Best Places to Visit in February: 11 Picks for Sun, Culture and Snow

The best places to visit in February are the ones in the middle of their dry season or their summer: Phuket (86.5°F (30.3°C) and 6 rainy days), Cape Town (12.4 hours of sun a day), Perth, Cancun, Costa Rica, Dubai, and, if you prefer a milder, drier climate for sightseeing, Mexico City and Cairo. We also include three places that are cold on purpose, because February is a good month for them. All figures are 20-year averages for 2006 to 2025.

February is the shortest month, and it is when many people have the longest wait for spring. That is why the demand is so uneven. Beaches in the tropics fill up and cost more, while cold-weather cities sit quiet and are cheaper. Your first decision is not where, but whether you want to run away from winter or lean into it.

Best places to visit in February: our eleven

Grouped by what you are likely to want. Rain is the monthly total, and sunshine is hours per day.

If your only goal is the warmest weather, our warmest places to visit in February is the better guide. This list is wider: it asks what is actually worth doing, not only where is hottest.

Running from winter: Phuket, Cancun and Perth

Phuket is close to ideal for a beach holiday in February. Highs average 86.5°F (30.3°C), rain is just 1.1 in (28 mm), and sunshine is 10.9 hours a day. The sea is calm on the west coast and visibility is good. The catch is that everyone else has the same idea, so book early. Humidity is 73%, so it is a sticky heat, but it is manageable with a sea breeze. For the rest of the country, see our Thailand guide. Bangkok is hotter at 90.1°F (32.3°C) and best seen early in the day.

Cancun sits at 79.5°F (26.4°C) with lows of 72.5°F (22.5°C), which is the Caribbean at its most comfortable. There are 9 rainy days and 10.3 hours of sun. It is peak winter season, so rooms cost more than in the summer low season, but the period before spring break crowds (usually March) is a good window. Our Cancun guide explains the monthly pattern.

Perth is in the southern hemisphere, where February is late summer. It is hot, with highs of 87.8°F (31.0°C), but it is also dry (0.6 in (15 mm), 2 rainy days), sunny (12.4 hours a day) and with humidity of only 53%. Dry heat is much easier to handle than humid heat, but you still need sun protection and an early start. The beaches are the point. Read our Australia guide if you are visiting more than one city.

Southern hemisphere summer: Cape Town

Seasons are reversed south of the equator, so February here is the height of summer, and that makes it one of the best places to visit in February for anyone tired of winter. Cape Town is the strongest all-round pick in this guide. Highs average 78.6°F (25.9°C), lows 64.0°F (17.8°C), rain is 0.5 in (13 mm) on 2 rainy days and sunshine is 12.4 hours a day, tied with Perth for the sunniest city in our February data. The beaches, wine farms and mountain walks are all open. The downsides are the wind, which can cancel the Table Mountain cable car, and school holiday prices. Our South Africa guide compares it with other months and with Johannesburg.

Dry and easy: Dubai, Mexico City, Cairo and Costa Rica

These are places where February is a top month because they are dry and not too hot.

Dubai has 79.2°F (26.2°C) highs, 59.0°F (15.0°C) lows, 2 rainy days and 10.3 hours of sun. It is a good city for people who want guaranteed outdoor time without extreme heat, though the sea is cooler than in the summer.

Mexico City is high and dry in February: 73.9°F (23.3°C) highs, only 3 rainy days, and 51% humidity. Nights are cold, with lows of 46.8°F (8.2°C), so bring a jacket and do not judge the weather by the afternoon. Museums, markets and street food are all easy at this temperature. Our Mexico City guide has the full year.

Cairo offers 70.3°F (21.3°C) by day and 48.7°F (9.3°C) at night, with 0.2 in (5 mm) of rain and 9.6 hours of sun. It is pleasant for the pyramids and the Egyptian Museum, because you can spend hours outside without the fierce heat of summer. Evenings are cold enough for a sweater, and that surprises many visitors.

San Jose, Costa Rica is firmly in the dry season. Highs reach 78.4°F (25.8°C), rain is 2.2 in (56 mm) over 8 rainy days, and sunshine is 11.0 hours a day. This is a base for volcanoes, cloud forests and the Pacific coast. It is also high season, so book lodges and tours in advance. Our Costa Rica guide breaks down the regions.

Winter on purpose: Seville, Vienna and Reykjavik

Seville is the gentle option. Highs of 63.5°F (17.5°C) and 6 rainy days make it comfortable for walking, although lows of 45.7°F (7.6°C) mean cool evenings. It will not feel like a beach holiday.

Vienna is properly cold, with 43.3°F (6.3°C) highs and 30.6°F (-0.8°C) lows, but it has 6.3 sun hours a day and only 1.3 in (33 mm) of rain. Coffee houses, concerts and museums were built for exactly this weather. The ball season usually peaks in the weeks before Lent. Bring serious winter gear.

Reykjavik is only for people who accept the conditions: 35.8°F (2.1°C) highs, 17 rainy or snowy days, and just 3.8 hours of sun. You come for the northern lights, hot springs and ice caves, not for the weather. Be flexible with your schedule, because storms can close roads. See our Iceland guide before you go.

Crowds, prices and school breaks

February weather is only half of the decision. The other half is who else is travelling. Because it falls in the northern winter, February is peak season for nearly every warm destination in the northern hemisphere: Phuket, Cancun, Costa Rica, Dubai and Cairo all price for demand. Expect the best rooms to go early, and book flights as soon as your dates are fixed.

The southern hemisphere is slightly different. Cape Town and Perth are in summer, and January is usually the peak of the local holiday season, so February can be better value there than it first appears, although we would not count on a bargain.

The cold places run the opposite way. Reykjavik and Vienna see fewer visitors than in summer and December, so the museums, hot springs and concert halls are relaxed. The compromise is daylight. Vienna gets 6.3 hours of sun a day, and Reykjavik gets 3.8, compared with 10.9 in Phuket. You will plan a short day, and you will be indoors for most evenings. Many travellers like that rhythm, particularly in cities built around cafes and baths.

Valentine's Day on the 14th lifts prices at romantic hotels and restaurants, and in the US the Presidents' Day weekend (the third Monday) is a common travel weekend. If you can travel in the last week of the month, you will often get calmer streets and a slightly better rate. Carnival and Lunar New Year dates move from year to year, so check them before you commit if either matters to you.

Finally, a note on mixing places. Combining a warm beach with a cold-weather city on one trip sounds sensible and often is not. The temperature gap between Cancun at 79.5°F (26.4°C) and Vienna at 43.3°F (6.3°C) means two different suitcases, and a flight that spends your first day. We would pick one climate per trip in February and do it properly.

Where we would not go in February

The wet-season tropics are the clearest skip. Jakarta in our data has 27 rainy days, Quito has 26 and Cebu has 17. Brazil is hot and wet: Rio de Janeiro averages 87.6°F (30.9°C) with 15 rainy days, and Carnival usually falls in February or early March, so it is a festival trip, not a weather trip. Our Brazil guide covers the details.

In the north, Montreal and Minneapolis have average highs of 26.1°F (-3.3°C) and 26.4°F (-3.1°C). Unless you are going to ski, skip them. If you want warmth within the US, use our warmest places in the US in February.

Choosing the best places to visit in February by goal

• Beach: Phuket first, then Perth and Cancun. Cape Town if you do not mind cold Atlantic water.
• Couples around Valentine's Day: Cape Town, Seville or Vienna, which have the best settings for dinners and walks.
• Cheapest: Seville, Vienna and Reykjavik, because demand is lowest where the weather is cold. Check flights for your dates.
• Families with school-age children: Cancun and Perth, with easy flights and calm beaches. Plan around mid-February school breaks, which vary by country.
• Driest: Cairo (1 rainy day), then Dubai, Cape Town and Perth (2 each).

The trip planner will put two of these cities side by side for your dates.

What to pack

Pack for the extremes. For Phuket, Cancun, Perth and Cape Town: swimwear, sun hat, high-factor sunscreen and one light layer. For Mexico City, Cairo and Dubai: cotton by day and a sweater at night, because the daily swing is 73.9°F (23.3°C) to 46.8°F (8.2°C) in Mexico City alone. For Vienna and Reykjavik: thermal base layers, a windproof coat, waterproof boots and gloves. If your forecast is near 70°F, see the 70 degree guide.

How we chose

To shortlist the best places to visit in February we used 20-year averages (2006 to 2025) from the Open-Meteo historical weather data for each city. We ranked on rainy days, sunshine and comfort first, not on temperature alone. These are typical conditions, not a forecast, so check the outlook a week before departure. Prices, school breaks and festival dates change from year to year and are not part of this data.