İskenderun in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), İskenderun sees average daytime highs around 13°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 315 mm of precipitation over about 33 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the wettest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 13°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is İskenderun's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see İskenderun's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 13°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 6°C
- Precipitation
- 315 mm
- 33 wet days
- Avg wind
- 7 km/h
- Travel score
- 3.6
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in İskenderun in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 13°C.
A typical winter day in İskenderun reaches about 13°C and drops to 6°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in İskenderun
Once humidity and wind are folded in, winter brings about 0 days that feel above 32°C and 0 that feel at or below 0°C.
winter sits comfortably in between — no days that feel dangerously hot or drop to a hard freeze once humidity and wind are folded in.
İskenderun weather by month
How the three winter 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 | Snow days | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 12° / 5° | 106 | 11.8 | 0.5 | 9.8 | 3.1 |
| Feb | 13° / 6° | 106 | 10.8 | 0.5 | 10.6 | 3.8 |
| Mar | 17° / 9° | 95 | 11.1 | 0 | 11.7 | 5.4 |
| Apr | 21° / 12° | 63 | 9.4 | 0 | 12.9 | 6.7 |
| May | 25° / 16° | 38 | 6.2 | 0 | 13.9 | 7.9 |
| Jun | 29° / 20° | 10 | 2.7 | 0 | 14.5 | 6.9 |
| Jul | 32° / 23° | 3 | 0.8 | 0 | 14.2 | 5.5 |
| Aug | 33° / 23° | 2 | 0.6 | 0 | 13.4 | 5.1 |
| Sep | 31° / 21° | 22 | 3.9 | 0 | 12.2 | 6.0 |
| Oct | 26° / 17° | 50 | 6.4 | 0 | 11.1 | 7.6 |
| Nov | 19° / 11° | 65 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 6.8 |
| Dec | 14° / 7° | 103 | 10.7 | 0.1 | 9.5 | 3.9 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
İskenderun gets around 315 mm of rain and snow over 33 wet days across winter. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.
Humidity in Winter
Most of winter feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.
Wind in Winter
Winds average 7 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 9 h 42 min in early December to 11 h 06 min by late February. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.
Solar energy in Winter
Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day across winter, about 2.7 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for İskenderun
In winter, İskenderun overlaps its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
İskenderun's rainy season runs October–April, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is winter a good time to visit İskenderun?
Our two travel scores rate winter for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal), averaged across the three months.
winter is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in İskenderun.
What to pack for İskenderun in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, İskenderun sees daytime highs around 13°C and nights near 6°C. Pack a warm layer. Worth having: rain gear. About 33 days see rain.
Sea temperature near İskenderun in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 18°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea offshore is warmest in August at about 29°C and coldest in February near 17°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from May 1 to Dec 11 — about 7.4 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 18 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 22 | 25 | 28 | 29 | 29 | 26 | 23 | 20 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Refreshing | Warm | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Warm | Refreshing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 17 | Cool |
| Apr | 18 | Cool |
| May | 22 | Refreshing |
| Jun | 25 | Warm |
| Jul | 28 | Tropical |
| Aug | 29 | Tropical |
| Sep | 29 | Tropical |
| Oct | 26 | Warm |
| Nov | 23 | Refreshing |
| Dec | 20 | Cool |
UV index in İskenderun in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in İskenderun peaks around June 21 at about 10 (very high) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 12 at about 2 (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) | 2 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2 | Moderate |
| Feb | 3 | Moderate |
| Mar | 4 | Moderate |
| Apr | 7 | High |
| May | 8 | Very high |
| Jun | 10 | Very high |
| Jul | 9 | Very high |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 7 | Very high |
| Oct | 5 | High |
| Nov | 3 | Moderate |
| Dec | 2 | Moderate |
Air quality in İskenderun in Winter
Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where winter falls, not just the annual average.
Air quality in İskenderun is worst in March — around 24 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), and holds fairly steady the rest of the year.
Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | 18 | 20 | 24 | 24 | 23 | 19 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 19 | 17 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | Moderate |
| Feb | 20 | Moderate |
| Mar | 24 | Moderate |
| Apr | 24 | Moderate |
| May | 23 | Moderate |
| Jun | 19 | Moderate |
| Jul | 16 | Moderate |
| Aug | 19 | Moderate |
| Sep | 20 | Moderate |
| Oct | 19 | Moderate |
| Nov | 19 | Moderate |
| Dec | 17 | Moderate |
Where is İskenderun?
İskenderun sits at 36.6°N, 36.2°E, 9 m above sea level, in Turkey. The nearest listed city is Denizciler, 7.0 km away.
Topography around İskenderun
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of İskenderun.
Within 3 km, the terrain around İskenderun has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 239 m around an average of 25 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,783 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,181 m.
The land around İskenderun is covered by artificial surfaces (43%) and water (34%) within 3 km, trees (37%) and water (37%) within 16 km, and cropland (31%), trees (25%) and water (23%) within 80 km.
Turkey travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 2
- Exercise Increased Caution
- Power plugs
- Type C / F
- 230 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 41% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $18,599
- 2025
- Happiness
- 5.3 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Homicide rate
- 3.2
- per 100k, 2023
- Road deaths
- 6.7
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Low
- EF EPI 488
- 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 İskenderun (36.5872°, 36.1735°, 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.