San Carlos in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), San Carlos sees average daytime highs around 28°C and overnight lows near 23°C, with 125 mm of rain over about 43 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 39% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels oppressive.
Winter is San Carlos's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. San Carlos 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 San Carlos's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 28°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 23°C
- Rainfall
- 125 mm
- 43 wet days
- Avg wind
- 15 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.5
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in San Carlos in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C.
A typical winter day in San Carlos reaches about 28°C and drops to 23°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in San Carlos
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.
winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.
San Carlos 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 | 28° / 23° | 36 | 14.9 | 11.4 | 5.8 |
| Feb | 29° / 23° | 25 | 10.1 | 11.6 | 5.7 |
| Mar | 30° / 23° | 16 | 6.6 | 11.9 | 5.6 |
| Apr | 31° / 24° | 30 | 8.7 | 12.2 | 4.5 |
| May | 31° / 24° | 180 | 22.8 | 12.5 | 3.2 |
| Jun | 30° / 24° | 245 | 28.9 | 12.6 | 2.7 |
| Jul | 29° / 24° | 220 | 29.4 | 12.6 | 2.9 |
| Aug | 29° / 24° | 218 | 29.7 | 12.4 | 2.8 |
| Sep | 30° / 24° | 252 | 29 | 12.1 | 2.7 |
| Oct | 29° / 24° | 263 | 29.1 | 11.8 | 3.0 |
| Nov | 29° / 23° | 147 | 22.6 | 11.5 | 3.9 |
| Dec | 28° / 23° | 64 | 18 | 11.4 | 5.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 39% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
San Carlos gets around 125 mm of rain over 43 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels oppressive — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 15 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 11 h 24 min in early December to 11 h 48 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 4.2 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for San Carlos
None of San Carlos's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
San Carlos sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.
San Carlos's rainy season runs May–November, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is winter a good time to visit San Carlos?
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 a reasonable time to visit San Carlos for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.
What to pack for San Carlos in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, San Carlos sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 23°C. Pack light clothes and rain gear. Worth having: sun protection. About 43 days see rain.
UV index in San Carlos in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 11 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in San Carlos peaks around March 19 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 16 at about 9 (very high).
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) | 11 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 9 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 11 | Extreme |
| Feb | 13 | Extreme |
| Mar | 14 | Extreme |
| Apr | 13 | Extreme |
| May | 12 | Extreme |
| Jun | 13 | Extreme |
| Jul | 12 | Extreme |
| Aug | 13 | Extreme |
| Sep | 12 | Extreme |
| Oct | 11 | Extreme |
| Nov | 10 | Extreme |
| Dec | 9 | Very high |
Air quality in San Carlos 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 San Carlos is worst in July — around 24 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.6× the cleanest month (December, 7 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) | 7 | 9 | 10 | 18 | 22 | 20 | 24 | 19 | 13 | 10 | 7 | 7 |
| Level | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | Good |
| Feb | 9 | Good |
| Mar | 10 | Good |
| Apr | 18 | Moderate |
| May | 22 | Moderate |
| Jun | 20 | Moderate |
| Jul | 24 | Moderate |
| Aug | 19 | Moderate |
| Sep | 13 | Moderate |
| Oct | 10 | Good |
| Nov | 7 | Good |
| Dec | 7 | Good |
Where is San Carlos?
San Carlos sits at 11.1°N, 84.8°W, 0 m above sea level, in Nicaragua. The nearest listed city is El Castillo, 43 km away.
Topography around San Carlos
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of San Carlos.
Within 3 km, the terrain around San Carlos has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 67 m around an average of 35 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 152 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,960 m.
The land around San Carlos is covered by water (46%) and trees (35%) within 3 km, water (39%), grassland (30%) and trees (29%) within 16 km, and trees (52%) and grassland (28%) within 80 km.
Nicaragua travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 3
- Reconsider Travel
- Power plugs
- Type A / B
- 120 V · 60 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 34% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $3,173
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.3 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Homicide rate
- 11.3
- per 100k, 2021
- Road deaths
- 16.9
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Lower middle
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 512
- 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 San Carlos (11.1271°, -84.7779°, elevation 0 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.