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Climate and Average Weather Year Round in Mthatha South Africa

In Mthatha, the summers are warm and wet; the winters are short, cool, and dry; and it is mostly clear year round. Over the course of the year, the temperature typically varies from 42°F to 80°F and is rarely below 36°F or above 91°F.

Based on the tourism score, the best time of year to visit Mthatha for warm-weather activities is from late November to mid May.

Climate in Mthatha

warmcomfortablewarmJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecNowNow79%79%55%55%clearovercastprecipitation: 4.4 inprecipitation: 4.4 in0.8 in0.8 inmuggy: 30%muggy: 30%0%0%drydrytourism score: 7.0tourism score: 7.05.15.1
Mthatha weather by month. Click on each chart for more information.

The warm season lasts for 3.2 months, from December 21 to March 27, with an average daily high temperature above 78°F. The hottest month of the year in Mthatha is February, with an average high of 80°F and low of 63°F.

The cool season lasts for 2.2 months, from June 1 to August 8, with an average daily high temperature below 71°F. The coldest month of the year in Mthatha is July, with an average low of 43°F and high of 69°F.

Average High and Low Temperature in Mthatha

Average High and Low Temperature in MthathawarmcoolJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0°F0°F10°F10°F20°F20°F30°F30°F40°F40°F50°F50°F60°F60°F70°F70°F80°F80°F90°F90°F100°F100°FJul 168°FJul 168°FFeb 1580°FFeb 1580°F42°F42°F63°F63°FDec 2178°FDec 2178°FMar 2778°FMar 2778°FJun 171°FJun 171°FAug 871°FAug 871°F60°F60°F59°F59°F45°F45°F45°F45°FNowNow
The daily average high (red line) and low (blue line) temperature, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted lines are the corresponding average perceived temperatures.
AverageJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
High 79°F80°F79°F76°F73°F69°F69°F71°F73°F73°F75°F77°F
Temp. 70°F70°F68°F64°F60°F54°F54°F58°F60°F62°F65°F67°F
Low 62°F63°F61°F55°F49°F43°F43°F46°F50°F54°F56°F60°F

The figure below shows you a compact characterization of the entire year of hourly average temperatures. The horizontal axis is the day of the year, the vertical axis is the hour of the day, and the color is the average temperature for that hour and day.

Average Hourly Temperature in Mthatha

Average Hourly Temperature in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AMNowNowcoldcoldcoolcoolcomfortablecomfortablewarmwarmvery cold
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The average hourly temperature, color coded into bands. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

Poços de Caldas, Brazil (4,618 miles away) is the far-away foreign place with temperatures most similar to Mthatha (view comparison).

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In Mthatha, 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 Mthatha begins around December 13 and lasts for 8.7 months, ending around September 4.

The clearest month of the year in Mthatha is July, during which on average the sky is clear, mostly clear, or partly cloudy 78% of the time.

The cloudier part of the year begins around September 4 and lasts for 3.3 months, ending around December 13.

The cloudiest month of the year in Mthatha is October, during which on average the sky is overcast or mostly cloudy 44% of the time.

Cloud Cover Categories in Mthatha

Cloud Cover Categories in MthathaclearercloudierJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%Jul 1579%Jul 1579%Oct 2155%Oct 2155%Dec 1367%Dec 1367%Sep 467%Sep 467%NowNowclearmostly clearpartly cloudymostly cloudyovercast
0% clear 20% mostly clear 40% partly cloudy 60% mostly cloudy 80% overcast 100%
The percentage of time spent in each cloud cover band, categorized by the percentage of the sky covered by clouds.
FractionJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Cloudier 26%25%27%31%30%24%22%26%37%44%41%32%
Clearer 74%75%73%69%70%76%78%74%63%56%59%68%

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

The wetter season lasts 6.1 months, from October 5 to April 8, with a greater than 29% chance of a given day being a wet day. The month with the most wet days in Mthatha is February, with an average of 14.0 days with at least 0.04 inches of precipitation.

The drier season lasts 5.9 months, from April 8 to October 5. The month with the fewest wet days in Mthatha is June, with an average of 2.4 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 Mthatha is February, with an average of 14.0 days. Based on this categorization, the most common form of precipitation throughout the year is rain alone, with a peak probability of 51% on February 26.

Daily Chance of Precipitation in Mthatha

Daily Chance of Precipitation in MthathawetwetdryJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%Feb 2651%Feb 2651%Jun 307%Jun 307%Oct 529%Oct 529%Apr 829%Apr 829%NowNowrain
The percentage of days in which various types of precipitation are observed, excluding trace quantities: rain alone, snow alone, and mixed (both rain and snow fell in the same day).
Days ofJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Rain 14.3d14.0d13.0d7.2d3.1d2.4d2.7d3.6d5.8d10.1d12.2d14.3d

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. Mthatha experiences significant seasonal variation in monthly rainfall.

Rain falls throughout the year in Mthatha. The month with the most rain in Mthatha is February, with an average rainfall of 4.4 inches.

The month with the least rain in Mthatha is June, with an average rainfall of 0.8 inches.

Average Monthly Rainfall in Mthatha

Average Monthly Rainfall in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 in0 in2 in2 in4 in4 in6 in6 in8 in8 inFeb 164.4 inFeb 164.4 inJun 240.8 inJun 240.8 inNov 174.0 inNov 174.0 inNowNow
The average rainfall (solid line) accumulated over the course of a sliding 31-day period centered on the day in question, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands. The thin dotted line is the corresponding average snowfall.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Rainfall 4.1″4.4″3.8″2.2″0.8″0.8″1.1″1.3″2.2″3.2″4.0″3.8″

The length of the day in Mthatha varies significantly over the course of the year. In 2024, the shortest day is June 20, with 10 hours, 5 minutes of daylight; the longest day is December 21, with 14 hours, 13 minutes of daylight.

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in Mthatha

Hours of Daylight and Twilight in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 hr24 hr4 hr20 hr8 hr16 hr12 hr12 hr16 hr8 hr20 hr4 hr24 hr0 hr12 hr, 7 minSep 2212 hr, 7 minSep 2214 hr, 13 minDec 2114 hr, 13 minDec 2112 hr, 9 minMar 2012 hr, 9 minMar 2010 hr, 5 minJun 2010 hr, 5 minJun 20daydaynightNowNow
The number of hours during which the Sun is visible (black line). From bottom (most yellow) to top (most gray), the color bands indicate: full daylight, twilight (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and full night.
Hours ofJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Daylight 13.9h13.2h12.2h11.3h10.5h10.1h10.3h11.0h11.9h12.9h13.7h14.2h

The earliest sunrise is at 4:52 AM on December 3, and the latest sunrise is 2 hours, 13 minutes later at 7:05 AM on July 1. The earliest sunset is at 5:08 PM on June 10, and the latest sunset is 2 hours, 6 minutes later at 7:14 PM on January 8.

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

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in Mthatha

Sunrise & Sunset with Twilight in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM2 AM4 AM6 AM8 AM10 AM12 PM2 PM4 PM6 PM8 PM10 PM12 AMDec 34:52 AMDec 34:52 AM7:14 PMJan 87:14 PMJan 8Jun 105:08 PMJun 105:08 PM7:05 AMJul 17:05 AMJul 1daynightnightSolarMidnightSolarMidnightSolarNoonSunriseSunsetNowNow
The solar day over the course of the year 2024. From bottom to top, the black lines are the previous solar midnight, sunrise, solar noon, sunset, and the next solar midnight. The day, twilights (civil, nautical, and astronomical), and night are indicated by the color bands from yellow to gray.

The figure below presents a compact representation of the sun's elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon) and azimuth (its compass bearing) for every hour of every day in the reporting period. The horizontal axis is the day of the year and the vertical axis is the hour of the day. For a given day and hour of that day, the background color indicates the azimuth of the sun at that moment. The black isolines are contours of constant solar elevation.

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in Mthatha

Solar Elevation and Azimuth in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec12 AM12 AM2 AM2 AM4 AM4 AM6 AM6 AM8 AM8 AM10 AM10 AM12 PM12 PM2 PM2 PM4 PM4 PM6 PM6 PM8 PM8 PM10 PM10 PM12 AM12 AM0000101010102020202030303030404040505050606070800000101010102020202030303030404040505060707035NowNow
northeastsouthwest
Solar elevation and azimuth over the course of the year 2024. The black lines are lines of constant solar elevation (the angle of the sun above the horizon, in degrees). The background color fills indicate the azimuth (the compass bearing) of the sun. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries of the cardinal compass points indicate the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

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.

Moon Rise, Set & Phases in Mthatha

The time in which the moon is above the horizon (light blue area), with new moons (dark gray lines) and full moons (blue lines) indicated. The shaded overlays indicate night and civil twilight.

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.

Mthatha experiences significant seasonal variation in the perceived humidity.

The muggier period of the year lasts for 3.7 months, from December 5 to March 26, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 8% of the time. The month with the most muggy days in Mthatha is February, with 8.3 days that are muggy or worse.

The month with the fewest muggy days in Mthatha is June, with 0.0 days that are muggy or worse.

Humidity Comfort Levels in Mthatha

Humidity Comfort Levels in MthathamuggyJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%0%10%10%20%20%30%30%40%40%50%50%60%60%70%70%80%80%90%90%100%100%Jul 150%Jul 150%Feb 1530%Feb 1530%Dec 58%Dec 58%Mar 268%Mar 268%muggymuggyhumidhumidcomfortablecomfortabledrydry
dry 55°F comfortable 60°F humid 65°F muggy 70°F oppressive 75°F miserable
The percentage of time spent at various humidity comfort levels, categorized by dew point.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Muggy days 7.2d8.3d4.4d0.6d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.0d0.2d1.1d3.6d

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

The windier part of the year lasts for 8.3 months, from May 25 to February 5, with average wind speeds of more than 8.5 miles per hour. The windiest month of the year in Mthatha is October, with an average hourly wind speed of 9.5 miles per hour.

The calmer time of year lasts for 3.6 months, from February 5 to May 25. The calmest month of the year in Mthatha is April, with an average hourly wind speed of 7.5 miles per hour.

Average Wind Speed in Mthatha

Average Wind Speed in MthathawindywindyJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 mph0 mph2 mph2 mph4 mph4 mph6 mph6 mph8 mph8 mph10 mph10 mph12 mph12 mph14 mph14 mph16 mph16 mphOct 249.6 mphOct 249.6 mphApr 37.4 mphApr 37.4 mphMay 258.5 mphMay 258.5 mphFeb 58.5 mphFeb 58.5 mphNowNow
The average of mean hourly wind speeds (dark gray line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Wind Speed (mph) 8.78.37.67.58.29.09.19.39.39.59.49.1

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

The wind is most often from the west for 5.1 months, from April 9 to September 12, with a peak percentage of 56% on June 20. The wind is most often from the south for 2.7 weeks, from September 12 to October 1, with a peak percentage of 32% on September 30. The wind is most often from the east for 6.3 months, from October 1 to April 9, with a peak percentage of 45% on January 1.

Wind Direction in Mthatha

Wind Direction in MthathaEWSEJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%20%80%40%60%60%40%80%20%100%0%NowNowwestsoutheastnorth
northeastsouthwest
The percentage of hours in which the mean wind direction is from each of the four cardinal wind directions, excluding hours in which the mean wind speed is less than 1.0 mph. The lightly tinted areas at the boundaries are the percentage of hours spent in the implied intermediate directions (northeast, southeast, southwest, and northwest).

Mthatha is located near a large body of water (e.g., ocean, sea, or large lake). This section reports on the wide-area average surface temperature of that water.

The average water temperature experiences some seasonal variation over the course of the year.

The time of year with warmer water lasts for 3.1 months, from January 11 to April 15, with an average temperature above 77°F. The month of the year in Mthatha with the warmest water is February, with an average temperature of 78°F.

The time of year with cooler water lasts for 3.8 months, from July 2 to October 27, with an average temperature below 72°F. The month of the year in Mthatha with the coolest water is September, with an average temperature of 70°F.

Average Water Temperature in Mthatha

Average Water Temperature in MthathawarmcoolJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec68°F68°F70°F70°F72°F72°F74°F74°F76°F76°F78°F78°F80°F80°F82°F82°FFeb 2378°FFeb 2378°F70°FAug 1970°FAug 19Jan 1177°FJan 1177°FApr 1577°FApr 1577°FJul 272°FJul 272°FOct 2772°FOct 2772°FNowNow
The daily average water temperature (purple line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
WaterJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Temperature 77°F78°F78°F77°F75°F73°F71°F70°F70°F71°F73°F75°F

To characterize how pleasant the weather is in Mthatha 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 Mthatha for general outdoor tourist activities is from late November to mid May, with a peak score in the third week of March.

Tourism Score in Mthatha

Tourism Score in Mthathabest timeJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810107.07.05.15.15.95.9NowNow cloudscloudsprecipitationprecipitationtourism score
The tourism score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

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 Mthatha for hot-weather activities is from mid January to mid March, with a peak score in the second week of February.

Beach/Pool Score in Mthatha

Beach/Pool Score in Mthathabest timeJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec002244668810105.35.31.31.3NowNowtemperaturetemperature cloudscloudsprecipitationprecipitationbeach/pool score
The beach/pool score (filled area), and its constituents: the temperature score (red line), the cloud cover score (blue line), and the precipitation score (green line).

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 Mthatha 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.

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in Mthatha

Time Spent in Various Temperature Bands and the Growing Season in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0%100%10%90%20%80%30%70%40%60%50%50%60%40%70%30%80%20%90%10%100%0%100%Jan 1100%Jan 192%Jul 592%Jul 5Dec 30100%Dec 30100%NowNowvery coldcoldcoolcomfortablewarmhot
frigid 15°F freezing 32°F very cold 45°F cold 55°F cool 65°F comfortable 75°F warm 85°F hot 95°F sweltering
The percentage of time spent in various temperature bands. The black line is the percentage chance that a given day is within the growing season.

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.

Growing Degree Days in Mthatha

Growing Degree Days in MthathaJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0°F0°F1,000°F1,000°F2,000°F2,000°F3,000°F3,000°F4,000°F4,000°F5,000°F5,000°FJul 1690°FJul 1690°FOct 10900°FOct 10900°FDec 121,800°FDec 121,800°FJun 304,799°FJun 304,799°FNowNow
The average growing degree days accumulated over the course of the year, with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.

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 3.4 months, from November 5 to February 18, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter above 6.8 kWh. The brightest month of the year in Mthatha is December, with an average of 7.5 kWh.

The darker period of the year lasts for 3.2 months, from May 1 to August 9, with an average daily incident shortwave energy per square meter below 4.1 kWh. The darkest month of the year in Mthatha is June, with an average of 3.3 kWh.

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in Mthatha

Average Daily Incident Shortwave Solar Energy in MthathabrightbrightdarkJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec0 kWh0 kWh1 kWh1 kWh2 kWh2 kWh3 kWh3 kWh4 kWh4 kWh5 kWh5 kWh6 kWh6 kWh7 kWh7 kWh8 kWh8 kWh9 kWh9 kWh10 kWh10 kWhDec 257.7 kWhDec 257.7 kWhJun 183.2 kWhJun 183.2 kWhNov 56.8 kWhNov 56.8 kWhFeb 186.8 kWhFeb 186.8 kWhMay 14.1 kWhMay 14.1 kWhAug 94.1 kWhAug 94.1 kWhNowNow
The average daily shortwave solar energy reaching the ground per square meter (orange line), with 25th to 75th and 10th to 90th percentile bands.
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Solar Energy (kWh) 7.46.85.84.63.73.33.54.35.36.17.07.5

For the purposes of this report, the geographical coordinates of Mthatha are -31.589 deg latitude, 28.784 deg longitude, and 2,277 ft elevation.

The topography within 2 miles of Mthatha contains significant variations in elevation, with a maximum elevation change of 518 feet and an average elevation above sea level of 2,321 feet. Within 10 miles contains significant variations in elevation (2,231 feet). Within 50 miles contains large variations in elevation (6,713 feet).

The area within 2 miles of Mthatha is covered by artificial surfaces (68%) and bare soil (24%), within 10 miles by bare soil (36%) and grassland (33%), and within 50 miles by grassland (41%) and bare soil (21%).

This report illustrates the typical weather in Mthatha, based on a statistical analysis of historical hourly weather reports and model reconstructions from January 1, 1980 to December 31, 2016.

Temperature and Dew Point

There is only a single weather station, Mthatha Airport, in our network suitable to be used as a proxy for the historical temperature and dew point records of Mthatha.

At a distance of 11 kilometers from Mthatha, closer than our threshold of 150 kilometers, this station is deemed sufficiently nearby to be relied upon as our primary source for temperature and dew point records.

The station records are corrected for the elevation difference between the station and Mthatha according to the International Standard Atmosphere , and by the relative change present in the MERRA-2 satellite-era reanalysis between the two locations.

Please note that the station records themselves may additionally have been back-filled using other nearby stations or the MERRA-2 reanalysis.

Other Data

All data relating to the Sun's position (e.g., sunrise and sunset) are computed using astronomical formulas from the book, Astronomical Algorithms 2nd Edition , by Jean Meeus.

All other weather data, including cloud cover, precipitation, wind speed and direction, and solar flux, come from NASA's MERRA-2 Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis . This reanalysis combines a variety of wide-area measurements in a state-of-the-art global meteorological model to reconstruct the hourly history of weather throughout the world on a 50-kilometer grid.

Land Use data comes from the Global Land Cover SHARE database , published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

Elevation data comes from the Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) , published by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Names, locations, and time zones of places and some airports come from the GeoNames Geographical Database .

Time zones for airports and weather stations are provided by AskGeo.com .

Maps are © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Disclaimer

The information on this site is provided as is, without any assurances as to its accuracy or suitability for any purpose. Weather data is prone to errors, outages, and other defects. We assume no responsibility for any decisions made on the basis of the content presented on this site.

We draw particular cautious attention to our reliance on the MERRA-2 model-based reconstructions for a number of important data series. While having the tremendous advantages of temporal and spatial completeness, these reconstructions: (1) are based on computer models that may have model-based errors, (2) are coarsely sampled on a 50 km grid and are therefore unable to reconstruct the local variations of many microclimates, and (3) have particular difficulty with the weather in some coastal areas, especially small islands.

We further caution that our travel scores are only as good as the data that underpin them, that weather conditions at any given location and time are unpredictable and variable, and that the definition of the scores reflects a particular set of preferences that may not agree with those of any particular reader.

Please review our full terms contained on our Terms of Service page.