Dessalines in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Dessalines sees average daytime highs around 30°C and overnight lows near 19°C, with 33 mm of rain over about 8 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 30°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 67% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels muggy.

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

Avg daytime high
30°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
19°C
Rainfall
33 mm
8 wet days
Avg wind
9 km/h
Travel score
6.3
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Dessalines in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 30°C.

A typical winter day in Dessalines reaches about 30°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 Dessalines

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.

Dessalines 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
Jan30° / 19°102.5116.5
Feb30° / 19°112.511.36.1
Mar30° / 20°245.711.95.5
Apr31° / 21°6611.612.44.6
May31° / 22°17620.412.93.6
Jun32° / 23°13719.813.13.2
Jul32° / 23°10417.6133.2
Aug32° / 23°12120.212.73.0
Sep31° / 23°15822.412.13.1
Oct30° / 22°13719.411.63.8
Nov30° / 21°568.911.15.4
Dec30° / 19°122.910.96.3

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 67% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Dessalines gets around 33 mm of rain over 8 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 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 9 km/h across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 54 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 5.0 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Dessalines

In seasonPeak

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

Dessalines sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

Dessalines's rainy season runs May–October, when most of the year's rain falls.

Atlantic hurricane
Rainy season
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is winter a good time to visit Dessalines?

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.

6.3
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
8.5
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

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

What to pack for Dessalines in Winter

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

In winter, Dessalines sees daytime highs around 30°C and nights near 19°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: sun protection. About 8 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

Sea temperature near Dessalines in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 28°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 40 km away) is warmest in August at about 30°C and coldest in February near 27°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

26°28°30°32°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan28Warm
Feb27Warm
Mar27Warm
Apr28Warm
May29Tropical
Jun29Tropical
Jul30Tropical
Aug30Tropical
Sep30Tropical
Oct30Tropical
Nov29Tropical
Dec28Tropical

UV index in Dessalines in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 8 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Dessalines peaks around March 21 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 15 at about 7 (high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highHighMar 21UV 12Dec 15UV 7
UV index (midday)Level
Jan8Very high
Feb10Very high
Mar12Extreme
Apr12Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug12Extreme
Sep11Extreme
Oct10Very high
Nov7Very high
Dec7High

Air quality in Dessalines 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 Dessalines is worst in June — around 29 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.4× the cleanest month (March, 12 µg/m³).

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateModerateJun 2128 µg/m³Mar 1512 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan14Moderate
Feb12Moderate
Mar12Good
Apr13Moderate
May19Moderate
Jun29Moderate
Jul27Moderate
Aug24Moderate
Sep19Moderate
Oct20Moderate
Nov17Moderate
Dec15Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Dessalines?

Dessalines sits at 19.3°N, 72.5°W, 26 m above sea level, in Haiti. The nearest listed city is Saint-Michel de l'Atalaye, 23 km away.

Saint-Michel de l'AtalayeVerrettesSaint-MarcGonaïvesDésarmesSaint-RaphaëlLenbeHinche

Topography around Dessalines

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Dessalines has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 580 m around an average of 153 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,461 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,768 m.

The land around Dessalines is covered by cropland (33%), grassland (30%) and trees (20%) within 3 km, grassland (45%) and cropland (28%) within 16 km, and grassland (40%) and water (34%) within 80 km.

3 km
580 m
16 km
1,461 m
80 km
1,768 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetlandmangroves
Winter weather nearby: Saint-Michel de l'Atalaye 23 km · Verrettes 24 km · Saint-Marc 26 km · Gonaïves 28 km · Désarmes 33 km · Saint-Raphaël 39 km · Lenbe 51 km · Hinche 55 km

Haiti travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 4
Do Not Travel
Power plugs
Type A / B
110 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 86% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$2,694
2025
Happiness
3.6 / 10
World Happiness, 2020
Homicide rate
41.2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
18.8
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 444
Religion
Catholic 55%Protestant 29%none 10%other 5%

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 Dessalines (19.2618°, -72.5161°, elevation 26 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.