Aarsâl in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Aarsâl sees average daytime highs around 9°C and overnight lows near 1°C, with 129 mm of precipitation over about 27 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 9°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 40% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
9°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
1°C
Precipitation
129 mm
27 wet days
Avg wind
7 km/h
Travel score
1.8
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Aarsâl in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 9°C.

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

-10°10°20°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Aarsâl

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 78 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
78
wind chill below the day's low

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

Aarsâl 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 / -0°479.65101.2
Feb / 439.24.710.71.7
Mar12° / 428.72.211.73.6
Apr17° / 326.90.312.86.2
May23° / 11°296.2013.87.9
Jun27° / 16°51.5014.28.5
Jul30° / 18°10.10147.0
Aug30° / 19°20.3013.36.9
Sep27° / 16°51.5012.28.4
Oct22° / 12°286.4011.17.7
Nov15° / 316.30.510.25.2
Dec10° / 398.52.69.82.4

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 40% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitationSnow

Aarsâl gets around 129 mm of rain and snow over 27 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%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 7 km/h across winter.

0246810DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 54 min in early December to 11 h 12 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 3.3 kWh/m².

024DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Is winter a good time to visit Aarsâl?

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.

1.8
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 Aarsâl.

What to pack for Aarsâl in Winter

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

In winter, Aarsâl sees daytime highs around 9°C and nights near 1°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: a heavy coat and rain gear. About 27 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coatrain gear

Sea temperature near Aarsâl in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 19°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 70 km away) is warmest in August at about 28°C and coldest in February near 17°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from May 4 to Dec 23 — about 7.7 months when the water holds above 20°C.

15°20°25°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecbracingcoolrefreshingwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan19Cool
Feb17Cool
Mar17Cool
Apr18Cool
May21Refreshing
Jun25Warm
Jul27Warm
Aug28Tropical
Sep28Tropical
Oct26Warm
Nov23Refreshing
Dec21Refreshing

UV index in Aarsâl in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Aarsâl peaks around June 21 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 12 at about 3 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJun 21UV 12Jan 12UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan3Moderate
Feb4Moderate
Mar5High
Apr8Very high
May9Very high
Jun12Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep10Very high
Oct7High
Nov5Moderate
Dec3Moderate

Air quality in Aarsâl 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 Aarsâl is worst in April — around 40 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 1.7× the cleanest month (July, 23 µg/m³).

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

0204060JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModeratePoorModerateApr 1040 µg/m³Jul 2124 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan32Moderate
Feb38Poor
Mar39Poor
Apr40Poor
May35Moderate
Jun27Moderate
Jul23Moderate
Aug24Moderate
Sep30Moderate
Oct34Moderate
Nov35Moderate
Dec34Moderate
Location & terrain

Where is Aarsâl?

Aarsâl sits at 34.2°N, 36.4°E, 1,407 m above sea level, in Lebanon. The nearest listed city is El Hermel, 24 km away.

El HermelBaalbekYabrūdBsharriAl QuşayrChmistâr

Topography around Aarsâl

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Aarsâl has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 599 m around an average of 1,492 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,901 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,078 m.

The land around Aarsâl is covered by grassland (62%) within 3 km, grassland (68%) and bare terrain (20%) within 16 km, and grassland (33%) and bare terrain (27%) within 80 km.

3 km
599 m
16 km
1,901 m
80 km
3,078 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: El Hermel 24 km · Baalbek 27 km · Qārah 30 km · Yabrūd 32 km · An Nabk 33 km · Bsharri 39 km · Al Quşayr 39 km · Chmistâr 44 km

Lebanon travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 4
Do Not Travel
Power plugs
Type A / B / C / D / G
220 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 38% of US
price level, 2024
GDP per capita
$4,473
2024
Happiness
3.7 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
48%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
2.2
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
16.4
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 477
Religion
Muslim 68%Christian 32%Druze 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 Aarsâl (34.1794°, 36.4208°, elevation 1,407 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.