Nuku‘alofa in Summer
In summer (December, January and February), Nuku‘alofa sees average daytime highs around 26°C and overnight lows near 25°C, with 503 mm of rain over about 44 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 26°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 30% of the time across summer, and the air most often feels oppressive.
Summer is Nuku‘alofa's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. Nuku‘alofa 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 Nuku‘alofa's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 26°C
- warmest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 25°C
- Rainfall
- 503 mm
- 44 wet days
- Avg wind
- 24 km/h
- Travel score
- 5.8
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Nuku‘alofa in Summer
Across summer, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 26°C.
A typical summer day in Nuku‘alofa reaches about 26°C and drops to 25°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest December.
Nuku‘alofa 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 | 26° / 25° | 195 | 15.5 | 13.1 | 5.7 |
| Feb | 27° / 26° | 203 | 16.5 | 12.7 | 5.3 |
| Mar | 27° / 26° | 230 | 18.3 | 12.1 | 5.3 |
| Apr | 26° / 25° | 167 | 13.4 | 11.5 | 6.0 |
| May | 25° / 24° | 103 | 10.1 | 11 | 6.8 |
| Jun | 24° / 23° | 106 | 8.8 | 10.7 | 7.0 |
| Jul | 23° / 22° | 96 | 8.4 | 10.8 | 7.0 |
| Aug | 23° / 21° | 109 | 8.6 | 11.3 | 6.9 |
| Sep | 23° / 22° | 106 | 9.5 | 11.9 | 6.9 |
| Oct | 23° / 22° | 93 | 8.5 | 12.5 | 7.1 |
| Nov | 25° / 23° | 99 | 9.2 | 13 | 6.9 |
| Dec | 26° / 25° | 105 | 12.1 | 13.3 | 6.4 |
Cloud cover in Summer
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 30% of the time across summer.
Chance of precipitation in Summer
Nuku‘alofa gets around 503 mm of rain over 44 wet days across summer. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Summer
Most of summer feels oppressive — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Summer
Winds average 24 km/h across summer.
Sunrise & sunset in Summer
Daylight runs from about 13 h 12 min in early December to 12 h 30 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 6.5 kWh/m².
Is summer a good time to visit Nuku‘alofa?
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 Nuku‘alofa for sightseeing.
What to pack for Nuku‘alofa in Summer
From summer's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In summer, Nuku‘alofa sees daytime highs around 26°C and nights near 25°C. Pack rain gear and sun protection. Worth having: light clothes and a windbreaker. About 44 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Nuku‘alofa in Summer
The nearest coast averages about 27°C across summer — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea offshore is warmest in March at about 28°C and coldest in August near 24°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) | 27 | 28 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 25 | 26 |
| Comfort | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Warm | Refreshing | Refreshing | Warm | Warm | Warm |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 27 | Warm |
| Feb | 28 | Warm |
| Mar | 28 | Warm |
| Apr | 27 | Warm |
| May | 26 | Warm |
| Jun | 25 | Warm |
| Jul | 24 | Warm |
| Aug | 24 | Refreshing |
| Sep | 24 | Refreshing |
| Oct | 24 | Warm |
| Nov | 25 | Warm |
| Dec | 26 | Warm |
UV index in Nuku‘alofa in Summer
Clear-sky midday UV across summer averages around 15 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Nuku‘alofa peaks around February 12 at about 16 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near June 23 at about 7 (high).
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) | 15 | 16 | 14 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 11 | 14 | 13 | 13 |
| Level | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | High | High | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 15 | Extreme |
| Feb | 16 | Extreme |
| Mar | 14 | Extreme |
| Apr | 10 | Very high |
| May | 7 | Very high |
| Jun | 7 | High |
| Jul | 7 | High |
| Aug | 8 | Very high |
| Sep | 11 | Extreme |
| Oct | 14 | Extreme |
| Nov | 13 | Extreme |
| Dec | 13 | Extreme |
Where is Nuku‘alofa?
Nuku‘alofa sits at 21.1°S, 175.2°W, 1 m above sea level, in Tonga. The nearest listed city is Alofi, 598 km away.
Topography around Nuku‘alofa
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Nuku‘alofa.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Nuku‘alofa has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 21 m around an average of 3 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 73 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 299 m.
The land around Nuku‘alofa is covered by water (52%) and artificial surfaces (20%) within 3 km, water (68%) within 16 km, and water (97%) within 80 km.
Tonga travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type I
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 75% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $6,547
- 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 30%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 0.9
- per 100k, 2019
- Road deaths
- 33
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- 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 Nuku‘alofa (-21.1368°, -175.2011°, elevation 1 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.