Las Palmas (Gran Canaria) weather in January
January in Las Palmas: nice, dry — an excellent time to visit.
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
#5 of 12 months in Las Palmas · #71 of 1413 destinations to visit in January · comfort 92/100 (tier S)
- Days
- 21°C
- Nights
- 15°C
- Wet days
- 4
- Sun
- 9.6 h
- Humidity
- 72%
- Daylight
- 11 h

Traveller notes on Las Palmas in January
Regulars are specific that the south of the island can run up to 10 degrees warmer and noticeably more reliably sunny than this city in the north, a real factor for anyone choosing where to base a Gran Canaria trip this month. Our row backs that mild, still-cloudier-than-the-south read, 21C over 15.4C nights, with rain light at 15.9mm across 4 days and humidity at 72 percent. Regulars are consistent this city itself still delivers genuinely lovely days often enough, with museums, shops and culture as the real draw here versus the south's guaranteed beach sunshine. The sea sits at a comfortably swimmable 20.7C on the warmer days. The record: 9.6 hours of sun, an 18.6 kph wind and AQI 52.
Other months in Las Palmas
Regulars describe the sea here as genuinely cool on first entry this month even though plenty of people are already swimming, with the cold fading fast enough that most visitors adjust within a few minutes rather than staying out. Our row backs the warming sea at 23.2C, alongside real heat on land, 24.9C reading as a real 27C, over 19.3C nights, with rain almost entirely absent, 3.3mm across under a day. Regulars are candid that heat is a given no matter which part of the island a visitor stays on, with one trip in the same window hitting the mid-30s on several days - the breeze this coast usually carries is called a welcome relief on a sunny day rather than a chill to guard against. The record: humidity 77 percent, 12.6 hours of sun, a 20.9 kph wind and AQI 37.
Las Palmas-forum threads on October temperatures call it genuinely one of the best months on the island, days easily reaching the mid-20s Celsius in the shade with plenty of sun. One expert-level regular flatly calls October the best month for weather here, ahead even of the peak winter season. Rain is light and infrequent, and when a shower shows up it typically arrives overnight rather than disrupting daytime plans, heavy downpours genuinely rare. Evenings stay warm enough to sit outside comfortably, though a light layer is worth having later on. The sea holds a comfortable temperature for swimming through the whole month, no cold-water surprise the way some Atlantic destinations deliver this time of year. Regulars are consistent this is the sweet spot between summer's peak heat and winter's cooler, choppier stretch. The record: 25.9C days feeling like 27C, 20.1C nights, just 22mm across 4.2 days, a 24.6C sea, 77 percent humidity and 10.4 hours of sun.
March in Las Palmas is normally sunny at 22 to 25C depending where on the island you stand - our row gives 21.2C for the city - warm enough to sunbathe by day with cool evenings. Regulars describe the Canaries' entire wet allowance as about six days of torrential rain a year, falling between late October and early April, and March as the point where the unpredictable winter half is ending. The wildcard is the calima, Saharan dust that crosses with very high temperatures and is a real problem for anyone with breathing difficulties. Our row is otherwise unremarkable: 20.5mm across 4.6 days. The record: 15.6C nights, humidity 75 percent, 11.1 hours of sun and a 20.1C sea.
April in Las Palmas gets a confident answer on the forum: most days are beach and sunbathing weather, people swim daily, and even a cloudy one stays shorts-and-t-shirt. Two caveats recur. The first is the nagging north wind, which can make sitting on the beach too cool even when the sun is out - and which is why the north and south of Gran Canaria can be having different days entirely. The second is calima, the Saharan dust that blows across with a jump in temperature and coats everything in fine sand; a full one usually lasts a couple of days. The record: 22.4C days feeling like 24C, 16.4C nights, 3.6 precipitation days, 11.9 hours of sun, a 20.4C sea and a 19 kph wind.
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Las Palmas climate normals — January
Monthly averages from ERA5 reanalysis. AQI is the mean US Air Quality Index for the month.
Crowds in Las Palmas in January
How busy the place itself is — school and mass holidays, the months an editor tagged, and how sought-after the weather makes them. Never part of the comfort score.
Peak crowdsCarnaval de Las Palmas, Cruise and transatlantic season, Christmas holidays in Spain(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Best months for Las Palmas's weather
Ranked by this destination's own climate comfort score across the year — a different thing from how busy it gets (see Crowds above).
Fair weatherLas Palmas's weather doesn't swing hard through the year — comfort stays fairly steady in every month.
What's on in Las Palmas in January
Recurring seasonal events, natural spectacles, closures and holidays — curated and sourced.
- Hazard
Calima
15 Jan – 15 Apr · usuallyDust seasonSaharan dust rides in on an easterly several times a year, most often in late winter, dropping visibility and pushing the temperature up sharply for a day or two. Source ↗
- Festival
Carnaval de Las Palmas
23 Jan – 1 MarCarnivalCrowdedBook earlySix weeks of galas in Parque Santa Catalina building to the night cabalgata and the burial of the sardine on Las Canteras. After Tenerife's, the biggest carnival in Spain. Source ↗
- Season
Cruise and transatlantic season
15 Oct – 15 AprCruise seasonCrowdedThe port is the staging post for the winter cruise circuit and for the yachts crossing to the Caribbean in November. Vegueta takes the day-trip load when the big ships are in.
- Season
Winter-sun season
1 Nov – 31 MarCrowdedThis is the busy half of the year, and the city version of it is long-stay northern Europeans and remote workers rather than the package resorts in the south.
Nearby, and something's on
Within 300 km of Las Palmas — a day trip or a short hop — with something on this month. Never part of the comfort score.
Where is Las Palmas?
Las Palmas in January — FAQ
- Is January a good time to visit Las Palmas?
- January in Las Palmas: nice, dry — an excellent time to visit. It ranks #5 of 12 months for Las Palmas on SeasonMap's comfort score (92/100).
- What is the weather like in Las Palmas in January?
- In January, Las Palmas averages a daily high of 21°C and a low of 15.4°C, with about 15.9 mm of rain over roughly 4 rainy days.
- What is the air quality in Las Palmas in January?
- Las Palmas has a mean US Air Quality Index of about 52 in January.
Within 300 km: Tenerife's Whales and dolphins offshore on 1 Jan – 31 Dec, and Fuerteventura's Winter-sun season on 1 Nov – 31 Mar.