Shaqra in Winter

In winter (December, January and February), Shaqra sees average daytime highs around 21°C and overnight lows near 10°C, with 37 mm of rain over about 7 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 21°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 71% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.

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

Avg daytime high
21°C
coldest season of the year
Avg overnight low
10°C
Rainfall
37 mm
7 wet days
Avg wind
14 km/h
Travel score
8.3
best season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Shaqra in Winter

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 21°C.

A typical winter day in Shaqra reaches about 21°C and drops to 10°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.

10°20°30°DecJanFeb

How winter really feels in Shaqra

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.

Shaqra 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
Jan20° / 182.710.67.9
Feb23° / 11°81.511.18.8
Mar27° / 15°162.811.87.9
Apr33° / 20°173.512.64.5
May38° / 25°30.513.21.2
Jun41° / 27°0013.50.0
Jul42° / 28°0013.40.0
Aug42° / 28°0012.90.0
Sep40° / 25°0012.20.4
Oct34° / 20°20.211.43.8
Nov27° / 15°233.510.87.8
Dec22° / 10°122.710.58.3

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

Shaqra gets around 37 mm of rain over 7 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 14 km/h across winter.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Winter

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 10 h 30 min in early December to 11 h 24 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 4.6 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in winter

Hazard calendar for Shaqra

In seasonPeak

In winter, Shaqra overlaps its dust season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Shaqra sees seasonal dust haze (February–September), heaviest in May.

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

Is winter a good time to visit Shaqra?

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.

8.3
Sightseeing
1st-best month of the year
5.4
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

winter is one of the better times to visit Shaqra for general sightseeing.

What to pack for Shaqra in Winter

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

In winter, Shaqra sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 10°C. Worth packing: light clothes and sun protection. About 7 days see rain.

light clothessun protection

UV index in Shaqra in Winter

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 6 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Shaqra peaks around July 17 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 5 (moderate).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecHighVery highExtremeVery highHighJul 17UV 12Dec 19UV 5
UV index (midday)Level
Jan6High
Feb8Very high
Mar8Very high
Apr8Very high
May10Extreme
Jun11Extreme
Jul12Extreme
Aug11Extreme
Sep9Very high
Oct9Very high
Nov6High
Dec5Moderate

Air quality in Shaqra 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 Shaqra is worst in March — around 96 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 2.0× the cleanest month (September, 49 µg/m³).

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

0306090120JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecUnhealthyPoorUnhealthyMar 1994 µg/m³Sep 2249 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan68Unhealthy
Feb77Unhealthy
Mar96Unhealthy
Apr87Unhealthy
May85Unhealthy
Jun61Unhealthy
Jul57Unhealthy
Aug56Unhealthy
Sep49Poor
Oct50Poor
Nov59Unhealthy
Dec66Unhealthy
Location & terrain

Where is Shaqra?

Shaqra sits at 25.2°N, 45.3°E, 715 m above sea level, in Saudi Arabia. The nearest listed city is Ad Dawādimī, 119 km away.

Al MithnabAz ZulfīAd Dir‘īyah‘IrqahUnaizahRiyadhAl Badā’i‘ al Wusţá

Topography around Shaqra

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Shaqra has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 88 m around an average of 727 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 183 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 388 m.

The land around Shaqra is covered by bare terrain (62%) and artificial surfaces (35%) within 3 km, bare terrain (94%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (97%) within 80 km.

3 km
88 m
16 km
183 m
80 km
388 m
shrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrain
Winter weather nearby: Ad Dawādimī 119 km · Al Mithnab 124 km · Az Zulfī 126 km · Ad Dir‘īyah 141 km · ‘Irqah 151 km · Unaizah 158 km · Riyadh 160 km · Al Badā’i‘ al Wusţá 173 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 Shaqra (25.2402°, 45.251°, elevation 715 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.