Chetumal in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Chetumal sees average daytime highs around 28°C and overnight lows near 22°C, with 131 mm of rain over about 33 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 28°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 51% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Winter is Chetumal's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. Chetumal has little temperature swing across the year, so its calendar seasons blur — the season framing matters less here than for a place with four distinct seasons. For the whole year in context, see Chetumal's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
28°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
22°C
Rainfall
131 mm
33 wet days
Avg wind
13 km/h
Travel score
6.4
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Chetumal in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C.

A typical winter day in Chetumal reaches about 28°C and drops to 22°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

15°20°25°30°35°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Chetumal

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.

Chetumal 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
Jan27° / 21°5212.3116.4
Feb28° / 22°247.111.46.6
Mar29° / 23°266.811.96.1
Apr31° / 25°327.412.45.3
May31° / 25°9315.412.94.1
Jun31° / 26°19321.713.13.3
Jul31° / 26°12021.3133.4
Aug31° / 26°15823.212.63.2
Sep31° / 25°18625.112.12.9
Oct30° / 24°19021.911.63.7
Nov28° / 23°9614.711.15.2
Dec28° / 22°5513.210.96.2

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 51% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Chetumal gets around 131 mm of rain over 33 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%50%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels oppressive — 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 13 km/h across winter.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 hours 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 4.2 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Chetumal

In seasonPeak

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

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

Chetumal's rainy season runs May–November, 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 Chetumal?

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.

6.4
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
6.9
Beach & pool
2nd-best month of the year

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

What to pack for Chetumal in Winter

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

In winter, Chetumal sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 22°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: rain gear and sun protection. About 33 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Chetumal in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 26°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 22 km away) is warmest in September at about 30°C and coldest in January near 26°C.

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

24°26°28°30°32°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan26Warm
Feb26Warm
Mar27Warm
Apr28Warm
May29Tropical
Jun29Tropical
Jul29Tropical
Aug30Tropical
Sep30Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov28Warm
Dec27Warm

UV index in Chetumal in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 9 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Chetumal peaks around April 11 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 16 at about 7 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highApr 11UV 13Dec 16UV 7
UV index (midday)Level
Jan8Very high
Feb11Extreme
Mar12Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May11Extreme
Jun13Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug12Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct10Extreme
Nov8Very high
Dec7Very high

Air quality in Chetumal 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 Chetumal is worst in June — around 30 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.5× the cleanest month (December, 7 µg/m³).

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

010203040JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJun 2130 µg/m³Dec 157 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan7Good
Feb10Good
Mar11Good
Apr19Moderate
May24Moderate
Jun30Moderate
Jul29Moderate
Aug21Moderate
Sep15Moderate
Oct10Good
Nov7Good
Dec7Good
Location & terrain

Where is Chetumal?

Chetumal sits at 18.5°N, 88.3°W, 3 m above sea level, in Mexico. The nearest listed city is Bacalar, 20 km away.

Topography around Chetumal

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Chetumal has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 19 m around an average of 8 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 32 m; within 80 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 223 m.

The land around Chetumal is covered by artificial surfaces (66%) and trees (20%) within 3 km, water (42%) and trees (40%) within 16 km, and trees (53%) and water (24%) within 80 km.

3 km
19 m
16 km
32 m
80 km
223 m
treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfaceswaterwetlandmangroves
Winter weather nearby: Bacalar 20 km · Orange Walk 56 km · San Pedro 76 km · Crooked Tree 86 km · Caye Caulker 92 km · Belize City 114 km · Felipe Carrillo Puerto 121 km · Belmopan 149 km

Mexico travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 2
Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs
Type A / B
120 / 127 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 54% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$13,889
2025
Happiness
7.0 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
43%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
24.9
per 100k, 2023
Road deaths
12.8
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Upper middle
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 440
Religion
Catholic 78%no religion 11%other Evangelical Churches 8%Jehovah Witness 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 Chetumal (18.5196°, -88.304°, elevation 3 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.