The Weather
Botswana has a long and dry winter period from May to December. January to April is the wet season. Basically, the country enjoys a semi-arid temperate climate. Summer is between October and April and is very hot combined with the rainy season. Dry and cooler weather exists between May and September. Early mornings and evenings may be cold and frosty in winter. Annual rainfall decreases westwards and southwards. Rainfall tends to be erratic, unpredictable and highly regional. Often a heavy downpour may occur in one area while 10 or 15 kilometers away there is no rain at all. Showers are often followed by strong sunshine so that a good deal of the rainfall does not penetrate the ground but is lost to evaporation and transpiration. 'Pula', one of the most frequently heard words in Botswana, is not only the name of Botswana's currency, but also the Setswana word for rain. So much of what takes place in Botswana relies on this essential, frequently scarce commodity.
The summer season begins in November and ends in March. It usually brings very high temperatures. However, summer is also the rainy season, and cloud coverage and rain can cool things down considerably, although only usually for a short period of time. The winter season begins in May and ends in August. This is also the dry season when virtually no rainfall occurs. Winter days are invariably sunny and cool to warm; however, evening and night temperatures can drop below freezing point in some areas, especially in the southwest. The in-between periods – April/early May and September – still tend to be dry, but the days are cooler than in summer and the nights are warmer than in winter. October is very hot. In summer during the morning period humidity ranges from 60 to 80% and drops to between 30 and 40% in the afternoon. In winter humidity is considerably less and can vary between 40 and 70% during the morning and fall to between 20 and 30% in the afternoon.
BOTSWANA: Average Temperature (ºF) - Average lows and highs
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June | |
| Gabarone | 72/87 |
70/86 |
67/84 |
61/79 |
53/74 |
45/69 |
| Kasane | 66/86 |
66/87 |
64/86 |
60/86 |
52/82 |
46/78 |
| Maun | 66/90 |
66/88 |
64/88 |
57/88 |
48/82 |
43/77 |
| July | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Gabarone | 45/69 |
51/76 |
59/81 |
65/84 |
68/86 |
70/86 |
| Kasane | 45/78 |
50/83 |
59/91 |
67/95 |
68/92 |
66/87 |
| Maun | 43/77 |
48/82 |
55/91 |
64/95 |
66/93 |
66/90 |
BOTSWANA: Average Rainfall (inches)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June | |
| Gabarone | 3.8 | 3.3 | 2.8 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 0.2 |
| Kasane | 6.3 | 5.5 | 3.7 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Maun | 4.3 | 3.9 | 2.8 | 1.1 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| July | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
| Gabarone | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 1.7 | 2.6 | 3.5 |
| Kasane | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.9 | 2.8 | 5.9 |
| Maun | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 0.7 | 1.9 | 3.3 |