Santorini is located in the southernmost part of the Aegean Sea and has a typical Mediterranean climate. Both winter and summer temperatures are moderate here. This will certainly satisfy those who want to avoid the strenuous heat. The summer months are rather dry – heavy downpours are relatively rare. An average of 297 mm of rain falls here annually. The sun shines about 243 days a year and the humidity is at 64%. The approximate value of the UV index is 5.
Temperatures on Santorini
On Santorini it is warmest in July. The average air temperature is then 26 degrees C (although in summer there are often days when the air temperature exceeds 30 degrees C). In turn, the coldest month on Santorini is January (about 15 degrees C).
Most people plan to holiday in Santorini between July and September. This is largely due to the high water temperature (25-26 degrees C). In October the average air temperature drops to 22 degrees C.
Sunshine
The highest number of hours of sunshine is recorded from June to August (about 12-13 h per day). It is sunny for about 2/3 of the year (243 days).
Wind
Santorini is quite a windy island (average wind speed is 30 km/h), which mitigates the high temperatures. It is possible to encounter periodic strong gusts here, whose strength reaches up to 50-60 km/h.
The most common winds on Santorini are:
- Meltemi – a summer wind blowing from the north and north-west throughout the summer (from June to October),
- Maistros – blowing from the northwest,,
- Ostria – blowing from the south.
Precipitation
Rain is extremely rare in the summer months, with most of the average annual rainfall occurring in winter (November to March). Snow is rare and an anomaly.
There is little or no cloud cover during the summer months, but there are morning mists. On a sunny day with high air transparency, Crete can be seen from Santorini.
