Early-summer heat before the crowds and before the worst of it. Of 108 seaside holiday towns and cities in North America, 43 rate Good or better in May. These eight are the best of them, spread across the region.
Where to go
- 176 · GoodSarasotaFlorida, United States
A typical midday in May feels like 29°C, and the Sunbathing rating averages 76 over the stretch. The good spell lasts about two and a half months, from mid April to mid June. Open it on the map at mid May.
- 273 · GoodKapaaHawaii, United States
Midday in May feels like 27°C under partly cloudy skies, which rates 73, Good, for sunbathing. Good weather here runs from late March to early December, so there is room either side. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid May on the map.
- 372 · GoodVero BeachFlorida, United States
Midday in May feels like 29°C under partly cloudy skies, which rates 72, Good, for sunbathing. The good spell lasts about two months, from late April to mid June. Open it on the map at mid May.
- 472 · GoodKey WestFlorida, United States
Rated 72 (Good) for sunbathing in May: midday feels like 30°C, with partly cloudy skies. Good weather here runs from April to mid June, so there is room either side. See mid May on the map.
- 567 · GoodRockportTexas, United States
Midday in May feels like 29°C under partly cloudy skies, which rates 67, Good, for sunbathing. Open it on the map at mid May.
- 666 · GoodHonoluluHawaii, United States
Rated 66 (Good) for sunbathing in May: midday feels like 26°C, with often cloudy skies. Good weather here runs from mid April to early December, so there is room either side. See mid May on the map.
- 761 · GoodLa PorteTexas, United States
Rated 61 (Good) for sunbathing in May: midday feels like 29°C, with partly cloudy skies. Open it on the map at mid May.
- 858 · GoodKahuluiHawaii, United States
A typical midday in May feels like 26°C, and the Sunbathing rating averages 58 over the stretch. Good weather here runs from mid May to early December, so there is room either side. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid May on the map.
How this list is worked out
The data
Every figure comes from a decade of weather-station observations, blended into one typical year and read at midday, local solar time. Scores here are averaged in May; a city missing a reading for any part of that stretch is left out rather than scored on part of it.
The rating
Sunbathing: Warm feels-like gates the score — best 26–32 °C. Dry air, light wind and clear skies each lift it; none alone rules it out. A place is also left out when its typical readings contradict its own rating, for example a high score alongside frequent rain.
The spread
To keep one warm corner from filling the list, entries are at least 150 km apart, no more than three sit within 1,000 km of each other, and no more than three come from one country unless the list would otherwise run short.
Only seaside places
Towns and cities within 12 km of the coast, with beaches and plenty of hotels, resorts and holiday lets within 10 km for their size. That keeps out hot inland towns and busy ports that nobody visits for the beach. Places to stay are counted from Overture Maps Places, an open dataset, so a resort missing there is missing here.
The dotted links open the map at that place and time of year, on the same layer. The map remembers the time of day you last chose there; set it to midday to see these exact numbers.