Where to go for sun: our sun index by destination, month by month

For sunshine, it all depends on the month: in winter (December to March) you need to aim for the tropics or the southern hemisphere; from June to September the Mediterranean is often enough. To check destination by destination, we calculated a sun index from 0 to 100 for each of our 139 guides and each of the twelve months, from the official maximum temperatures and rainfall published in those guides.

The table can be sorted by month and filtered by zone. Further down you will also find the destinations where the sea reaches 21 °C (70 °F), to see where to swim by month.

Month	The 5 best sun index scores (out of 100)
January	Chile (100), Costa Rica (100), Goa (100), Nicaragua (100), Cambodia (100)
February	Goa (100), Chile (100), Costa Rica (100), Nicaragua (100), Cambodia (100)
March	Goa (100), Egypt (100), Guatemala (100), Nicaragua (100), Panama (100)
April	Egypt (100), Dubai (100), Goa (100), Qatar (100), Oman (100)
May	Jordan (100), Botswana (100), Marrakech (100), Hawaii (100), Andalusia (98)
June	Jordan (100), Djerba (100), Cyprus (100), Marrakech (100), Crete (100)
July	Canary Islands (100), Djerba (100), Jordan (100), Lanzarote (100), Santorini (100)
August	Jordan (100), Los Angeles (100), Botswana (100), Cyprus (100), Crete (100)
September	Jordan (100), Lanzarote (100), Botswana (100), Los Angeles (100), Uzbekistan (100)
October	Oman (100), Namibia (100), Cyprus (100), Mauritius (100), Botswana (100)
November	Senegal (100), Egypt (100), Cape Verde (100), Oman (100), India (100)
December	Chile (100), Goa (100), Laos (100), Cambodia (100), Nicaragua (100)

All destinations: the sun index over 12 months

Search Zone AllAsiaAfricaEuropeCaribbeanLatin AmericaNorth AmericaOceaniaMonth JanuaryFebruaryMarchAprilMayJuneJulyAugustSeptemberOctoberNovemberDecemberMinimum index any507085

Destination	Zone	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Months at 70 or more
South Africa	Africa	90	93	80	53	21	1	0	0	15	42	57	78	4
Albania	Europe	0	0	0	6	33	75	93	91	67	19	0	0	3
Germany	Europe	0	0	0	0	14	40	54	59	17	0	0	0	0
Amsterdam (Netherlands)	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	18	31	26	8	0	0	0	0
Andalusia	Europe	0	3	32	52	98	100	84	85	98	61	17	0	5
Argentina	Latin America	39	42	42	21	9	0	0	0	12	21	39	45	0
Australia	Oceania	68	44	48	32	17	0	0	9	30	47	50	66	0
Azores	Europe	0	0	0	6	18	40	67	72	50	22	12	1	1
Bahamas	Caribbean	74	77	79	74	36	0	25	0	2	29	66	81	5
Bali	Asia	0	0	0	50	75	88	100	100	94	78	30	0	6
Balearic Islands	Europe	0	0	0	16	49	90	100	100	77	45	12	0	4
Bangkok (Thailand)	Asia	100	100	88	57	0	1	6	0	0	0	91	100	5
Barcelona	Europe	0	0	0	4	34	75	100	88	54	30	0	0	3
Belgium	Europe	0	0	0	0	3	24	38	33	12	0	0	0	0
Belize	Latin America	34	79	94	84	40	0	12	3	0	0	0	29	3
Bolivia	Latin America	2	5	7	12	11	0	0	4	10	17	22	14	0
Bora Bora	Oceania	0	0	19	33	52	67	81	80	79	54	36	0	3
Botswana	Africa	54	61	78	100	100	77	76	100	100	100	90	71	10
Bulgaria	Europe	0	0	0	0	25	51	78	85	46	0	0	0	2
Benin	Africa	100	95	70	44	0	0	38	95	38	21	92	100	6
Cambodia	Asia	100	100	94	89	32	3	18	18	0	0	81	100	6
Canary Islands	Europe	31	32	39	50	65	86	100	100	100	86	60	40	5
Cancún	Latin America	56	83	95	93	66	9	78	57	11	0	41	61	4
Cape Verde	Africa	70	69	72	75	81	90	100	100	97	100	100	81	11
Cappadocia	Europe	0	0	0	0	27	72	100	100	73	11	0	0	4
Chiang Mai	Asia	100	100	95	68	19	48	30	0	0	45	94	100	5
Chile	Latin America	100	100	99	53	11	0	0	0	21	51	86	100	5
China	Asia	0	0	0	33	93	68	0	47	76	15	0	0	2
Cyprus	Europe	0	0	11	45	85	100	100	100	100	100	40	2	6
Colombia	Latin America	21	19	12	7	7	8	4	7	10	8	8	15	0
Corfu	Europe	0	0	0	9	58	100	100	100	63	18	1	0	3
Corsica	Europe	0	0	0	4	36	79	100	100	68	32	2	0	3
Costa Rica	Latin America	100	100	95	89	4	0	28	0	0	0	60	100	5
Croatia	Europe	0	0	0	3	45	89	100	99	51	18	0	0	3
Crete	Europe	0	0	0	21	63	100	100	100	95	55	18	0	4
Cuba	Caribbean	62	63	87	86	60	10	56	59	33	11	64	71	3
Amalfi Coast	Europe	0	0	0	8	46	95	100	96	57	19	1	0	3
French Riviera	Europe	0	0	0	0	28	65	95	99	48	13	0	0	2
Denmark	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	11	41	30	0	0	0	0	0
Djerba	Africa	0	0	23	51	86	100	100	100	100	93	44	0	6
Dubai	Asia	64	81	100	100	60	38	19	14	44	89	100	85	6
Dubrovnik	Europe	0	0	0	0	27	67	100	75	48	15	0	0	2
Goa	Asia	100	100	100	100	72	0	0	0	0	26	100	100	7
Gran Canaria	Europe	31	33	42	49	60	76	92	98	92	83	63	43	5
Greece	Europe	0	0	0	16	64	100	100	100	100	49	7	0	4
Guadeloupe	Caribbean	69	82	78	61	39	54	41	18	0	0	0	39	2
Guatemala	Latin America	66	85	100	100	25	0	0	0	0	11	61	63	3
French Guiana	Latin America	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	38	81	85	38	0	2
Georgia	Asia	0	0	0	5	32	73	89	92	75	13	0	0	4
Hawaii	North America	80	79	77	100	100	100	100	100	100	95	84	83	12
Hong Kong	Asia	7	13	29	21	0	0	0	0	0	47	62	24	0
Hungary	Europe	0	0	0	0	37	65	74	83	39	0	0	0	2
India	Asia	10	64	100	75	28	33	6	6	48	100	100	45	4
Indonesia	Asia	0	0	0	21	57	71	72	87	82	52	38	10	4
Ireland	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	0	12	8	0	0	0	0	0
Iceland	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Istanbul (Turkey)	Europe	0	0	0	0	29	70	96	92	46	11	0	0	3
Jamaica	Caribbean	72	93	83	80	29	67	79	62	38	24	55	70	6
Jordan	Asia	0	0	1	56	100	100	100	100	100	92	23	0	6
Kenya	Africa	52	64	48	0	6	34	26	34	57	57	14	31	0
Koh Samui	Asia	43	80	49	69	40	39	49	58	48	0	0	0	1
Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)	Asia	0	4	0	0	0	32	21	15	0	0	0	0	0
Kyoto	Asia	0	0	0	10	20	0	0	27	12	18	0	0	0
Réunion	Africa	0	0	0	39	59	64	65	64	72	83	81	24	3
Lanzarote	Europe	29	35	49	58	72	87	100	100	100	90	63	40	6
Laos	Asia	100	100	92	65	0	0	0	0	0	66	100	100	5
Lapland	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	0	15	0	0	0	0	0	0
Lisbon (Portugal)	Europe	0	0	7	18	43	81	100	100	81	25	0	0	4
London	Europe	0	0	0	0	4	32	53	47	19	0	0	0	0
Los Angeles (California)	North America	14	13	26	44	52	71	98	100	100	79	47	14	5
Madagascar	Africa	0	0	21	68	55	33	24	36	59	76	44	0	1
Madrid (Spain)	Europe	0	0	0	8	46	100	100	100	85	14	0	0	4
Madeira	Europe	16	14	21	27	40	57	74	88	86	46	34	19	3
Maldives	Asia	66	95	89	43	0	32	1	4	0	0	0	0	2
Malta	Europe	0	0	0	11	53	95	100	100	94	40	15	0	4
Marrakech (Morocco)	Africa	11	27	54	77	100	100	66	70	100	100	51	21	6
Martinique	Caribbean	49	72	76	54	39	27	0	0	0	0	0	31	2
Mexico	Latin America	84	93	91	96	68	32	52	50	0	0	51	71	5
Miami (Florida)	North America	60	66	73	68	23	0	8	0	0	4	61	63	1
Montreal (Canada)	North America	0	0	0	0	9	42	56	48	20	0	0	0	0
Montenegro	Europe	0	0	0	5	39	82	99	91	35	14	1	0	3
Mozambique	Africa	28	38	53	72	80	73	74	83	89	95	73	33	8
Namibia	Africa	64	66	76	81	57	30	33	59	96	100	100	98	6
New York	North America	0	0	0	0	23	42	49	49	35	1	0	0	0
Nicaragua	Latin America	100	100	100	99	68	0	44	38	0	0	89	100	6
Norway	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	17	31	19	0	0	0	0	0
New Caledonia	Oceania	55	42	22	45	49	44	41	42	63	79	88	80	3
New Zealand	Oceania	49	52	36	16	0	0	0	0	0	0	12	28	0
Nepal	Asia	12	41	76	81	42	0	0	0	0	85	56	22	3
Oman	Asia	71	84	100	100	42	38	62	92	92	100	100	88	9
Osaka	Asia	0	0	0	11	26	9	15	51	28	21	0	0	0
Uganda	Africa	55	63	8	0	0	36	55	57	60	36	13	40	0
Uzbekistan	Asia	0	0	0	28	86	100	100	100	100	40	0	0	5
Panama	Latin America	100	100	100	75	0	0	18	0	0	0	0	56	4
Patagonia	Latin America	11	12	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Philippines	Asia	100	100	100	100	24	0	0	0	0	0	47	59	4
Phuket	Asia	88	100	70	38	0	0	0	0	0	0	13	69	3
Poland	Europe	0	0	0	0	13	38	44	52	12	0	0	0	0
Porto	Europe	0	0	0	1	15	46	63	68	43	8	0	0	0
Puerto Rico	Caribbean	57	79	85	49	35	48	28	24	21	40	8	45	2
Puglia	Europe	0	0	0	9	56	100	100	100	76	33	0	0	4
Punta Cana	Caribbean	68	81	88	79	42	62	68	55	38	45	41	64	3
Peru	Latin America	3	3	6	16	18	15	11	18	18	27	20	6	0
Qatar	Asia	46	60	97	100	45	10	8	20	47	92	100	68	4
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)	Latin America	37	41	38	62	75	80	78	82	75	66	60	39	5
Rome (Italy)	Europe	0	0	0	6	36	100	100	100	69	28	0	0	3
Romania	Europe	0	0	0	4	47	69	77	89	57	0	0	0	2
Rwanda	Africa	65	67	38	32	54	87	94	100	79	50	39	64	4
Dominican Republic	Caribbean	68	81	88	79	42	63	68	55	38	45	41	64	3
Czech Republic	Europe	0	0	0	0	24	49	66	64	23	0	0	0	0
Saint Barthélemy	Caribbean	86	95	94	88	81	85	71	71	61	38	48	71	9
Santorini	Europe	0	0	0	16	53	99	100	100	92	48	14	0	4
Sardinia	Europe	0	0	0	17	61	100	100	100	95	54	7	0	4
Seychelles	Africa	0	0	0	2	17	46	71	50	9	5	0	0	1
Sicily	Europe	0	2	22	58	91	100	99	94	88	75	33	0	6
Singapore	Asia	0	56	28	21	21	38	31	31	44	19	0	0	0
Slovenia	Europe	0	0	0	0	19	34	45	43	9	0	0	0	0
Sri Lanka	Asia	71	72	57	0	0	2	45	49	0	0	0	17	2
Switzerland	Europe	0	0	0	0	15	43	62	57	20	0	0	0	0
Sweden	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	23	45	32	0	0	0	0	0
Senegal	Africa	79	72	72	70	82	100	86	20	36	100	100	99	10
Seoul (South Korea)	Asia	0	0	0	0	32	40	0	0	28	19	0	0	0
Tahiti (French Polynesia)	Oceania	0	0	20	59	56	74	92	94	88	57	56	0	4
Tanzania	Africa	92	95	62	40	70	84	82	94	100	100	88	91	10
Taiwan	Asia	9	13	25	49	0	0	0	0	0	21	44	18	0
Tenerife	Europe	30	31	39	47	61	82	100	100	100	83	60	38	5
Tokyo (Japan)	Asia	0	0	0	5	20	15	26	26	0	0	0	0	0
Tuscany	Europe	0	0	0	16	51	91	100	96	73	20	0	0	4
Tunisia	Africa	0	0	13	41	85	100	100	100	84	74	30	0	6
Vancouver	North America	0	0	0	0	0	14	43	42	10	0	0	0	0
Venice	Europe	0	0	0	0	28	64	84	79	43	4	0	0	2
Vienna (Austria)	Europe	0	0	0	0	22	53	63	64	28	0	0	0	0
Vietnam	Asia	22	37	76	56	21	0	0	0	0	26	71	33	2
Yucatán	Latin America	98	100	100	94	68	18	36	32	15	38	85	97	6
Zanzibar	Africa	74	88	14	0	0	87	99	95	96	49	0	19	6
Edinburgh (Scotland)	Europe	0	0	0	0	0	0	10	8	0	0	0	0	0
Egypt	Africa	48	73	100	100	49	22	20	22	46	94	100	62	5
Ecuador	Latin America	16	12	8	4	12	27	33	36	26	14	11	14	0
Mauritius	Africa	41	24	69	66	89	96	87	88	97	100	100	68	7

How to use the filter: choose a month and a minimum index to keep only the destinations that reach it. Click a column header to sort.

Where to go for sun in winter?

From December to February, the highest indexes in our catalog are those of Bangkok, Cambodia, Chiang Mai, Chile, Costa Rica and Goa.

Where to swim by month? (sea at 21 °C and above)

We publish a sea temperature only when a climatological source provides it (here the tables of the German weather service, the DWD, reproduced in our guides). The table gives the average water temperature and highlights in bold the months at 21 °C (70 °F) or more, the threshold from which swimming becomes pleasant for most people.

Destination	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Sea at 21 °C (70 °F) or more
Corsica (Ajaccio)	14	13	14	14	16	20	23	24	22	20	18	15	July to September
Crete (Heraklion)	16	15	16	16	19	22	24	25	24	23	20	17	June to October
Malta	15	14	15	15	18	21	24	25	24	22	19	17	June to October
Madeira (Funchal)	18	17	17	17	18	20	21	22	23	22	20	19	July to October

In the tropics (Caribbean, Indian Ocean, Southeast Asia), the water is generally warmer; our guides give a figure only when an official source is available. Our pages where to go in April, where to go in November and where to go in December list the beach destinations for each month.

Methodology

• Data: average maximum temperatures and average monthly rainfall published in our 139 « when to go » guides (re-export of 14 October 2026); each guide cites its organization, station and period.
• Sun index (Destination de Voyage calculation): heat score = (Tmax − 18) ÷ 10, capped between 0 and 1 and reduced beyond 35 °C (95 °F); dryness score = 1 − (rain − 30) ÷ 170, capped between 0 and 1 (rain in mm; 30 mm is 1.2 in and 200 mm is 7.9 in); index = 100 × heat × dryness, rounded. (18 °C is 64 °F.)
• Why not hours of sunshine? Few weather services publish sunshine duration over the same period; monthly rainfall is the best indicator available everywhere. The index does not account for wind, humidity or cyclones.
• Sea temperature: only for destinations where a climatological source is cited in the guide.
• More details: our methodology.

Frequently asked questions

See also

To avoid unpleasant surprises, cross this ranking with our rainy season calendar. In France, see the ranking of the sunniest cities. Our pages where to go by month detail each month.

Our sources

• Official climate normals cited in our 139 « when to go » guides (organization, station and period on each page), read on 14 October 2026.
• Deutscher Wetterdienst (Klimatafeln), average water temperatures, as cited in our Corsica, Crete, Malta and Madeira guides.
• Our methodology

Updated November 2026.