Where to Travel in August
Sri Lanka, Austria and Canada among 90 destinations in their best season this August.
Go where August is quiet.
August rewards contrarians. While half the world heads for the same coastline, the other half of the map is at its most interesting — high altitude, far latitude, and the places whose season is only just beginning. The best August journeys are the ones nobody else booked.
90 published destinations name August in their own best-time guidance. Each card links to that destination's page, where the season is described in full.
Where to go in August
In their own words, from each destination's best-time guidance.
Asia in August
The widest range of journeys on the map, and the most seasons to plan around. 36 destinations name August in their own best-time guidance.
KyrgyzstanThe only reliable window for the high country. Passes are open, families are on the jailoo, Song-Kul is reachable, and the trekking routes are clear of snow. July and August are the peak of the pasture season and the months for the traditional horse games. Nights at altitude are cold in any of these months.Explore Kyrgyzstan →
MongoliaThe season. Grassland is green from June, tracks are passable, ger camps are open and households are on their summer pastures. July brings Naadam — wrestling, archery and horse racing — which is the single busiest and most rewarding week of the year. Nights are cold in every one of these months.Explore Mongolia →
TajikistanThe only dependable window for the Pamir Highway and for trekking in the Fann Mountains. Passes are open, homestays are running and the high valleys are reachable. July and August are the warmest; nights are cold at altitude in every one of these months.Explore Tajikistan →Journeys to inspire you
Published journeys in the destinations whose own best-time guidance names August.
5 NightsSri Lanka Classic, 5 NightsPlan this journey →
8 NightsPrague, Vienna & Budapest — 8 NightsPlan this journey →
6 NightsCanadian Rockies to Vancouver: Banff, the Icefield and Jasper, 6 NightsPlan this journey →
9 NightsScandinavian Capitals & the Fjords — 9 NightsPlan this journey →
7 NightsBaltic Capitals: Tallinn, Riga & Vilnius — 7 NightsPlan this journey →
6 NightsFinnish Lapland & the Northern Lights — 6 NightsPlan this journey →What are you in the mood for?
A month tells you when. This tells you what kind of journey it should be.
Europe in August
Cities, coastlines and countryside within easy reach of one another. 23 destinations name August in their own best-time guidance.
DenmarkThe reason to come. Daylight stretches deep into the evening, harbour swimming opens, Tivoli and the coast are at their best, and the whole country moves outdoors. Warm rather than hot, and the busiest and priciest season.Explore Denmark →EstoniaThe obvious answer. Light until nearly midnight around midsummer, the islands and coast open, Pärnu's beach season running and Tallinn's courtyards full. Warm rather than hot, and the busiest and priciest weeks — Jaanipäev at midsummer is the biggest date in the calendar.Explore Estonia →
FinlandThe reason most people come. Helsinki lives outdoors and on the water; the lake district is warm enough to swim and is where Finns themselves go; the archipelago ferries run at full frequency. North of the Arctic Circle the sun does not properly set for weeks. Warm rather than hot, mosquito-prone inland, and the busiest and priciest months.Explore Finland →Africa in August
Where the landscape is the itinerary. 16 destinations name August in their own best-time guidance.
UgandaThe main window. Forest trails are firmer for gorilla and chimpanzee trekking, park roads are passable, and savanna game concentrates. Permits for these dates are the first to go.Explore Uganda →
South AfricaThe dry winter. Vegetation thins, animals concentrate at water and game viewing is at its most reliable. Mornings are genuinely cold in open vehicles. This is also whale season on the Western Cape coast.Explore South Africa →
TanzaniaClear skies, thinning grass and animals gathered at water — the easiest game viewing of the year. The migration is in the northern Serengeti and the Mara river crossings run from about July. Kilimanjaro is at its driest. Also the busiest and most expensive months, and camps in the north fill early.Explore Tanzania →South America in August
Altitude, coastline and cities worth the long flight. 6 destinations name August in their own best-time guidance.
BrazilThe clear choice for wildlife. As the wetland dries, animals concentrate around the remaining water and jaguar sightings become far more likely.Explore Brazil →
PeruThe dependable window: clear mornings, cold nights and the best chance of the view you came for. It is also the busiest, so entry tickets and trains are booked furthest ahead. The shoulder weeks in April and October are quieter and often still fine.Explore Peru →
BoliviaThe reliable window. Clear skies over the altiplano, roads and tracks at their best, and the Uyuni salt flat firm and drivable across its full extent. Nights at altitude are genuinely cold — this is the southern winter and Bolivia is very high — so pack for it rather than for a tropical trip.Explore Bolivia →Oceania in August
The far side of the world, keeping its own calendar. 5 destinations name August in their own best-time guidance.
French PolynesiaHumpback whales come north to the warm water to calve and can be watched, and in regulated groups swum with, off Moorea and Tahiti. September and October combine the whales with the tail of the dry season and slightly fewer visitors.Explore French Polynesia →
FijiLower humidity, cooler nights, calm seas for the island crossings and the clearest water of the year for snorkelling and diving. Manta rays move through the Yasawas. This is when Fiji is at its best, and May and June coincide with the Indian school holidays.Explore Fiji →
Cook IslandsThe southern winter, and the clear window. Lower humidity, less rain, calmer seas and the best lagoon visibility. Humpback whales pass close inshore through roughly July to October, which is a genuine reason to choose the middle of this period.Explore Cook Islands →North America in August
Big country, and the road trips that make sense of it. 4 destinations name August in their own best-time guidance.
Costa RicaResplendent quetzals are most reliably seen in the cloud forest from about February to April, in the breeding season. Green turtles nest at Tortuguero from July to October. If a particular animal is the point of the trip, its season sets the dates.Explore Costa Rica →
United StatesThe only season for Yellowstone, Glacier and Alaska, with long daylight and every road open. It is also peak season everywhere, hurricane season begins in Florida, and the Southwest deserts and inner canyon are dangerously hot. Book the park lodges the year before.Explore United States →
MexicoHot and humid on the coasts, with afternoon downpours in the capital and the highlands that usually clear by evening. Ruins are green and empty, prices are lower, and Oaxaca's Guelaguetza dance festival falls in July. The trade-off is the Caribbean: hurricane season runs June to November, heaviest from August to October, and seaweed can arrive on the beaches in summer.Explore Mexico →
Plan your journey
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Plan My Journey →Photo credits · Sadheen · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Adam Harangozó via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Jonashtand via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Maadhil · File:Historical Sigiriya Rock.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Mikkoau · File:Sofiankatu Helsinki.jpg · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Dietmar Rabich · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Draceane · File:Machu Picchu, 2023 (113).jpg · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0 (licence, source) · Pavel Špindler via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 3.0 (licence) · Christopher Johnson via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 (licence, source)