Rize weather in January
January in Rize: cold, soaked, with clean air — a gamble, with 15 rainy days.
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
#12 of 12 months in Rize · #939 of 1413 destinations to visit in January · comfort 61/100 (tier C)
- Days
- 11°C
- Nights
- 4°C
- Wet days
- 15
- Sun
- 5.9 h
- Humidity
- 78%
- Daylight
- 10 h
Traveller notes on Rize in January
Other months in Rize
Rize's own forum doesn't oversell November: it's one of the wettest stretches of the year here, with cold, rainy evenings down in town, while real snow is mostly reserved for the yaylas (highland pastures) above. Posters warned that unpaved roads up to those highland areas can turn muddy or close outright this time of year, needing 4WD if passable at all, and that a fair amount of accommodation outside the main towns shuts down for the season. The main coastal highway stays open and reliable, so the town itself and a Black Sea coastal drive remain doable even if the yaylas aren't.
Forum posters name May through October as the ideal weather window for Turkey's eastern Black Sea coast, including Rize, though posters visiting in May specifically describe conditions as still pretty cold despite sunshine, with a lot of rain and even snow still piled up along the nearby Zigana mountain pass. Posters consistently flag Rize as one of the greenest, wettest parts of the country - rainfall here is described as exceeding even notoriously rainy Singapore - so real rain on any given May day shouldn't come as a surprise. Posters note the region's tea, hazelnut and kiwi agriculture depends on exactly this wet climate, framing the rain as a defining, expected feature of a Rize visit rather than an unlucky exception.
Add your own note from Rize's card on the map.
Rize climate normals — January
Monthly averages from ERA5 reanalysis. AQI is the mean US Air Quality Index for the month.
Crowds in Rize 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 crowdsAyder Snowman Festival, Semester (winter) break in Turkey, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Best months for Rize'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 weatherRize's weather peaks April–June, best around May.
Best weatherFair weatherToughest weather
What's on in Rize in January
Recurring seasonal events, natural spectacles, closures and holidays — curated and sourced.
- Festival
Ayder Snowman Festival
10 Jan – 10 Feb · usuallyMajor festivalCrowdedA January celebration of winter on the snowbound Ayder plateau, above Çamlıhemşin, held for more than fifteen years. In thin winters the organisers have had to truck snow in from higher up. Source ↗
- Season
Ayder heliski season
15 Jan – 31 Mar · usuallyBook earlyTurkey's only professional heliskiing flies from Ayder into the Kaçkar Mountains once the snowpack has settled, usually mid-January to the end of March. Trips are mostly sold as guided multi-day packages, so plan ahead. Source ↗
- Nature
Hamsi season
1 Nov – 28 Feb · usuallyForaging seasonBlack Sea anchovies come in with the cold, and from November the fish stalls and lokantas along the coast serve them fried, baked with rice or as hamsi kuşu. December to February is when they are cheapest and best. Source ↗
- Season
Snow season
Ski seasonAbout 53 cm of snow falls in the month.
from the climate normals
Nearby, and something's on
Within 300 km of Rize — a day trip or a short hop — with something on this month. Never part of the comfort score.
Where is Rize?
Rize in January — FAQ
- Is January a good time to visit Rize?
- January in Rize: cold, soaked, with clean air — a gamble, with 15 rainy days. It ranks #12 of 12 months for Rize on SeasonMap's comfort score (61/100).
- What is the weather like in Rize in January?
- In January, Rize averages a daily high of 11.1°C and a low of 4.4°C, with about 152.3 mm of rain over roughly 15.3 rainy days.
- What is the air quality in Rize in January?
- Rize has a mean US Air Quality Index of about 40 in January.
- Does it snow in Rize in January?
- Rize sees roughly 52.9 cm of snowfall in January.
Within 300 km: Krasnaya Polyana's RosaFest around 20 Jan – 5 Feb, and Mestia's Ski season around 15 Dec – 15 Apr.