Iwamizawa in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Iwamizawa sees average daytime highs around -1°C and overnight lows near -9°C, with 160 mm of precipitation over about 39 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.

Over the season highs ease from about 2°C in early December to -0°C by late February. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 11% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
-1°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
-9°C
Precipitation
160 mm
39 wet days
Avg wind
10 km/h
Travel score
0.0
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Iwamizawa in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs ease from about 2°C in early December to -0°C by late February.

A typical winter day in Iwamizawa reaches about -1°C and drops to -9°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.

-20°-10°10°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Iwamizawa

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 90 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
90
83 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Iwamizawa 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 daysSnow daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan-3° / -10°4912.718.19.20.0
Feb-2° / -9°4210.714.910.20.0
Mar / -5°5711.610.511.60.1
Apr11° / 6711.83.313.12.5
May16° / 8411.40.114.44.9
Jun20° / 12°649.6015.16.1
Jul23° / 17°11311.6014.96.4
Aug24° / 18°16112.5013.86.3
Sep21° / 13°12613.2012.35.9
Oct15° / 9213.60.310.84.1
Nov / 8716.18.49.50.9
Dec / -7°6915.318.18.90.0

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 11% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Iwamizawa gets around 160 mm of rain and snow over 39 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 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 10 km/h across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 hours in early December to 10 h 48 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 2.3 kWh/m².

01234DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Iwamizawa

In seasonPeak

In winter, Iwamizawa overlaps its pacific typhoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Iwamizawa sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Iwamizawa?

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.

0.0
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
0.0
Beach & pool
4th-best month of the year

winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Iwamizawa.

What to pack for Iwamizawa in Winter

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

In winter, Iwamizawa sees daytime highs around -1°C and nights near -9°C. Pack a warm layer, a heavy coat and rain gear. About 39 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Iwamizawa in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 7°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 37 km away) is warmest in August at about 22°C and coldest in February near 5°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jul 31 to Sep 22 — about 1.8 months when the water holds above 20°C.

10°20°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan7Bracing
Feb5Bracing
Mar5Bracing
Apr7Bracing
May10Bracing
Jun14Bracing
Jul19Cool
Aug22Refreshing
Sep21Refreshing
Oct17Cool
Nov13Bracing
Dec9Bracing

UV index in Iwamizawa in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Iwamizawa peaks around August 18 at about 8 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 1 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecLowModerateHighHighVery highHighModerateLowAug 18UV 8Dec 19UV 1
UV index (midday)Level
Jan1Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar3Moderate
Apr6High
May7Very high
Jun7High
Jul5Moderate
Aug8Very high
Sep6High
Oct4Moderate
Nov2Low
Dec1Low

Air quality in Iwamizawa 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 Iwamizawa is worst in April — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.3× the cleanest month (December, 9 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateGoodApr 1220 µg/m³Dec 159 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan11Good
Feb15Moderate
Mar20Moderate
Apr21Moderate
May19Moderate
Jun14Moderate
Jul13Moderate
Aug11Good
Sep11Good
Oct12Good
Nov10Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Iwamizawa?

Iwamizawa sits at 43.2°N, 141.8°E, 17 m above sea level, in Japan. The nearest listed city is Bibai, 16 km away.

Topography around Iwamizawa

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Iwamizawa has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 101 m around an average of 24 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 559 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,032 m.

The land around Iwamizawa is covered by artificial surfaces (43%) and cropland (35%) within 3 km, cropland (54%) and trees (33%) within 16 km, and trees (64%) within 80 km.

3 km
101 m
16 km
559 m
80 km
2,032 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswater
Winter weather nearby: Bibai 16 km · Tōbetsu 20 km · Ebetsu 20 km · Kitahiroshima 29 km · Ishikari 33 km · Sunagawa 34 km · Sapporo 36 km · Eniwa 37 km

Japan travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions
Power plugs
Type A / B
100 V · 50 / 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 65% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$35,951
2025
Happiness
6.1 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
99%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
0.2
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
3.6
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 446
Religion
Shintoism 49%Buddhism 46%other 4%Christianity 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 Iwamizawa (43.2003°, 141.7597°, elevation 17 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.