Kota winter weather: December to February explained

Kota winter weather is the reward for surviving the summer. From December to February the city is dry, sunny and comfortable by day, with crisp mornings and cool evenings. It is the best time of year for sightseeing, outdoor events and long walks along the Chambal. It also has its own quirks: a big gap between morning and afternoon temperatures, the occasional cold wave, and fog that can slow travel. Here is what to expect.

Winter temperatures in Kota

IMD 1991-2020 normals and records for Kota Airport:

Month	Mean max	Mean min	Record low	Rainfall	Rainy days
November	30.1 C	16.9 C	7.1 C	3.8 mm	0.4
December	25.7 C	12.6 C	2.6 C	3.6 mm	0.3
January	23.2 C	11.2 C	1.7 C	5.7 mm	0.7
February	27.1 C	14.3 C	2.2 C	8.2 mm	0.7

The striking number is the daily range: about 12 C between the morning low and the afternoon high in January. A morning that needs a jacket becomes an afternoon in shirt sleeves. Dress in layers you can take off.

Cold waves

IMD declares a cold wave in the plains when the minimum temperature is 10 C or lower and 4.5 to 6.4 C below normal, or when it drops to 4 C or below. A severe cold wave is a departure of more than 6.4 C, or a minimum of 2 C or below.

Kota does not get cold waves every winter, but when a strong western disturbance passes and clear skies and northerly winds follow, minimums can drop into low single figures for several days. The coldest reading on record at the airport is 1.7 C. In those spells:

• Elderly people, infants and anyone sleeping outdoors are most at risk.
• Avoid heating rooms with open fires or charcoal in closed spaces; they can cause carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Students in hostels with no heating should keep an extra blanket and warm socks.

IMD issues cold-wave warnings for districts with the same colour codes it uses for heat; see Kota weather warnings.

Fog

Late December and January bring foggy mornings in parts of north and central India. Kota usually gets less persistent fog than the Indo-Gangetic plains, but dense patches over the Chambal, low-lying areas and highways are common enough to plan for:

• Driving: use low-beam headlights, slow down and keep a long gap. Highway fog often clears by mid to late morning.
• Trains: Kota sits on the Delhi to Mumbai main line, and fog in north India delays many long-distance trains in winter. Check running status on the National Train Enquiry System before leaving for the station.
• Flights: if you are flying via Jaipur or Delhi, fog delays there can affect your plans more than the weather in Kota.

Winter rain

Winter in Kota is dry. The occasional shower comes from western disturbances, the weather systems that bring snow to the Himalaya and clouds and light rain to the plains. A cloudy, damp day in January can feel colder than a clear one with a lower minimum, because the sun does not warm the afternoon.

Air quality on still mornings

Cold, calm mornings trap smoke and dust close to the ground. On those days, air quality in many north Indian cities, including Kota, can be poor until the sun mixes the air later in the morning. If you are sensitive to pollution, check the CPCB AQI before an early walk and consider exercising later in the day. See Kota weather today for where to check, and Kota air quality for how to read the index and why winter mornings are the worst.

Month by month through the winter

Winter in Kota is not one uniform season. Each month has its own character:

• November is the transition: afternoons still near 30 C, nights falling from mild to cool, and almost no rain. It is often the most comfortable month of all. See Kota weather in November.
• December brings the first properly cold mornings, a daily swing of about 13 C, and the first fog in the second half of the month. See Kota weather in December.
• January is the coldest month, with the record low of 1.7 C, the most frequent fog and the highest chance of a cold wave. See Kota weather in January.
• February warms quickly, by about 3 to 4 C at both ends of the day compared with January, and by the end of the month warm clothes are needed only early in the morning.

Winter in IMD’s station tables

IMD’s Climatological Tables 1991-2020 for Kota Airport describe winter as clear, calm and dry. From December to February, mean cloud cover stays under 2 oktas, the wind is calm on 41 to 62 percent of mornings, and rainfall is 3.6 to 8.2 mm a month. Fog is recorded on 2.8 days across the three months, most in January, but hazy mornings with 1 to 4 km visibility are far more common. The coldest night of an average January is about 7.4 C. For details, read Kota fog, and for evening events, Kota wedding season weather.

Indoor cold

Many people are surprised to feel colder indoors than outdoors in a Kota winter. Older buildings with thick stone walls and tiled or stone floors store the night’s cold and warm up slowly, while the afternoon sun outside is pleasant. Students in hostels and families in older homes notice this most. Warm socks or slippers, a rug on stone floors and an extra blanket make a big difference, and opening sunny windows in the early afternoon helps rooms warm up. Avoid unventilated charcoal or kerosene heaters. Our Kota weather for students guide has more on hostel life through the seasons.

Winter for visitors

Winter is peak season in Kota for good reason. Clear skies, comfortable afternoons and cool evenings suit every sight: the Garh palace, Kishore Sagar, the riverfront, Garadia Mahadev and the temples of the old city. Early-morning birdwatching on the Chambal is at its best, and the light for photography is excellent.

What to pack:

• A warm jacket, sweater or shawl for mornings and evenings.
• Light layers for the afternoon.
• Closed shoes and warm socks.
• Moisturiser and lip balm; the air is very dry.
• Sunscreen and sunglasses; winter sun is still strong.

For a full list by season, see what to pack for Kota. To compare winter with the other seasons, read best time to visit Kota and Kota weather by month.