El Marsa in Winter
In winter (December, January and February), El Marsa sees average daytime highs around 21°C and overnight lows near 15°C, with 23 mm of rain over about 4 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 21°C. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 64% of the time across winter, and the air most often feels dry.
Winter is El Marsa's weakest season of the year to visit on our travel score. For the whole year in context, see El Marsa's year-round climate.
- Avg daytime high
- 21°C
- coldest season of the year
- Avg overnight low
- 15°C
- Rainfall
- 23 mm
- 4 wet days
- Avg wind
- 21 km/h
- Travel score
- 8.2
- weakest season of the year
- Months
- Dec · Jan · Feb
Temperature in El Marsa in Winter
Across winter, daytime highs hold fairly steady around 21°C.
A typical winter day in El Marsa reaches about 21°C and drops to 15°C overnight. The warmest of the three months is December, the coolest January.
El Marsa 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 | 20° / 14° | 7 | 1.4 | 10.5 | 8.1 |
| Feb | 21° / 15° | 7 | 1.4 | 11 | 8.2 |
| Mar | 21° / 16° | 6 | 1 | 11.8 | 8.4 |
| Apr | 21° / 16° | 1 | 0.2 | 12.6 | 8.5 |
| May | 22° / 17° | 0 | 0.1 | 13.3 | 8.7 |
| Jun | 23° / 19° | 0 | 0 | 13.7 | 9.2 |
| Jul | 24° / 20° | 0 | 0 | 13.5 | 9.5 |
| Aug | 25° / 20° | 0 | 0 | 13 | 9.3 |
| Sep | 25° / 20° | 3 | 0.5 | 12.2 | 9.1 |
| Oct | 25° / 19° | 6 | 1 | 11.4 | 8.9 |
| Nov | 23° / 17° | 6 | 1.1 | 10.7 | 8.7 |
| Dec | 21° / 15° | 9 | 1.4 | 10.3 | 8.3 |
Cloud cover in Winter
The sky is clear or mostly clear about 64% of the time across winter.
Chance of precipitation in Winter
El Marsa gets around 23 mm of rain over 4 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 21 km/h across winter.
Sunrise & sunset in Winter
Daylight runs from about 10 h 24 min in early December to 11 h 24 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 4.2 kWh/m².
Hazard calendar for El Marsa
None of El Marsa's seasonal hazards peak in winter. The full-year calendar below shows when the rainy season, cyclone risk and dust haze do.
El Marsa sees seasonal dust haze (July–August), heaviest in July.
Is winter a good time to visit El Marsa?
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 one of the better times to visit El Marsa for general sightseeing.
What to pack for El Marsa in Winter
From winter's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.
In winter, El Marsa sees daytime highs around 21°C and nights near 15°C. Worth packing: sun protection and a windbreaker.
Sea temperature near El Marsa 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 October at about 21°C and coldest in February near 17°C.
It's comfortable for a long swim from Aug 4 to Nov 19 — about 3.6 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 | 18 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 20 | 19 |
| Comfort | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Cool | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Refreshing | Cool |
| Sea temperature (°C) | Comfort | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 18 | Cool |
| Feb | 17 | Cool |
| Mar | 18 | Cool |
| Apr | 18 | Cool |
| May | 19 | Cool |
| Jun | 20 | Cool |
| Jul | 20 | Cool |
| Aug | 20 | Refreshing |
| Sep | 21 | Refreshing |
| Oct | 21 | Refreshing |
| Nov | 20 | Refreshing |
| Dec | 19 | Cool |
UV index in El Marsa in Winter
Clear-sky midday UV across winter averages around 5 — enough to warrant sun protection. The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.
Under clear skies, the midday UV index in El Marsa peaks around June 22 at about 11 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near December 17 at about 4 (moderate).
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) | 5 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 4 |
| Level | Moderate | High | Very high | Very high | Very high | Extreme | Extreme | Extreme | Very high | Very high | Moderate | Moderate |
| UV index (midday) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 5 | Moderate |
| Feb | 6 | High |
| Mar | 9 | Very high |
| Apr | 9 | Very high |
| May | 10 | Very high |
| Jun | 11 | Extreme |
| Jul | 11 | Extreme |
| Aug | 11 | Extreme |
| Sep | 9 | Very high |
| Oct | 8 | Very high |
| Nov | 5 | Moderate |
| Dec | 4 | Moderate |
Air quality in El Marsa 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 El Marsa is worst in December — around 28 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 4.2× the cleanest month (June, 7 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 | 26 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 12 | 9 | 12 | 12 | 28 |
| Level | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Good | Moderate | Moderate | Moderate |
| PM2.5 (µg/m³) | Level | |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 25 | Moderate |
| Feb | 26 | Moderate |
| Mar | 14 | Moderate |
| Apr | 10 | Good |
| May | 8 | Good |
| Jun | 7 | Good |
| Jul | 11 | Good |
| Aug | 12 | Good |
| Sep | 9 | Good |
| Oct | 12 | Moderate |
| Nov | 12 | Moderate |
| Dec | 28 | Moderate |
Where is El Marsa?
El Marsa sits at 27.1°N, 13.4°W, 4 m above sea level, in Western Sahara. The nearest listed city is Laayoune, 23 km away.
Topography around El Marsa
How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of El Marsa.
Within 3 km, the terrain around El Marsa has only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 16 m around an average of 4 m above sea level; within 16 km, only modest variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 74 m; within 80 km, significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 264 m.
The land around El Marsa is covered by bare terrain (50%) and water (41%) within 3 km, bare terrain (51%) and water (48%) within 16 km, and bare terrain (68%) and water (32%) within 80 km.
Data sources
Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for El Marsa (27.0961°, -13.4158°, elevation 4 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.