Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Rishīkesh India

In Rishīkesh, the summers are short, sweltering, and clear and the winters are short, cool, dry, and mostly clear. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 49°F to 105°F and is rarely below 45°F or above 111°F.

Based on the beach/pool score, the best times of year to visit Rishīkesh for hot-weather activities are from mid April to early June and from early September to early October.

The hot season lasts for 2.5 months, from April 20 to July 2, with an average daily high temperature above 98°F. The hottest month of the year in Rishīkesh is June, with an average high of 103°F and low of 80°F.

The cool season lasts for 2.9 months, from November 26 to February 21, with an average daily high temperature below 78°F. The coldest month of the year in Rishīkesh is January, with an average low of 50°F and high of 71°F.

In Rishīkesh, the average percentage of the sky covered by clouds experiences extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The clearer part of the year in Rishīkesh begins around September 2 and lasts for 10 months, ending around July 7.

The clearest month of the year in Rishīkesh is October, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 94% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around July 7 and lasts for 1.9 months, ending around September 2.

The cloudiest month of the year in Rishīkesh is August, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 47% of the time.

A wet day is one with at least 0.04 inches of liquid or liquid-equivalent precipitation. The chance of wet days in Rishīkesh varies very significantly throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.0 months, from June 17 to September 17, with a greater than 36% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Rishīkesh is August, with an average of 20.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 9.0 months, from September 17 to June 17. The month with the fewest wet days in Rishīkesh is November, with an average of 0.7 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

Among wet days, we distinguish between those that experience rain alone, snow alone, or a mixture of the two. The month with the most days of rain alone in Rishīkesh is August, with an average of 20.3 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 70% on July 29.

Rainfall

To show variation within the months and not just the monthly totals, we show the rainfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Rishīkesh experiences extreme seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 10 months, from December 24 to October 24, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Rishīkesh is July, with an average rainfall of 11.7 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 2.0 months, from October 24 to December 24. The month with the least rain in Rishīkesh is November, with an average rainfall of 0.2 inches.

The length of the day in Rishīkesh varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 10 hours, 12 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 21, with 14 hours, 5 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 5:14 AM on June 11, and the latest sunrise is 1 hour, 59 minutes later at 7:14 AM on January 11. The earliest sunset is at 5:16 PM on December 2, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 6 minutes later at 7:22 PM on June 30.

Daylight saving time (DST) is not observed in Rishīkesh during 2024.

The figure below presents a compact representation of key lunar data for 2024. The horizontal axis is the day, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the colored areas indicate when the moon is above the horizon. The vertical gray bars (new Moons) and blue bars (full Moons) indicate key Moon phases.

We base the humidity comfort level on the dew point, as it determines whether perspiration will evaporate from the skin, thereby cooling the body. Lower dew points feel drier and higher dew points feel more humid. Unlike temperature, which typically varies significantly between night and day, dew point tends to change more slowly, so while the temperature may drop at night, a muggy day is typically followed by a muggy night.

Rishīkesh experiences extreme seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 3.7 months, from June 13 to October 4, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 24% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Rishīkesh is August, with 29.8 days that are muggy or worse.

The least muggy day of the year is February 15, when muggy conditions are essentially unheard of.

This section discusses the wide-area hourly average wind vector (speed and direction) at 10 meters above the ground. The wind experienced at any given location is highly dependent on local topography and other factors, and instantaneous wind speed and direction vary more widely than hourly averages.

The average hourly wind speed in Rishīkesh experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 4.1 months, from February 24 to June 28, with average wind speeds of more than 5.9 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Rishīkesh is May, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.4 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 7.9 months, from June 28 to February 24. The calmest month of the year in Rishīkesh is September, with an average hourly wind speed of 4.4 miles per hour.

The predominant average hourly wind direction in Rishīkesh varies throughout the year.

The wind is most often from the west for 4.7 months, from February 19 to July 9 and for 1.7 months, from August 15 to October 5, with a peak percentage of 51% on May 28. The wind is most often from the south for 1.2 months, from July 9 to August 15, with a peak percentage of 42% on July 26. The wind is most often from the east for 4.5 months, from October 5 to February 19, with a peak percentage of 38% on January 1.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Rishīkesh throughout the year, we compute two travel scores.

The tourism score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 65°F and 80°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Rishīkesh for general outdoor tourist activities is from early October to mid November, with a peak score in the last week of October.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best times of year to visit Rishīkesh for hot-weather activities are from mid April to early June and from early September to early October, with a peak score in the last week of September.

Methodology

For each hour between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM of each day in the analysis period (1980 to 2016), independent scores are computed for perceived temperature, cloud cover, and total precipitation. Those scores are combined into a single hourly composite score, which is then aggregated into days, averaged over all the years in the analysis period, and smoothed.

Our cloud cover score is 10 for fully clear skies, falling linearly to 9 for mostly clear skies, and to 1 for fully overcast skies.

Our precipitation score, which is based on the three-hour precipitation centered on the hour in question, is 10 for no precipitation, falling linearly to 9 for trace precipitation, and to 0 for 0.04 inches of precipitation or more.

Our tourism temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 50°F, rising linearly to 9 for 65°F, to 10 for 75°F, falling linearly to 9 for 80°F, and to 1 for 90°F or hotter.

Our beach/pool temperature score is 0 for perceived temperatures below 65°F, rising linearly to 9 for 75°F, to 10 for 82°F, falling linearly to 9 for 90°F, and to 1 for 100°F or hotter.

Definitions of the growing season vary throughout the world, but for the purposes of this report, we define it as the longest continuous period of non-freezing temperatures (≥ 32°F) in the year (the calendar year in the Northern Hemisphere, or from July 1 until June 30 in the Southern Hemisphere).

Temperatures in Rishīkesh are sufficiently warm year round that it is not entirely meaningful to discuss the growing season in these terms. We nevertheless include the chart below as an illustration of the distribution of temperatures experienced throughout the year.

Growing degree days are a measure of yearly heat accumulation used to predict plant and animal development, and defined as the integral of warmth above a base temperature, discarding any excess above a maximum temperature. In this report, we use a base of 50°F and a cap of 86°F.

This section discusses the total daily incident shortwave solar energy reaching the surface of the ground over a wide area, taking full account of seasonal variations in the length of the day, the elevation of the Sun above the horizon, and absorption by clouds and other atmospheric constituents. Shortwave radiation includes visible light and ultraviolet radiation.

The average daily incident shortwave solar energy experiences significant seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 2.5 months, from April 12 to June 26, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 7.0 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Rishīkesh is May, with an average of 7.7 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 2.9 months, from November 12 to February 7, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.4 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Rishīkesh is December, with an average of 3.7 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Rishīkesh are 30.108 deg latitude, 78.293 deg longitude, and 1,181 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Rishīkesh contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,709 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 1,337 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (5,614 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (12,999 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Rishīkesh is covered by artificial surfaces (48%), trees (23%), shrubs (12%), and cropland (11%), within 10 miles by trees (34%) and cropland (33%), and within 50 miles by cropland (55%) and trees (26%).