, humid and rainy, influenced by currents from the Atlantic and the North Sea, with cold, gray winters and cool to mild summers.
The city is the capital of Schleswig-Holstein and is located in a bay overlooking the Baltic Sea. We are in the northernmost part of Germany, on the Jutland peninsula, which separates it from Denmark.
is not very cold for the latitude, it is often humid, windy and rainy. There may be relatively mild periods, when Atlantic currents prevail, and other colder periods, when the temperature drops below freezing and it can snow.
, in which temperatures can drop as low as -10 °C (14 °F) or even below. In fact, Scandinavian high pressure systems can reverse the normal circulation and bring very cold periods, which in the past were more frequent. The cold record is -25 °C (-13 °F), set in February 1940. More recently, the temperature dropped to -20.5 °C (5 °F) in February 1956, and to -18 °C (-0.5 °F) in February 1986 and in February 2012.
Even in spring, until April or the first half of May, there is often cold and unstable weather.
, the temperatures are generally pleasant and lend themselves to outdoor activities, although there are cool and rainy periods, and sometimes thunderstorms can break out.
can occur, generally of short duration, which in recent years are becoming more frequent due to global warming, and in which the temperature can exceed 28 °C (82 °F). However, given the latitude and the short distance from the sea, the heat is less intense and lasting than in the central-southern German plains. On the hottest days of the year, the temperature typically reaches 30/31 °C (86/88 °F). The highest record is 36.5 °C (97.7 °F) and was set in July 2022.
The latitude of Kiel (54°19'N) is not high enough to observe the phenomenon of the white nights, in which the sun sets but it does not get completely dark even at midnight.
On June 21, the longest day of the year, the sun rises at 4:45 am and sets at 9:55 pm. On December 21, the shortest day of the year, the sun rises at 8:50 am and sets at 3:55 pm.
to visit Kiel runs from mid-May to mid-September, since it is the warmest and sunniest period of the year. Sometimes, it can be hot in July and August, while in other circumstances, nights can be cool or even a little cold even in these months, so it can be useful to bring a sweatshirt or sweater and a light jacket.
. Here are the average temperatures.
January, the coldest month of the year, is generally a cold month. The average temperature is of
1,9 °C, with a minimum of
-0,3 °C and a maximum of
4,1 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
-8,5 °C. However, it dropped to
-14,5 °C in January 2010.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
10 °C. However, it reached
13,5 °C in January 2005.
Precipitation amounts to
70 mm, distributed over 12 days.
The day lasts on average 8 hours and 0 minutes.
There are on average 1,5 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 16% of the time.
The average humidity is 79%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
16,7 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
2,3 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
February is generally a cold month. The average temperature is of
2,2 °C, with a minimum of
-0,2 °C and a maximum of
4,7 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
-7,5 °C. However, it dropped to
-18,1 °C in February 2012.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
10,5 °C. However, it reached
15,8 °C in February 2019.
Precipitation amounts to
50 mm, distributed over 10 days.
The day lasts on average 9 hours and 50 minutes.
There are on average 2 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 22% of the time.
The average humidity is 80%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
15,9 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
1,7 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
March is generally a quite cold month. The average temperature is of
4,6 °C, with a minimum of
1,2 °C and a maximum of
7,9 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
-5 °C. However, it dropped to
-13,6 °C in March 2005.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
15,5 °C. However, it reached
21,9 °C in March 2017.
Precipitation amounts to
50 mm, distributed over 9 days.
The day lasts on average 12 hours and 0 minutes.
There are on average 4 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 32% of the time.
The average humidity is 79%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
14,1 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
2,6 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
April is generally a quite mild month. The average temperature is of
8,4 °C, with a minimum of
4 °C and a maximum of
12,7 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
-2 °C. However, it dropped to
-6,9 °C in April 1996.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
21,5 °C. However, it reached
29 °C in April 1996.
Precipitation amounts to
40 mm, distributed over 8 days.
The day lasts on average 14 hours and 10 minutes.
There are on average 6,5 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 45% of the time.
The average humidity is 74%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
12,6 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
5,8 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
May is generally a mild month. The average temperature is of
11,9 °C, with a minimum of
7,2 °C and a maximum of
16,7 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
0,5 °C. However, it dropped to
-3 °C in May 2013.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
25 °C. However, it reached
33,6 °C in May 2005.
Precipitation amounts to
50 mm, distributed over 9 days.
The day lasts on average 16 hours and 5 minutes.
There are on average 8 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 49% of the time.
The average humidity is 70%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
13,9 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
10,4 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
June is generally a very mild month. The average temperature is of
15,2 °C, with a minimum of
10,5 °C and a maximum of
19,9 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
5 °C. However, it dropped to
1,6 °C in June 1991.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
28 °C. However, it reached
34,4 °C in June 2000.
Precipitation amounts to
65 mm, distributed over 10 days.
The day lasts on average 17 hours and 10 minutes. June 21, the winter solstice, is the shortest day of the year in the Southern Hemisphere.
There are on average 7,5 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 44% of the time.
The average humidity is 70%.
The average wind speed is of
13,8 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
14,6 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
July, the warmest month of the year, is generally a very mild month. The average temperature is of
17,7 °C, with a minimum of
13 °C and a maximum of
22,3 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
8,5 °C. However, it dropped to
5,8 °C in July 1996.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
29,5 °C. However, it reached
34,2 °C in July 1992.
Precipitation amounts to
85 mm, distributed over 11 days.
The day lasts on average 16 hours and 35 minutes.
There are on average 8 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 47% of the time.
The average humidity is 69%.
The average wind speed is of
12,4 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
17,4 °C. Therefore, the sea is cold for swimming.
August is generally a very mild month. The average temperature is of
17,6 °C, with a minimum of
13,1 °C and a maximum of
22,1 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
8 °C. However, it dropped to
5,2 °C in August 2007.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
29,5 °C. However, it reached
35,1 °C in August 2018.
Precipitation amounts to
75 mm, distributed over 11 days.
The day lasts on average 14 hours and 50 minutes.
There are on average 7 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 47% of the time.
The average humidity is 72%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
13,4 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
18,1 °C. Therefore, the sea is cold for swimming.
September is generally a mild month. The average temperature is of
14,4 °C, with a minimum of
10,6 °C and a maximum of
18,3 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
5 °C. However, it dropped to
1,9 °C in September 1993.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
25 °C. However, it reached
29,9 °C in September 2016.
Precipitation amounts to
65 mm, distributed over 10 days.
The day lasts on average 12 hours and 35 minutes.
There are on average 5 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 41% of the time.
The average humidity is 75%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
11,4 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
15,9 °C. Therefore, the sea is cold for swimming.
October is generally a mild month. The average temperature is of
10,2 °C, with a minimum of
7,1 °C and a maximum of
13,3 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
0,5 °C. However, it dropped to
-6,2 °C in October 1997.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
19,5 °C. However, it reached
25,2 °C in October 2018.
Precipitation amounts to
70 mm, distributed over 11 days.
The day lasts on average 10 hours and 25 minutes.
There are on average 3,5 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 33% of the time.
The average humidity is 80%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
13 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
12,4 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
November is generally a quite cold month. The average temperature is of
5,7 °C, with a minimum of
3,4 °C and a maximum of
8,1 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
-3 °C. However, it dropped to
-11,6 °C in November 2010.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
14 °C. However, it reached
19,3 °C in November 2020.
Precipitation amounts to
65 mm, distributed over 12 days.
The day lasts on average 8 hours and 25 minutes.
There are on average 1,5 hours of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 20% of the time.
The average humidity is 85%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
15,1 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
8,5 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.
December is generally a cold month. The average temperature is of
3,1 °C, with a minimum of
1,1 °C and a maximum of
5,2 °C.
On the coldest nights of the month, the temperature usually drops to around
-6 °C. However, it dropped to
-15 °C in December 1995.
On the warmest days of the month, the temperature usually reaches around
11 °C. However, it reached
14 °C in December 2006.
Precipitation amounts to
70 mm, distributed over 12 days.
The day lasts on average 7 hours and 25 minutes. December 21, the winter solstice, is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
There is an average of 1 hour of sunshine per day. So, the sun shines 13% of the time.
The average humidity is 86%. Hence, the air is normally humid.
The average wind speed is of
13,7 kph.
The average sea temperature is of
4,3 °C. Therefore, the sea is very cold for swimming.