Kwazulu Natal – Climate
The climate in the KwaZulu Natal Province is all year ’round tourist friendly. Sea temperatures are also relatively stable, averaging 21 degrees all year, providing possibilities for a diversity of aquatic activities in any season, including diving, fishing, swimming, boating and surfing. Visitors to KwaZulu Natal can look forward to a splendid climate. The largest city, Durban, enjoys warmth and sunshine very occasionally mixed with light, steady rainfall. In Durban the air is heavy with humidity and the subtropical latitude of the city brings with it long, hot summers with rainfall, and very mild winters.
Durban boasts an average of 320 days of sunshine a year. Temperatures range from 16 to 25º C in winter. During the summer months temperatures range from 23 to 33º C (between September and April). January is generally Durban’s hottest month, with an average daily temperature of +/- 32ºC. The warm Mozambique current flowing along the coast means wonderfully warm bathing throughout the year, the water seldom falling below 17º C even in the middle of winter. With these conditions, it’s no accident that Durban is considered the “holiday city” of KwaZulu Natal.
Further north, conditions become subtropical to an even greater extent, and the estuarine environment of St Lucia and Kosi Bay brings steamy days and balmy nights. Moving inland, the low-lying coastline makes way for the emerald hills of Zululand and Thukela regions, and still further east to the Great Escarpment, as altitudes rise and temperatures drop. In the Drakensberg, the chilly towns of Bergville and Winterton provide a refreshing break from the swelter.
