Essaouira in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Essaouira sees average daytime highs around 18°C and overnight lows near 12°C, with 128 mm of rain over about 14 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 18°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 62% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Essaouira's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Essaouira's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 18°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 12°C
- Rainfall
- 128 mm
- 14 wet days
- Avg wind
- 16 km/h
- Travel score
- 7.1
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Essaouira in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 18°C.
A typical winter day in Essaouira reaches about 18°C and drops to 12°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
Essaouira 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.
| Month | High / Low (°C) | Rainfall (mm) | Wet days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18° / 12° | 39 | 4.4 | 10.2 | 6.9 |
| Feb | 18° / 12° | 38 | 4.7 | 10.8 | 7.1 |
| Mar | 19° / 13° | 38 | 5.2 | 11.8 | 7.3 |
| Apr | 20° / 15° | 21 | 3.7 | 12.7 | 7.8 |
| May | 22° / 16° | 11 | 1.6 | 13.6 | 8.5 |
| Jun | 23° / 18° | 1 | 0.2 | 14 | 9.4 |
| Jul | 25° / 20° | 0 | 0 | 13.8 | 9.4 |
| Aug | 26° / 21° | 1 | 0.1 | 13.1 | 9.2 |
| Sep | 25° / 19° | 5 | 0.9 | 12.2 | 9.1 |
| Oct | 23° / 18° | 26 | 3.4 | 11.2 | 8.4 |
| Nov | 21° / 15° | 47 | 4.8 | 10.4 | 7.6 |
| Dec | 19° / 13° | 50 | 4.9 | 10 | 7.2 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 62% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Essaouira gets around 128 mm of rain over 14 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 16 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 06 min in early December to 11 h 12 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 3.8 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Essaouira
None of Essaouira's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Essaouira sees seasonal dust haze (July–August), heaviest in July.
Is winter a good time to visit Essaouira?
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.
winter is one of the better times to visit Essaouira for general sightseeing.
What to pack for Essaouira in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Essaouira sees daytime highs around 18°C and nights near 12°C. Worth packing: sun protection. About 14 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Essaouira in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 17°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 16 km away) is warmest in September at about 20°C and coldest in February near 17°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from Aug 4 to Oct 9 — about 2.2 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 18 | 18 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Refreshing | Refreshing | Cool | Cool | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 17 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 17 | Cool |
| Apr | 17 | Cool |
| May | 18 | Cool |
| Jun | 19 | Cool |
| Jul | 20 | Cool |
| Aug | 20 | Refreshing |
| Sep | 20 | Refreshing |
| Oct | 20 | Cool |
| Nov | 18 | Cool |
| Dec | 18 | Cool |
UV index in Essaouira in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 4 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Essaouira peaks around July 15 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 3 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 4 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 4 | 3 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Very high | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4 | Moderate |
| Feb | 4 | Moderate |
| Mar | 8 | Very high |
| Apr | 9 | Very high |
| May | 9 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 10 | Very high |
| Sep | 7 | Very high |
| Oct | 7 | Very high |
| Nov | 4 | Moderate |
| Dec | 3 | Moderate |
Air quality in Essaouira in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Essaouira is worst in February — around 15 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.0× the cleanest month (June, 8 µg/m³).
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 10 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 12 | 14 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 9 |
| Level | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Good | Moderate | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 10 | Good |
| Feb | 15 | Moderate |
| Mar | 12 | Moderate |
| Apr | 11 | Good |
| May | 9 | Good |
| Jun | 8 | Good |
| Jul | 12 | Good |
| Aug | 14 | Moderate |
| Sep | 10 | Good |
| Oct | 13 | Moderate |
| Nov | 10 | Good |
| Dec | 9 | Good |
Where is Essaouira?
Essaouira sits at 31.5°N, 9.8°W, 7 m above sea level, in Morocco. The nearest listed city is Sebt Gzoula, 93 km away.
Topography around Essaouira
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Essaouira.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Essaouira has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 42 m around an average of 4 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 247 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,689 m.
The land around Essaouira is covered by water (61%) within 3 km, water (55%) and shrubs (30%) within 16 km, and grassland (37%) and water (37%) within 80 km.
Morocco travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / E
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 42% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $4,672
- 2025
- Happiness
- 4.6 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 80%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 1.7
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 17
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Lower middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 492
- Religion
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 Essaouira (31.5125°, -9.77°, elevation 7 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.