Poptún in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Poptún sees average daytime highs around 27°C and overnight lows near 18°C, with 209 mm of rain over about 41 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs climb from about 26°C in early December to 29°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels muggy.

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

Avg daytime high
27°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
18°C
Rainfall
209 mm
41 wet days
Avg wind
7 km/h
Travel score
6.0
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Poptún in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs climb from about 26°C in early December to 29°C by late February.

A typical winter day in Poptún reaches about 27°C and drops to 18°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

10°15°20°25°30°35°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Poptún

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.

Poptún 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
Jan26° / 18°7114.511.16.1
Feb28° / 19°449.811.56.3
Mar30° / 20°549.311.95.4
Apr32° / 21°628.912.44.1
May32° / 22°1331712.83.2
Jun31° / 23°18323.5132.9
Jul31° / 22°13424.212.93.1
Aug31° / 22°16224.612.52.9
Sep31° / 22°21826.712.12.7
Oct29° / 21°23124.111.63.7
Nov27° / 20°1451911.25.0
Dec26° / 19°9417.1115.6

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 31% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Poptún gets around 209 mm of rain over 41 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%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 7 km/h across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 06 min in early December to 11 h 36 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 3.9 kWh/m².

024DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Poptún?

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.

6.0
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
6.0
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

winter is a reasonable time to visit Poptún for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Poptún in Winter

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

In winter, Poptún sees daytime highs around 27°C and nights near 18°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 41 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

UV index in Poptún 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 Poptún peaks around April 9 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 8 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highApr 9UV 13Dec 15UV 8
UV index (midday)Level
Jan9Very high
Feb12Extreme
Mar13Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May10Very high
Jun13Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug13Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct11Extreme
Nov9Very high
Dec8Very high

Air quality in Poptún 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 Poptún is worst in April — around 32 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 6.2× the cleanest month (December, 5 µg/m³).

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodApr 2231 µg/m³Dec 175 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb7Good
Mar10Good
Apr32Moderate
May29Moderate
Jun24Moderate
Jul26Moderate
Aug18Moderate
Sep13Moderate
Oct9Good
Nov7Good
Dec5Good
Location & terrain

Where is Poptún?

Poptún sits at 16.3°N, 89.4°W, 533 m above sea level, in Guatemala. The nearest listed city is Punta Gorda, 70 km away.

Punta GordaFloresSan BenitoSayaxchéMelchor de MencosEl EstorLívingstonSan Ignacio

Topography around Poptún

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Poptún has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 171 m around an average of 515 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 515 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,158 m.

The land around Poptún is covered by trees (47%) and grassland (36%) within 3 km, trees (62%) and grassland (37%) within 16 km, and trees (63%) and grassland (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
171 m
16 km
515 m
80 km
1,158 m
treesgrasslandartificial surfaceswater
Winter weather nearby: Punta Gorda 70 km · Flores 83 km · San Benito 84 km · Sayaxché 85 km · Melchor de Mencos 86 km · El Estor 89 km · Lívingston 91 km · San Ignacio 99 km

Guatemala travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 43% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$6,598
2025
Happiness
6.5 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
49%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
23.4
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
22.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Moderate
EF EPI 510
Religion
Evangelical 46%Roman Catholic 42%none 11%

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 Poptún (16.3311°, -89.4169°, elevation 533 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.