Climate - Uruguay

Index

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• Introduction - Montevideo, Artigas
• Best Time
• What to pack

Introduction

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In Uruguay, the climate is temperate, with mild winters and hot summers, and it is also quite rainy throughout the year. In most of the country, the average temperatures are similar to those of the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea, while in the far north, they are a little higher. However, in Uruguay, in comparison with the Mediterranean climate, even summer is rainy, although this happens because of thunderstorms, which do not reduce by much the sunshine hours. In addition, the clash of air masses in Uruguay are more intense, and temperature variations are higher than in the more sheltered Mediterranean Sea.
Annual precipitation hovers around 1,000/1,100 millimeters (40/43 inches) in the south (see Montevideo), while it's higher in the center and north, where it's around 1,200/1,400 mm (47/55 in), but in the far north, it reaches as high as 1,600 mm (63 in).

Winter in Uruguay is fairly mild, but it can be windy and unstable, especially in the south. In winter, snowfalls are very rare, even though outbreaks of cold air, brought by the wind called Pampero, can occur throughout the country, from May to September, with possible slight frosts at night.
Summer is hot and sunny, though thunderstorms can break out in the afternoon, more likely in the north. Heat waves are possible, with peaks of 38/40 °C (100/104 °F), from December to March in the center and south, and also in November in the far north.
Spring and autumn are mild, but the weather is often unstable.
Being that Uruguay is in the Southern Hemisphere, the seasons are clearly reversed in comparison with Europe or North America.

Montevideo

In the capital, Montevideo, the average temperature ranges from 10 °C (50 °F) in July to 23 °C (73 °F) in January. In summer, the heat is tempered by sea breezes (more than in Buenos Aires, which is located on the other side of the Rio de la Plata, but towards the interior). Here are the average temperatures.

Here is the average precipitation in Montevideo: as you can see, rainfall is fairly constant throughout the year, though there are two relative maxima in late summer (February-March) and spring (October).

The amount of sunshine is good from November to February, while in winter, there are periods of bad weather, when the sky is cloudy, alternating with sunny days. Here are the average sunshine hours per day.



The Atlantic Ocean is a bit cool to swim in, but overall acceptable, from January to March: near Punta del Este, it reaches 22 °C (72 °F) in January and March and 23 °C (73 °F) in February.

Artigas

In the far north, the climate is warmer: in Artigas, the average temperatures in July doesn't go below 13.5 °C (56 °F), while in January, it reaches 26 °C (78.5 °F).

In Artigas, rainfall is abundant and amounts to 1,400 mm (56 in) per year; the least rainy season is winter, from June to August.

Best Time

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In Uruguay, the sunniest season is summer (which runs from November to March in the north and from December to February in the south), but it can be hot and has the risk of afternoon thunderstorms. Winter is mild, but it can sometimes be unstable, rainy and windy, especially in the south, and sometimes even cold. Therefore, the intermediate seasons are preferable: autumn (March-April in the south and April-May in the north) and spring (October-November in the south and September-October in the north). If you do not suffer from the heat, you want more sunshine and maybe you want to spend some time at the beach, you can choose the summer.
For a beach holiday, summer is clearly the best period, especially in January and February.

What to pack

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In winter (June to August): pack clothes for spring and autumn, a sweater, a warm jacket, and a raincoat.
In summer (December to March): pack light clothing, a sweatshirt for the evening, and an umbrella or a light raincoat.

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