Şabyā in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Şabyā sees average daytime highs around 31°C and overnight lows near 22°C, with 39 mm of rain over about 9 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 31°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels muggy.

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

Avg daytime high
31°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
22°C
Rainfall
39 mm
9 wet days
Avg wind
8 km/h
Travel score
5.6
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Şabyā in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 31°C.

A typical winter day in Şabyā reaches about 31°C and drops to 22°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

15°20°25°30°35°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Şabyā

Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 67 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
67
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

The story in winter is heat — humidity pushes the afternoon "feels like" well above the raw temperature.

Şabyā 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
Jan30° / 21°173.911.15.9
Feb32° / 22°111.911.45.4
Mar34° / 24°202.711.93.9
Apr37° / 26°213.512.42.0
May39° / 29°113.712.80.5
Jun40° / 30°31.1130.1
Jul40° / 31°252.512.90.1
Aug39° / 30°425.212.60.6
Sep39° / 29°285.112.10.7
Oct37° / 27°24511.62.1
Nov33° / 24°154.811.24.0
Dec31° / 22°113.4115.5

Cloud cover in Winter

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% of the time across winter.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Winter

Any precipitation

Şabyā gets around 39 mm of rain over 9 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 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 8 km/h across winter.

051015DecJanFeb

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 Şabyā

In seasonPeak

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

Şabyā sees seasonal dust haze (May–September), heaviest in July.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Şabyā?

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.

5.6
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
8.2
Beach & pool
1st-best month of the year

winter is a reasonable time to visit Şabyā for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.

What to pack for Şabyā in Winter

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

In winter, Şabyā sees daytime highs around 31°C and nights near 22°C. Pack light clothes. Worth having: sun protection. About 9 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

Sea temperature near Şabyā 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 27 km away) is warmest in October at about 32°C and coldest in February near 27°C.

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

26°28°30°32°34°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan27Warm
Feb27Warm
Mar28Warm
Apr30Tropical
May31Tropical
Jun32Tropical
Jul31Tropical
Aug31Tropical
Sep32Tropical
Oct32Tropical
Nov31Tropical
Dec29Tropical

UV index in Şabyā 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 Şabyā peaks around March 24 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 14 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 highHighMar 24UV 11Dec 14UV 7
UV index (midday)Level
Jan9Very high
Feb10Extreme
Mar11Extreme
Apr11Extreme
May10Very high
Jun9Very high
Jul9Very high
Aug10Very high
Sep8Very high
Oct9Very high
Nov8Very high
Dec6High

Air quality in Şabyā 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 Şabyā is worst in June — around 79 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 1.7× the cleanest month (December, 48 µg/m³).

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

020406080JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecPoorUnhealthyPoorJun 1878 µg/m³Dec 1448 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan51Poor
Feb56Unhealthy
Mar55Poor
Apr63Unhealthy
May65Unhealthy
Jun79Unhealthy
Jul70Unhealthy
Aug72Unhealthy
Sep77Unhealthy
Oct63Unhealthy
Nov49Poor
Dec48Poor
Location & terrain

Where is Şabyā?

Şabyā sits at 17.1°N, 42.6°E, 36 m above sea level, in Saudi Arabia. The nearest listed city is Ḑamad, 17 km away.

Topography around Şabyā

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Şabyā has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 23 m around an average of 33 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 291 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,729 m.

The land around Şabyā is covered by bare terrain (34%), cropland (29%) and artificial surfaces (23%) within 3 km, bare terrain (46%) and cropland (42%) within 16 km, and water (33%), bare terrain (30%) and shrubs (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
23 m
16 km
291 m
80 km
2,729 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater
Winter weather nearby: Ḑamad 17 km · Abū ‘Arīsh 30 km · Jizan 30 km · Fayfā’ 56 km · Şāmitah 70 km · Sarāt ‘Abīdah 117 km · Abha 119 km · Sa'dah 123 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 Şabyā (17.1495°, 42.6254°, elevation 36 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.