Virginia Beach weather in January
January in Virginia Beach: cold, rainy, with clean air — a fair time to visit.
Updated September 2026 · climate normals from ERA5 reanalysis
#12 of 12 months in Virginia Beach · #1134 of 1413 destinations to visit in January · comfort 51/100 (tier D)
- Days
- 11°C
- Nights
- 1°C
- Wet days
- 8
- Sun
- 6.6 h
- Humidity
- 73%
- Daylight
- 10 h

Traveller notes on Virginia Beach in January
Forum posters call Virginia winter weather genuinely unpredictable - mild one stretch, cold, snowy or icy the next, with no reliable pattern to count on, so anyone hoping for consistently good weather is steered toward a different month. The clear upside: unlike many shore towns further up the coast that essentially shut down in winter, Virginia Beach stays a genuine year-round destination - the Virginia Aquarium runs year-round, Cape Henry Lighthouse stays open barring bad weather, and inland shops and restaurants keep normal hours. Posters personally favor May and September-October for the classic warm-days/cool-nights combination with smaller crowds, but January visitors report still finding plenty to do beyond the beach itself.
Other months in Virginia Beach
Regulars are specific this month runs genuinely windy enough that even a warm 75-80F day can feel chilly right on the sand, a real gap between the air temperature and how it actually feels beachside. Our row backs that mild, still-breezy read, 24.5C over 15.1C nights feeling 14C, with 110.8mm of rain across 10.3 days and a real 22 kph wind. Regulars are consistent the water itself stays too cold for most swimmers early in the month, around 60F, warming only gradually as May goes on. Regulars are honest a single day here can swing from warm to cool to humid to raining, layers and flexibility the standard advice regardless of which week a trip lands on. The sea sits at a cool 18.1C. The record: humidity 77 percent, 10.3 hours of sun and AQI 54.
Regulars call this and July the hottest, most humid stretch of the year here, hazy and sticky with a real chance of afternoon and evening thunderstorms, and their standard advice is to schedule anything active for the morning while it is still cooler. Our row backs the intensity, 30.7C reading as a genuine 35C at 80.1 percent humidity, over 22.3C nights, with 141.6mm of rain across 9.9 days. Hurricane season is a real presence by late August into September, though regulars note this coast typically sees more rain from a passing system than serious wind. The sea holds a warm 26.7C regardless of what the sky is doing. High-factor sunscreen and steady hydration are the standing advice for anyone out in the middle of the day. The record: 10.9 hours of sun, an 18.1 kph wind and AQI 75.
Virginia Beach-forum threads on March weather are consistent the one predictable thing is unpredictability itself - a stretch of proper wintery cold and wet conditions is just as likely as a genuinely warm spell, sometimes within the same week. Posters describe daytime readings that could land anywhere from the high 30s to the low 40s Fahrenheit on a cold day, up through a comfortable spring afternoon on a good one. A real jacket is called essential regardless of which version shows up, and the ocean itself stays far too cold for swimming no matter how warm the air gets. Regulars steer visitors toward flexible plans rather than a fixed beach-day itinerary, since March behaves more like late winter than early spring. The boardwalk and oceanfront are still called worth a walk on a clear day, just not a swimming destination yet. The record: 16.1C days feeling like 14C, 6C nights, 91mm across 8.2 days, a still-cold 9.7C sea, 71 percent humidity and 8.6 hours of sun.
June at Virginia Beach is usually wonderful and usually variable - one regular's first fortnight ran six days between 90 and 97F with three in the 80s, which our row averages at 28.7C reading as 32C. The number they check for each other is the water, and they quote it from NOAA: about 70F through the first two weeks, not the upper 80s that arrives in August. Our sea temperature is 21.4C, which is 70.5F - the forum and the dataset agreeing to within half a degree. So: warm air, cool ocean, and an oceanfront that has not yet filled up the way it does later in the summer. September is the swap for warmer water. The record: 19.4C nights, 104.2mm across 9 precipitation days, humidity 78 percent and 12 hours of sun.
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Virginia Beach climate normals — January
Monthly averages from ERA5 reanalysis. AQI is the mean US Air Quality Index for the month.
Crowds in Virginia Beach 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.
BusyWinter / Christmas break in United States, school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it(estimated)
Peak crowdsBusyShoulder seasonQuiet
Best months for Virginia Beach'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 weatherVirginia Beach's best weather comes in June, August and September — separate windows, not one continuous season.
Best weatherFair weatherToughest weather
What's on in Virginia Beach in January
Recurring seasonal events, natural spectacles, closures and holidays — curated and sourced.
- Nature
Winter whale season
15 Dec – 15 Mar · usuallyHumpbacks and the occasional fin whale feed off the resort strip through the winter, close enough that the aquarium runs boats from the inlet. Juveniles do most of the feeding here.
Nearby, and something's on
Within 300 km of Virginia Beach — a day trip or a short hop — with something on this month. Never part of the comfort score.
Where is Virginia Beach?
Virginia Beach in January — FAQ
- Is January a good time to visit Virginia Beach?
- January in Virginia Beach: cold, rainy, with clean air — a fair time to visit. It ranks #12 of 12 months for Virginia Beach on SeasonMap's comfort score (51/100).
- What is the weather like in Virginia Beach in January?
- In January, Virginia Beach averages a daily high of 11.1°C and a low of 1°C, with about 90.6 mm of rain over roughly 8.4 rainy days.
- What is the air quality in Virginia Beach in January?
- Virginia Beach has a mean US Air Quality Index of about 32 in January.
- Does it snow in Virginia Beach in January?
- Virginia Beach sees roughly 7.3 cm of snowfall in January.
Within 300 km: Washington's National Christmas Tree season on 1 Dec – 1 Jan, and Baltimore's Hampden Christmas lights around 27 Nov – 1 Jan.