Where the height of the northern summer is still mild enough for a long day on foot. Of 244 towns and cities that draw visitors in South America, 116 rate Good or better in July. These 15 are the best of them, spread across the region.
Where to go
- 195 · IdealAntofagastaChile
Rated 95 (Ideal) for active outdoors in July: midday feels like 12°C, with partly cloudy skies. It rates Good or better all year, not just now. Rain is rare at this time of year. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 287 · IdealCuscoPeru
A typical midday in July feels like 14°C, and the Active outdoors rating averages 87 over the stretch. This is not a short window: it rates Good or better all year. See mid July on the map.
- 387 · IdealArequipaPeru
Midday in July feels like 14°C under mostly clear skies, which rates 87, Ideal, for active outdoors. It rates Good or better all year, not just now. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 486 · IdealChincha AltaPeru
Rated 86 (Ideal) for active outdoors in July: midday feels like 17°C, with often cloudy skies. Good weather here runs from late April to mid December, so there is room either side. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid July on the map.
- 585 · IdealCalderaChile
A typical midday in July feels like 12°C, and the Active outdoors rating averages 85 over the stretch. It rates Good or better all year, not just now. Rain is rare at this time of year. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 684 · IdealCoquimboChile
Midday in July feels like 11°C under partly cloudy skies, which rates 84, Ideal, for active outdoors. This is not a short window: it rates Good or better all year. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid July on the map.
- 781 · IdealIbarraEcuador
Rated 81 (Ideal) for active outdoors in July: midday feels like 15°C, with often cloudy skies. It rates Good or better all year, not just now. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 881 · IdealCuencaEcuador
A typical midday in July feels like 14°C, and the Active outdoors rating averages 81 over the stretch. This is not a short window: it rates Good or better all year. See mid July on the map.
- 979 · GoodTramandaíBrazil
A typical midday in July feels like 15°C, and the Active outdoors rating averages 79 over the stretch. The good spell lasts about six and a half months, from May to early November. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 1077 · GoodCuritibaBrazil
Midday in July feels like 17°C under partly cloudy skies, which rates 77, Good, for active outdoors. Good weather here runs from mid May to early September, so there is room either side. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid July on the map.
- 1177 · GoodZipaquiráColombia
A typical midday in July feels like 17°C, and the Active outdoors rating averages 77 over the stretch. This is not a short window: it rates Good or better all year. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid July on the map.
- 1277 · GoodResendeBrazil
Rated 77 (Good) for active outdoors in July: midday feels like 19°C, with often cloudy skies. The good spell lasts about three and a half months, from mid May to August. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 1372 · GoodLa FaldaArgentina
Rated 72 (Good) for active outdoors in July: midday feels like 12°C, with partly cloudy skies. Good weather here runs from April to mid October, so there is room either side. Rain is rare at this time of year. See mid July on the map.
- 1470 · GoodFederaciónArgentina
Midday in July feels like 13°C under partly cloudy skies, which rates 70, Good, for active outdoors. The good spell lasts about five and a half months, from May to early October. Open it on the map at mid July.
- 1560 · GoodPinamarArgentina
Rated 60 (Good) for active outdoors in July: midday feels like 8°C, with often cloudy skies. Good weather here runs from mid July to early December, so there is room either side. See mid July 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 July; a city missing a reading for any part of that stretch is left out rather than scored on part of it.
The rating
Active outdoors: A mild feels-like gates the score — best 10–20 °C, cool enough for hiking, cycling and running. Dryness matters most, with a penalty for strong wind. 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 places that draw visitors
Towns and cities with plenty of hotels, guest houses and holiday lets nearby for their size, or a great many of them in all, counted from Overture Maps Places, an open dataset. That keeps out places the weather favours but nobody travels to. Where two places share one resort or city, the one a visitor would name is kept.
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.