Safe Locations with Nice Weather All Year Round
If you’re looking to buy a vacation home or find a new favorite travel spot that you can visit year-round, you want to find a place that will have pleasant weather whenever you visit. We crunched millions of lines of NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) temperature data worldwide from the last 10 years to find places that are, on average, always pleasant. We filtered out places where it’s too hot, cold, and rainy, then used US and Canadian travel advisories and Expedia accommodation data to recommend locations that are safe and friendly for tourists and visitors.
#10: Nice, France
Yes, it’s Nice with a big N. Make sure to tell the locals that it’s “nice in Nice.” They’ve probably never heard that one. Summer temperatures are reliably ideal, but daily highs do drop “all the way down” to 50°F (15.5°C) in the winter weeks. Still, mid-February through early November are excellent times to visit, leaving a large window of times to travel. Being a coastal town in France means there’s plenty for visitors to do. There are more restaurants than you’d ever be able to visit, and Verdon Natural Regional Park is nearby for nature lovers. Costs are high along the coast, but nothing otherworldly compared with the surrounding area.
#9: Sardinia, Italy
A fairly large island in the Mediterranean with a long history, there are at least 5 languages spoken regularly on this island. Interestingly, most of these are local dialects, with Italian being more of a backup language for many. Locals are surprisingly tolerant of foreign languages, however, and Europeans and Americans are welcomed (unless, maybe, you’re a big fan of Donald Trump). By all accounts visiting Sardinia feels more like living there. Tourism is a big part of the economy, but the economy thrives on its own with surprisingly high earnings for Italy. Just don’t expect people to go out of their way for your needs. The larger cities fare better economically for the most part, but costs can also be quite high. Be prepared to spend an enormous amount of money on electricity, for example. There are plenty of nice beaches, interesting towns, and things to see in nature (if you’re willing to brave narrow canyon roads).
#8: Hawaii, USA
When you picture ideal, tropical weather, Hawaii might be the first on your list. It is truly pleasant, but can actually be uncomfortably hot in the summer months, even where rain is rarely an issue. Your best bet for ideal weather is the small island of Lanai, where rain is almost unheard of and temperatures tend to be more moderate. Unfortunately, Lanai is 97% owned by a single person. His name is Larry, and he won’t let you build a house on Lanai. He will let you visit the resorts that pay him dearly to build there, though. (We’re not making this up.) For those who like nature, want to spend less, and don’t mind a lack of high-end restaurants and accommodations, the northern part of the big island (places like Kamuela) is for you. Next on the list weather-wise would have to be northern Oahu. Places like Laie and Haleiwa can be affordable, and infrequent rain and more moderate temperatures make them even more temperate than most of Hawaii. If high-end attractions are your thing, though, there are always places like Wailea, Honolulu, or Lahaina. All of these places still have nice weather, albeit with longer warm seasons or higher chances of rain, but the resorts and restaurants can’t be beat.
#7: Gibraltar
For weather and safety, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that the northern coast of the Mediterranean is over-represented. Gibraltar is rich in history, but it’s also a pretty decent place to live for snowbirds. The country is small, but allows excellent access to the ocean, the Mediterranean, and southern Spain. While there you’ll of course want to see the famous Rock of Gibraltar, but there are also plenty of historical sites, ancient buildings, and castles. The geography of the region lends itself to spectacular site-seeing by the ocean, and the weather is nice for most of the year. We think April to June are the best months for weather that’s dry and neither too hot nor cold, but you can check for yourself by clicking the headline.
#6: Madeira Island
This is a small island you’ve probably never heard of to the southwest of its once-parent country, Portugal. The area is now mostly independent, though it won’t show up on a list of countries in most geography classes. Its primary city, Funchal, is safe, and by all reports feels quaint and friendly. The locals speak Portuguese, but tourist areas cater to English speakers. Temperatures are almost perfect year-round: something that’s not surprising for a city that sits at the level of the Mediterranean. The spring and fall seasons, however, do tend to have a little more rain than is pleasant. It’s rarely extreme, unless you count the 2010 severe weather event that caused mudslides and many deaths. Such occurrences, however, are unlikely to be seen again in the next several decades.
#5: Australia
Okay, putting a continent on the list is a little like cheating. But it’s surprisingly hard to pick a region of Australia to recommend. On average Australia is the most temperate country with excellent safety for tourists. It’s also massive, so the weather in the north might be too warm while weather in the south is perfect, or it might get too cold in the south while the weather on the north side is perfect. The major downsides are cost and ease of travel. Things can be expensive in Australia, and sometimes in areas where Americans don’t even think about it. Just ask an Aussie about how much they pay for their mediocre internet service. And if you have a pet you’d like to travel with you may as well cross anything Australia off your list. Still, Australia is an attractive choice being on the opposite hemisphere to most of the English-speaking world, and thus has nearly-opposite seasons (especially in southern Australia). The times you most want to get away from stormy weather in your home country might just be perfect in Australia.
#4: The Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (or Canarias) are well-known to British tourists looking for a pleasant place to stay, but most Americans couldn’t tell you which continent to look on. Located south of its parent-country Spain and West of Africa, this area has nice weather at almost any time of year. There’s plenty to do and see whether you want to tour nature or lay on the beach. It’s worth pointing out that the Canary Islands are a little more of a tourist trap than some of the other destinations listed here, perhaps due to Spain’s less-than-rigorous law enforcement in the area. But most of the dangers target your wallet more than your safety. Do be skeptical if you plan to stay here long term, and make sure to read up on some of the more common scams.
#3: San Diego and Southern California
This comes as no surprise to most people, but southern California offers clear skies with temperatures that are ideal almost all year. In fact, California has more cities with more people towards the top of the list than any other state or country. December through February can be a little cooler and wetter, but “cooler” in San Diego means highs that “only reach 67°F (19.4°C)”. There’s no lack of things to do and places to see in southern CA, either. The beaches are legendary as some of the best in the world, there are restaurant and shopping options aplenty, and pretty much anything you’d expect from a large city that caters to visitors and locals alike. The downside here, of course, is price. If you want to stay near the beach, expect to pay for the privilege. Southern California can be done on a budget – especially if you want to stay outside of the larger cities – but it’s still not an area that would make our list of “most affordable” places.
#2: Norfolk Island
With a tiny population and small geographic area, the Norfolk Islands offer a surprising variety of things to do and places to see, especially for tourists who like exploring nature. There are plenty of excellent beaches for sunbathing, snorkeling, and surfing. There are some excellent historical sites in Kingston, but tourists are often thrilled with scenic walking areas more than anything. And best of all, the weather is almost perfect year-round. Even accounting for the high humidity, year-round highs range from 65°F (18.3°C) in August (the southern hemisphere winter) to 75°F (23.9°C) the rest of the year with limited precipitation. The local population hasn’t been happy about losing its autonomy to Australia lately, but protest has been and is likely to remain peaceful. The reasonable solution will be either more control from Australia or joining New Zealand instead. Nearly everyone speaks English, but if you’re lucky you might hear bits of a language called Norfuk: a unique blend between old English and ancient Tahitian.
#1: Northwestern Chile (Iquique and Arica)
This area in Chile stands out as an inexpensive and safe area to stay with some of the best weather in the world. On average, every single week of the year is low on rain and neither too hot nor too cold. While friendly to tourists with nice beaches, the area isn’t well-known for its tourist destinations, making it best for who want to visit and relax rather than those who want to tour the sites. Note that even central Chile (e.g. Antofagasta) has excellent weather with many of the same perks. Visitors who want to speak English only may struggle communicating, however, as only 5% of the population is likely to have the English skills to hold a conversation.
Honorable Mentions
Central Chile, central California, Gibraltar, and several Italian islands deserve consideration for being among the nicest places to live in the world for weather while still being safe and friendly to tourists. Please note we’ve excluded several areas due to security concerns, primarily from the well-regarded Canadian government’s travel advisories. These include nice places in Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Kenya, Morocco, Peru, and Guatemala (among others). While the weather is excellent and the people are, for the most part, good people, we just can’t recommend that tourists stay long-term in areas where tourists (especially white English-speaking tourists) are advised to exercise a high degree of caution or to avoid travel altogether.