Japan - weather in November

November is the last autumn month in Japan, and it is a fairly cold month in the north, and mild or very mild in the center-south. The rains are frequent especially on the western slopes.

The daily average temperature is 4/4.5 °C (39/40 °F) on the island of Hokkaido (see Abashiri, Sapporo).
On the island of Honshu, the average is 7.5 °C (45.5 °F) in the far north (see Aomori), 10 °C (50 °F) in Sendai, in the northeast, and 11 °C (52 °F) in Niigata, in the northwest. In the southeast, the average is 13.5 °C (56.5 °F) in Tokyo, while further west, on the coast of the Seto Inland Sea, it is 14 °C (57 °F) in Kobe and Osaka. In the south of the island of Kyushu (see Kagoshima), the average reaches 16.5 °C (61.5 °F).
On the small southern islands, where the climate is almost tropical, the temperature is much higher, as the average is 22.5 °C (72.5 °F) in Okinawa and 23.5 °C (74.5 °F) in Ishigaki.

As regards to the rains, as mentioned, they are frequent on the western slopes, and in certain areas even abundant, in particular, they exceed 200 mm (8 in) in the month on the Honshu side exposed to north-west winds (see Niigata, Kanazawa). Instead, on the eastern side, protected by the mountains, the rains are much less frequent, in fact it rains for 7/8 days a month in Sendai, Tokyo and Osaka.
In the north, on the island of Hokkaido, it can also snow, especially in the second half of the month.

In November, in south-central Japan you can go hunting for trees (momijigari), especially maples, which turn red. The period varies depending on the area: in Hokkaido it goes from late September to late October (but already in mid-September in the inland mountainous areas), in northern Honshu from early October to early November, in Nikko and in the area of Lake Chuzenji from early October to mid-November, while in the center-south and in Kyoto, it goes from mid-November to early December.

In November, the sea in Japan is warm enough for swimming on the small southern islands (see Yakushima, Okinawa, Miyakojima and Ishigaki), and on the southern coast of Kyushu (see Kagoshima). On the southern coast of Shikoku and Honshu (see Kochi, Shizuoka) it is a bit cool, around 22 °C (71.5 °F). However, rainfall is abundant, especially on the small southern islands, and the sun does not shine often.

The following tables show the climate averages in the month of november in Japan in a selection of locations.

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Monthly climate averages - November

(from north to south)






















See also: Japan, the weather in October - December
The climate of Japan