Best Places to Visit in March USA: Warm Cities and Spring Picks

Best places to visit in March USA: Key West, Phoenix, Miami, Honolulu and Orlando are the warmest and most reliable, with average highs of 74.8°F / 23.8°C, 77.4°F / 25.2°C, 78.1°F / 25.6°C, 76.6°F / 24.8°C and 78.3°F / 25.7°C. If you want dry, sunny days without sticky air, Phoenix and Las Vegas are the two cleanest bets, with 3 rainy days each and humidity of 34% and 30%. For early spring flowers and a real city break, Washington DC is the northern pick, though it is still cool.

March is the most uneven month on the American map. Half the country is thawing and the other half is already in shorts. A traveler in Miami and a traveler in Minneapolis can be six weeks apart in the season. That is why we sorted this list by what March really gives you, rather than by how famous a destination is.

Best places to visit in March USA: the quick-answer table

Eleven cities, with March averages for 2006 to 2025. Sunshine is in hours per day.

Look at the sun column. Key West leads our U.S. list with 11.0 hours a day, and Las Vegas, Phoenix, Miami and Los Angeles all sit between 10.6 and 10.9. San Antonio, Austin and New Orleans trail those at 8.1 to 9.4 hours. Then look at rain: Las Vegas gets 0.4 in / 10 mm, Phoenix 0.9 in / 23 mm, and New Orleans 4.4 in / 112 mm.

Best Places to Visit in March USA: The Quick Answer

Spring break is the thing to understand about Florida, and it shapes where we would put the best places to visit in March USA for different travelers. Florida and the Gulf beaches fill with students and families through much of March, so the weather is lovely and the crowds are real. Book early, expect a lively atmosphere and do not expect empty sand. If you want quieter beaches, April is better. Our companion guide is places to visit in April USA.

Key West: the driest of the Florida group

Key West has only 4 rainy days and 1.1 in / 28 mm of rain. Highs are 74.8°F / 23.8°C and lows 71.8°F / 22.1°C, so even the night is warm. Sunshine is the best in the country at 11.0 hours a day. Humidity of 74% is noticeable but not oppressive in March. If you want a beach, snorkel and cold drink holiday, this is the best case for it. See also our Key West weather in January guide for the cooler side of the same place.

Miami: warm, but expect a few showers

Miami sits at 78.1°F / 25.6°C for the average high and 67.5°F / 19.7°C for the low, with 8 rainy days and 10.6 hours of sun. That is more rain than Key West and a lower low at night. It is good for beaches, food and art, and the spring break crowd is part of the mood. One honest warning: March days can be breezy and the water cooler than you expect, so a 78°F afternoon does not guarantee warm swimming.

Orlando: pleasant days and cool nights

Orlando has highs of 78.3°F / 25.7°C, but the low is 57.9°F / 14.4°C, a gap of about 20 degrees between afternoon and early morning. That makes theme-park days comfortable before noon and a little cool after dark. Rain is 2.3 in / 58 mm on 6 days. The tradeoff is crowds: March is usually a busy theme park month, so go midweek and reserve what you can.

Honolulu: a showery March

Honolulu is warm at 76.6°F / 24.8°C with a 69.4°F / 20.8°C low, but March has 10 rainy days, which is more than 7 in January. Showers are usually short, and 10.6 hours of sun are still plenty. It is a good choice if you want warmth and green hills, and a weaker one if you want a guaranteed dry week. Our best time to visit Hawaii post has the month-by-month picture.

The dry Southwest: Phoenix, Las Vegas and Los Angeles

Phoenix: peak season for good reason

Phoenix is in its prime. The average high in Phoenix is 77.4°F / 25.2°C, with lows of 50.2°F / 10.1°C and humidity of just 34%. Rain is 0.9 in / 23 mm across 3 days. Golf, desert hikes and baseball spring training are the draw, and resorts price accordingly. By April the high reaches 86.0°F / 30.0°C, so March is the sweet spot before the heat. The one catch is the temperature swing: a 50.2°F / 10.1°C dawn is a coat morning.

Las Vegas: pleasant, with a cool-night edge

Las Vegas is the driest city in this set, at 0.4 in / 10 mm and 3 rainy days, with humidity of 30%. The high is 70.0°F / 21.1°C and the low 48.2°F / 9.0°C. Pool season has not quite started, but outdoor walking and canyon day trips are fine. Wind can be an issue on some days. For what to bring, see what to wear in Vegas.

Los Angeles: mild with a few showers

Los Angeles is 70.0°F / 21.1°C with 48.0°F / 8.9°C at night, and rain can still appear: 6 rainy days and 2.1 in / 53 mm. That is the tail end of the wet season, and it makes the hills green. Beaches are comfortable for walking, not necessarily swimming. It suits sightseers and families who want mild, sunny days and a pool or two rather than a hot weekend.

Texas and New Orleans: spring with a humidity warning

San Antonio averages 75.4°F / 24.1°C and Austin 73.4°F / 23.0°C, both comfortable with 9 rainy days each. Sunshine is lower, at 8.2 and 8.1 hours a day, so the sky is often hazy. Wildflowers usually start to bloom in Texas during March and into April, which is a good reason to rent a car. New Orleans is warm at 70.5°F / 21.4°C but wetter, with 10 rainy days and 4.4 in / 112 mm of rain. The French Quarter works fine in a shower, since so much of it is covered. These are good spring-weekend places rather than a week-long sun trip.

Washington DC: for flowers, not warmth

The cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin usually peak between late March and early April, though the exact dates move every year. Washington DC has highs of 55.6°F / 13.1°C but a low of 36.3°F / 2.4°C, so it still feels like early spring. It has 9 rainy days and 8.3 sun hours a day. We would watch the bloom forecast, book a refundable stay, and go early in the morning, because the sidewalks around the water get crowded.

Early March versus late March

The month is not one block. Phoenix averages 70.0°F / 21.1°C in February, 77.4°F / 25.2°C in March and 86.0°F / 30.0°C in April, so a trip at the end of March feels warmer than one at the start. Washington DC goes from 46.4°F / 8.0°C in February to 66.4°F / 19.1°C in April, a jump of 20 degrees across two months. Austin climbs from 64.8°F / 18.2°C to 79.5°F / 26.4°C. If you are choosing between the first and last week, pick the last week for anywhere in the north. In Florida, either end works for weather, so choose by how many students are around.

Where we would not go in March

• Portland and Seattle. Portland has 19 rainy days and Seattle 17, with only 7.2 and 7.4 hours of sun. Dark and damp.
• Boston and New York. Highs of 45.9°F / 7.7°C and 49.5°F / 9.7°C, with lows around freezing. It is not winter, but it is not spring either.
• Minneapolis and Anchorage. Highs of 42.4°F / 5.8°C and 30.7°F / -0.7°C. Winter is still in charge.

The exception is skiing. Mountain states such as Colorado and Utah usually keep their lifts open into March or beyond, and Denver (52.9°F / 11.6°C) and Salt Lake City (50.2°F / 10.1°C) get a lot of sun for a snow month. We have no snow depth in our data, so check resort reports.

How to choose by goal

The best places to visit in March USA change a lot with your priorities, so here is the short version.

• Beach: Key West first, then Miami. Honolulu if you accept a shower or two.
• Dry, sunny and low humidity: Phoenix or Las Vegas.
• Hiking and golf: Phoenix.
• City sightseeing: Los Angeles, Austin, New Orleans or Washington DC.
• Families: Orlando, with midweek planning, or Los Angeles for milder days.
• Avoiding crowds: not March in Florida. Choose Texas or the Southwest instead, and book early.
• Budget: we have no price data, but spring break and spring training months are usually peak for Florida and Arizona resorts, so Texas and New Orleans often make sense if cost matters.

What to pack

Pack by day and night, not by city. Phoenix swings about 27 degrees from high to low in March and Las Vegas about 22, so bring a warm layer. Florida needs light clothes and a rain shell. DC needs a coat and an umbrella. For the temperature ranges, our guide to what to wear in 70 degree weather is a good fit for most of the south.

How we picked

This list of the best places to visit in March USA uses 20-year averages from 2006 to 2025 for 25 American cities in our dataset. The averages describe a typical March, not a forecast, and any single year can run noticeably warmer or cooler. Bloom and ski timing are not measured in our data, so those mentions are general patterns. Open any city page for daily detail, or compare dates in our trip planner. Before you commit to Florida, check the spring break calendar for your dates, since that does more to your hotel prices than the weather does. Official climate records are available from NOAA's U.S. Climate Normals.