The easiest time to travel in Africa south of the Sahara is from August to mid June: most of its destinations are comfortable to be outside then. Below, the best places for each month, and every country’s own seasons, across 52 countries and 68 destinations.
Month by month
For each month, the best places in Africa south of the Sahara 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: Sal Rei, Swakopmund, Bethlehem. Sun: Bakau, Grand Baie, Durban.
- February — Being outside: Naivasha, Bethlehem, Sal Rei. Sun: Durban, Grand Baie, Malindi. Walking: Sal Rei.
- March — Being outside: Nairobi, Johannesburg, Sal Rei. Sun: Bakau, Grand Baie, Durban. Walking: Sal Rei, Bethlehem.
- April — Being outside: Windhoek, Vereeniging, Sal Rei. Sun: Bel Air, Bakau, Maputo. Walking: Bethlehem, Hermanus, Antananarivo.
- May — Being outside: Naivasha, Windhoek, Livingstone. Sun: Bakau, Bel Air. Walking: Johannesburg, Windhoek, Antananarivo.
- June — Being outside: Nanyuki, Grand Baie, Ndola. Sun: Victoria. Walking: Windhoek, Antananarivo, Pretoria.
- July — Being outside: Port Louis, Nanyuki, Maputo. Sun: Victoria, Abidjan, Sal Rei. Walking: Windhoek, Antananarivo, Polokwane.
- August — Being outside: Grand Baie, Nanyuki, Richards Bay. Sun: Victoria, Abidjan, Malindi. Walking: Johannesburg, Windhoek, Nairobi.
- September — Being outside: Grand Baie, Naivasha, Windhoek. Sun: Victoria, Abidjan, Sal Rei. Walking: Antananarivo, Hermanus, Swakopmund.
- October — Being outside: Nanyuki, Grand Baie, Swakopmund. Sun: Victoria. Walking: George, Swakopmund, Nairobi.
- November — Being outside: Swakopmund, Knysna, Antananarivo. Sun: Bel Air, Victoria, Sal Rei. Walking: George, Swakopmund.
- December — Being outside: Swakopmund, George, Sal Rei. Sun: Bel Air, Victoria, Bakau. Walking: Swakopmund, George.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angola | Jun to mid Sep | late Sep to Oct | varies by place |
| Benin | rarely good | early Aug | rarely good |
| Botswana | mid Jul to mid Oct | mid Oct to Mar | May to Aug |
| Burkina Faso | late Dec to early Feb | Feb | rarely good |
| Burundi | mid Jun to early Sep | Aug to early Oct | rarely good |
| Cabo Verde | mid Nov to early Jul | Jul to mid Nov | mid Jan to Mar |
| Cameroon | varies by place | mid Jul | rarely good |
| Central African Republic | varies by place | late Dec to Jan | rarely good |
| Chad | varies by place | Dec to early Feb | rarely good |
| Comoros | rarely good | mid May to mid Nov | rarely good |
| Congo (Brazzaville) | varies by place | late May to early Oct | rarely good |
| Congo (Kinshasa) | late Jul | Jun to mid Aug | rarely good |
| Côte d'Ivoire | rarely good | Jul to early Sep | rarely good |
| Djibouti | rarely good | mid Nov to early Apr | rarely good |
| Equatorial Guinea | rarely good | mid Jun to mid Oct | rarely good |
| Eritrea | mid Jun to mid Sep | mid to late Mar | late Jun to mid Sep |
| Ethiopia | all year | varies by place | varies by place |
| Gabon | varies by place | late May to early Dec | rarely good |
| Ghana | rarely good | mid Jul to Aug | rarely good |
| Guinea | rarely good | mid Dec to early Feb | rarely good |
| Guinea-Bissau | rarely good | mid Dec to Feb | rarely good |
| Kenya | all year | varies by place | mid Jun to early Sep |
| Lesotho | Sep to mid May | rarely good | mid Mar to early Dec |
| Liberia | rarely good | Jul to Aug | rarely good |
| Madagascar | late May to Sep | early Dec | varies by place |
| Malawi | May to mid Sep | late Oct to mid Dec | late Jun to Jul |
| Mali | late Jan to early Feb | mid Nov to Feb | rarely good |
| Mauritania | mid Nov to early Mar | mid Oct to early Nov | mid Dec to early Feb |
| Mauritius | May to Nov | late Oct to mid May | late Jun to Sep |
| Mayotte | rarely good | mid May to mid Nov | rarely good |
| Mozambique | Jun to early Sep | late Apr to May | varies by place |
| Namibia | late Sep to early Sep | mid Oct to mid Mar | Jun to early Sep |
| Niger | Dec to mid Feb | Nov | late Dec to early Jan |
| Nigeria | varies by place | late Jul to mid Aug | rarely good |
| Reunion | mid May to early Nov | mid Nov to mid Jan | late Jun to early Jul |
| Rwanda | all year | rarely good | mid Jul |
| Saint Helena, Ascension, and Tristan da Cunha | late Nov to Jun | rarely good | all year |
| Sao Tome and Principe | rarely good | late May to mid Oct | rarely good |
| Senegal | late Jan to early Feb | mid Nov to early Jan | rarely good |
| Seychelles | rarely good | late May to Feb | rarely good |
| Sierra Leone | rarely good | mid Jun to mid Sep | rarely good |
| Somalia | mid Dec to mid Feb | mid Sep to mid Dec | varies by place |
| South Africa | mid Aug to May | varies by place | Apr to early Oct |
| South Sudan | rarely good | Apr to mid Mar | rarely good |
| Sudan | Dec to Feb | Nov to early Dec | early Jan |
| Swaziland | mid Apr to mid Oct | late Jan to mid Feb | late May to Aug |
| Tanzania | mid May to Sep | mid to late Sep | varies by place |
| The Gambia | late Jan to mid Feb | mid Dec to mid Jun | rarely good |
| Togo | rarely good | late Jul to early Aug | rarely good |
| Uganda | late May to mid Oct | all year | rarely good |
| Zambia | mid Apr to early Sep | mid Sep to Dec | mid Jun to Jul |
| Zimbabwe | mid Nov to mid Oct | late Oct to early Nov | May to early Sep |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cape Town | South Africa | Oct to early Jun | at best fair | late Mar to early Dec |
| Nairobi | Kenya | all year | rarely good | May to Sep |
| Johannesburg | South Africa | mid Aug to May | at best fair | late Mar to early Oct |
| Kampala | Uganda | Apr to mid Oct | all year | rarely good |
| Lagos | Nigeria | rarely good | mid Jul to early Sep | rarely good |
| Pretoria | South Africa | mid Aug to May | mid Feb | Apr to early Oct |
| Durban | South Africa | Apr to mid Dec | late Dec to Mar | Jun to mid Oct |
| Bloemfontein | South Africa | late Aug to May | mid Dec to early Mar | Apr to early Oct |
| Port Elizabeth | South Africa | Oct to mid Jun | at best fair | Apr to mid Dec |
| East London | South Africa | Oct to mid Jul | at best fair | late Apr to early Dec |
| Addis Ababa | Ethiopia | all year | rarely good | all year |
| Abidjan | Côte d'Ivoire | rarely good | mid Jun to mid Oct | rarely good |
| Gaborone | Botswana | mid Jul to mid Oct | late Oct to Mar | May to Aug |
| Harare | Zimbabwe | mid Nov to mid Oct | late Feb to mid Mar | May to early Sep |
| Kigali | Rwanda | all year | at best fair | Jul |
| Arusha | Tanzania | Apr to mid Nov | Dec to Mar | late May to early Sep |
Rankings for Africa south of the Sahara
Best places for sun in FebruaryThe late-winter escape: where February is reliably warm and bright.Clear skies and warmth in FebruaryThe least cloud anywhere that also feels warm at midday in February.August without the heatComfortable, dry August days in places that do not feel hotter than 26°C.Cool enough to walk in JulyWhere the height of the northern summer is still mild enough for a long day on foot.Best cities for a break in AprilBig cities where April is comfortable for a day on foot between sights.Best cities for a break in OctoberBig cities where October is mild and dry enough to be outside all day.Places that are pleasant most of the yearThe cities with the most weeks a year of comfortable, dry weather for being outdoors.
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.