Weather & Best Time to Visitin Istanbul
A month-by-month guide to weather, crowds and seasonal conditions in Istanbul, plus advice on choosing the best time for your trip.
Weather & seasons
When to visit Istanbul
These figures are MGM's long-term statistics for Istanbul (the page shows a 1950 to 2025 measurement period). The coolest months are January and February, with mean temperatures of 6.8°C and 6.9°C and mean lows of 4.2°C. July and August are the warmest, with mean temperatures of 24.7°C, mean highs of 29.7°C and mean lows of 20.5°C and 20.8°C. Precipitation is highest from October to March, peaking in December at 99.2 mm, and lowest in July (22.1 mm), August (23.9 mm) and June (27.6 mm). Days with precipitation run from about 16 in January to about 3.5 in July.
Best time
MGM's long-term Istanbul statistics show mean daily highs of 17.4°C in April, 22.3°C in May, 27.1°C in June, 25.9°C in September and 20.6°C in October, with between about 5 and 10 days of precipitation a month across those five months. July and August are the warmest (mean high 29.7°C in both) and the driest (22.1 mm and 23.9 mm, about 3.5 days of precipitation each). Winter is the wettest and coolest season: December has the most precipitation of any month (99.2 mm over about 15.5 days), and mean highs in January and February are 9.6°C and 10.2°C. Season also changes opening arrangements: the Blue Mosque's published visiting hours are 08:30 to 19:00 from 1 April to 30 September and 08:30 to 17:00 from 1 October to 31 March. Many of the city's signature experiences are outdoors on the water (Bosphorus ferries, the boats to Maiden's Tower, the Princes' Islands crossing), so the weather affects the ferry-based days more than the museum days.
January
Mean 6.8°C; mean high 9.6°C, mean low 4.2°C
88.8 mm of precipitation over about 16 days
Blue Mosque winter hours (08:30 to 17:00) apply from 1 October to 31 March.
February
Mean 6.9°C; mean high 10.2°C, mean low 4.2°C
70.7 mm of precipitation over about 14 days
March
Mean 8.5°C; mean high 12.4°C, mean low 5.5°C
62.3 mm of precipitation over about 12.5 days
April
Mean 12.9°C; mean high 17.4°C, mean low 9.2°C
47.8 mm of precipitation over about 10 days
Blue Mosque summer hours (08:30 to 19:00) start on 1 April.
May
Mean 17.6°C; mean high 22.3°C, mean low 13.6°C
32.9 mm of precipitation over about 7.5 days
June
Mean 22.2°C; mean high 27.1°C, mean low 18.0°C
27.6 mm of precipitation over about 5.5 days
In 2026 the Adalar (Princes' Islands) forest-entry ban began on 8 June.
July
Mean 24.7°C; mean high 29.7°C, mean low 20.5°C
22.1 mm of precipitation over about 3.5 days, the driest month
August
Mean 24.7°C; mean high 29.7°C, mean low 20.8°C
23.9 mm of precipitation over about 3.5 days
September
Mean 21.2°C; mean high 25.9°C, mean low 17.6°C
39.7 mm of precipitation over about 5.5 days
Blue Mosque summer hours end on 30 September.
October
Mean 16.7°C; mean high 20.6°C, mean low 13.7°C
66.3 mm of precipitation over about 9.5 days
Blue Mosque winter hours start on 1 October. In 2026 the Adalar forest-entry ban ran until 15 October.
November
Mean 12.6°C; mean high 16.1°C, mean low 9.9°C
78.1 mm of precipitation over about 11 days
December
Mean 9.0°C; mean high 11.8°C, mean low 6.5°C
99.2 mm of precipitation over about 15.5 days, the wettest month
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