Guides to Kashi

Varanasi in winter: December–February weather, fog, packing, eventsसर्दी में वाराणसी: दिसंबर–फरवरी का मौसम, कोहरा, पैकिंग और त्योहार

By Kashidwar · Updated 4 November 2026

December24 / 10 °C · 2.7 mm rain · fog ~22 days
January22 / 9 °C · coldest month · fog ~22 days
February27 / 12 °C · fog ~11 days
Sunrise6:25–6:45 am Dec–Jan · ~6:25 am by late Feb
Evening aartiDashashwamedh, 6 pm in winter
FogMorning flights and trains run hours late, mid-Dec to Jan

Winter is Varanasi's main season. Days are mild and dry, the river is low and calm, and the ghats are walkable from dawn to the 6 pm aarti. The cost is cold, foggy mornings: at the airport weather station fog is recorded on about 22 days in both December and January, and it regularly delays flights and trains. Here are the official averages, what fog means for your plans, sunrise times for boat rides, what to pack and the 2026-27 events.

Varanasi weather in December, January and February

These are the India Meteorological Department's 1991-2020 normals for the Varanasi airport station at Babatpur: average daily maximum and minimum, monthly rain, and the average number of days on which fog is recorded. Winter is almost rainless, and January is the coldest month.

November (for comparison): 29.7 / 14.8 °C, 4.8 mm rain, fog on 11 days.
December: 24.4 / 10.2 °C, 2.7 mm rain, fog on 22 days. Cool, dry, fog building after mid-month.
January: 22.2 / 8.9 °C, 14.2 mm rain on about 1.4 days, fog on 22 days. Coldest and foggiest stretch.
February: 26.9 / 12.2 °C, 19.3 mm rain, fog on 11 days. Warmer afternoons, clearer mornings.
March (for comparison): 33.3 / 16.5 °C, fog on 2 days. Winter is over.

Averages hide cold snaps. The record lows for 1901-2012 are 2.2 °C in December, 1.0 °C in January and 1.7 °C in February, so some nights fall well below the averages.

Sources: [1] · [2]

Fog: what it does to flights and trains

Varanasi lies in the Indo-Gangetic plain, which an IMD study found has fog (visibility under 1 km) on 7-10 days in December and more than 8 days in January on average, counting the morning observation alone. On 3 January 2026 visibility in Varanasi fell to about 50 metres.

Flights feel it first. Lal Bahadur Shastri airport is not among the six Indian airports equipped for CAT-III low-visibility landings named in December 2025. On 19 December 2025 an Air India Mumbai-Varanasi flight was diverted to Bhubaneswar because runway visibility at Varanasi was below limits; on 6 January 2026 fog affected 26 flights at Babatpur, the worst arriving 4 hours 43 minutes late.

Trains run late across the route. On 22 December 2025 more than 50 Northern Railway trains were delayed by up to six hours, the New Delhi-Varanasi Vande Bharat by about five. From mid-December to late January, book flights after late morning, keep a spare day before onward connections and check running status before leaving for the station.

Sources: [3] · [7] · [10] · [5] · [4] · [6]

How cold it gets: cold waves and dawn on the river

Cold waves arrive most winters around the turn of the year. On 21 December 2025 the IMD recorded a minimum of 9 °C as devotees bathed at Dashashwamedh Ghat; on 2 January 2026 Uttar Pradesh closed all schools up to Class 12 until 5 January, with Varanasi among the cities under cold-wave conditions.

Dawn is the coldest hour, and that is when the boats go out. Expect the air on the water to be close to the night's minimum, around 9-10 °C on an average December or January morning, and to feel colder with river breeze and damp fog (an estimate; no official measurement of the river's winter water temperature at Varanasi was found). On most days the fog thins by mid-morning, and afternoons in the low 20s feel warm in the sun.

Sources: [8] · [9] · [1]

The ghats in winter: sunrise boats, aarti and gulls

Sunrise is late in winter, so a dawn boat does not mean a 5 am alarm. Sunrise is about 6:25 am at the start of December and 6:36 am by mid-month, stays near 6:43-6:45 am from late December to the end of January, and returns to about 6:25 am by late February. Board 20-30 minutes before; on foggy days the sun may appear only as a pale disc.

The Ganga Seva Nidhi and Gangotri Seva Samiti move the Dashashwamedh evening aarti to 6 pm for winter and the morning aarti to 5:30 am. Sunset falls between about 5:10 and 6:00 pm, so the aarti begins after dark.

From the start of winter, flocks of gulls gather around the boats, and boatmen feed them in the mornings. Locals call them Siberian birds; boatmen say they stay two to three months. Many are likely brown-headed gulls, which breed on the high plateaus of Central Asia and winter on the subcontinent's coasts and large rivers and lakes.

Sources: [11] · [12] · [13] · [14] · [15]

What's on in Varanasi, December 2026 to February 2027

Winter has fewer giant river festivals than November, but several faiths mark major days, and the Christmas-New Year week is the busiest time of the season at Kashi Vishwanath. In 2025 the temple stopped VIP and protocol entry from 24 December and suspended sparsh (touch) darshan until 3 January 2026; on New Year's Day queues stretched 2-3 km. Lunar dates can shift by a day, so confirm nearer the time.

Kashi Tamil Sangamam 5.0: 28 November to 12 December 2026, across Varanasi, Prayagraj and Ayodhya.
Christmas: Friday 25 December 2026. Carols and lights at St Mary's Church in the Cantonment, and Bhojpuri carols at the Mahmoorganj church, a tradition since 1986.
New Year: 31 December to 1 January, the season's biggest temple crowds; expect restricted darshan.
Parshvanath Janma Kalyanak (Paush Krishna Dashami): Saturday 2 January 2027, at Bhelupur, which Jains hold as the birthplace of the 23rd Tirthankara.
Makar Sankranti: Friday 15 January 2027 (the Sun enters Capricorn at 9:14 pm on 14 January, so the bathing day is the 15th). Dawn Ganga snan, khichdi offered at Kashi Vishwanath, and kites; in 2026 a kite-flying contest was held on the sandbank across the river.
Guru Ravidas Jayanti (Magh Purnima): Saturday 20 February 2027, the 650th birth anniversary, centred on his birthplace temple at Seer Govardhanpur.
Just after winter: Maha Shivratri on Saturday 6 March 2027.

Sources: [16] · [17] · [26] · [23] · [24] · [21] · [22] · [18] · [19] · [20] · [25] · [27]

What to pack for Varanasi in winter

Pack for a 12-15 °C swing between a foggy dawn and a sunny afternoon. Layers work better than one heavy coat, because you will be climbing ghat steps by midday.

A warm jacket or fleece, plus a thermal layer for dawn boat rides in late December and January.
A shawl or scarf and a woollen cap; the wind on the open river is the coldest part of the day.
Socks and easy slip-on shoes: you remove footwear at temples, and the stone steps are cold in the morning.
A light cotton layer for February afternoons, which reach the high 20s.
A torch or phone light for fog and dark lanes before sunrise, and a small towel if you plan a holy dip.
Medicines for coughs and colds; winter mornings are cold and damp.

Sources: [1]

Frequently asked questions

What is the temperature in Varanasi in December?

IMD's 1991-2020 normals give an average high of 24.4 °C and low of 10.2 °C, with almost no rain (2.7 mm). Fog is recorded on about 22 days, mostly in the second half of the month.

How cold is Varanasi in January?

January is the coldest month: average high 22.2 °C, low 8.9 °C, and cold waves can push nights much lower (the record is 1.0 °C). Bring a warm jacket, cap and thermal layer for dawn on the river.

Is winter a good time to visit Varanasi?

Yes, for most travellers: dry, mild days, a calm river and the evening aarti at 6 pm. Plan around fog from mid-December to late January, and avoid the Christmas-New Year week if you want an easy temple visit.

Do flights to Varanasi get cancelled because of fog?

Delays and diversions are common; Varanasi is not one of India's CAT-III airports. On 6 January 2026 fog affected 26 flights, and on 19 December 2025 a Mumbai flight was diverted to Bhubaneswar. Prefer flights after late morning.

What time is the sunrise boat ride in winter?

Sunrise is about 6:25-6:45 am from December to January and back near 6:25 am by late February. Board 20-30 minutes before sunrise and dress warmly; on foggy mornings the view opens up later.

What festivals are in Varanasi in December and January?

Christmas (25 December), the New Year rush at Kashi Vishwanath, Parshvanath Janma Kalyanak at Bhelupur (2 January 2027) and Makar Sankranti with Ganga snan and kites (15 January 2027). Kashi Tamil Sangamam runs until 12 December 2026.

Do the Siberian birds come to Varanasi in winter?

Yes. Flocks of gulls, locally called Siberian birds, gather around boats on the Ganga from the onset of winter and stay two to three months. Boatmen feed them in the mornings, so a sunrise ride is the best time to see them.