No month suits most of South Asia at once; the widest choice is in December, when 48% of its destinations rate Good for being outside. Below, the best places for each month, and every country’s own seasons, across seven countries and 204 destinations.
Month by month
For each month, the best places in South Asia for being outside, for sun at the seaside and for walking, read at midday and spread across the region. Each name opens the map there, in the middle of that month, on that rating.
- January — Being outside: Dhaka, Mandya, Abu. Sun: Vishākhapatnam, Trincomalee, Cox’s Bāzār. Walking: Pokhara, Lahore, Kodaikānal.
- February — Being outside: Fyzābād, Jaisalmer, Bangalore. Sun: Cox’s Bāzār, Diu, Vishākhapatnam. Walking: Sundarnagar, Kodaikānal, Thimphu.
- March — Being outside: Sundarnagar, Shillong, Hassan. Walking: Tehri, Thimphu, Kodaikānal.
- April — Being outside: Dainyor, Kodaikānal, Kathmandu. Walking: Dainyor, Thimphu, Kodaikānal.
- May — Being outside: Srīnagar, Thimphu. Walking: Leh, Thimphu, Kodaikānal.
- June — Being outside: Kodaikānal, Thimphu, Srīnagar. Walking: Leh, Kodaikānal.
- July — Being outside: Leh, Mandya, Thimphu. Walking: Leh, Kodaikānal.
- August — Being outside: Leh, Bangalore, Thimphu. Walking: Leh.
- September — Being outside: Leh, Thimphu, Mandya. Walking: Leh.
- October — Being outside: Dainyor, Thimphu, Kodaikānal. Walking: Srīnagar, Thimphu, Kodaikānal.
- November — Being outside: Lahore, Pokhara, Mandya. Sun: Puri, Māndvi. Walking: Dainyor, Thimphu, Kodaikānal.
- December — Being outside: Baharampur, Bangalore, Lahore. Sun: Cox’s Bāzār, Vishākhapatnam, Māndvi. Walking: Lahore, Kathmandu.
Country by country
Each country’s main season, where most of its cities agree. “Varies by place” means no stretch suits most of the country at once; its own guide splits it up.
| Country | Being outside | Sun | Walking |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bangladesh | mid Dec to early Feb | Feb to mid Mar | mid Jan |
| Bhutan | varies by place | varies by place | Dec to Feb |
| India | Dec | early to mid Nov | varies by place |
| Maldives | rarely good | varies by place | rarely good |
| Nepal | mid Nov to mid Mar | mid Oct to early Nov | Dec to mid Feb |
| Pakistan | Feb to mid Mar | mid to late Oct | mid Nov to Feb |
| Sri Lanka | rarely good | mid Jan | rarely good |
The best-known places
The most-visited places with a guide of their own, and each one’s main season. Each season opens the map at its peak.
| Place | Country | Being outside | Sun | Walking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bangalore | India | late Oct to Feb | Feb to early Dec | at best fair |
| Delhi | India | mid Nov to Dec | mid Oct to mid Nov | late Nov to mid Feb |
| Kolkāta | India | Dec to early Feb | Feb to early Mar | at best fair |
| Colangute | India | rarely good | mid Dec to early Feb | rarely good |
| Jaipur | India | mid Nov to early Mar | mid Oct to mid Nov | Dec to early Feb |
| Mumbai | India | at best fair | mid Nov to early Mar | rarely good |
| Kathmandu | Nepal | Feb to mid Apr | early to mid Oct | mid Nov to mid Mar |
| Pune | India | mid Dec to mid Jan | late Oct to mid Mar | rarely good |
| Hyderābād | India | mid Dec to early Jan | mid Oct to early Mar | rarely good |
| Ahmedabad | India | Dec to early Feb | mid Feb to mid Mar | at best fair |
| Chennai | India | rarely good | mid Dec to mid Feb | rarely good |
| Lucknow | India | mid Nov to early Jan | late Oct to Nov | mid Dec to early Feb |
| Udaipur | India | mid Nov to early Mar | mid Oct to Nov | mid Dec to early Feb |
| Kochi | India | rarely good | mid to late Jan | rarely good |
| Dhaka | Bangladesh | mid Dec to early Feb | mid Nov to Dec | mid Jan |
| Vārānasi | India | late Nov to Feb | late Oct to Nov | mid Dec to early Feb |
Rankings for South Asia
How this is worked out
Every figure is a decade of weather-station observations blended into one typical year, read at midday local solar time. Places are the region’s towns and cities that draw visitors, and for sun its seaside holiday places. Being outside is the Easy outdoors rating, Sun is Sunbathing and Walking is Active outdoors; a place is named for a month when it rates Good or better across the whole month.