Mossel Bay in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Mossel Bay sees average daytime highs around 21°C and overnight lows near 19°C, with 102 mm of rain over about 21 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 21°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 56% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels humid.
Summer is Mossel Bay's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. Mossel Bay 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 Mossel Bay's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 21°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 19°C
- Rainfall
- 102 mm
- 21 wet days
- Avg wind
- 18 km/h
- Travel score
- 7.3
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Mossel Bay in Summer
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 21°C.
A typical summer day in Mossel Bay reaches about 21°C and drops to 19°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Mossel Bay 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° / 19° | 37 | 7.5 | 14 | 7.4 |
| Feb | 22° / 20° | 30 | 6.7 | 13.3 | 7.4 |
| Mar | 21° / 19° | 41 | 7.4 | 12.3 | 7.3 |
| Apr | 20° / 17° | 43 | 6.7 | 11.2 | 6.9 |
| May | 19° / 15° | 40 | 6.2 | 10.2 | 6.9 |
| Jun | 17° / 14° | 37 | 6.9 | 9.8 | 6.4 |
| Jul | 17° / 13° | 38 | 7.2 | 10 | 6.1 |
| Aug | 17° / 13° | 47 | 7.6 | 10.7 | 5.9 |
| Sep | 17° / 14° | 33 | 6.5 | 11.8 | 6.1 |
| Oct | 18° / 15° | 43 | 7.4 | 12.9 | 6.5 |
| Nov | 19° / 17° | 52 | 7.7 | 13.8 | 6.7 |
| Dec | 21° / 18° | 35 | 6.8 | 14.2 | 7.2 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 56% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Mossel Bay gets around 102 mm of rain over 21 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels humid — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 18 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 14 h 06 min in early December to 12 h 48 min 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 7.2 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Mossel Bay?
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 one of the better times to visit Mossel Bay for general sightseeing.
What to pack for Mossel Bay in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Mossel Bay sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 19°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes. About 21 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Mossel Bay in Summer
The nearest coast averages about 21°C across summer — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 21 km away) is warmest in January at about 21°C and coldest in August near 16°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from Dec 15 to Mar 18 — about 3.1 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 21 | 21 | 20 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 19 | 20 |
| Comfort | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Refreshing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 21 | Refreshing |
| Feb | 21 | Refreshing |
| Mar | 20 | Refreshing |
| Apr | 18 | Cool |
| May | 17 | Cool |
| Jun | 16 | Cool |
| Jul | 16 | Cool |
| Aug | 16 | Cool |
| Sep | 16 | Cool |
| Oct | 17 | Cool |
| Nov | 19 | Cool |
| Dec | 20 | Refreshing |
UV index in Mossel Bay in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 12 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Mossel Bay peaks around January 14 at about 13 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 22 at about 3 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — in 10 months of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 13 | 10 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | High | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 13 | Extreme |
| Feb | 10 | Extreme |
| Mar | 10 | Very high |
| Apr | 6 | High |
| May | 4 | Moderate |
| Jun | 3 | Moderate |
| Jul | 3 | Moderate |
| Aug | 4 | Moderate |
| Sep | 6 | High |
| Oct | 10 | Extreme |
| Nov | 11 | Extreme |
| Dec | 12 | Extreme |
Where is Mossel Bay?
Mossel Bay sits at 34.2°S, 22.1°E, 43 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Groot-Brakrivier, 17 km away.
Topography around Mossel Bay
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Mossel Bay.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Mossel Bay has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 175 m around an average of 28 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 336 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,504 m.
The land around Mossel Bay is covered by water (70%) within 3 km, water (69%) within 16 km, and water (35%), shrubs (27%) and grassland (22%) within 80 km.
South Africa travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / M / N
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 41% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $6,598
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.0 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 68%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 43.7
- per 100k, 2022
- Road deaths
- 22.2
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Very high
- EF EPI 602
- 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 Mossel Bay (-34.1831°, 22.146°, elevation 43 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.