Baq‘ā’ in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Baq‘ā’ sees average daytime highs around 19°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 28 mm of rain over about 6 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 19°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 68% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

Winter is Baq‘ā’'s best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Baq‘ā’'s year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
19°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
6°C
Rainfall
28 mm
6 wet days
Avg wind
13 km/h
Travel score
7.8
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Baq‘ā’ in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 19°C.

A typical winter day in Baq‘ā’ reaches about 19°C and drops to 6°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

10°20°30°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Baq‘ā’

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.

Baq‘ā’ 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
Jan18° / 10210.47.3
Feb20° / 81.4118.2
Mar25° / 11°11211.88.8
Apr30° / 16°10212.66.1
May36° / 21°20.613.42.7
Jun40° / 24°0013.70.2
Jul41° / 25°0013.60.0
Aug42° / 25°00130.0
Sep39° / 23°0012.20.7
Oct34° / 18°20.611.34.3
Nov24° / 12°183.610.68.2
Dec19° / 102.210.37.8

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 68% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Baq‘ā’ gets around 28 mm of rain over 6 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Winter

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of winter feels dry — 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 13 km/h across winter.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 24 min in early December to 11 h 18 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 4.3 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Baq‘ā’

In seasonPeak

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

Baq‘ā’ sees seasonal dust haze (March–September), heaviest in May.

Dust
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec

Is winter a good time to visit Baq‘ā’?

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.

7.8
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
3.3
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

winter is one of the better times to visit Baq‘ā’ for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Baq‘ā’ in Winter

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

In winter, Baq‘ā’ sees daytime highs around 19°C and nights near 6°C. Worth packing: a warm layer and sun protection. About 6 days see rain.

a warm layersun protection

UV index in Baq‘ā’ in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Baq‘ā’ peaks around July 18 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 21 at about 4 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecVery highHighVery highExtremeVery highHighModerateJul 18UV 11Dec 21UV 4
UV index (midday)Level
Jan5Moderate
Feb7Very high
Mar8Very high
Apr6High
May9Very high
Jun11Extreme
Jul11Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep10Very high
Oct8Very high
Nov5High
Dec4Moderate

Air quality in Baq‘ā’ 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 Baq‘ā’ is worst in March — around 65 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 1.8× the cleanest month (July, 36 µg/m³).

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

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorUnhealthyPoorMar 2264 µg/m³Jul 2336 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan39Poor
Feb45Poor
Mar65Unhealthy
Apr62Unhealthy
May61Unhealthy
Jun42Poor
Jul36Poor
Aug36Poor
Sep36Poor
Oct38Poor
Nov38Poor
Dec37Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Baq‘ā’?

Baq‘ā’ sits at 27.9°N, 42.4°E, 699 m above sea level, in Saudi Arabia. The nearest listed city is Turubah, 66 km away.

‘Uyūn al Jiwā’Al BukayrīyahRiyāḑ al Khabrā’BuraydahAl Khabrā’Ar Rass

Topography around Baq‘ā’

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Baq‘ā’.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Baq‘ā’ has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 54 m around an average of 691 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 151 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 668 m.

The land around Baq‘ā’ is covered by bare terrain (75%) and artificial surfaces (22%) within 3 km, bare terrain (93%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (95%) within 80 km.

3 km
54 m
16 km
151 m
80 km
668 m
treescroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
Winter weather nearby: Turubah 66 km · Ha'il 81 km · ‘Uyūn al Jiwā’ 199 km · Al Bukayrīyah 233 km · Riyāḑ al Khabrā’ 235 km · Buraydah 236 km · Al Khabrā’ 238 km · Ar Rass 252 km

Saudi Arabia travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type G
230 V · 60 Hz
Prices
≈ 47% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$34,537
2025
Happiness
6.8 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Homicide rate
0.9
per 100k, 2019
Road deaths
35.9
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
High
World Bank
English
Very low
EF EPI 404

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 Baq‘ā’ (27.9065°, 42.389°, elevation 699 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.