Sitting immediately to the west of its vast neighbour, Russia, it’s not surprising that the climate of Belarus has similarities. Cold winters and pleasantly warm summers are the norm.

Throughout the winter months, temperatures remain close to or below freezing both by day and night. The most severe cold occurs when winds arrive straight from Arctic Siberia. During these frigid spells, temperatures can fall as low as -30 Celsius - with the harshest cold across the more eastern areas of the country. However, the most severe cold is often accompanied by clear skies. When moister Atlantic weather systems approach from the west, the cold tends to ease. However, this is when much of the snowfall occurs.

Springtime arrives through March and April, but it’s an erratic process. Warm sunshine and wintry showers can alternate on an almost daily basis, before the thaw finally wins out. The countryside blossoms into life and, by May, daytime temperatures are rising rapidly through the high teens and low twenties Celsius, although night-time frosts can still occur, especially inland.

Through the summer months, the weather is generally kind to visitors. Days are pleasantly warm with temperatures in the capital, Minsk, mostly sitting within the comfort zone of the mid-20s Celsius. Hot southerly winds do occasionally bring steamy 30-degree heat and summer thunderstorms, but these are usually fleeting.

The longer late-summer nights soon bring a drop in temperature and, by autumn, a crisp chill is returning. However, it’s not usually until October or even early November that the first snow flurries of winter arrive.

Quick facts about

Belarus

Capital:

Currency:

Minsk