Shirakawa in Fall

In fall (September, October and November), Shirakawa sees average daytime highs around 18°C and overnight lows near 11°C, with 414 mm of precipitation over about 35 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the 2nd-wettest season.

Over the season highs ease from about 26°C in early September to 10°C by late November. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across fall, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
18°C
2nd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
11°C
Precipitation
414 mm
35 wet days
Avg wind
8 km/h
Travel score
5.0
2nd-best season
Months
Sep · Oct · Nov

Temperature in Shirakawa in Fall

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs ease from about 26°C in early September to 10°C by late November.

A typical fall day in Shirakawa reaches about 18°C and drops to 11°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is September, the coolest November.

10°20°30°SepOctNov

How fall really feels in Shirakawa

Once humidity and wind are folded in, fall brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 4 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
4
wind chill below the day's low

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

Shirakawa weather by month

How the three fall months (September, October and November) 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 / -2°537.46.19.70.0
Feb / -2°517.44.910.60.3
Mar / 9811.94.711.71.9
Apr15° / 112121.112.94.4
May20° / 11°128130145.8
Jun23° / 16°14315.5014.55.6
Jul27° / 20°19518.8014.34.9
Aug28° / 21°14616.1013.45.0
Sep24° / 17°17815012.35.7
Oct18° / 11°15912.10115.5
Nov13° / 788.10.3103.7
Dec / 517.43.49.51.1

Cloud cover in Fall

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across fall.

0%25%50%75%100%SepOctNov

Chance of precipitation in Fall

Any precipitationSnow

Shirakawa gets around 414 mm of rain and snow over 35 wet days across fall. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%SepOctNov

Humidity in Fall

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of fall feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%SepOctNov

Wind in Fall

Winds average 8 km/h across fall.

051015SepOctNov

Sunrise & sunset in Fall

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 48 min in early September to 9 h 42 min by late November. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMSepOctNov

Solar energy in Fall

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across fall, about 3.0 kWh/m².

01234SepOctNov
Planning a trip in fall

Hazard calendar for Shirakawa

In seasonPeak

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

Shirakawa 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 fall a good time to visit Shirakawa?

Our two travel scores rate fall for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

5.0
Sightseeing
2nd-best month of the year
2.3
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

fall is a reasonable time to visit Shirakawa for sightseeing.

What to pack for Shirakawa in Fall

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

In fall, Shirakawa sees daytime highs around 18°C and nights near 11°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and a warm layer. About 35 days see rain.

rain gearlight clothesa warm layer

Sea temperature near Shirakawa in Fall

The nearest coast averages about 21°C across fall — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea at the nearest coast (about 61 km away) is warmest in August at about 24°C and coldest in March near 12°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Jul 1 to Oct 22 — about 3.7 months when the water holds above 20°C.

10°15°20°25°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan14Bracing
Feb12Bracing
Mar12Bracing
Apr14Bracing
May16Cool
Jun19Cool
Jul21Refreshing
Aug24Refreshing
Sep23Refreshing
Oct20Refreshing
Nov18Cool
Dec16Cool

UV index in Shirakawa in Fall

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across fall averages around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shirakawa peaks around July 17 at about 9 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 2 (low).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highModerateJul 17UV 9Jan 1UV 2
UV index (midday)Level
Jan2Low
Feb3Moderate
Mar5Moderate
Apr7High
May8Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug9Very high
Sep8Very high
Oct6High
Nov3Moderate
Dec2Low

Air quality in Shirakawa in Fall

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where fall falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Shirakawa is worst in April — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.5× the cleanest month (December, 9 µg/m³).

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

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodApr 1821 µg/m³Dec 189 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan10Good
Feb13Moderate
Mar19Moderate
Apr21Moderate
May20Moderate
Jun16Moderate
Jul14Moderate
Aug13Moderate
Sep11Good
Oct11Good
Nov10Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Shirakawa?

Shirakawa sits at 37.1°N, 140.3°E, 323 m above sea level, in Japan. The nearest listed city is Kumakura, 9.0 km away.

Topography around Shirakawa

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Shirakawa has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 172 m around an average of 353 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 561 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,457 m.

The land around Shirakawa is covered by trees (48%) and cropland (35%) within 3 km, trees (66%) and cropland (22%) within 16 km, and trees (74%) within 80 km.

3 km
172 m
16 km
561 m
80 km
2,457 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Fall weather nearby: Kumakura 9.0 km · Yabuki 10 km · Ishikawa 17 km · Nasu 17 km · Sukagawa 21 km · Nasushiobara 24 km · Kuroiso 25 km · Kōriyama 33 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 Shirakawa (37.1195°, 140.2621°, elevation 323 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.