Best places to travel in July

July is the month for the Mediterranean. The sea is warm, the evenings are long and every island and beach town is in full swing. It’s also peak season, so the trick is choosing well: the right island, the cheaper coast, or a city with a festival worth the crowds.

These are the best places to travel in July, picked from our city guides using their own weather, crowds and daily costs. Book beds early: most of these call July peak season.

🌍 The best places to travel in July

📍 Naxos, Greece

☀️ 28° average high👥 very busy💶 about €44 a day

July is peak season on Naxos, at about 28°, with the Meltemi winds blowing. The biggest of the Cyclades still farms, with long sandy beaches, marble mountain villages and proper food, without the Santorini mark-up. A shoestring day is about €44.

📍 Chania, Greece

☀️ 31° average high👥 very busy💶 about €46 a day

Chania is the prettiest town on Crete and at its busiest in July, at about 31°, so our guide says book ahead. A Venetian harbour and an old town of Ottoman and Jewish lanes sit within two hours of the wildest beaches on the island. Budget about €46 a day on a shoestring.

📍 Lagos, Portugal

☀️ 28° average high👥 very busy💶 about €36 a day

Gold cliffs, hidden coves you reach by kayak and the busiest backpacker town on the Algarve: Lagos in July is hot and full, at about 28°. Book weeks ahead. At about €36 a day on a shoestring, it’s one of the cheaper beach towns in western Europe.

📍 Porto, Portugal

☀️ 25° average high👥 very busy💶 about €38 a day

If you want summer without the heat, Porto in July is warm and busy rather than scorching, at about 25°. Granite, tiles and port cellars stacked up both banks of the river gorge make it a great city break. Book ahead. A shoestring day is about €38.

📍 Split, Croatia

☀️ 30° average high👥 busy💶 about €44 a day

Split is hot and full in July, at about 30°, with the Ultra festival mid-month. Around three thousand people still live inside Diocletian’s Roman palace, and the ferries to every Dalmatian island leave from the end of the street. Budget about €44 a day.

📍 Palermo, Italy

☀️ 31° average high👥 very busy💶 about €45 a day

July brings the feast of Santa Rosalia to Palermo, at a very hot 31°. Arab-Norman churches glitter with gold, the street markets feel like North Africa and the street food is the best in Italy. Plan on about €45 a day on a shoestring.

📍 San Sebastián, Spain

☀️ 24° average high👥 busy💶 about €63 a day

Jazzaldia, the jazz festival, takes over San Sebastián in July, and at about 24° it’s one of the most comfortable beach cities in Europe. The shell-shaped bay, the pintxos bars of the old town and more great cooking per head than almost anywhere come at a price: about €63 a day on a shoestring.

📍 Sarandë, Albania

☀️ 31° average high👥 busy💶 about €26 a day

The Albanian Riviera is hot and filling up in July, at about 31°, and prices are climbing, but at about €26 a day on a shoestring it’s still the cheapest beach pick of the month. Corfu is across the water and the ruins of Butrint are down the coast.

🏖️ Best places for a beach trip in July

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

1. 1PhuketThailand31°, quiet
2. 2Ho Chi Minh CityVietnam32°, quiet
3. 3GoaIndia29°, very quiet
4. 4Koh TaoThailand32°, busy
5. 5CangguIndonesia30°, very busy
6. 6Koh SamuiThailand32°, busy

🎉 Best places for nightlife in July

Our nightlife guides with good weather in July.

1. 1BangkokThailand33°, quiet
2. 2HanoiVietnam33°, quiet
3. 3Ho Chi Minh CityVietnam32°, quiet
4. 4BarcelonaSpain29°, very busy
5. 5RomeItaly31°, very busy
6. 6ParisFrance25°, very busy

💸 Cheapest places to travel in July

Good weather in July and the lowest shoestring budget.

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