Where in Jan-March

[vafoodie]

We want to take advantage of the good deals available during these months but would like not to be cold. What are Spain, Greece, Portugal or even southern Italy or France like during these times? Good or bad time to go?

 

[HawkeyeNFO]

It's always a good time to visit any of those countries! In fact I'd rather NOT go to any of them during the summer - too many tourists.

What do you want to do? It's not a good time to hit the beaches, they'll be deserted. However, we climbed Mt Etna on snowshoes in January a few years ago, although at the bottom it was around 60 degrees during daytime. Skiing is great, and much cheaper in the Alps than anywhere in the USA.

Depends on what you like to do for fun.

 

[LateToFIRE]

For that time of year would err on the side of visiting cities where there are more indoor things to do - have been to Paris in January and really enjoyed it, could even sit outside in cafes (those gas/propane heaters work wonders). Areas along the Med should also be a bit milder for winter climate, though weather can be damp, windy and unpredictable at times.

 

[NW-Bound]

In late Feb/early Mar 2003, we flew to Nice, France, and stayed there before moving on to Monaco, then Sorrento and Venice in Italy, before going to Paris to catch a flight home. Day trips by train/bus/boat included Avignon, Pompei, island of Capri, Positano, Amalfi.

None of the above places were that cold, including Paris. Perhaps we were lucky. Just an overcoat worked. Sunny skies throughout the trip. No rain/snow in any of our photos.

Ah, that was a nice trip, particularly as the Carnival was going on in Nice and Venice. We took the trains exclusively, including night trains to save travel time between cities.

In Jan 2007, we spent two weeks in Spain, flying to Barcelona, and flew home from Madrid. In between the above cities, we also spent nights in Valencia, Toledo, and Sevilla, traveling by train. No night train this time. Day trips included Monserrat and Segovia. Nice trip with lots of memories and photos. Not too cold either. We did a lot of walking for sightseeing, having just an overcoat. When it was not too cold, just a leather jacket over a long-sleeved shirt. The photos did show some snow on the ground, but no precipitation when we were there. Perhaps lucky again.

 

[OldShooter]

You'll find the lowest costs overall and the best weather in the Southern hemisphere. Everywhere from Australia to Zimbabwe. Scenery, animals, fishing, beaches, ... The South has it all -- except hordes of tourists.

 

[audreyh1]

I remember visiting Nuremberg one late November Thanksgiving week. We had bought really heavy coats for this and were so glad we did, because it was so cold! But we went out walking around during the day and really enjoyed all the cool sights of historic Nuremberg. It was great.

 

[Scuba]

You'll find the lowest costs overall and the best weather in the Southern hemisphere. Everywhere from Australia to Zimbabwe. Scenery, animals, fishing, beaches, ... The South has it all -- except hordes of tourists.

Excellent idea! Europe is far too cold for me in wintertime, but last January and February in Australia were wonderful!

 

[2017ish]

You'll find the lowest costs overall and the best weather in the Southern hemisphere. Everywhere from Australia to Zimbabwe. Scenery, animals, fishing, beaches, ... The South has it all -- except hordes of tourists.

Yep. This coming year, we'll be heading to Fiji in mid-Feb. for 10 days diving, then 2 months hiking/exploring NZ, and then another 10 days diving in Fiji. (Can keep our gear in storage at Nadi airport, so only carryon bags for NZ portion of trip!)

 

[NW-Bound]

Jan-Feb is the summertime down there. I hope it doesn't get too hot.

We were in Sydney and Auckland in December some years ago. The weather was nice as I remember. It was just weird to see them preparing for Christmas in that warm weather.

 

[2017ish]

...

We were in Sydney and Auckland in December some years ago. The weather was nice as I remember. It was just weird to see them preparing for Christmas in that warm weather.

Yep! We had that experience again in Patagonia last year.

 

[brett]

We tend to visit Europe in the shoulder seasons. April/May or late Sept/Oct/November. One of our nicest times in Rome was in November. No crowds, good weather, good lighting. We do know a few people who often go to the Algarve or Madeira in Portugal during our winter.

My SIL lives in Southern Spain. She loves the winter weather compared to her previous homes in Canada, London, and Moscow!

Jan-March we are looking for warm weather. So far it has been five winters in Thailand/Vietnam/Malaysia/Australia, a few in Mexico/Costa Rica/Panama, and one in South America.
Australia is more expensive. The others no so much. Especially if you avoid the big resorts, as we do, and stay in smaller, family run places It averages out for us. A month or so in Thailand is inexpensive but we spend more when we go on to Australia for another month or so.

We are going to Morocco this Sept/Oct instead of Europe. Europe is too crowded at the moment. Morocco has been on our bucket list for some time. We found the prices for air and accommodation attractive so we booked. A month or so of independent travel. In hindsight I think that we should have booked for six weeks instead of four.

 

[NoiseBoy]

We want to take advantage of the good deals available during these months but would like not to be cold. What are Spain, Greece, Portugal or even southern Italy or France like during these times? Good or bad time to go?

Define "not to be cold"? IMHO nowhere on the continent is that warm during the winter. Certainly not beach weather. But that doesn't mean you can't find places to go that have mild winter weather as compared to the Midwest, where I live. I tend to be amused by the way Europeans dress up when the temps get a little chilly, but everything is relative to what you think of as normal winter weather.

I've been to Rome in November, December and February. Mainly I wore sweaters with a rain shell. We did have some rain and it even snowed on one day, but it was the wet stuff that was gone in a few hours. IIRC, Barcelona in early December was milder by a bit, than Rome. Our best experience was Athens the first week of March. We lucked into a week of beautiful, sunny weather and NO tourists. No cruise ships at that time of the year so my pictures from the Acropolis look like it's deserted.

I have not done southern Spain, Portugal, Sicily, or Malta. I like to use weatherspark.com to get a sense of what to expect for the weather in different potential destinations.

 

[Timeisprecious]

Skiing is great, and much cheaper in the Alps than anywhere in the USA.

Oh my gosh, yes! I'll never forget my trip to the Swiss Alps back in 1980. I didn't expect to SKI during that trip - I had never downhill skied in my short life to that point. But - seeing the young kids (3-5 years old?) zipping around on skis high in the Alps proved to be too much for me - I wanted to try. What a great time it was! I did learn to ski some (missing a tree by not too much - yeow! ), and wow - what memories! When my sister came over to see me in Europe, I took her to the Alps & skied with her. It's spectacular - you may in the future consider it one of your best memories! I sure do.

 

[OldShooter]

Define "not to be cold"? IMHO nowhere on the continent is that warm during the winter. ...

Yup. We got three inches of snow in Jerusalem on January 2nd a few years ago. Those cobblestones, polished for a thousand years or so got really slippery!

 

[tenant13]

I spent entire winter of 2021/2022 in Portugal (and a few weeks in Spain). Great weather, 45-60F. It was sunny enough on certain days to be just wearing a t-shirt but I heard that normally there is more rain so maybe I was lucky.

I don't think Portugal is as inexpensive as it used to be so if you're looking for a deal, Argentina might be a cool winter destination right now, provided you are careful with the exchange rate and avoid the official one. Easy enough with Visa and Mastercard using the unofficial Blue rate.

 

[NW-Bound]

It's always a good time to visit any of those countries! In fact I'd rather NOT go to any of them during the summer - too many tourists.

What do you want to do? It's not a good time to hit the beaches, they'll be deserted. However, we climbed Mt Etna on snowshoes in January a few years ago, although at the bottom it was around 60 degrees during daytime. Skiing is great, and much cheaper in the Alps than anywhere in the USA...

My neighbor went to northern Italy in Feb this year for 1 month. When he came back, said skiing was lousy. Little snow. He spent time around Aosta, as I recall.

Last winter was warmer than usual. And that's why Europe escaped a feared and anticipated winter with insufficient natural gas for heating, due to the sanction of Russian oil and gas.

 

[Koolau]

Okay, since no one has mentioned it, I'll suggest Hawaii. (I think you're thinking Europe, but didn't actually specify.)



It's always warm in Hawaii. (Low 80s in "winter.") You can do the beach, though it's too cold for me now that I'm old. Jan to March is our "rainy season." But that usually means a day or two of rain or rain a bit every day but mostly clear. If you stay windward (that's where the hotels are) it's less rainy. You'll see rainbows, so it's worth a little rain!


You have a dramatic choice of climate in the Islands. Big Island especially is amazing. You can go from tropical rain forest to virtual "Moonscape" in 1 mile.



It is a Paradise on Earth IMHO. YMMV

 

[brett]

We are headed to Morocco next month. Four weeks of independent travel.

We have also been considering southern Morocco (Agadir/ south) for winter stay along with time in Portugal or Spain. Our upcoming trip will give us a chance to see what it could be like.

Our first choice is still Thailand/Malaysia.

We have an ongoing family issue that could require us to return home on short notice this winter. Returning home for Morocco is a direct 8hr flight, Thailand is 19 hr/three flights Mexico 4.5hrs direct.

We use this website as an indication of what the weather will be like:

https://www.holiday-weather.com/agadir/averages/february/

 

[vafoodie]

In late Feb/early Mar 2003, we flew to Nice, France, and stayed there before moving on to Monaco, then Sorrento and Venice in Italy, before going to Paris to catch a flight home. Day trips by train/bus/boat included Avignon, Pompei, island of Capri, Positano, Amalfi.

You are my travel muse. Questions coming your way.

 

[Jenna]

The Algarve, Portugal