Gustavia in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Gustavia sees average daytime highs around 26°C and overnight lows near 25°C, with 92 mm of rain over about 26 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 26°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 79% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels muggy.

Winter is Gustavia's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. Gustavia 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 Gustavia's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
26°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
25°C
Rainfall
92 mm
26 wet days
Avg wind
27 km/h
Travel score
7.4
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Gustavia in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 26°C.

A typical winter day in Gustavia reaches about 26°C and drops to 25°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest February.

20°23°25°28°30°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Gustavia

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.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
0
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.

Gustavia 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.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan26° / 24°269.1117.5
Feb25° / 24°206.411.47.8
Mar25° / 24°195.411.98.1
Apr26° / 25°307.412.47.5
May27° / 26°6111.512.86.5
Jun27° / 26°4610.313.16.4
Jul28° / 26°7013.8136.1
Aug28° / 27°841512.65.6
Sep28° / 27°11416.812.15.1
Oct28° / 26°12916.211.65.6
Nov27° / 26°10114.111.26.1
Dec26° / 25°4610.810.97.0

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 79% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Gustavia gets around 92 mm of rain over 26 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%50%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Winter

Winds average 27 km/h across winter.

0102030DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 hours in early December to 11 h 36 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Winter

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 4.9 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Gustavia

In seasonPeak

None of Gustavia's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.

Gustavia sits in the Atlantic hurricane belt; the season peaks August–October.

Gustavia's rainy season runs July–November, when most of the year's rain falls.

Gustavia sees seasonal dust haze (July), heaviest in July.

Atlantic hurricane
Rainy season
Dust
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is winter a good time to visit Gustavia?

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.

7.4
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
7.0
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

winter is one of the better times to visit Gustavia for general sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Gustavia in Winter

From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In winter, Gustavia sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 25°C. Worth packing: light clothes, rain gear, sun protection and a windbreaker. About 26 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protectiona windbreaker

Sea temperature near Gustavia in Winter

The nearest coast averages about 27°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in September at about 29°C and coldest in February near 26°C.

The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.

24°26°28°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan27Warm
Feb26Warm
Mar26Warm
Apr27Warm
May27Warm
Jun28Warm
Jul28Tropical
Aug29Tropical
Sep29Tropical
Oct29Tropical
Nov28Tropical
Dec27Warm

UV index in Gustavia in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 8 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Gustavia peaks around April 11 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 7 (high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highExtremeVery highApr 11UV 13Dec 17UV 7
UV index (midday)Level
Jan8Very high
Feb11Extreme
Mar13Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May12Extreme
Jun12Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct10Extreme
Nov8Very high
Dec7High

Air quality in Gustavia in Winter

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Gustavia is worst in July — around 23 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.1× the cleanest month (December, 6 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

0102030JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecGoodModerateGoodJul 1223 µg/m³Dec 226 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan6Good
Feb8Good
Mar7Good
Apr9Good
May13Moderate
Jun22Moderate
Jul23Moderate
Aug19Moderate
Sep15Moderate
Oct16Moderate
Nov9Good
Dec6Good
Location & terrain

Where is Gustavia?

Gustavia sits at 17.9°N, 62.8°W, 6 m above sea level, in Saint Barthelemy. The nearest listed city is Philipsburg, 25 km away.

Topography around Gustavia

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Gustavia.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Gustavia has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 187 m around an average of 22 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 273 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,092 m.

The land around Gustavia is covered by water (66%) and trees (20%) within 3 km, water (98%) within 16 km, and water (97%) within 80 km.

3 km
187 m
16 km
273 m
80 km
1,092 m
treesshrubsgrasslandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Philipsburg 25 km · Marigot 31 km · The Valley 42 km · Basseterre 68 km · Codrington 112 km · St. John's 137 km · Brades 140 km · Plymouth 149 km

Saint Barthelemy travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 1
Exercise Normal Precautions

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 Gustavia (17.8962°, -62.8498°, elevation 6 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.