Discover the best time of year, based on historical climate, temperature, and precipitation.
The best time to visit Davos is June, July, August, when the weather, flight prices, and crowds align. — some variation climate
🌨Cold
| Score | 11 | 14 | 13 | 18 | 27 | 67 | 74 | 70 | 51 | 29 | 12 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Climate | Polar | Polar | Polar | Cold | Cold | Cool & rainy | Cool & rainy | Cool & rainy | Cold | Cold | Cold | Polar |
| Temperature | -10–0°C | -7–2°C | -5–4°C | -2–8°C | 2–12°C | 7–17°C | 9–19°C | 9–19°C | 5–15°C | 1–11°C | -4–5°C | -7–2°C |
| Feels like | -13–-4°C | -11–-1°C | -8–1°C | -5–5°C | -1–10°C | 5–17°C | 8–19°C | 8–19°C | 3–13°C | -2–9°C | -8–2°C | -11–-1°C |
| Precipitation | 113mm 18 days | 83mm 15 days | 94mm 17 days | 107mm 19 days | 173mm 25 days | 147mm 20 days | 133mm 19 days | 160mm 18 days | 126mm 16 days | 120mm 14 days | 90mm 15 days | 103mm 16 days |
| Sunshine | 5.8h ☀︎ 64% | 6.7h ☀︎ 65% | 8.1h ☀︎ 68% | 9.7h ☀︎ 71% | 8.2h ☀︎ 55% | 11.1h ☀︎ 70% | 12.4h ☀︎ 81% | 10.7h ☀︎ 76% | 8.9h ☀︎ 71% | 7.2h ☀︎ 66% | 6.0h ☀︎ 64% | 5.4h ☀︎ 63% |
| Wind | SE · 7 km/h | SE · 7 km/h | S · 7 km/h | W · 8 km/h | NW · 8 km/h | NW · 9 km/h | NW · 9 km/h | NW · 8 km/h | W · 8 km/h | SE · 7 km/h | SE · 7 km/h | SE · 6 km/h |
| Humidity (%) | 75% | 75% | 76% | 76% | 81% | 78% | 78% | 80% | 82% | 81% | 78% | 74% |
| Day length | 9.0h | 10.3h | 11.9h | 13.6h | 15.1h | 15.8h | 15.4h | 14.2h | 12.5h | 10.9h | 9.4h | 8.6h |
| Tourist Crowds | High season | High season | High season | Low season | Low season | Shoulder season | High season | High season | Shoulder season | Shoulder season | Low season | Shoulder season |
Each January, world leaders, business executives and journalists converge on snow-covered Davos for this high-profile su…
One of the world's oldest ice hockey tournaments fills Davos's arena between Christmas and New Year, drawing internation…
Davos lives a bizarre double life where its most congested, expensive months offer its harshest weather, while its most radiant alpine summer remains largely ignored by the international crowds.
Perched at over 1,560 metres along the Landwasser river, Davos is famous across the globe for two very specific winter spectacles: global politicians barricaded behind snowbanks for the World Economic Forum and hockey purists packing the stands for the Spengler Cup. Because of this, the world assumes Davos is meant to be endured in sub-zero chill, paying exorbitant sums to shuffle through icy ruts between Davos Dorf and Davos Platz. That assumption is completely backward. The town's true peak isn't when its population quintuples under January grey, but when the high-altitude meadows ignite in early summer and the valley breathes entirely on its own terms.
Standard alpine travel guides almost universally crown July as the king of the Grisons summer, seduced purely by a couple of extra degrees on the thermometer. They are wrong. June is the golden hour of Davos. The snow has retreated up the flanks of the Albula and Plessur ranges, releasing thousands of meltwater torrents into the Landwasser, yet the summer holidaymakers have not yet mobilized. You get crisp, eleven-hour days of mountain sun and daytime warmth that feels invigorating rather than heavy, all while sharing the valley with a fraction of the midsummer foot traffic.
Walking the perimeter of Lake Davos in June feels like having a private resort lake to yourself. The funicular lines leading out of Davos Dorf up toward Parsenn are unhurried, and the high trails are carpets of newly uncovered gentian and alpine rose. Because early summer sits technically in the shoulder period, the atmosphere down in the streets is quiet, unpretentious, and completely devoid of corporate pretense or lift-line tension. It is the best trade-off on the entire calendar.
July and August bring the warmest afternoons of the year, with temperatures settling into an ideal alpine comfort zone where a T-shirt serves you well until sundown. The air is dry and pure—the very reason Davos transformed from a secluded farming hamlet into Europe’s preeminent mountain health resort in the nineteenth century. Walking up from Davos Platz toward the terrace at Schatzalp, the scent of warm pine needles fills the breeze, and the long, luminous evenings make lingering outside effortless.
The catch is that everyone else has caught on. August, in particular, introduces thicker crowds on the ridge trails and an uptick in afternoon rain showers that roll swiftly over the Rhaetian Alps. While these downpours clear fast enough, they demand vigilance on high exposed scrambles. Midsummer here is undeniably beautiful, but it lacks the unscripted serenity of June; you will wait your turn at the cable cars and book dinner well ahead.
By September, the valley begins its rapid cool-down. The sharp light of autumn turns the hillsides yellow as the vast stands of larch prepare to drop their needles. Early September still holds onto generous warmth, making it one of the most rewarding periods for long-distance hiking across the passes toward Klosters or along the Landwasser trail, free from any remaining summer bustle.
October, however, is a roll of the dice that rarely favours the casual traveller. Daylight shrinks dramatically, cloud cover thickens, and the first biting snaps of winter start icing over the higher footpaths. Town life in Davos Platz retreats indoors, many mountain transport lifts shutter for routine maintenance, and the valley enters a suspended, chilly quiet that is far too cold for outdoor wandering and far too bare for skiing.
November marks the descent into deep alpine winter, and by December the valley is locked under heavy snow and freezing temperatures. Between Christmas and New Year, the Spengler Cup brings an electric surge of hockey fans, packed stands, and rowdy evening revelry across Davos Platz. Then comes January, which produces the wildest paradox of all: it is statistically the rawest, coldest, and bleakest weather month on the calendar, yet it is also the absolute summit of local crowding.
During the World Economic Forum, Davos Dorf transforms into an armed camp of barricades, motorcades, and sold-out hotel rooms, with security zones cutting through the valley. Unless you are credentialed for the forum, arriving in January is an exercise in frustration. You endure sub-zero bite, heavy snowfall, and restricted town access while paying astronomical sums. If you want the vast terrain of the ski slopes, wait until the summit circus departs.
February and March are the months winter sports enthusiasts actually pray for. The political convoys have vanished, leaving the immense ski arena spanning Davos and the surrounding peaks wide open. The days gain crucial hours of sunlight, the snowpack is at its deepest and most reliable, and the bite in the air softens enough that lunch on a high terrace is genuinely pleasurable.
Then comes the thaw. April and May represent the valley at its least flattering. The snow turns to slush and mud, high hiking trails are impassable wallows, and the town itself enters a dormant, damp lull where seasonal businesses pull down their shutters. May brings relentless rain and grey skies to the Landwasser basin. Keep away until the melt finishes and June wipes the slate clean.