Lae in Winter
In winter (June, July and August), Lae sees average daytime highs around 25°C and overnight lows near 23°C, with 1634 mm of rain over about 74 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the 3rd-wettest season.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 25°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 7% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels oppressive.
Winter is Lae's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. Lae 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 Lae's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 25°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 23°C
- Rainfall
- 1634 mm
- 74 wet days
- Avg wind
- 5 km/h
- Travel score
- 4.3
- 2nd-best season
- Months
- Jun · Jul · Aug
Temperature in Lae in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 25°C.
A typical winter day in Lae reaches about 25°C and drops to 23°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is June, the coolest August.
Lae weather by month
How the three winter months (June, July and August) 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° / 24° | 573 | 25.7 | 12.3 | 3.8 |
| Feb | 28° / 24° | 425 | 22.9 | 12.2 | 3.9 |
| Mar | 27° / 24° | 618 | 26.2 | 12 | 3.8 |
| Apr | 27° / 24° | 697 | 24.4 | 11.9 | 4.0 |
| May | 26° / 24° | 652 | 24.4 | 11.7 | 4.2 |
| Jun | 26° / 23° | 592 | 23.6 | 11.6 | 4.3 |
| Jul | 25° / 23° | 518 | 24.8 | 11.6 | 4.3 |
| Aug | 25° / 23° | 525 | 25.1 | 11.8 | 4.4 |
| Sep | 26° / 23° | 466 | 22.9 | 12 | 4.5 |
| Oct | 26° / 23° | 489 | 23.1 | 12.1 | 4.5 |
| Nov | 27° / 24° | 580 | 23.2 | 12.3 | 4.2 |
| Dec | 27° / 24° | 682 | 26.3 | 12.4 | 3.8 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 7% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Lae gets around 1634 mm of rain over 74 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 5 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 11 h 36 min in early June to 11 h 54 min by late August. 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 3.4 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Lae
None of Lae's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Lae sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.
Is winter a good time to visit Lae?
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 Lae for sightseeing.
What to pack for Lae in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Lae sees daytime highs around 25°C and nights near 23°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes. About 74 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Lae in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 28°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 January at about 30°C and coldest in August near 28°C.
The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 30 | 30 | 30 | 30 | 29 | 29 | 28 | 28 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 30 |
| Comfort | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Warm | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 30 | Tropical |
| Feb | 30 | Tropical |
| Mar | 30 | Tropical |
| Apr | 30 | Tropical |
| May | 29 | Tropical |
| Jun | 29 | Tropical |
| Jul | 28 | Tropical |
| Aug | 28 | Warm |
| Sep | 28 | Tropical |
| Oct | 29 | Tropical |
| Nov | 30 | Tropical |
| Dec | 30 | Tropical |
UV index in Lae 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 Lae peaks around March 10 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 18 at about 10 (extreme).
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) | 15 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 14 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15 | Extreme |
| Feb | 16 | Extreme |
| Mar | 16 | Extreme |
| Apr | 14 | Extreme |
| May | 12 | Extreme |
| Jun | 10 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 12 | Extreme |
| Sep | 14 | Extreme |
| Oct | 15 | Extreme |
| Nov | 14 | Extreme |
| Dec | 14 | Extreme |
Where is Lae?
Lae sits at 6.7°S, 147.0°E, 44 m above sea level, in Papua New Guinea. The nearest listed city is Bulolo, 66 km away.
Topography around Lae
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Lae.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Lae has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 181 m around an average of 20 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,440 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,081 m.
The land around Lae is covered by trees (44%) and artificial surfaces (25%) within 3 km, trees (57%) and water (35%) within 16 km, and trees (69%) and water (22%) within 80 km.
Papua New Guinea travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 3
- Reconsider Travel
- Power plugs
- Type I
- 240 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 58% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $3,020
- 2025
- Homicide rate
- 9.3
- per 100k, 2010
- Road deaths
- 12.6
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Lower middle
- World Bank
- 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 Lae (-6.7233°, 146.9961°, elevation 44 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.