Where to Travel in May
Antigua and Barbuda, Belarus and Bulgaria among 101 destinations in their best season this May.
The last quiet month before summer.
May is the connoisseur’s summer: warm enough to swim, empty enough to enjoy it, and green in a way that August never quite manages. Cities are at their most walkable and the high country is open again. A month to go where July would be impossible.
101 published destinations name May 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 May
In their own words, from each destination's best-time guidance.
Asia in May
The widest range of journeys on the map, and the most seasons to plan around. 34 destinations name May in their own best-time guidance.
TurkeyThe best all-round window. Istanbul is mild, Cappadocia is green and the balloon mornings are calm, the ruins at Ephesus and Hierapolis are walkable without heat, and the coast is warm without being crowded. April brings tulips to Istanbul’s parks.Explore Turkey →
UzbekistanMild days, green landscapes and comfortable walking weather in cities where almost everything is done on foot. Navruz, the spring new year, falls in late March and is worth catching.Explore Uzbekistan →
AzerbaijanThe strongest window. Baku is comfortable for walking, the foothills around Sheki are green, and the mountain roads to Khinalig and the higher villages are opening. Late spring is the best time to combine the Caspian and the Caucasus in a single trip.Explore Azerbaijan →Journeys to inspire you
Published journeys in the destinations whose own best-time guidance names May.
6 NightsBeijing & Shanghai, 6 NightsPlan this journey →
8 NightsPrague, Vienna & Budapest — 8 NightsPlan this journey →
9 NightsScandinavian Capitals & the Fjords — 9 NightsPlan this journey →
7 NightsBaltic Capitals: Tallinn, Riga & Vilnius — 7 NightsPlan this journey →
14 NightsGrand European Circuit — 14 NightsPlan this journey →
6 NightsAthens & Santorini — 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 May
Cities, coastlines and countryside within easy reach of one another. 31 destinations name May in their own best-time guidance.
BulgariaWarm without being hot, the mountains green and the passes open, the Valley of the Roses in harvest and Plovdiv and Veliko Tarnovo comfortable to walk all day. This is the window if the monasteries, the tombs and the old towns are why you are coming.Explore Bulgaria →Czech RepublicWarm without being hot, long daylight, gardens and castle grounds open, and noticeably fewer people than midsummer. If you have a free choice, take these.Explore Czech Republic →
DenmarkLong days without peak crowds or peak prices. May brings gardens and beech woods into leaf; September keeps the light and adds the first of the autumn starling flocks in the Wadden Sea.Explore Denmark →Africa in May
Where the landscape is the itinerary. 18 destinations name May in their own best-time guidance.
AlgeriaThe best of the north. The Tell and the coast are green, wildflowers are out across the Roman sites, and temperatures are ideal for walking Timgad or Djémila without shade. The far south is heating up quickly by late April.Explore Algeria →
MoroccoWarm days in the cities, snow still on the Atlas behind Marrakech, wildflowers in the valleys and comfortable nights in the desert. The busiest season for good reason. Check the Ramadan dates — in 2027 it falls in February and March, and daytime cafés and some restaurants close outside the hotels.Explore Morocco →
Cabo VerdeSettled, clear and warm, with the wind easing and the haze less likely. For most travellers this is the best all-round window: good for walking, good for the water, and comfortable on every island. Sea temperatures climb steadily through this period.Explore Cabo Verde →South America in May
Altitude, coastline and cities worth the long flight. 7 destinations name May in their own best-time guidance.
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 →
EcuadorThe warm and wetter season: hotter air, warmer and calmer water, the best snorkelling conditions and green islands. Brief heavy showers rather than all-day rain. This is the easier half of the year for anyone prone to seasickness.Explore Ecuador →North America in May
Big country, and the road trips that make sense of it. 6 destinations name May in their own best-time guidance.
United StatesWashington's cherry blossom in late March and early April, Yosemite's waterfalls at full force in May, and the Southwest canyons at comfortable temperatures before the summer heat. New York is mild and the parks are not yet crowded. The best window for a first trip that mixes cities and landscape.Explore United States →
Trinidad and TobagoThe best window: least rain, easiest road and forest conditions, clearest water off Tobago and the best birding light. Carnival falls in February or March and is the busiest and most expensive week of the year by a wide margin — book accommodation months out or deliberately avoid it.Explore Trinidad and Tobago →
CanadaCherry blossom in Vancouver in April, maple sugar shacks in Québec, and Niagara at full volume with the snowmelt. The Rockies are still thawing — Moraine Lake Road usually opens only around June — so spring suits the cities and the west coast rather than the mountains.Explore Canada →Oceania in May
The far side of the world, keeping its own calendar. 5 destinations name May in their own best-time guidance.
AustraliaThe best all-round months. Sydney and Melbourne are warm without being hot, the Reef is calm, and the desert is comfortable. Spring brings whales along the east coast, wildflowers in Western Australia and jacarandas in Sydney around October and November. Diwali falls squarely in this window.Explore Australia →
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 →
French PolynesiaThe most comfortable months — lower humidity, trade-wind breezes and the clearest lagoon water. July and August are the peak, with Heiva i Tahiti filling Papeete with dance and drumming through the first half of July, and the humpback whales arrive off Moorea from July. Book earliest for this window.Explore French Polynesia →
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