Musanze in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Musanze sees average daytime highs around 22°C and overnight lows near 13°C, with 559 mm of rain over about 61 wet days across the season. It is the 2nd-warmest season and the wettest season of the year.
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 22°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 5% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels comfortable.
Summer is Musanze's 2nd-best season to visit on our travel score. Musanze 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 Musanze's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 22°C
- 2nd-warmest season
- Avg overnight low
- 13°C
- Rainfall
- 559 mm
- 61 wet days
- Avg wind
- 4 km/h
- Travel score
- 4.7
- 2nd-best season
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Musanze in Summer
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 22°C.
A typical summer day in Musanze reaches about 22°C and drops to 13°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Musanze weather by month
How the three summer 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 | 22° / 13° | 186 | 20.5 | 12.1 | 4.8 |
| Feb | 22° / 13° | 166 | 17.6 | 12 | 5.0 |
| Mar | 22° / 14° | 234 | 24.9 | 12 | 4.2 |
| Apr | 21° / 14° | 200 | 26.2 | 12 | 3.8 |
| May | 21° / 14° | 118 | 18.8 | 11.9 | 5.0 |
| Jun | 21° / 13° | 39 | 6.9 | 11.9 | 6.7 |
| Jul | 22° / 13° | 19 | 3.7 | 11.9 | 7.3 |
| Aug | 22° / 13° | 67 | 10.3 | 12 | 6.4 |
| Sep | 22° / 13° | 114 | 15.8 | 12 | 5.5 |
| Oct | 21° / 13° | 201 | 23 | 12 | 4.4 |
| Nov | 21° / 13° | 222 | 25.3 | 12.1 | 3.9 |
| Dec | 21° / 13° | 207 | 23.3 | 12.1 | 4.4 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 5% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Musanze gets around 559 mm of rain over 61 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels comfortable — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 4 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 12 h 06 min in early December to 12 hours by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Summer
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 5.2 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Musanze?
Our two travel scores rate summer for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
summer is a reasonable time to visit Musanze for sightseeing.
What to pack for Musanze in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Musanze sees daytime highs around 22°C and nights near 13°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: light clothes and sun protection. About 61 days see rain.
UV index in Musanze in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Musanze peaks around March 17 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 11 (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) | 12 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 11 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12 | Extreme |
| Feb | 16 | Extreme |
| Mar | 17 | Extreme |
| Apr | 16 | Extreme |
| May | 13 | Extreme |
| Jun | 11 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 11 | Extreme |
| Sep | 14 | Extreme |
| Oct | 14 | Extreme |
| Nov | 13 | Extreme |
| Dec | 11 | Extreme |
Air quality in Musanze in Summer
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where summer falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Musanze is worst in January — around 99 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 99 | 98 | 88 | 82 | 80 | 95 | 91 | 87 | 83 | 81 | 86 | 93 |
| Level | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy | Unhealthy |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 99 | Unhealthy |
| Feb | 98 | Unhealthy |
| Mar | 88 | Unhealthy |
| Apr | 82 | Unhealthy |
| May | 80 | Unhealthy |
| Jun | 95 | Unhealthy |
| Jul | 91 | Unhealthy |
| Aug | 87 | Unhealthy |
| Sep | 83 | Unhealthy |
| Oct | 81 | Unhealthy |
| Nov | 86 | Unhealthy |
| Dec | 93 | Unhealthy |
Where is Musanze?
Musanze sits at 1.5°S, 29.6°E, 1,849 m above sea level, in Rwanda. The nearest listed city is Mukingo, 10 km away.
Topography around Musanze
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Musanze.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Musanze has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 304 m around an average of 1,850 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,644 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,540 m.
The land around Musanze is covered by artificial surfaces (34%), trees (31%) and cropland (27%) within 3 km, trees (50%) and cropland (32%) within 16 km, and trees (36%), grassland (24%) and cropland (23%) within 80 km.
Rwanda travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 3
- Reconsider Travel
- Power plugs
- Type C / E / G
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 27% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $1,124
- 2025
- Happiness
- 3.3 / 10
- World Happiness, 2021
- Homicide rate
- 3.6
- per 100k, 2020
- Road deaths
- 29.4
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Low
- World Bank
- English
- Very low
- EF EPI 417
- 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 Musanze (-1.4998°, 29.635°, elevation 1,849 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.