Bahrain - The climate in short
The climate of the small archipelago of Bahrain is desert, mild in winter and very hot in summer.
Basically, there are two main seasons: a cooler season from December to February and a hot season from April to October, within which we can distinguish a very hot period from May to mid-October. March and November are transitional months, warm but without excesses.
Owing to the influence of sea, the temperature range between night and day is low, and the humidity is high, except when the winds blow from the interior of Arabia.
The rains are definitely scarce, and occur mostly from December to April. However, they are irregular, and occasionally, there can be an intense rainfall, which, being concentrated in a few hours, can cause flash floods.
In Bahrain, unlike in other Arab states of the Persian Gulf, there are ancient springs of fresh water, though nowadays, more than half of the fresh water consumed is obtained by seawater desalination here as well.
The prevailing wind in Bahrain is the Shamal, which is moist and blows from the north-west, more frequently in the summer months.
Another wind, hot and dry, the Qaws, can blow throughout the year, but preferably in spring; it blows from the south and it's able to raise the temperature to about 30 °C (86 °F) in winter and to about 40 °C (104 °F) and above from April to October, while drastically lowering relative humidity; it is also able to raise dust and sand storms. From May to September, the temperature can reach 44/45 °C (111/113 °F).
The climate in detail
Seasons
In
winter, from December to February, temperatures are usually pleasant. The sun often shines, and the rains are scarce and sporadic. At times, when the wind blows from the south, there can be even warm days, with peaks around 30 °C (86 °F), though it rarely happens.
Sometimes, especially in January and February, cold air masses from the north can bring some cool and windy days, during which the temperature can drop to around 10 °C (50 °F) at night and remain around 15 °C (59 °F) at midday. In February 1992, it dropped to 7 °C (44.5 °F).
Summer in Bahrain is very hot and sunny, with highs around 34/36 °C (93/97 °F) in May and October and around 38/40 °C (100/104 °F) from June to September; lows are around 30/32 °C (86/90 °F) from June to September, and the humidity from the Persian Gulf makes the heat hard to bear. Moisture gradually increases over the summer, so August and September are the months with the worst combination of humidity and temperature. However, hotels, offices and restaurants are equipped with air conditioning.
Manama
Here are the average
temperatures of the capital,
Manama.
Manama - Average temperatures (1991-2020) | Month | Min (°C) | Max (°C) | Mean (°C) | Min (°F) | Max (°F) | Mean (°F) |
|---|
| January | 14.7 | 20.6 | 17.7 | 58 | 69 | 63.8 |
|---|
| February | 15.6 | 21.9 | 18.8 | 60 | 71 | 65.8 |
|---|
| March | 18.2 | 25.4 | 21.8 | 65 | 78 | 71.3 |
|---|
| April | 22.5 | 30.5 | 26.5 | 73 | 87 | 79.7 |
|---|
| May | 27.3 | 36 | 31.6 | 81 | 97 | 88.9 |
|---|
| June | 30.1 | 38.5 | 34.3 | 86 | 101 | 93.8 |
|---|
| July | 31.6 | 39.6 | 35.6 | 89 | 103 | 96 |
|---|
| August | 31.6 | 39.5 | 35.6 | 89 | 103 | 96 |
|---|
| September | 29.7 | 37.5 | 33.6 | 85 | 100 | 92.5 |
|---|
| October | 26.6 | 33.8 | 30.2 | 80 | 93 | 86.3 |
|---|
| November | 21.7 | 27.9 | 24.8 | 71 | 82 | 76.7 |
|---|
| December | 17 | 22.8 | 19.9 | 63 | 73 | 67.8 |
|---|
| Year | 23.9 | 31.2 | 27.5 | 75.1 | 88.2 | 81.5 |
|---|
In Manama, only 70 millimeters (2.8 inches) of
rain fall per year. Here is the average precipitation.
Manama - Average precipitation| Month | Millimeters | Inches | Days |
|---|
| January | 15 | 0.6 | 2 |
|---|
| February | 16 | 0.6 | 2 |
|---|
| March | 14 | 0.6 | 2 |
|---|
| April | 10 | 0.4 | 1 |
|---|
| May | 1 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
| June | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
| July | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
| August | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
| September | 0 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
| October | 1 | 0 | 0 |
|---|
| November | 4 | 0.2 | 1 |
|---|
| December | 11 | 0.4 | 2 |
|---|
| Year | 70 | 2.8 | 10 |
|---|
In Bahrain, the sun shines all year round, however, cloud banks can sometimes affect this area even in summer. Here are the average sunshine hours per day in Manama.
Manama - Sunshine hours| Month | Average | Total |
|---|
January | 7.5 | 225 | February | 8 | 220 | March | 7.5 | 240 | April | 8.5 | 255 | May | 10 | 305 | June | 11.5 | 340 | July | 10.5 | 330 | August | 10.5 | 330 | September | 10.5 | 310 | October | 10 | 305 | November | 8.5 | 260 | December | 7.5 | 225 | Year | 9.2 | 3355 |
Sea temperature
The
sea in Bahrain is definitely warm in summer, since it exceeds 30 °C (86 °F) for a few months (in fact, in this season, the Persian Gulf is the warmest sea in the world), while it is cool only from January to March, when it drops to 20/21 °C (68/70 °F).
Manama - Sea temperature| Month | Celsius (°C) | Fahrenheit (°F) |
|---|
January | 21 | 69 | February | 19.5 | 67 | March | 20.5 | 69 | April | 23 | 74 | May | 27 | 81 | June | 30 | 86 | July | 32 | 90 | August | 33.5 | 92 | September | 32.5 | 91 | October | 30.5 | 87 | November | 27.5 | 81 | December | 23.5 | 74 | Year | 26.8 | 80.2 |
When to go
The best time to visit Bahrain goes from
mid-November to mid-March, in order to avoid the heat of the rest of the year.
Between December and February, the weather is generally mild and pleasant, but you must put into account some cool days, especially in January and February, a bit of cold at night, and even some rain.
In November, the weather is still hot, but not excessively so, in fact, highs are around 28 °C (82 °F), while in March, they are around 25/26 °C (77/79 °F).
What to pack
In
winter: bring light clothes for the day, a sweater and a jacket for the evening and for cool days, and a scarf for the wind.
In
summer: bring lightweight clothes, loose-fitting and made of natural fabric (cotton or linen), a desert turban, a sweatshirt and a scarf for air-conditioned places. When going to the reef, you can bring snorkeling equipment, including water shoes or rubber-soled shoes.
It's better for women to avoid shorts and miniskirts outside tourist resorts.
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