Kilwa Masoko in Summer

In summer (December, January and February), Kilwa Masoko sees average daytime highs around 29°C and overnight lows near 26°C, with 329 mm of rain over about 50 wet days across the season. It is the warmest season of the year and the 2nd-wettest season.

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 29°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels oppressive.

Summer is Kilwa Masoko's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. Kilwa Masoko 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 Kilwa Masoko's year-round climate.

Avg daytime high
29°C
warmest season of the year
Avg overnight low
26°C
Rainfall
329 mm
50 wet days
Avg wind
14 km/h
Travel score
4.5
weakest season of the year
Months
Dec · Jan · Feb

Temperature in Kilwa Masoko in Summer

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 29°C.

A typical summer day in Kilwa Masoko reaches about 29°C and drops to 26°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.

20°25°30°35°DecJanFeb

How summer really feels in Kilwa Masoko

Once humidity and wind are folded in, summer brings about 90 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C
90
heat index over the day's high
Days feeling ≤ C
0
wind chill below the day's low

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

Kilwa Masoko 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.

MonthHigh / Low (°C)Rainfall (mm)Wet daysDaylight (hours)Travel score
Jan29° / 26°11216.512.54.5
Feb29° / 26°10915.112.34.4
Mar29° / 25°18723.812.13.8
Apr29° / 25°17621.611.84.2
May28° / 24°619.611.66.1
Jun28° / 23°132.711.57.5
Jul27° / 23°61.311.58.1
Aug27° / 22°71.911.78.2
Sep27° / 23°103.111.98.0
Oct28° / 24°256.312.27.1
Nov29° / 25°5213.712.45.4
Dec29° / 26°10818.612.54.5

Cloud cover in Summer

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 29% of the time across summer.

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Chance of precipitation in Summer

Any precipitation

Kilwa Masoko gets around 329 mm of rain over 50 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

0%20%40%60%DecJanFeb

Humidity in Summer

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

0%25%50%75%100%DecJanFeb

Wind in Summer

Winds average 14 km/h across summer.

05101520DecJanFeb

Sunrise & sunset in Summer

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 30 min in early December to 12 h 12 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

12 AM4 AM8 AM12 PM4 PM8 PM12 AMDecJanFeb

Solar energy in Summer

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across summer, about 5.8 kWh/m².

0246DecJanFeb
Planning a trip in summer

Hazard calendar for Kilwa Masoko

In seasonPeak

In summer, Kilwa Masoko overlaps its cyclone and monsoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Kilwa Masoko sits in the South Indian Ocean cyclone belt; the season peaks January–March.

Kilwa Masoko's monsoon runs December–April, when most of the year's rain falls.

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

Is summer a good time to visit Kilwa Masoko?

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.

4.5
Sightseeing
4th-best month of the year
5.8
Beach & pool
3rd-best month of the year

summer is a reasonable time to visit Kilwa Masoko for sightseeing.

What to pack for Kilwa Masoko in Summer

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

In summer, Kilwa Masoko sees daytime highs around 29°C and nights near 26°C. Pack light clothes, rain gear and sun protection. About 50 days see rain.

light clothesrain gearsun protection

Sea temperature near Kilwa Masoko in Summer

The nearest coast averages about 29°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 March at about 29°C and coldest in August near 26°C.

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

24°26°28°30°JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecwarmtropicalcomfortable to swim
Sea temperature (°C)Comfort
Jan29Tropical
Feb29Tropical
Mar29Tropical
Apr29Tropical
May28Tropical
Jun27Warm
Jul26Warm
Aug26Warm
Sep26Warm
Oct27Warm
Nov28Warm
Dec29Tropical

UV index in Kilwa Masoko in Summer

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 13 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Kilwa Masoko peaks around March 15 at about 15 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 22 at about 10 (very high).

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

025710JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecExtremeVery highExtremeMar 15UV 15Jun 22UV 10
UV index (midday)Level
Jan13Extreme
Feb14Extreme
Mar15Extreme
Apr13Extreme
May10Extreme
Jun10Very high
Jul10Very high
Aug11Extreme
Sep12Extreme
Oct13Extreme
Nov13Extreme
Dec13Extreme

Air quality in Kilwa Masoko in Summer

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where summer falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Kilwa Masoko is worst in January — around 15 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.0× the cleanest month (November, 8 µg/m³).

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

01020JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecModerateGoodJan 2015 µg/m³Apr 228 µg/m³
PM2.5 (µg/m³)Level
Jan15Moderate
Feb13Moderate
Mar9Good
Apr8Good
May8Good
Jun8Good
Jul10Good
Aug10Good
Sep9Good
Oct10Good
Nov8Good
Dec9Good
Location & terrain

Where is Kilwa Masoko?

Kilwa Masoko sits at 8.9°S, 39.5°E, 23 m above sea level, in Tanzania. The nearest listed city is Kilindoni, 114 km away.

KilindoniLindiIkwiririRuangwaKibitiBunguNyangaoMtwara

Topography around Kilwa Masoko

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Kilwa Masoko has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 20 m around an average of 5 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 114 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 559 m.

The land around Kilwa Masoko is covered by water (45%) and grassland (31%) within 3 km, water (57%) within 16 km, and water (42%) and trees (37%) within 80 km.

3 km
20 m
16 km
114 m
80 km
559 m
treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwaterwetlandmangroves
Summer weather nearby: Kilindoni 114 km · Lindi 121 km · Ikwiriri 123 km · Ruangwa 142 km · Kibiti 148 km · Bungu 152 km · Nyangao 159 km · Mtwara 166 km

Tanzania travel facts

Travel advisory
Level 3
Reconsider Travel
Power plugs
Type D / G
230 V · 50 Hz
Prices
≈ 29% of US
price level, 2025
GDP per capita
$1,319
2025
Happiness
3.9 / 10
World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water
31%
of population, 2024
Homicide rate
3.7
per 100k, 2020
Road deaths
31.1
per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group
Lower middle
World Bank
English
Low
EF EPI 479
Religion
Christian 63%Muslim 34%folk religion 1%

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 Kilwa Masoko (-8.9251°, 39.5131°, elevation 23 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.