Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Zakopane Poland

In Zakopane, the summers are comfortable, wet, and partly cloudy and the winters are freezing, snowy, and mostly cloudy. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 16°F to 69°F and is rarely below -1°F or above 79°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Zakopane for warm-weather activities is from early July to mid August.

The warm season lasts for 3.6 months, from May 23 to September 10, with an average daily high temperature above 61°F. The hottest month of the year in Zakopane is July, with an average high of 68°F and low of 48°F.

The cold season lasts for 3.5 months, from November 21 to March 6, with an average daily high temperature below 36°F. The coldest month of the year in Zakopane is January, with an average low of 16°F and high of 28°F.

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

The clearer part of the year in Zakopane begins around May 30 and lasts for 3.8 months, ending around September 22.

The clearest month of the year in Zakopane is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 58% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 22 and lasts for 8.2 months, ending around May 30.

The cloudiest month of the year in Zakopane is December, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 67% 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 Zakopane varies throughout the year.

The wetter season lasts 3.6 months, from May 5 to August 25, with a greater than 34% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Zakopane is June, with an average of 13.3 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 8.4 months, from August 25 to May 5. The month with the fewest wet days in Zakopane is January, with an average of 6.9 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. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation in Zakopane changes throughout the year.

Rain alone is the most common for 8.4 months, from March 11 to November 23. The month with the most days of rain alone in Zakopane is June, with an average of 13.3 days.

Snow alone is the most common for 3.5 months, from November 23 to March 11. The month with the most days of snow alone in Zakopane is January, with an average of 4.5 days.

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. Zakopane experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

The rainy period of the year lasts for 9.0 months, from March 1 to December 3, with a sliding 31-day rainfall of at least 0.5 inches. The month with the most rain in Zakopane is July, with an average rainfall of 4.1 inches.

The rainless period of the year lasts for 3.0 months, from December 3 to March 1. The month with the least rain in Zakopane is January, with an average rainfall of 0.3 inches.

Snowfall

As with rainfall, we consider the snowfall accumulated over a sliding 31-day period centered around each day of the year. Zakopane experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly snowfall.

The snowy period of the year lasts for 6.8 months, from October 7 to May 2, with a sliding 31-day snowfall of at least 1.0 inches. The month with the most snow in Zakopane is January, with an average snowfall of 8.5 inches.

The snowless period of the year lasts for 5.2 months, from May 2 to October 7. The least snow falls around July 30, with an average total accumulation of 0.0 inches.

The length of the day in Zakopane varies extremely over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is December 21, with 8 hours, 11 minutes of daylight; the longest day is June 20, with 16 hours, 15 minutes of daylight.

The earliest sunrise is at 4:33 AM on June 16, and the latest sunrise is 3 hours, 2 minutes later at 7:35 AM on December 31. The earliest sunset is at 3:41 PM on December 11, and the latest sunset is 5 hours, 9 minutes later at 8:50 PM on June 24.

Daylight saving time (DST) is observed in Zakopane during 2024, starting in the spring on March 31, lasting 6.9 months, and ending in the fall on October 27.

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.

The perceived humidity level in Zakopane, as measured by the percentage of time in which the humidity comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable, does not vary significantly over the course of the year, remaining a virtually constant 0% throughout.

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 Zakopane experiences mild seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The windier part of the year lasts for 5.6 months, from October 28 to April 16, with average wind speeds of more than 6.2 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Zakopane is February, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.4 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 6.4 months, from April 16 to October 28. The calmest month of the year in Zakopane is August, with an average hourly wind speed of 5.0 miles per hour.

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

The wind is most often from the south for 2.0 days, from April 8 to April 10; for 3.1 weeks, from April 23 to May 15; and for 2.2 months, from September 28 to December 2, with a peak percentage of 42% on October 29. The wind is most often from the north for 1.9 weeks, from April 10 to April 23 and for 3.4 weeks, from May 15 to June 8, with a peak percentage of 32% on June 5. The wind is most often from the west for 3.7 months, from June 8 to September 28 and for 4.2 months, from December 2 to April 8, with a peak percentage of 39% on July 5.

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Zakopane 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 Zakopane for general outdoor tourist activities is from early July to mid August, with a peak score in the first week of August.

The beach/pool score favors clear, rainless days with perceived temperatures between 75°F and 90°F. Based on this score, the best time of year to visit Zakopane for hot-weather activities is from mid July to mid August, with a peak score in the first week of August.

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).

The growing season in Zakopane typically lasts for 4.3 months (131 days), from around May 14 to around September 22, rarely starting before April 24 or after June 4, and rarely ending before September 3 or after October 10.

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.

Based on growing degree days alone, the first spring blooms in Zakopane should appear around May 16, only rarely appearing before May 3 or after June 1.

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 extreme seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The brighter period of the year lasts for 3.7 months, from April 29 to August 20, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 5.3 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Zakopane is June, with an average of 6.2 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.5 months, from October 27 to February 14, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 2.0 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Zakopane is December, with an average of 1.0 kWh.

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Zakopane are 49.299 deg latitude, 19.949 deg longitude, and 2,687 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Zakopane contains very significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 1,362 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 3,022 feet. Within 10 miles contains very significant variations in elevation (6,063 feet). Within 50 miles also contains extreme variations in elevation (8,022 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Zakopane is covered by trees (33%), artificial surfaces (31%), grassland (21%), and cropland (14%), within 10 miles by trees (41%) and grassland (31%), and within 50 miles by trees (55%) and cropland (29%).