Winter Sun In Lanzarote

We’ve had loads of questions on our Facebook page asking about what kind of weather people can expect in the winter here. Can they expect genuine winter sun?

When it’s cold and the days are short, it can be hard to imagine what it’s like in Lanzarote in winter. Try to imagine the best summer day in your home country, and that’s pretty much what it’s like here!

Long days Of Winter Sun

Our days remain reasonably long – even the shortest day of the year the day is over 10 hours long, with sunrise at about 7:30 and sunset at around 6PM.

Warm

Daytime temperatures are in the range 18 to 24 degrees, falling generally no lower than 14 degrees at night, although we have seen 12. It means swimwear, shorts and t shirts are the order of the day, and the most you are likely to need at night is a light fleece.

Ocean temperature

The ocean does cool down in winter, although it takes some time to do so. Surface temperatures stay in the 20’s until late November, and then gradually decline to about 18 in February – still warmer than the water at Bournemouth in mid summer.

The sky

The sky in the winter sun is simply glorious! During the day, you’ll see the most incredible blue sky, which seems to go on forever, and at night you’ll see more stars than you can imagine. There’s so little air and light pollution from the islands.

Wind

The trade winds are a summer “thing” and they help to keep the island reasonably comfortable compared to the neighbouring Sahara desert. But in winter they tend to die away, creating still days that are perfect for sunbathing and chilling.

Rain

We’re officially a desert climate here in Lanzarote, but we do get some rain during the winter. Rain here tends to be heavy and in short bursts, so although you might see some rain in winter, when it does happen, you’ll often be able to sunbathe in the winter sun again once it has passed.

What you can do?

We don’t have a “season” in Lanzarote, so everything stays open all year round. Anything you can do in the summer here, can be done in winter too. Because it’s not quite so hot, it’s the best time of year to walk on the island, and we have hundreds of kilometres of amazing trails you can enjoy. Time it right, after some rain, and prepare to be entranced by a wild flower display that appears as if by magic.

Christmas

Christmas retains it’s magic in Lanzarote, even though it’s always warm here. Visit stunning belens (nativity displays) in the villages, enjoy the lights in the resorts and the fireworks on the beaches on new year’s eve. The big celebration here is on 6th January, when the three kings arrive on their camels. Look out for our Christmas Programme, which usually comes out in November. What’s Christmas like in Lanzarote?

Carnival

Winter time is carnival time in Lanzarote, and the carnival rolls around the island, with celebrations in all the towns and resorts in February and March.

Winter sun

In summary, there’s nowhere like Lanzarote for winter sun – The Canaries are the only place in Europe you can enjoy beach weather all year round.