Port Alfred in Spring

In spring (September, October and November), Port Alfred sees average daytime highs around 21°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 150 mm of rain over about 23 wet days across the season. It is the 3rd-warmest season and the 2nd-wettest season.

Over the season highs climb from about 20°C in early September to 23°C by late November. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time across spring, and the air most often feels dry.

Spring is Port Alfred's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Port Alfred's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
21°C
3rd-warmest season
Avg overnight low
15°C
Rainfall
150 mm
23 wet days
Avg wind
17 km/h
Travel score
6.9
weakest season of the year
Months
Sep · Oct · Nov

Temperature in Port Alfred in Spring

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Over the season highs climb from about 20°C in early September to 23°C by late November.

A typical spring day in Port Alfred reaches about 21°C and drops to 15°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is November, the coolest September.

10°15°20°25°30°SepOctNov

Port Alfred weather by month

How the three spring months (September, October and November) compare with the rest of the year — the season's months are highlighted.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan25° / 20°538.2147.2
Feb26° / 20°568.613.26.9
Mar25° / 19°598.812.37.3
Apr23° / 17°547.911.27.4
May22° / 15°244.810.37.8
Jun21° / 13°274.39.87.8
Jul20° / 12°274.1107.7
Aug20° / 13°416.210.87.3
Sep20° / 14°42611.87.1
Oct21° / 15°518.412.86.8
Nov22° / 17°568.913.76.9
Dec24° / 18°589.414.27.1

Cloud cover in Spring

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 36% of the time across spring.

0%25%50%75%100%SepOctNov

Chance of precipitation in Spring

Any precipitation

Port Alfred gets around 150 mm of rain over 23 wet days across spring. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%10%20%30%40%SepOctNov

Humidity in Spring

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

0%25%50%75%100%SepOctNov

Wind in Spring

Winds average 17 km/h across spring.

05101520SepOctNov

Sunrise & sunset in Spring

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 11 h 18 min in early September to 14 h 06 min by late November. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMSepOctNov

Solar energy in Spring

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across spring, about 5.4 kWh/m².

0246SepOctNov
Planning a trip in spring

Is spring a good time to visit Port Alfred?

Our two travel scores rate spring for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.

6.9
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
4.4
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

spring is a reasonable time to visit Port Alfred for sightseeing.

What to pack for Port Alfred in Spring

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

In spring, Port Alfred sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 15°C. Pack sun protection. Worth having: light clothes and rain gear. About 23 days see rain.

sun protectionlight clothesrain gear

Sea temperature near Port Alfred in Spring

The nearest coast averages about 20°C across spring — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.

The sea offshore is warmest in February at about 23°C and coldest in September near 19°C.

It's comfortable for a long swim from Nov 4 to Jun 16 — about 7.4 months when the water holds above 20°C.

18°20°22°24°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDeccoolrefreshingwarmcomfortable to swimcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan22Refreshing
Feb23Refreshing
Mar22Refreshing
Apr22Refreshing
May21Refreshing
Jun20Refreshing
Jul19Cool
Aug19Cool
Sep19Cool
Oct19Cool
Nov21Refreshing
Dec21Refreshing

UV index in Port Alfred in Spring

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across spring averages around 9 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Port Alfred peaks around January 15 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.

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highHighModerateHighVery highExtremeJan 15UV 13Jun 22UV 3
UV index (midday)Level
Jan13Extreme
Feb11Extreme
Mar9Very high
Apr6High
May4Moderate
Jun3Moderate
Jul3Moderate
Aug5Moderate
Sep6High
Oct10Very high
Nov11Extreme
Dec12Extreme
Location & terrain

Where is Port Alfred?

Port Alfred sits at 33.6°S, 26.9°E, 35 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Grahamstown, 45 km away.

Topography around Port Alfred

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Port Alfred has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 128 m around an average of 45 m above sea level; within 16 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 332 m; within 80 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 906 m.

The land around Port Alfred is covered by trees (39%) and grassland (28%) within 3 km, water (41%), trees (33%) and grassland (21%) within 16 km, and water (36%), grassland (31%) and trees (20%) within 80 km.

3 km
128 m
16 km
332 m
80 km
906 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetland
Spring weather nearby: Grahamstown 45 km · Alice 89 km · Dimbaza 89 km · Qonce 92 km · Fort Beaufort 93 km · Ndevana 95 km · Bhisho 97 km · Mdantsane 110 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
Christian 86%or other traditional African religions 5%nothing in particular 5%Muslim 2%

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 Port Alfred (-33.586°, 26.8833°, elevation 35 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.