Richards Bay in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Richards Bay sees average daytime highs around 28°C and overnight lows near 22°C, with 290 mm of rain over about 37 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels muggy.
Summer is Richards Bay's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Richards Bay's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 28°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 22°C
- Rainfall
- 290 mm
- 37 wet days
- Avg wind
- 17 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.5
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Richards Bay in Summer
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 28°C.
A typical summer day in Richards Bay reaches about 28°C and drops to 22°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Richards 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 | 29° / 23° | 108 | 13.5 | 13.6 | 5.3 |
| Feb | 29° / 23° | 95 | 11.9 | 13 | 5.3 |
| Mar | 28° / 22° | 97 | 12.3 | 12.2 | 5.9 |
| Apr | 27° / 20° | 79 | 10.4 | 11.3 | 6.8 |
| May | 25° / 18° | 56 | 7.6 | 10.6 | 7.8 |
| Jun | 24° / 16° | 39 | 6.6 | 10.2 | 8.2 |
| Jul | 23° / 15° | 47 | 6.9 | 10.4 | 8.0 |
| Aug | 24° / 16° | 39 | 7 | 11 | 8.0 |
| Sep | 25° / 18° | 54 | 8.2 | 11.8 | 7.4 |
| Oct | 25° / 19° | 80 | 12.2 | 12.7 | 6.5 |
| Nov | 26° / 20° | 93 | 13.2 | 13.4 | 6.0 |
| Dec | 28° / 22° | 86 | 11.7 | 13.8 | 5.9 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Richards Bay gets around 290 mm of rain over 37 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels muggy — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 17 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 13 h 42 min in early December to 12 h 42 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 6.0 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Richards Bay
In summer, Richards Bay overlaps its cyclone season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Richards Bay sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.
Is summer a good time to visit Richards 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 a reasonable time to visit Richards Bay for sightseeing. The water and warmth also suit a beach or pool day.
What to pack for Richards Bay in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Richards Bay sees daytime highs around 28°C and nights near 22°C. Pack light clothes and sun protection. Worth having: rain gear. About 37 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Richards Bay in Summer
The nearest coast averages about 26°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 13 km away) is warmest in February at about 27°C and coldest in August near 22°C.
The water stays above 20°C all year — warm enough for a swim any month.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 26 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 | 24 | 25 |
| Comfort | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Warm |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 26 | Warm |
| Feb | 27 | Warm |
| Mar | 26 | Warm |
| Apr | 25 | Warm |
| May | 24 | Warm |
| Jun | 23 | Refreshing |
| Jul | 22 | Refreshing |
| Aug | 22 | Refreshing |
| Sep | 22 | Refreshing |
| Oct | 22 | Refreshing |
| Nov | 24 | Refreshing |
| Dec | 25 | Warm |
UV index in Richards 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 Richards Bay peaks around February 10 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 21 at about 4 (moderate).
The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UV index (midday) | 12 | 12 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 10 | 12 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | High | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | High | High | Extreme | Very high | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12 | Extreme |
| Feb | 12 | Extreme |
| Mar | 11 | Extreme |
| Apr | 6 | High |
| May | 5 | Moderate |
| Jun | 4 | Moderate |
| Jul | 4 | Moderate |
| Aug | 6 | High |
| Sep | 6 | High |
| Oct | 10 | Extreme |
| Nov | 10 | Very high |
| Dec | 12 | Extreme |
Air quality in Richards Bay in Summer
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where summer falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in Richards Bay is worst in July — around 21 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 3.4× the cleanest month (January, 6 µg/m³).
Seasonal pattern from CAMS reanalysis, scaled to Richards Bay's WHO annual average of 13 µg/m³.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 6 | 7 | 9 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 21 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 9 | 7 |
| Level | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 6 | Good |
| Feb | 7 | Good |
| Mar | 9 | Good |
| Apr | 15 | Moderate |
| May | 17 | Moderate |
| Jun | 19 | Moderate |
| Jul | 21 | Moderate |
| Aug | 18 | Moderate |
| Sep | 16 | Moderate |
| Oct | 12 | Moderate |
| Nov | 9 | Good |
| Dec | 7 | Good |
Where is Richards Bay?
Richards Bay sits at 28.8°S, 32.0°E, 9 m above sea level, in South Africa. The nearest listed city is Empangeni, 14 km away.
Topography around Richards Bay
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Richards Bay.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Richards Bay has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 48 m around an average of 12 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 187 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,252 m.
The land around Richards Bay is covered by trees (25%) and water (23%) within 3 km, trees (37%) and water (33%) within 16 km, and water (34%), trees (29%) and grassland (24%) 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 Richards Bay (-28.783°, 32.0377°, elevation 9 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.