Nusa Penida (Penida) weather in December
December in Nusa Penida: hot, soaked, with clean air — a gamble, with 28 rainy days.
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
#10 of 12 months in Nusa Penida · #897 of 1413 destinations to visit in December · comfort 64/100 (tier C)
- Days
- 27°C
- Nights
- 23°C
- Wet days
- 28
- Sun
- 9.5 h
- Humidity
- 87%
- Daylight
- 13 h

Traveller notes on Nusa Penida in December
Notes from nearby Canggu (45 km away)
Nusa Penida doesn't have its own notes for December yet — these are about Canggu, close enough to share the season.
Bali-forum threads on December weather (Canggu specifically flagged in beach-condition threads) are consistent that the wet season is genuinely underway, but outcomes vary wildly by trip: one detailed account logged just about two hours of rain total across three weeks spanning mid-December into early January, surfing and swimming at Canggu and nearby beaches without any real weather problem. Other posters describe a more typical wet-season stretch of downpours and cloudy stretches. Bali's microclimates mean a rainy day in Ubud can be a clear one in Canggu or Sanur, so conditions genuinely differ block to block. The recurring practical warning: wet-season currents wash rubbish onto some beaches, worth checking locally. Crowds and traffic climb steadily from mid-December regardless of the weather. The record: 30.9C days feeling like a punishing 37C, 25.3C nights, a notably high 270mm across 28 days, 86 percent humidity, a 29.8C sea and 9.7 hours of sun.
Other months in Nusa Penida
Regulars are specific this counts as high season for the nearby islands, accommodation booked out and choice genuinely limited, sea conditions themselves settling down by around the second week of the month after an unpredictable stretch through August and early September. Our row backs that mild, genuinely wet read, 25.8C reading as a hot 30C, over 21.5C nights feeling 25C, with a substantial 89.6mm of rain across 15.5 days and humidity at 87 percent. Regulars are consistent this remains a genuinely good month for diving despite the crowds, water temperature at depth capable of dropping below 20C even while the surface stays considerably warmer. The sea sits at a warm 26.2C. The record: 11 hours of sun, a 14.6 kph wind and AQI 43.
June is generally good for the sea state here and the dry season's visibility is what the divers come for - but regulars add that June to September are the windy months, that nobody can promise a calm strait, and that the morning boats are reliably the kindest. Take the earliest departure; the crossing is only half an hour. Our row is a reminder that dry season is a local term: 80.4mm across 16.6 days at 88 percent humidity, so rain touches most days even now, just briefly. Heat is moderate by Indonesian standards at 26.1C, though it reads as 30C, over 22.1C nights and a 27.5C sea. The record: 10.6 hours of sun, a 14 kph wind and AQI 40.
July is dry season and the crossing is usually flatter for it, but this is also the month regulars warn about wind: July winds have made the strait choppy enough to cancel the fast boats for days at a stretch. Their advice is the earliest departure, because mornings are calmer. The same logic applies once you are across - operators decide on the morning whether Manta Bay is on, since it faces the exposed south and gets both the chop and the strong currents, and on a bad day the boats run to Gamat Bay instead. Penida as a day trip out of Sanur is a 10 to 12 hour day, and the early ferry is also how you get ahead of the crowd. The record: 25.1C days that feel like 28C, 21.2C nights, 14.7 precipitation days carrying 71.9mm, humidity 87 percent and a 26.9C sea.
Forum posters are direct that February sits at the prime, not the tail end, of Bali's wet season - hot, very humid, with downpours a real daily possibility and sunsets a genuine hit or miss. Posters do note Nusa Penida itself tends to run somewhat drier than mainland Bali at the same time of year, though still squarely within the wet season overall. The bigger practical concern posters raise isn't the rain itself but sea state: crossings and water activities depend on cooperating conditions, and the strait can turn genuinely choppy and unpredictable this time of year, sometimes disrupting ferry schedules and boat trips more than the rain does. Water temperatures for diving are reported around 28C with occasional cooler upwells to around 25.5C.
Add your own note from Nusa Penida's card on the map.
Nusa Penida climate normals — December
Monthly averages from ERA5 reanalysis. AQI is the mean US Air Quality Index for the month.
Crowds in Nusa Penida in December
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 crowdsChristmas and New Year peak, Year-end break in Indonesia, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Best months for Nusa Penida'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).
Toughest weatherNusa Penida's weather peaks June–August.
Best weatherFair weatherToughest weather
What's on in Nusa Penida in December
Recurring seasonal events, natural spectacles, closures and holidays — curated and sourced.
- Rule
Bali tourist levy
1 Jan – 31 DecPenida falls under the same provincial levy as the mainland: a one-off payment made online before arrival or at the airport counter, with the voucher spot-checked at some sites. Source ↗
- Season
Wet season, cancelled crossings
1 Dec – 15 Mar · usuallyMonsoonRiskSwell in the strait stops the fast boats for a day at a time and the clifftop tracks turn to mud. The island is at its greenest and its emptiest.
- Holiday
Christmas and New Year peak
18 Dec – 5 JanChristmas & New YearCrowdedBook earlyFull and expensive despite being the wettest part of the year, and the crossing is the thing most likely to be cancelled. Leave a spare day before an onward flight from Denpasar. Source ↗
- Season
Wet season
MonsoonRisk28 rainy days and about 345 mm in the month — the real kind of rainy season, not afternoon showers.
from the climate normals
Nearby, and something's on
Within 300 km of Nusa Penida — a day trip or a short hop — with something on this month. Never part of the comfort score.
Where is Nusa Penida?
Nusa Penida in December — FAQ
- Is December a good time to visit Nusa Penida?
- December in Nusa Penida: hot, soaked, with clean air — a gamble, with 28 rainy days. It ranks #10 of 12 months for Nusa Penida on SeasonMap's comfort score (64/100).
- What is the weather like in Nusa Penida in December?
- In December, Nusa Penida averages a daily high of 27.3°C and a low of 23°C, with about 344.6 mm of rain over roughly 28.1 rainy days.
- What is the air quality in Nusa Penida in December?
- Nusa Penida has a mean US Air Quality Index of about 32 in December.
Within 300 km: Denpasar's Bali tourist levy on 1 Jan – 31 Dec, and Canggu's Bali tourist levy on 1 Jan – 31 Dec.