Where to go in January for sun

YesTrip editorial team · Updated: 11 October 2026

In short

Within a short flight of Europe, January is only mild in the Canary Islands (Gran Canaria averages 21.2 °C by day) and on the Red Sea (Sharm el-Sheikh 22.1 °C). For summer weather it is long-haul season: Bangkok averages 31.1 °C with 24 mm of rain, Goa 30.8 °C with 7 mm. Bali and Mauritius, by contrast, are in their rainy season with more than 230 mm a month.

Plan this trip now

January is the coldest month in much of Europe, the holidays are over and spring is a long way off. Yet it is one of the best months of the year for a trip to the warmth – just not within Europe. South-East Asia, South Asia and the Caribbean are in their dry season, and many long-haul destinations have their best weather right now. We looked at the weather of the Januaries 2015 to 2024 for 20 destinations.

The short answer: within five hours' flight you get around 20 to 22 °C in January – mild, but not beach weather for everyone. From six hours (Cape Verde, Dubai, Oman) it is 24 to 25 °C. And if you do not mind the long journey, Thailand, Vietnam, Goa and the Caribbean reliably offer 27 to 32 °C.

The table: 20 destinations in January

Destination	Day (avg. high)	Night (avg. low)	Rain per month	Flight from London
Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City)	31.8 °C	23.0 °C	29 mm	approx. 13.5 h, one stop
Bangkok	31.1 °C	22.0 °C	24 mm	approx. 11.5 h
Goa	30.8 °C	20.2 °C	7 mm	approx. 10 h, usually one stop
Phuket	29.6 °C	24.6 °C	76 mm	approx. 13 h, one stop
Mauritius	29.5 °C	24.7 °C	233 mm	approx. 12 h
Bali (Denpasar)	28.9 °C	24.5 °C	311 mm	approx. 17 h, one stop
Sri Lanka (Galle)	28.9 °C	23.1 °C	123 mm	approx. 11 h to Colombo
Barbados	27.9 °C	23.9 °C	33 mm	approx. 8.5 h
Maldives (Malé)	27.8 °C	26.5 °C	74 mm	approx. 10.5 h
Chiang Mai	27.2 °C	16.4 °C	25 mm	approx. 14 h, one stop
Punta Cana	26.8 °C	23.6 °C	63 mm	approx. 9.5 h
Cancún	26.1 °C	21.8 °C	75 mm	approx. 11 h
Cape Verde (Sal)	24.8 °C	20.5 °C	0 mm	approx. 6 h
Oman (Muscat)	24.5 °C	17.1 °C	13 mm	approx. 7.5 h
Dubai	24.1 °C	14.8 °C	23 mm	approx. 7 h
Sharm el-Sheikh	22.1 °C	12.5 °C	4 mm	approx. 5 h
Luxor	21.9 °C	8.7 °C	1 mm	approx. 5.5 h
Gran Canaria (Maspalomas)	21.2 °C	15.2 °C	20 mm	approx. 4.5 h
Hurghada	20.7 °C	13.4 °C	1 mm	approx. 5 h
Tenerife (Santa Cruz)	20.2 °C	15.0 °C	26 mm	approx. 4.5 h

Temperature and rain: average of the Januaries 2015–2024 from the ERA5 reanalysis (via Open-Meteo), rounded. The values describe a grid cell of about 25 km and are often 1 to 2 degrees below what you measure on the beach. Flight times: typical direct flights, rounded.

Daytime high (bar) and night low (start of the line) in January

Rain in January, average 2015–2024

Average daytime high in January – long-haul places and Cape Verde are off the map

Base map: Natural Earth

Long-haul in January: the best time for Thailand and South Asia

January is peak season in Thailand, and the numbers show why. Bangkok reaches 31 °C with only 24 mm of rain, Phuket on the Andaman Sea almost 30 °C, with rainfall down to a third of November's. In the north, Chiang Mai is particularly pleasant at 27 °C by day, but nights cool to 16 °C – bring a light jacket for trips into the hills and early-morning temple visits.

**Wat Phra That Doi Suthep above Chiang Mai**Photo: Arts of Chet, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

**Galle Fort in the south of Sri Lanka**Photo: Icaptures84, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

**Islands and reefs of the Maldives**Photo: Dr. Ondřej Havelka (cestovatel), CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

**Luxor Temple on the Nile**Photo: Marc Ryckaert, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Ho Chi Minh City in southern Vietnam is the warmest place in the table at almost 32 °C, in the middle of its dry season. Goa on India's west coast is the driest long-haul destination at 7 mm – from December to April hardly any rain falls there.

Bangkok trip planDay by day, with map and tips

Sri Lanka and the Maldives get drier in January but are not quite there yet: Galle in the south-west of Sri Lanka still averages 123 mm, Malé 74 mm. That usually means a heavy afternoon shower rather than all-day rain, but if you are flexible, February is drier still.

Rainy season in January: Bali and Mauritius

Two popular destinations are at their wettest in January. Bali averages 311 mm of rain, Mauritius 233 mm – it is southern summer there, with a cyclone season that runs roughly from November to April. Both are still warm at 29 °C, and tropical rain often comes as a heavy but short downpour. But if you want predictable beach weather for the whole trip, Thailand or Goa are the better choice in January.

Caribbean and Mexico: dry season at 26 to 28 degrees

January is the heart of the dry season in the Caribbean. Barbados is the driest of the Caribbean places in the table at 33 mm with 28 °C by day; Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) and Cancún (Mexico) get a little more rain at 63 and 75 mm. From London, Barbados is about 8.5 hours away – noticeably closer than Bangkok – and the time difference goes the other way, which many people find easier on the first morning.

Playa Bávaro near Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic · Photo: Oleg Yunakov, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Not quite so far: Cape Verde, the Gulf, the Red Sea and the Canaries

If ten hours in a plane is too much, Cape Verde is the best middle ground: on Sal it averages 24.8 °C by day and over 20 °C at night in January, with no rain at all on average. Oman and Dubai reach 24 °C, but nights are noticeably cooler at 15 to 17 °C. Dubai can have a few rainy days in January (23 mm on average) – a lot for the Emirates, hardly worth mentioning for anyone from northern Europe.

Wadi Shab in Oman – pleasant for hiking in January · Photo: Uhooep, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Dubai trip planDay by day, with map and tips

On the Red Sea days are mild at 21 to 22 °C and almost always dry, but nights are fresh. Luxor in the Nile valley is the classic January destination for culture: 22 °C by day for the temples and tombs, only 9 °C at night. In the Canary Islands, southern Gran Canaria averages 21.2 °C, Tenerife 20.2 °C and Fuerteventura also around 20 °C – pleasant for hiking, but for beach days you need a bit of luck with the wind.

Planning the trip

After the holidays many places are quieter than over Christmas and New Year. For a long-haul trip, plan at least ten days so the long flight and the time difference are worth it. Pick the temperature you like from the table, then check the rain column – in January it matters more than the temperature.

In YesTrip you enter your destination and dates and get a day-by-day plan with a map – for Bangkok and Singapore there are ready-made city plans you can use straight away. The packing list takes the weather on your travel days into account and suggests the right plug adapter, and the map also works offline when you have no signal.

Singapore trip planDay by day, with map and tips

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Frequently asked questions

Where is it warm in January?

Within a short flight, the warmest places in January are Cape Verde (Sal, 24.8 °C by day), the Red Sea (Sharm el-Sheikh 22.1 °C) and the Canary Islands (Gran Canaria 21.2 °C). Above 30 °C you find Ho Chi Minh City (31.8 °C), Bangkok (31.1 °C) and Goa (30.8 °C), all in their dry season.

Where is it warm and dry in January?

On Cape Verde (0 mm of rain on average), on the Red Sea (Hurghada and Luxor 1 mm each, Sharm el-Sheikh 4 mm) and in Goa (7 mm). Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Ho Chi Minh City are also very dry with 24 to 29 mm.

Is Bali a good idea in January?

Only if you do not mind rain. January is rainy season on Bali, with an average of 311 mm of rain at 29 °C. It is drier there from May to September; in January, Thailand, Vietnam or Goa are the more reliable choice.

Where is the warmest place in Europe in January?

The Canary Islands. Southern Gran Canaria averages 21.2 °C by day and 15.2 °C at night in January, Tenerife and Fuerteventura around 20 °C. On the European mainland, Málaga is the warmest of the places we measured at 16.6 °C by day.

How were the numbers calculated?

We averaged the daily highs, lows and rainfall of the Januaries 2015 to 2024 from the ERA5 reanalysis of the European Copernicus programme (retrieved via Open-Meteo). ERA5 works with a grid of about 25 km, so right on the coast it can be 1 to 2 degrees warmer.

Sources

Open-Meteo Historical Weather API (ERA5), average 2015–2024 – open-meteo.com
Copernicus ERA5 reanalysis (Hersbach et al. 2020) – cds.climate.copernicus.eu

Researched with AI support and checked by our editors. Prices, opening hours and weather can change – please check before you go. YesTrip is not a travel agency. Published: 11 October 2026.