Amelia Island in January

What January actually feels like

January is the island at its most local. Downtown parking is easy, restaurant tables open up, and the beach belongs to dog walkers and shell hunters. Clear days feel warmer than the number suggests because there is no humidity in the air at all; a grey day with wind off the water feels considerably colder.

Fort Clinch is at its best in January — the brick heats in the sun, the walls are empty, and the campground loops under the live oaks are the most pleasant they get all year.

The ocean in January

At 57.9°F the water is 14.7°F below the island’s annual average of 72.6°F. Surfers wear a full wetsuit. Wading only for most people. The air reaches 64.3°F, a gap of 6.4°F over the sea — noticeable when you first get in, and gone within a minute. Ocean figures are means of hourly readings at the nearest NOAA sensor with a long record, 30 km south at Mayport — see ocean temperature by month.

Rain and storms

January averages 3.20″ across about 5.5 wet days, against 49.93″ for the year. That is a handful of wet days spread through the month. January sits outside the Atlantic hurricane season. Winter weather here is a passing cold front rather than a tropical system: a windy grey day, then clear.

What to pack

• a real jacket for the evening
• no illusions about swimming; the ocean is too cold for most people

If the weather does not co-operate

This is a museum, fort, bookshop and long-lunch month rather than a swimming one. The tide matters more than the forecast for a beach day — a high tide on a narrow access leaves very little sand — so check today's tides before you commit to a stretch of beach.

Crowds and cost

The lowest-demand month of the year. Book late, ask about rates, and expect some smaller kitchens to close for a week or two. We do not publish rates: they move constantly and we will not quote a figure we have not verified.

January against the months either side