Climate and temperatures in Ibiza

Ibiza´s climate is typically Mediterranean, with warm average temperatures and seasonal rains, the summer period being both hot and dry. The annual rainfall varies across the island. However, most of the island receives between 450mm and 650mm of precipitation over the year. 40% of the annual total falls in autumn, between September and November; 25% falls in spring, between March and May; 25% falls in winter, from December to February; and summer, from June to August, sees just 10% of the yearly rain. The island´s rainfall is characterised by its irregularity, varying radically from one year to the next, even reaching the point where there are drought conditions. Most of the rain that falls is concentrated within a few days of precipitation, with some very heavy rains in autumn and lighter rains over the rest of the year. The average annual temperature is between 16ºC and 18ºC, with a maximum summer average of 29-31ºC and a minimum average winter night-time temperature of 5-9ºC, although temperatures of over 35ºC and below -2ºC are recorded almost every year, and temperatures occasionally reach 41ºC in summer and fall to -6ºC in winter.

Ibiza´s physical geography is shaped by the sea, which is deep, calm and relatively warm, with surface temperatures that reach 26ºC in August and stay above 14ºC in winter. The Balearic Islands is the only place in the world where the temperature at the sea bed never drops below 13ºC. The sea regulates the island´s climate and means that seasonal temperature variations aren´t as marked as they are on continental land masses at the same latitude. Travelling between 300 and 400km to the north or south, we find the European mainland, which cools dramatically in winter, and the warm Sahara Desert respectively, a fact which influences the unique features of Ibiza´s climate.