Ha Long in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Ha Long sees average daytime highs around 20°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 85 mm of rain over about 18 wet days across the season. It is the coldest season of the year and the driest season of the year.
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 20°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 20% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Ha Long's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Ha Long's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 20°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 15°C
- Rainfall
- 85 mm
- 18 wet days
- Avg wind
- 10 km/h
- Travel score
- 6.6
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Ha Long in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 20°C.
A typical winter day in Ha Long reaches about 20°C and drops to 15°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
How winter really feels in Ha Long
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.
Ha Long 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 | Daylight (hours) | Travel score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 19° / 15° | 34 | 6.5 | 10.9 | 6.3 |
| Feb | 20° / 16° | 21 | 5.6 | 11.3 | 6.4 |
| Mar | 22° / 18° | 44 | 8.8 | 11.9 | 6.5 |
| Apr | 26° / 22° | 69 | 11.6 | 12.5 | 6.0 |
| May | 30° / 25° | 219 | 19.5 | 13 | 3.9 |
| Jun | 31° / 27° | 266 | 22.4 | 13.2 | 2.9 |
| Jul | 31° / 27° | 305 | 24.3 | 13.1 | 2.8 |
| Aug | 31° / 26° | 381 | 26.2 | 12.7 | 2.7 |
| Sep | 30° / 25° | 243 | 20 | 12.1 | 3.6 |
| Oct | 28° / 23° | 104 | 11.9 | 11.5 | 5.7 |
| Nov | 25° / 19° | 51 | 8.2 | 11 | 7.1 |
| Dec | 21° / 16° | 31 | 5.9 | 10.8 | 7.0 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 20% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Ha Long gets around 85 mm of rain over 18 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 10 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 48 min in early December to 11 h 30 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 2.8 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Ha Long
In winter, Ha Long overlaps its pacific typhoon season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.
Ha Long sits in the Pacific typhoon belt; the season peaks July–October.
Ha Long's monsoon runs May–September, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is winter a good time to visit Ha Long?
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 reasonable time to visit Ha Long for sightseeing.
What to pack for Ha Long in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Ha Long sees daytime highs around 20°C and nights near 15°C. Little to plan around — just the basics. About 18 days see rain.
Sea temperature near Ha Long in Winter
The nearest coast averages about 20°C across winter — the other half of the beach question. The full-year curve and swim-comfort zones are below.
The sea at the nearest coast (about 32 km away) is warmest in August at about 30°C and coldest in February near 19°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from Mar 13 to Jan 10 — about 10 months when the water holds above 20°C.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sea temperature (°C) | 20 | 19 | 20 | 23 | 27 | 29 | 29 | 30 | 29 | 28 | 25 | 22 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Refreshing | Refreshing | Warm | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Tropical | Warm | Warm | Refreshing |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 20 | Cool |
| Feb | 19 | Cool |
| Mar | 20 | Refreshing |
| Apr | 23 | Refreshing |
| May | 27 | Warm |
| Jun | 29 | Tropical |
| Jul | 29 | Tropical |
| Aug | 30 | Tropical |
| Sep | 29 | Tropical |
| Oct | 28 | Warm |
| Nov | 25 | Warm |
| Dec | 22 | Refreshing |
UV index in Ha Long in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 7 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Ha Long peaks around July 12 at about 12 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 6 (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) | 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 7 | 6 |
| Level | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Very high | High | High |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | High |
| Feb | 8 | Very high |
| Mar | 9 | Very high |
| Apr | 8 | Very high |
| May | 10 | Extreme |
| Jun | 12 | Extreme |
| Jul | 12 | Extreme |
| Aug | 9 | Very high |
| Sep | 9 | Very high |
| Oct | 9 | Very high |
| Nov | 7 | High |
| Dec | 6 | High |
Air quality in Ha Long 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 Ha Long is worst in January — around 42 µg/m³ PM2.5 (poor), about 2.6× the cleanest month (July, 16 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) | 42 | 42 | 41 | 40 | 26 | 19 | 16 | 18 | 21 | 27 | 29 | 39 |
| Level | Poor | Poor | Poor | Poor | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Poor |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 42 | Poor |
| Feb | 42 | Poor |
| Mar | 41 | Poor |
| Apr | 40 | Poor |
| May | 26 | Moderate |
| Jun | 19 | Moderate |
| Jul | 16 | Moderate |
| Aug | 18 | Moderate |
| Sep | 21 | Moderate |
| Oct | 27 | Moderate |
| Nov | 29 | Moderate |
| Dec | 39 | Poor |
Where is Ha Long?
Ha Long sits at 21.0°N, 107.1°E, 8 m above sea level, in Vietnam. The nearest listed city is Cẩm Phả, 22 km away.
Topography around Ha Long
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Ha Long.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Ha Long has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 150 m around an average of 9 m above sea level; within 16 km, large variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 679 m; within 80 km, very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,530 m.
The land around Ha Long is covered by water (57%) and artificial surfaces (21%) within 3 km, water (46%) and trees (37%) within 16 km, and trees (42%) and water (42%) within 80 km.
Vietnam travel facts
- Travel advisory
- Level 1
- Exercise Normal Precautions
- Power plugs
- Type A / B / C / F
- 220 V · 50 Hz
- Prices
- ≈ 29% of US
- price level, 2025
- GDP per capita
- $5,066
- 2025
- Happiness
- 6.4 / 10
- World Happiness, 2025
- Safe drinking water
- 59%
- of population, 2024
- Homicide rate
- 1.5
- per 100k, 2011
- Road deaths
- 30.6
- per 100k/yr, 2019
- Income group
- Upper middle
- World Bank
- English
- Moderate
- EF EPI 500
- 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 Ha Long (20.9505°, 107.0734°, elevation 8 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.