Lai Châu in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), Lai Châu sees average daytime highs around 19°C and overnight lows near 10°C, with 165 mm of rain over about 27 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 19°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is Lai Châu's best season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see Lai Châu's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 19°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 10°C
- Rainfall
- 165 mm
- 27 wet days
- Avg wind
- 4 km/h
- Travel score
- 6.3
- best season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in Lai Châu in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 19°C.
A typical winter day in Lai Châu reaches about 19°C and drops to 10°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is February, the coolest January.
Lai Châu 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 | 18° / 10° | 63 | 10 | 10.8 | 5.9 |
| Feb | 20° / 11° | 53 | 9.4 | 11.2 | 6.4 |
| Mar | 24° / 14° | 106 | 13.8 | 11.8 | 6.5 |
| Apr | 26° / 17° | 136 | 18.7 | 12.5 | 5.4 |
| May | 27° / 20° | 222 | 24.4 | 13.1 | 4.3 |
| Jun | 28° / 21° | 325 | 28.5 | 13.3 | 3.4 |
| Jul | 27° / 22° | 389 | 29.5 | 13.2 | 3.4 |
| Aug | 28° / 21° | 371 | 28.7 | 12.8 | 3.5 |
| Sep | 27° / 20° | 201 | 22.2 | 12.1 | 4.5 |
| Oct | 25° / 18° | 96 | 15 | 11.5 | 6.0 |
| Nov | 22° / 14° | 50 | 8.7 | 10.9 | 6.9 |
| Dec | 19° / 11° | 49 | 7.4 | 10.7 | 6.5 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 33% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
Lai Châu gets around 165 mm of rain over 27 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 4 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 42 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 3.0 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for Lai Châu
None of Lai Châu's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
Lai Châu's monsoon runs May–September, when most of the year's rain falls.
Is winter a good time to visit Lai Châu?
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 Lai Châu for sightseeing.
What to pack for Lai Châu in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, Lai Châu sees daytime highs around 19°C and nights near 10°C. Worth packing: rain gear. About 27 days see rain.
UV index in Lai Châu 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 Lai Châu peaks around June 19 at about 14 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 19 at about 5 (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 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 11 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 9 | 8 | 5 |
| Level | High | Very high | Extreme | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Very high | High |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7 | High |
| Feb | 9 | Very high |
| Mar | 11 | Extreme |
| Apr | 9 | Very high |
| May | 11 | Extreme |
| Jun | 14 | Extreme |
| Jul | 13 | Extreme |
| Aug | 12 | Extreme |
| Sep | 10 | Very high |
| Oct | 9 | Very high |
| Nov | 8 | Very high |
| Dec | 5 | High |
Air quality in Lai Châu 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 Lai Châu is worst in April — around 70 µg/m³ PM2.5 (unhealthy), about 5.0× the cleanest month (July, 14 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) | 25 | 33 | 54 | 70 | 28 | 15 | 14 | 15 | 18 | 22 | 23 | 25 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Poor | Unhealthy | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | Moderate |
| Feb | 33 | Moderate |
| Mar | 54 | Poor |
| Apr | 70 | Unhealthy |
| May | 28 | Moderate |
| Jun | 15 | Moderate |
| Jul | 14 | Moderate |
| Aug | 15 | Moderate |
| Sep | 18 | Moderate |
| Oct | 22 | Moderate |
| Nov | 23 | Moderate |
| Dec | 25 | Moderate |
Where is Lai Châu?
Lai Châu sits at 22.4°N, 103.5°E, 919 m above sea level, in Vietnam. The nearest listed city is Sapa, 40 km away.
Topography around Lai Châu
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Lai Châu.
Within 3 km, the terrain around Lai Châu has significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 544 m around an average of 1,001 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 2,836 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 3,035 m.
The land around Lai Châu is covered by trees (43%) and grassland (32%) within 3 km, trees (74%) within 16 km, and trees (85%) 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 Lai Châu (22.3964°, 103.4582°, elevation 919 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.