Santiago · Chile
January
Hot Chilean summer — excellent wine festival season and the city buzzing with domestic tourism.
Strong option
#12 of 12 months
There are better months for Santiago — see the full ranking below.
See when to go instead →Climate
High
30°C
Low
14°C
Rain
3mm
Sun
10.8hrs/day
30-year climate normals · Open Meteo ERA5
How January scores in Santiago
Weather
Good
Value
Above average
Crowds
Average
Events
Very good
Atmosphere
Very good
What you gain in January
- ↑January is the height of the Chilean summer and the Santiago cultural calendar is at its fullest. Santiago a Mil, the city's premier international theatre and performing arts festival, runs through January with free and ticketed performances in public spaces, the Teatro Municipal, and parks across the city. It is one of the most democratic arts events in South America — world-class productions accessible to all.
- ↑The Maipo Valley and Casablanca Valley wine regions within 90 minutes of Santiago are doing post-harvest cellar visits and summer wine tastings. The Viña Concha y Toro tour (Chile's largest export winery, 40km south in Pirque) is excellent in January and operates daily.
- ↑The Andes ski resorts of Valle Nevado, La Parva, and El Colorado are not operating (Southern Hemisphere summer) but the mountain road to Farellones opens for hiking and mountain biking — the views of the Andes from 2,400m above the city are extraordinary in clear summer weather.
What you sacrifice
- ↓January's 30°C heat, while manageable compared to truly tropical destinations, is intensified by the Santiago basin effect. The city sits in a bowl between the Andes and the coastal range and the heat accumulates — afternoon temperatures in the central districts of Lastarria and Barrio Italia can feel significantly hotter than the official figure. Many Chileans leave the city for beach resorts (Viña del Mar, Valparaíso) in January, giving Santiago a slightly emptied feeling.
- ↓Smog is a seasonal concern in Santiago due to the basin geography and thermal inversions. Summer smog is less severe than winter (vehicle exhaust and wood-burning heating are the main winter culprits) but haze can reduce the celebrated Andes views to a grey smudge on some days.
How January compares to March (best month)
| Factor | January | March ★ |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | 6 | 9 |
| Value | 5 | 6 |
| Crowds | 4 | 6 |
January in other destinations
Lisbon (13.6°C)Barcelona (13.2°C)Tokyo (9.8°C)Bali (30.2°C)Santorini (13.4°C)Paris (7°C)New York (3.3°C)Marrakech (17.3°C)Amsterdam (5.6°C)Maldives (30.1°C)Rome (11.6°C)Bangkok (31.1°C)Istanbul (8.7°C)Vienna (3.2°C)Seoul (1.1°C)Dubrovnik (11.1°C)Rio de Janeiro (30.9°C)Kyoto (9.2°C)Phuket (31.5°C)Cape Town (26.1°C)Prague (2°C)Amalfi Coast (12°C)Mexico City (21°C)Medellín (28°C)Fiji (31°C)London (8°C)Sydney (26°C)Iceland (2°C)Tulum (28°C)Dubai (24°C)Singapore (30°C)Hoi An (24°C)Chiang Mai (29°C)Miami (24.1°C)Florence (9.2°C)Queenstown (22°C)Madrid (9.4°C)Porto (14°C)Edinburgh (7°C)Copenhagen (4°C)Budapest (4°C)Kraków (2°C)Tbilisi (6°C)Palawan (29°C)Hanoi (18°C)Osaka (9°C)Goa (32°C)Cusco (19°C)Buenos Aires (30°C)Mykonos (13°C)Zanzibar (32°C)Sri Lanka (31°C)Costa Rica (25°C)Cancun (28°C)Krabi (32°C)Athens (13°C)Seville (15°C)Cartagena (31°C)Siem Reap (29°C)Havana (26°C)Split (10°C)Taipei (19°C)Kuala Lumpur (32°C)Valletta (15°C)Ho Chi Minh City (33°C)Hawaii (27°C)Cappadocia (4°C)Dominican Republic (28°C)Jamaica (30°C)Tanzania (28°C)Seychelles (30°C)Nepal (18°C)Jordan (12°C)Azores (17°C)Bora Bora (30°C)Los Angeles (19.8°C)Cairo (19.1°C)Kenya (26.8°C)Jaipur (22.2°C)Las Vegas (13.9°C)San Francisco (13.2°C)Madeira (19.5°C)Vancouver (6.9°C)Muscat (26.4°C)Lima (26.2°C)Cinque Terre (11°C)Kotor (10°C)Tel Aviv (18°C)Bogotá (19°C)Bruges (5.8°C)Penang (31.5°C)Lombok (30.8°C)Cape Verde (26.2°C)Fez (13.8°C)Kerala (31°C)Kigali (26°C)Hong Kong (18°C)Oslo (-1°C)Auckland (24°C)
Climate data: 30-year normals (1991–2020) from Open Meteo ERA5 reanalysis. Scores compare months within Santiago, not across destinations. Methodology →