Tindouf is brutally hot for much of the year. Visit in the cool half — November through March — when daytime temperatures sit between 18 and 28°C, the nights are cold but tolerable, and the air over the hammada is at its clearest. The Mouggar de Tindouf typically falls within this window and is the practical anchor for a visit.
April and October are transition months and still manageable. May to September is the long Saharan summer: daytime temperatures of 40 to 50°C, occasional sandstorms, and a noticeable slowing of all activity. Aid workers and journalists who must be in the camps year-round arrange their movement around dawn and dusk; outside visitors should simply avoid the summer entirely.