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Best places to travel in January

Warm escapes in Asia and the Atlantic, quiet cities in Europe, and the cheapest beds of the year if you can handle a coat.

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176
cities with good weather
37
warm enough for the beach
€13
a day, the cheapest on a shoestring

January splits travellers in two. Half head for heat: southern India, Sri Lanka’s south coast, northern Thailand and the Gulf are all in their dry, sunny peak. The other half stay in Europe and get its big cities at their quietest and cheapest, as long as they pack a jumper.

These are the best places to travel in January, picked from our city guides using each one’s month-by-month weather, how busy it gets and what a day costs on a shoestring. Every figure below comes from those guides.

🌍 The best places to travel in January

📍 Chiang Mai, Thailand

Chiang Mai, Thailand

☀️ 29° average high👥 very busy💶 about €17 a day

Northern Thailand’s cool, dry season is in full swing, with highs around 29° and clear mornings for the mountains on the edge of town. The old city’s three hundred temples, the night markets and the cooking schools are all at their most pleasant. It is peak season, so it’s busy, but a shoestring day still comes in at about €17, which makes it one of the best-value warm escapes of the month.

Read the full Chiang Mai guide

📍 Galle, Sri Lanka

Galle, Sri Lanka

☀️ 30° average high👥 very busy💶 about €20 a day

The south coast of Sri Lanka is dry and at its peak in January, at around 30°. Galle’s seventeenth-century Dutch fort is made for sunset walks along the ramparts, with cafés and guesthouses inside the walls and beaches along the coast. Budget about €20 a day on a shoestring, and book ahead: this is the busiest time of year on this stretch of coast.

Read the full Galle guide

📍 Luang Prabang, Laos

Luang Prabang, Laos

☀️ 28° average high👥 very busy💶 about €19 a day

Cool, dry and around 28°, January is the best month for the highlight of Laos. Gilded temples, saffron-robed monks at dawn and French bakeries fill a peninsula where the Mekong and the Nam Khan meet, with turquoise waterfalls a short ride away. It’s peak season and very busy, but at about €19 a day it stays one of the cheapest places on this list.

Read the full Luang Prabang guide

📍 Hampi, India

Hampi, India

☀️ 30° average high👥 very busy💶 about €15 a day

Hampi’s peak season, at about 30°, is the time to explore the ruins of a medieval capital scattered across a landscape of giant boulders, rice paddies and a river. There’s a long-staying traveller scene and some of the best bouldering in Asia. At around €15 a day on a shoestring, it’s among the cheapest destinations in all our guides.

Read the full Hampi guide

📍 Jaipur, India

Jaipur, India

☀️ 22° average high👥 very busy💶 about €20 a day

Jaipur hosts its Literature Festival in January, and at about 22° it’s comfortable for walking between the Palace of Winds, the hilltop fort and the bazaars, which are the best in India for crafts. It’s very busy, and still cheap: about €20 a day on a shoestring.

Read the full Jaipur guide

📍 Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

☀️ 24° average high👥 very busy💶 about €39 a day

Dubai’s peak season comes with highs of about 24°, a world away from its summer heat. Ride a wooden boat across the old creek for a dirham, wander the gold and spice souks, then finish on the beach strip. It’s busy and pricier than most of this list, at about €39 a day on a shoestring.

Read the full Dubai guide

📍 Muscat, Oman

Muscat, Oman

☀️ 25° average high👥 very busy💶 about €50 a day

Muscat Nights brings festival evenings to the capital in January, with highs around 25°. The low, white city strung along the coast has one of the most beautiful mosques in the world, an old souq on the corniche, and wadis and forts within a couple of hours. Plan on about €50 a day on a shoestring.

Read the full Muscat guide

📍 Málaga, Spain

Málaga, Spain

☀️ 17° average high👥 fairly busy💶 about €48 a day

If you want Europe without the cold, Málaga’s January highs of about 17° are as mild as the mainland gets. Picasso’s birthplace has a Moorish fortress above the port, a city beach and more than thirty museums, and the Caminito del Rey is within reach. It’s moderately busy and costs about €48 a day on a shoestring.

Read the full Málaga guide

🏖️ Best places for a beach trip in January

Our guides with a beach, a good beach-weather high in January, and the most hostels first.

  1. 1PhuketThailand32°, very busy
  2. 2Ho Chi Minh CityVietnam32°, very busy
  3. 3Hoi AnVietnam25°, fairly busy
  4. 4DubaiUnited Arab Emirates24°, very busy
  5. 5GoaIndia32°, very busy
  6. 6Koh TaoThailand29°, fairly busy

💸 Cheapest places to travel in January

Good weather in January and the lowest shoestring budget, from each city guide’s own costs table.

  1. 1VaranasiIndia€13 a day
  2. 2PushkarIndia€13 a day
  3. 3AmritsarIndia€13 a day
  4. 4KolkataIndia€14 a day
  5. 5HanoiVietnam€15 a day
  6. 6VientianeLaos€15 a day

🤫 Quietest places to visit in January

Good weather and quiet or very quiet in January, going by each guide’s month-by-month table.

  1. 1BarcelonaSpain14°, very quiet
  2. 2RomeItaly12°, very quiet
  3. 3LisbonPortugal15°, very quiet
  4. 4PortoPortugal14°, very quiet
  5. 5AthensGreece13°, very quiet
  6. 6NaplesItaly13°, very quiet

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All the best places to travel in January

Every city here has good weather in January. Narrow it down by budget and kind of trip.

What's your daily budget?
Any budgetUnder €40€40–70€70+
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Any tripCity breakAdventureBeachLakes & riversNightlifeFoodCultureRoad trip

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Questions travellers ask

Where is warm in January?
Southern India, Sri Lanka's south coast, northern Thailand, Laos and the Gulf are all warm and dry. Chiang Mai, Galle, Hampi and Goa sit around 29 to 32°, while Dubai and Muscat are a more comfortable 24 to 25°.
Where is cheap to travel in January?
Hampi (about €15 a day on a shoestring), Chiang Mai (€17), Luang Prabang (€19) and Galle (€20) are the cheapest warm options. In Europe, January is the cheapest month for beds in cities like Lisbon, Rome, Athens and Prague.
Is January a good time to visit Europe?
For cities, yes, if you don't mind the cold. It's the quietest and cheapest month in Lisbon, Rome, Athens, Paris and Berlin. For warmth, Málaga and Tenerife are the mildest, at about 17 and 21°.
Is January a good time to visit Southeast Asia?
Yes, for the north and the mainland. Chiang Mai, Luang Prabang and Siem Reap are in their cool, dry season. Bali and the Gili Islands, on the other hand, are in their wet season.
What festivals are on in January?
Jaipur's Literature Festival, Muscat Nights in Oman and the Biennale season in Kochi all fall in January, according to our city guides.
Is January a good month to travel solo?
It's one of the best. Peak season in places like Chiang Mai, Hampi and Luang Prabang means hostels are full of other travellers, and Hostelworld's Hostel Chat lets you join your hostel's group 48 hours before check-in.
Where should I go in January for the northern lights?
Reykjavik, Tromsø and Rovaniemi all have strong aurora seasons in January. Expect daytime highs below freezing in Tromsø and Rovaniemi, and very short days.
How do you choose the best places to travel in January?
Every pick comes from one of our city guides, using its month-by-month table (average high, how busy it gets and a note on the month) and its shoestring budget. The finder below applies the same data to every guide we have.
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