The best places to travel every month of the year. Photo / Getty Images
Because you don’t want to find yourself in a hurricane having packed for a beach party, this is the definitive destination guide for every month of the year.
January
Wrap up warm and head to Norway, Iceland and Greenland for the best of the Northern Lights, or chase the powder in The Alps. The mountains will be thick with both skiers and snow. For something unique, the annual Chateau-d’Oex Balloon Festival takes place from January 21-29 in the Swiss Alps. Book a balloon flight and skim over dreamy peaks smothered in white frosting. On the flip side, countries such as Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines will be basking in good weather: dry, warm and sunny, with water clarity for snorkelling and diving as good as it gets.
February
It’s festival month, with the likes of Rio de Janeiro and New Orleans hosting Rio Carnival and Mardis Gras respectively. If excessive crowds make you wince, now is an excellent time to hike in Patagonia while the trails are free of snow. Those who still seek the white stuff will find Canada’s twin peaks of Whistler Blackcomb saturated in it, as well as ski-hungry obsessives from across the globe. If you’ve always dreamed of a dalliance on the Nile or toucan spotting in Costa Rica, temperatures are more comfortable in Egypt right now and February is the driest month for the latter.
March
Anyone up for a turtle race? Mon Repos near Bundaberg in Queensland is home to a large nesting site for endangered loggerhead turtles. By March, the eggs are hatching and a mad dash to the water’s edge has begun. Book with Mon Repos Turtle Encounter Tours to witness this spectacle from a respectable distance but be warned, loggerhead infants are just 5cm long and this is no walk in the park. For more wildlife encounters, March is a stellar month to visit the Galapagos Islands. Turtles are nesting on these shores too and sleepy-eyed sea lion pups lollop on the sand.
April
Did you know water visibility reaches up to 50m at Poor Knights Islands during the autumn? That’s right, a world-class attraction right on our doorstep. Snorkelling will be fruitful for the tame; diving damn near faultless for the PADI trained. If you’re thinking of a South Pacific getaway right about now, consider Vanuatu for the spectacle that is land diving. Every April, the islanders build tall wooden towers up to 16m in height and then every Saturday, they leap – headfirst – off the top. With just two springy vines to break their fall, it’s said to have inspired A. J. Hackett’s bungy jump.
May
Probably the only opening you’ll get to summit Mount Everest is in May, but if the Himalayas’ “Death Zone” doesn’t appeal, it’s also a good month for a cruisier Everest Base Camp trek. With milder May temperatures, set aside at least 10 days for the challenge. Prefer to tramp with a little more oxygen in your lungs? Walking the Camino de Santiago in spring presents a panorama of verdant countryside saturated in wildflowers. Now is also the time to holiday in Bali. The rainy season has passed, the sun is shining and better yet, it’s still the shoulder season. Air New Zealand’s seasonal direct flights from Auckland return in March next year until the end of October.
June
Things are hotting up in Europe, both temperature-wise and price-wise - welcome to the high season. Still, it’s a near-perfect time to experience the best of the Mediterranean, from Greek island hopping to excessive pasta consumption – we’re looking at you, Italy. June is also a lovely month for a European river cruise; days absorbing every nugget of culture and warm nights spent on deck, idly watching the landscape unfold. If you’d rather stay close to home, head to Australia for Vivid Sydney, lighting up the city between May 26 and June 17.
July
It’s a long shot but if an African safari is on your radar, now is (kind of) the right time to witness the Great Migration of wildebeest and zebra from Tanzania’s Serengeti to the Masai Mara Nature Reserve in Kenya. A mass movement of more than 1.5 million animals, but still rather tricky to pin down. The crossing into Kenya could occur at any time from late June to September but if you’re going to hedge your bets, July is a very good gamble. For something set in stone, July 4 is always Independence Day in the US so good times (and fireworks) are guaranteed, and if you’re after a tropical twist, there’s very little rain in Hawaii right now.
August
You don’t want to see the world’s highest waterfall unless it’s in full flow, so go now: July and August are the wettest months in Venezuela and Angel Falls – all 979 metres of it - is thunderous. The high season continues in Europe and even the UK is a low-risk option. In fact, a British beer garden in the height of summer evokes a state of happiness that is hard to surpass. Up for an adventure? Iceland, renowned for being a wild little beast, is most docile in August. The landscape is lush and with up to 18 hours of daylight, there’s plenty of time for exploration - and soothing volcanic-fed hot springs of course.
September
Let’s face it, the Cook Islands are always agreeable, but in September you’ll experience one of the sunniest months of the year, boasting an average of 12 hours of daily sunshine. It’s warm, it’s dry and if you keep your eyes firmly on the horizon you might even spot humpback whales, which frequent the water between July and October. September also marks the end of the high season so you can bank on fewer crowds and, potentially, a sneaky deal to keep the cost down.
October
Prime leaf-peeping season, September and October in New England, US, sees the summer foliage transform into a bronzed swathe of autumn leaves, with the hues hitting their peak mid-October. Perhaps you like to see more amber in the bottom of your glass, in which case, Germany’s Oktoberfest should be on your to-do list. Held in Munich, you and six million other beer guzzlers can bond over the length of your lederhosen. Short haul holidays should include Fiji, where the Fijian winter is temperate and cyclone season is yet to hit.
November
Take a trip to New South Wales – springtime grants visitors warm weather and water just about hot enough to dunk your body. The biggest bonus being the summer school holidays haven’t started yet. It’s also a wise month for a road trip when the roads are quieter and it’s not too stuffy to live out of a campervan. In contrast, if safe and sensible don’t flick your switch, head to Nepal; the Everest Marathon, in minus-20-degree conditions no less, is the world’s highest marathon. With a 17-day trek just to reach the start line. Good luck with that.
December
Nowhere does better Christmas markets than Europe and nowhere does a better outdoor ice rink than New York. If it’s a white Christmas you’re after, complete with elves, reindeer and the big man himself, it doesn’t get more magical than Santa Claus Village in Rovaniemi, Lapland. Or expensive for that matter. But it is open year-round so you could visit off-peak. For heat seekers, venture to Vietnam, where rainfall has decreased. Thailand is cool and dry right now and, mercifully, the sweat-inducing mugginess has eased off.
Viking’s cruise brings Europe to your balcony..