Van weather in December

In December, Van sees average daytime highs of 2°C and overnight lows near -7°C, with 35 mm of precipitation across 7.5 wet days and about 9.4 hours of daylight. It is the 10th-warmest and 4th-wettest month of the year here.

Highs ease over the month, from about 4°C in the first days to 0°C by the end. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 9 h 30 min at the start of December to 9 h 18 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Van's 8th-clearest and 12th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Van's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 2°; 10th warmest
Overnight low: -7°; 3rd coldest
Precipitation: 35 mm; 7.5 wet days
Daylight: 9 h 18 min; 6:23 AM – 3:42 PM
Cloud cover: 52%; 8th clearest
Wind: 6 km/h; 12th windiest
Solar energy: 2.47 kWh/m²
Travel score: 0.0; out of 10

Van is city in Turkey.

Air quality: Moderate; PM10 41 µg/m³ · 2019
Density: 271/km²; people per km²

Air quality: WHO Ambient Air Quality Database. Density & description: Wikidata (CC0), GeoNames.

← November Van year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

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

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Highs ease over the month, from about 4°C in the first days to 0°C by the end.

A typical December day in Van reaches about 2°C in the afternoon and slips back to -7°C overnight — a 9°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between -4°C and 7°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs about 6°C cooler than November and about 3°C warmer than January.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	4	4	4	4	3	3	3	3	3	2	2	2	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0
Avg low (°C)	-4	-4	-5	-5	-5	-5	-5	-6	-6	-6	-6	-7	-7	-7	-7	-7	-8	-8	-8	-8	-8	-8	-8	-9	-9	-9	-9	-9	-9	-9	-9

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	4	-4
2	4	-4
3	4	-5
4	4	-5
5	3	-5
6	3	-5
7	3	-5
8	3	-6
9	3	-6
10	2	-6
11	2	-6
12	2	-7
13	2	-7
14	2	-7
15	2	-7
16	1	-7
17	1	-8
18	1	-8
19	1	-8
20	1	-8
21	1	-8
22	1	-8
23	1	-8
24	1	-9
25	1	-9
26	1	-9
27	1	-9
28	1	-9
29	0	-9
30	0	-9
31	0	-9

How December really feels in Van

Once humidity and wind are folded in, December averages 0 days that feel above 32°C and 31 that feel at or below 0°C — the comfort signal a plain temperature reading hides.

Days feeling ≥ 32°C

heat index over the day's high

Days feeling ≤ 0°C

18 feel bitter (≤ -10°C)

The story in December is cold — wind chill drags the overnight "feels like" below the raw low.

Van weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 10th-warmest and 4th-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	-1° / -10°	33	7.3	7.9	9.6	0.0
Feb	1° / -9°	34	8.1	8.4	10.5	0.0
Mar	5° / -4°	56	11	9.1	11.7	0.3
Apr	11° / 1°	61	13.2	4	13	2.5
May	16° / 6°	58	14.1	0.5	14.1	4.9
Jun	22° / 11°	27	7.1	0	14.6	7.8
Jul	27° / 14°	12	3.3	0	14.4	8.3
Aug	27° / 14°	7	2	0	13.5	8.5
Sep	23° / 10°	12	2.7	0	12.3	8.6
Oct	16° / 5°	32	7.5	0.5	11	5.5
Nov	8° / -1°	34	6.9	3.8	9.9	1.5
Dec	2° / -7°	35	7.5	7.2	9.4	0.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 38% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 19% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 43%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	57	57	57	57	56	56	56	56	56	56	56	56	56	56	56	56	57	57	57	57	58	58	59	59	59	58	58	58	58	58	58
Cloudier (%)	43	43	43	43	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	44	43	43	43	43	42	42	41	41	41	42	42	42	42	42	42

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	57	43
2	57	43
3	57	43
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	56	44
8	56	44
9	56	44
10	56	44
11	56	44
12	56	44
13	56	44
14	56	44
15	56	44
16	56	44
17	57	43
18	57	43
19	57	43
20	57	43
21	58	42
22	58	42
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	58	42
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	58	42
31	58	42

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitationSnow

Van gets around 35 mm of rain and snow over 7.5 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 25% and peaks near 27% on the wettest days, and about 7 days bring snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	25	25	25	25	25	26	26	26	26	27	27	27	27	27	27	27	26	26	25	25	24	23	23	22	22	22	22	22	23	23	23
Snow chance (%)	20	20	20	21	22	22	23	24	24	25	25	26	26	26	26	26	26	25	25	24	24	23	23	22	22	22	22	22	23	23	24

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	25	20
2	25	20
3	25	20
4	25	21
5	25	22
6	26	22
7	26	23
8	26	24
9	26	24
10	27	25
11	27	25
12	27	26
13	27	26
14	27	26
15	27	26
16	27	26
17	26	26
18	26	25
19	25	25
20	25	24
21	24	24
22	23	23
23	23	23
24	22	22
25	22	22
26	22	22
27	22	22
28	22	22
29	23	23
30	23	23
31	23	24

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

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

By dew point, December lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in December

Winds average 6 km/h in December, the calmest month.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 6 km/h on the calmest days to 6 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	6	calm
2	6	calm
3	6	calm
4	6	calm
5	6	calm
6	6	calm
7	6	calm
8	6	calm
9	6	calm
10	6	calm
11	6	calm
12	6	calm
13	6	calm
14	6	calm
15	6	calm
16	6	calm
17	6	calm
18	6	calm
19	6	calm
20	6	calm
21	6	calm
22	6	calm
23	6	calm
24	6	calm
25	6	calm
26	6	calm
27	6	calm
28	6	calm
29	6	calm
30	6	calm
31	6	calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 9 h 30 min at the start of December to 9 h 18 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days shrink by about 12 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 6:11 AM to 6:29 AM, and sunset from 3:42 PM to 3:50 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.5	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.4	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3	9.3
Sunrise (AM)	6:11	6:12	6:13	6:14	6:15	6:15	6:16	6:17	6:18	6:19	6:19	6:20	6:21	6:21	6:22	6:23	6:23	6:24	6:25	6:25	6:26	6:26	6:27	6:27	6:27	6:28	6:28	6:28	6:29	6:29	6:29
Sunset (PM)	3:42	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:41	3:42	3:42	3:42	3:42	3:42	3:43	3:43	3:43	3:44	3:44	3:45	3:45	3:46	3:46	3:47	3:47	3:48	3:49	3:49	3:50

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	9.5	6:11	3:42
2	9.5	6:12	3:41
3	9.5	6:13	3:41
4	9.5	6:14	3:41
5	9.4	6:15	3:41
6	9.4	6:15	3:41
7	9.4	6:16	3:41
8	9.4	6:17	3:41
9	9.4	6:18	3:41
10	9.4	6:19	3:41
11	9.4	6:19	3:41
12	9.4	6:20	3:42
13	9.3	6:21	3:42
14	9.3	6:21	3:42
15	9.3	6:22	3:42
16	9.3	6:23	3:42
17	9.3	6:23	3:43
18	9.3	6:24	3:43
19	9.3	6:25	3:43
20	9.3	6:25	3:44
21	9.3	6:26	3:44
22	9.3	6:26	3:45
23	9.3	6:27	3:45
24	9.3	6:27	3:46
25	9.3	6:27	3:46
26	9.3	6:28	3:47
27	9.3	6:28	3:47
28	9.3	6:28	3:48
29	9.3	6:29	3:49
30	9.3	6:29	3:49
31	9.3	6:29	3:50

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 2.47 kWh/m² — the year's lowest.

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 2.47 kWh/m² to a high of 7.73 kWh/m² in June across the year — December's 2.47 kWh/m² sits near the bottom.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.6	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5	2.5
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	2.6	Moderate
2	2.6	Moderate
3	2.6	Moderate
4	2.6	Moderate
5	2.5	Moderate
6	2.5	Moderate
7	2.5	Moderate
8	2.5	Moderate
9	2.5	Moderate
10	2.5	Moderate
11	2.5	Moderate
12	2.5	Moderate
13	2.5	Moderate
14	2.5	Moderate
15	2.5	Moderate
16	2.5	Moderate
17	2.5	Moderate
18	2.5	Moderate
19	2.5	Moderate
20	2.5	Moderate
21	2.5	Moderate
22	2.5	Moderate
23	2.5	Moderate
24	2.5	Moderate
25	2.5	Moderate
26	2.5	Moderate
27	2.5	Moderate
28	2.5	Moderate
29	2.5	Moderate
30	2.5	Moderate
31	2.5	Moderate

Planning a trip in December

Is December a good time to visit Van?

Our two travel scores rate December for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

0.0

Sightseeing

10th-best month of the year

0.0

Beach & pool

9th-best month of the year

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Van.

What to pack for Van in December

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

In December, Van sees daytime highs around 2°C and nights near -7°C. Pack a warm layer and a heavy coat. About 8 days see rain.

a warm layera heavy coat

UV index in Van in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 3. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Van peaks around June 22 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near January 1 at about 3 (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)	3	4	4	7	9	11	11	11	8	6	3	3
Level	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	High	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	High	Moderate	Moderate

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	3	Moderate
Feb	4	Moderate
Mar	4	Moderate
Apr	7	High
May	9	Very high
Jun	11	Extreme
Jul	11	Extreme
Aug	11	Extreme
Sep	8	Very high
Oct	6	High
Nov	3	Moderate
Dec	3	Moderate

Air quality in Van in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

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

Air quality in Van is worst in May — around 24 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.4× the cleanest month (December, 10 µg/m³).

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

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
PM2.5 (µg/m³)	10	13	18	23	24	19	18	16	16	17	12	10
Level	Good	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Good	Good

	PM2.5 (µg/m³)	Level
Jan	10	Good
Feb	13	Moderate
Mar	18	Moderate
Apr	23	Moderate
May	24	Moderate
Jun	19	Moderate
Jul	18	Moderate
Aug	16	Moderate
Sep	16	Moderate
Oct	17	Moderate
Nov	12	Good
Dec	10	Good

Location & terrain

Where is Van?

Van sits at 38.5°N, 43.4°E, 1,708 m above sea level, in Turkey. The nearest listed city is Erciş, 59 km away.

Topography around Van

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

Within 3 km, the terrain around Van has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 322 m around an average of 1,718 m above sea level; within 16 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,538 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,845 m.

The land around Van is covered by artificial surfaces (67%) within 3 km, grassland (56%) within 16 km, and grassland (63%) within 80 km.

3 km

322 m

artificial surfaces 67%

16 km

1,538 m

grassland 56%

80 km

2,845 m

grassland 63%

treesgrasslandcroplandartificial surfacesbare terrainwater

← November Van year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Erciş 59 km · Adilcevaz 66 km · Ahlat 83 km · Hizan 89 km · Patnos 93 km · Tatvan 96 km · Malazgirt 103 km · Hakkâri 107 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 Van (38.4946°, 43.3832°, elevation 1,708 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. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	4	-4
2	4	-4
3	4	-5
4	4	-5
5	3	-5
6	3	-5
7	3	-5
8	3	-6
9	3	-6
10	2	-6
11	2	-6
12	2	-7
13	2	-7
14	2	-7
15	2	-7
16	1	-7
17	1	-8
18	1	-8
19	1	-8
20	1	-8
21	1	-8
22	1	-8
23	1	-8
24	1	-9
25	1	-9
26	1	-9
27	1	-9
28	1	-9
29	0	-9
30	0	-9
31	0	-9

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	57	43
2	57	43
3	57	43
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	56	44
8	56	44
9	56	44
10	56	44
11	56	44
12	56	44
13	56	44
14	56	44
15	56	44
16	56	44
17	57	43
18	57	43
19	57	43
20	57	43
21	58	42
22	58	42
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	58	42
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	58	42
31	58	42

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	25	20
2	25	20
3	25	20
4	25	21
5	25	22
6	26	22
7	26	23
8	26	24
9	26	24
10	27	25
11	27	25
12	27	26
13	27	26
14	27	26
15	27	26
16	27	26
17	26	26
18	26	25
19	25	25
20	25	24
21	24	24
22	23	23
23	23	23
24	22	22
25	22	22
26	22	22
27	22	22
28	22	22
29	23	23
30	23	23
31	23	24

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	4	-4
2	4	-4
3	4	-5
4	4	-5
5	3	-5
6	3	-5
7	3	-5
8	3	-6
9	3	-6
10	2	-6
11	2	-6
12	2	-7
13	2	-7
14	2	-7
15	2	-7
16	1	-7
17	1	-8
18	1	-8
19	1	-8
20	1	-8
21	1	-8
22	1	-8
23	1	-8
24	1	-9
25	1	-9
26	1	-9
27	1	-9
28	1	-9
29	0	-9
30	0	-9
31	0	-9

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	57	43
2	57	43
3	57	43
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	56	44
8	56	44
9	56	44
10	56	44
11	56	44
12	56	44
13	56	44
14	56	44
15	56	44
16	56	44
17	57	43
18	57	43
19	57	43
20	57	43
21	58	42
22	58	42
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	58	42
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	58	42
31	58	42

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	25	20
2	25	20
3	25	20
4	25	21
5	25	22
6	26	22
7	26	23
8	26	24
9	26	24
10	27	25
11	27	25
12	27	26
13	27	26
14	27	26
15	27	26
16	27	26
17	26	26
18	26	25
19	25	25
20	25	24
21	24	24
22	23	23
23	23	23
24	22	22
25	22	22
26	22	22
27	22	22
28	22	22
29	23	23
30	23	23
31	23	24

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	4	-4
2	4	-4
3	4	-5
4	4	-5
5	3	-5
6	3	-5
7	3	-5
8	3	-6
9	3	-6
10	2	-6
11	2	-6
12	2	-7
13	2	-7
14	2	-7
15	2	-7
16	1	-7
17	1	-8
18	1	-8
19	1	-8
20	1	-8
21	1	-8
22	1	-8
23	1	-8
24	1	-9
25	1	-9
26	1	-9
27	1	-9
28	1	-9
29	0	-9
30	0	-9
31	0	-9

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	57	43
2	57	43
3	57	43
4	57	43
5	56	44
6	56	44
7	56	44
8	56	44
9	56	44
10	56	44
11	56	44
12	56	44
13	56	44
14	56	44
15	56	44
16	56	44
17	57	43
18	57	43
19	57	43
20	57	43
21	58	42
22	58	42
23	59	41
24	59	41
25	59	41
26	58	42
27	58	42
28	58	42
29	58	42
30	58	42
31	58	42

	Rain chance (%)	Snow chance (%)
1	25	20
2	25	20
3	25	20
4	25	21
5	25	22
6	26	22
7	26	23
8	26	24
9	26	24
10	27	25
11	27	25
12	27	26
13	27	26
14	27	26
15	27	26
16	27	26
17	26	26
18	26	25
19	25	25
20	25	24
21	24	24
22	23	23
23	23	23
24	22	22
25	22	22
26	22	22
27	22	22
28	22	22
29	23	23
30	23	23
31	23	24

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100