Karachayevsk in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Karachayevsk sees average daytime highs around 2°C and overnight lows near -8°C, with 147 mm of precipitation over about 25 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 2°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Karachayevsk's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Karachayevsk's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 2°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- -8°C
- Precipitation
- 147 mm
- 25 wet days
- Avg wind
- 6 km/h
- Travel score
- 0.0
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Karachayevsk in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 2°C.
A typical winter day in Karachayevsk reaches about 2°C and drops to -8°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Karachayevsk
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 90 that feel at or below 0°C.
The story in winter is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.
Karachayevsk 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 | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1° / -9° | 49 | 8.7 | 9.1 | 9.1 | 0.0 |
| Feb | 2° / -8° | 50 | 8.4 | 8.2 | 10.2 | 0.0 |
| Mar | 5° / -4° | 100 | 13.4 | 10.9 | 11.6 | 0.3 |
| Apr | 11° / -1° | 124 | 15.6 | 5.8 | 13.2 | 2.2 |
| May | 16° / 4° | 178 | 20.5 | 0.8 | 14.5 | 3.7 |
| Jun | 19° / 8° | 208 | 20.9 | 0 | 15.2 | 4.6 |
| Jul | 21° / 10° | 177 | 19.4 | 0 | 14.9 | 5.3 |
| Aug | 22° / 10° | 151 | 17.3 | 0 | 13.8 | 5.7 |
| Sep | 18° / 6° | 115 | 12.9 | 0.1 | 12.3 | 5.7 |
| Oct | 14° / 2° | 86 | 10.6 | 2 | 10.8 | 4.0 |
| Nov | 7° / -4° | 54 | 8.3 | 5.1 | 9.5 | 1.0 |
| Dec | 2° / -8° | 49 | 7.8 | 6.9 | 8.8 | 0.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 32% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Karachayevsk gets around 147 mm of rain and snow over 25 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 6 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 hours in early December to 10 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 2.2 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Karachayevsk
None of Karachayevsk's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Karachayevsk's rainy season runs March–September, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is winter a good time to visit Karachayevsk?
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 weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Karachayevsk.
What to pack for Karachayevsk in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Karachayevsk sees daytime highs around 2°C and nights near -8°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. Worth having: rain gear. About 25 days see rain.
UV index in Karachayevsk in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 2. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Karachayevsk peaks around July 11 at about 10 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 12 at about 2 (low).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 8 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 2 | 3 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Level | Low | Moderate | Moderate | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Moderate | Moderate | Low |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | Low |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 3 | Moderate |
| Apr | 7 | Very high |
| May | 8 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 10 | Extreme |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 7 | Very high |
| Oct | 4 | Moderate |
| Nov | 2 | Moderate |
| Dec | 2 | Low |
Where is Karachayevsk?
Karachayevsk sits at 43.8°N, 41.9°E, 924 m above sea level, in Russia. The nearest listed city is Zelenchukskaya, 28 km away.
Topography around Karachayevsk
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Karachayevsk.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Karachayevsk has large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 731 m around an average of 1,031 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,299 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,246 m.
The land around Karachayevsk is covered by trees (70%) within 3 km, trees (54%) and grassland (39%) within 16 km, and grassland (42%) and trees (31%) within 80 km.
Russia travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 4
- Do Not Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / F
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 32% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $17,547
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.8 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 76%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 6.8
- per 100k, 2021
- Road deaths
- 12
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- High
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 521
- 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 Karachayevsk (43.7723°, 41.9137°, elevation 924 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.