 14°C and nights near 8°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and rain gear. About 34 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Heraklion in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 17°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 August at about 25°C and coldest in February near 16°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from May 25 to Nov 19 — about 5.9 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 16 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 23 | 25 | 25 | 25 | 23 | 20 | 18 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Refreshing | Warm | Warm | Warm | Refreshing | Refreshing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 16 | Cool |
| Feb | 16 | Cool |
| Mar | 16 | Cool |
| Apr | 17 | Cool |
| May | 19 | Cool |
| Jun | 23 | Refreshing |
| Jul | 25 | Warm |
| Aug | 25 | Warm |
| Sep | 25 | Warm |
| Oct | 23 | Refreshing |
| Nov | 20 | Refreshing |
| Dec | 18 | Cool |
UV index in Heraklion 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 Heraklion peaks around July 13 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 10 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 | 3 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 3 | Moderate |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 6 | High |
| Apr | 8 | Very high |
| May | 7 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Very high |
| Aug | 10 | Very high |
| Sep | 8 | Very high |
| Oct | 6 | High |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Where is Heraklion?
Heraklion sits at 35.3°N, 25.1°E, 60 m above sea level, in Greece. The nearest listed city is Rethymno, 60 km away.
Topography around Heraklion
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Heraklion.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Heraklion has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 188 m around an average of 49 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 822 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,433 m.
The land around Heraklion is covered by artificial surfaces (53%) within 3 km, water (39%), trees (27%) and grassland (24%) within 16 km, and water (69%) within 80 km.
Greece travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type C / F
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 60% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $26,948
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.7 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 97%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 0.8
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 8.3
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- English
- High
- EF EPI 592
- 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 Heraklion (35.3279°, 25.1434°, elevation 60 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.