General Weather & Climate in India
Since India is a vast country spanning nearly 3,220 kms from the cold environs of the Himalayas in the north to the warmer weather in the south, the climate varies dramatically from region to region. Coolest weather lasts from November to mid-March, with cool, fresh mornings and evenings and dry, sunny days. Really hot weather, when it is dry, dusty and unpleasant, is between April and June. Monsoon rains occur in most regions in summer between June and September.
Western Himalayas:
Srinagar best from March to October. July to August can be unpleasant; cold and damp in winter. Shimla is higher and therefore colder in v inter and places like Pahalgam. Gulmarg and Manali under several feet of snow (December to March) and temperatures in Ladakh can be extremly cold. The road to Leh is open from June to October.
- Required clothing: Lightweight to medium weights from March to October. Warmer wear for winter. Weather can change rapidly in mountains and it is therefore important to be suitably equipped.
Northern Plains:
Extreme climate, warm inland from April to mid-June falling to almost freezing at night in winter, between November and February. Summers hot with monsoons between June and September.
- Required clothing: Lightweight cottons and linens in summer with warmer clothes in winter and on cooler evenings. Waterproofing essential during monsoons.
Central India:
Madhya Pradesh State escapes very worst of hot season but monsoons are heavy between July and September.Temperatures fall at night during winter.
- Required clothing: Lightweights most of the year with warmer clothes during evenings particularly in winter. Waterproofing during monsoon rains.
Western India:
November to February is most comfortable, although evenings can be cold Summers can be extremely hot with monsoon rainfall between mid-June and mid-September.
- Required clothing: Lightweight cottons and linen most of the year with warmer clothes for cooler winter and waterproofing essential in monsoon.
Southwest:
The most pleasant weather is from November to March. Monsoon rains between late April and July. Summer temperatures hot as high as Northern India although humidity is extreme. Cooling breezes on coast . Inland, Mysore and Bijapur have pleasant climates with relatively low rainfall.
- Required clothing:Light clothes throughout the year with occasional woolens in some regions like hill stations etc. Raincoats and umbrellas during monsoons.