Places to avoid in February

Cyclone season on47 places

The southern-hemisphere storm season.

• 🇫🇯 Nadi · Fiji — Cyclone season, 1 Nov – 30 Apr — The South Pacific storm season, at its most active in January and February. · instead July
  62
• 🇲🇬 Nosy Be · Madagascar — Cyclone season, 15 Dec – 31 Mar (usually) · instead July
  62
• 🇲🇬 Antananarivo · Madagascar — Cyclone season, 15 Nov – 15 Apr (usually) · instead September
  63
• 🇦🇺 Cairns · Australia — Cyclone season, 1 Nov – 30 Apr — November to April is the cyclone half of the year. · instead October
  64
• 🇦🇺 Port Douglas · Australia — Cyclone season, 1 Nov – 30 Apr — November to April brings the rain and the cyclone risk together. · instead September
  65
• 🇵🇫 Papeete · French Polynesia — Cyclone season, 1 Nov – 30 Apr — The wet season doubles as the cyclone window. · instead August
  67

…and 41 more, 11 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Monsoon on42 places

The wet season proper — heavy, daily, and the reason prices fall.

• 🇦🇺 Kakadu · Australia — Monsoon, 1 Nov – 31 May (usually) · instead July
  40
• 🇮🇩 Yogyakarta · Indonesia — Monsoon, 1 Nov – 31 Mar (usually) — Long afternoon storms roll off Merapi and the Prambanan open-air stage moves indoors for the season. · instead July
  48
• 🇳🇦 Sossusvlei · Namibia — Monsoon, 1 Jan – 31 Mar (usually) · instead July
  57
• 🇪🇨 Quito · Ecuador — Monsoon, 1 Oct – 31 May (usually) · instead August
  60
• 🇮🇩 Denpasar · Indonesia — Monsoon, 1 Dec – 15 Mar (usually) · instead August
  61
• 🇲🇬 Nosy Be · Madagascar — Monsoon, 1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually) — Heavy afternoon rain, dive visibility down and a good share of the smaller hotels closed until after Easter. · instead July
  62

…and 36 more, 24 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Extreme cold on41 places

The weeks the city stops going outside — dzud, ice storms, minus thirty.

• 🇨🇦 Winnipeg · Canada — Extreme cold, 15 Dec – 20 Feb (usually) · instead June
  34
• 🇲🇳 Ulaanbaatar · Mongolia — Extreme cold, 1 Dec – 28 Feb (usually) · instead June
  35
• 🇨🇦 Edmonton · Canada — Extreme cold, 1 Dec – 28 Feb — Arctic air settles over the city for stretches of a week and extreme cold warnings become routine. · instead August
  39
• 🇨🇦 Toronto · Canada — Extreme cold, 15 Dec – 28 Feb (usually) · instead September
  42
• 🇺🇸 Detroit · United States — Extreme cold, 10 Dec – 1 Mar (usually) — Two months of grey, freezing days with the wind coming off the lakes and a snow event most weeks. · instead September
  49
• 🇺🇸 Cleveland · United States — Extreme cold, 15 Nov – 15 Mar · instead September
  54

…and 35 more, 10 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Winter smog on32 places

Coal smoke and a valley inversion; the air, not the cold, is the problem.

• 🇵🇱 Warsaw · Poland — Winter smog, 1 Nov – 15 Mar (usually) · instead June
  49
• 🇵🇱 Kraków · Poland — Winter smog, 1 Nov – 15 Mar (usually) · instead June
  52
• 🇨🇳 Beijing · China — Winter smog, 15 Nov – 28 Feb (usually) · instead April
  59
• 🇮🇹 Milan · Italy — Winter smog, 15 Nov – 28 Feb (usually) · instead September
  66
• 🇨🇳 Shanghai · China — Winter smog, 15 Nov – 28 Feb (usually) · instead October
  66
• 🇷🇸 Belgrade · Serbia — Winter smog, 1 Nov – 15 Mar (usually) · instead May
  67

…and 26 more, 6 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Flood season on31 places

The river comes into the streets most years.

• 🇦🇺 Uluru · Australia — Flood season, 1 Dec – 15 Mar (usually) · instead July
  43
• 🇮🇩 Jakarta · Indonesia — Flood season, 1 Jan – 28 Feb (usually) — The peak of the wet season is also when the canals back up and whole districts go under for a day or two. · instead August
  48
• 🇩🇪 Hamburg · Germany — Flood season, 15 Sep – 31 Mar — The city counts its storm tide season from mid-September to the end of March. · instead August
  53
• 🇧🇷 Foz do Iguaçu · Brazil — Flood season, 1 Nov – 30 Apr (usually) · instead July
  54
• 🇺🇸 Cincinnati · United States — Flood season, 1 Feb – 15 Apr (usually) · instead September
  56
• 🇩🇪 Cologne · Germany — Flood season, 1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually) · instead June
  58

…and 25 more, 13 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Smoke season on27 places

Burning fields or forests; the air, not the weather, is the problem.

• 🇦🇷 San Carlos de Bariloche · Argentina — Smoke season, 1 Dec – 31 Mar (usually) · instead July
  12
• 🇲🇳 Ulaanbaatar · Mongolia — Smoke season, 1 Nov – 31 Mar · instead June
  35
• 🇰🇿 Almaty · Kazakhstan — Smoke season, 15 Nov – 1 Mar (usually) — Coal heating and a valley inversion pin the smoke over the city for weeks at a time once the cold sets in. · instead September
  47
• 🇺🇸 Salt Lake City · United States — Smoke season, 15 Dec – 20 Feb (usually) · instead May
  61
• 🇹🇭 Bangkok · Thailand — Smoke season, 25 Jan – 15 Apr (usually) — Agricultural fires north and west of the city put a lid of smoke over Bangkok through the late dry season. · instead December
  69
• 🇦🇺 Sydney · Australia — Smoke season, 1 Nov – 28 Feb (usually) · instead September
  80

…and 21 more, 11 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Dust season on22 places

Spring dust and sandstorms; sensitive lungs stay in.

• 🇪🇸 Sierra Nevada · Spain — Dust season, 15 Feb – 15 Jun (usually) · instead January
  54
• 🇪🇸 Lanzarote · Spain — Dust season, 15 Jan – 15 Apr (usually) · instead June
  82
• 🇪🇸 Fuerteventura · Spain — Dust season, 15 Jan – 15 Apr (usually) · instead June
  83
• 🇪🇸 Las Palmas · Spain — Dust season, 15 Jan – 15 Apr (usually) · instead May
  92
• 🇨🇮 Abidjan · Côte d'Ivoire — Dust season, 10 Dec – 15 Feb (usually) — Abidjan sits at the far southern edge of the harmattan. · instead August
  64
• 🇬🇭 Accra · Ghana — Dust season, 5 Dec – 10 Feb (usually) · instead August
  66

…and 16 more, all lesser-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Storm season on16 places

Tornadoes, derechos, hail — the afternoons to watch the sky.

• 🇳🇴 Svolvær · Norway — Storm season, 15 Oct – 15 Mar (usually) · instead July
  25
• 🇳🇴 Ålesund · Norway — Storm season, 15 Oct – 28 Feb (usually) · instead July
  41
• 🇮🇪 Dingle · Ireland — Storm season, 15 Oct – 28 Feb (usually) — Named lows come in off the ocean from mid-autumn and the peninsula takes them first. · instead June
  46
• Tórshavn · Faroe Islands — Storm season, 1 Oct – 31 Mar (usually) · instead July
  53
• 🇫🇷 La Rochelle · France — Storm season, 1 Nov – 28 Feb (usually) · instead August
  55
• 🇺🇸 Seattle · United States — Storm season, 1 Nov – 28 Feb (usually) · instead July
  58

…and 10 more, 6 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Avalanche season on14 places

Backcountry and passes on forecast; the weeks the road closes after a dump.

• 🇬🇧 Fort William · United Kingdom — Avalanche season, 15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually) — The Lochaber forecast runs from mid-December to mid-April and covers Ben Nevis and the Aonachs. · instead May
  55
• 🇬🇪 Mestia · Georgia — Avalanche season, 15 Nov – 15 May (usually) · instead September
  58
• 🇬🇪 Kazbegi · Georgia — Avalanche season, 1 Dec – 15 Apr (usually) · instead September
  65
• 🇬🇧 Aviemore · United Kingdom — Avalanche season, 15 Dec – 15 Apr (usually) · instead January
  69
• 🇩🇪 Berchtesgaden · Germany — Avalanche season, 1 Jan – 15 Apr (usually) · instead September
  70
• 🇦🇹 Innsbruck · Austria — Avalanche season, 1 Dec – 30 Apr (usually) · instead April
  77

…and 8 more, 7 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Extreme heat on6 places

The weeks the city lives indoors.

• 🇦🇺 Uluru · Australia — Extreme heat, 1 Nov – 31 Mar (usually) · instead July
  43
• 🇦🇷 Buenos Aires · Argentina — Extreme heat, 1 Jan – 25 Feb (usually) — River-plate humidity on top of the heat, and the porteños who can afford to have gone to the coast. · instead October
  79
• 🇦🇺 Adelaide · Australia — Extreme heat, 15 Nov – 15 Mar (usually) · instead November
  89
• 🇦🇺 Alice Springs · Australia — Extreme heat, 1 Dec – 28 Feb · instead August
  62
• 🇵🇾 Asunción · Paraguay — Extreme heat, 1 Dec – 28 Feb (usually) · instead July
  62
• 🇸🇿 Hlane Royal National Park · Eswatini — Extreme heat, 1 Dec – 28 Feb · instead June
  69

Algae & red tide on5 places

Blooms that close beaches and clear the water of fish for a few weeks; not the Caribbean weed.

• 🇵🇭 Boracay · Philippines — Algae & red tide, 15 Feb – 31 May (usually) · instead April
  80
• 🇺🇸 Clearwater · United States — Algae & red tide, 1 Aug – 28 Feb (usually) · instead April
  81
• 🇺🇸 Sarasota · United States — Algae & red tide, 1 Sep – 1 Mar (usually) · instead March
  85
• 🇺🇸 Naples, Florida · United States — Algae & red tide, 1 Sep – 28 Feb (usually) — Blooms of Karenia brevis drift onto this coast most often between autumn and late winter. · instead April
  90
• 🇺🇸 Tampa · United States — Algae & red tide, 1 Sep – 28 Feb (usually) · instead February
  90

Too wet by the numbers213 places

Eighteen or more rainy days, or a soaked month by volume — the real rainy season, not afternoon showers.

• 🇵🇪 Aguas Calientes · Peru — 28 rainy days, 306 mm · instead July
  65
• 🇵🇪 Ollantaytambo · Peru — 28 rainy days, 263 mm · instead July
  71
• 🇪🇨 Quito · Ecuador — 28 rainy days, 311 mm · instead August
  60
• 🇮🇩 Denpasar · Indonesia — 28 rainy days, 376 mm · instead August
  61
• 🇮🇩 Nusa Penida · Indonesia — 28 rainy days, 376 mm · instead August
  63
• 🇮🇩 Jakarta · Indonesia — 27 rainy days, 305 mm · instead August
  48
• 🇵🇪 Arequipa · Peru — 27 rainy days, 246 mm · instead September
  69
• 🇵🇪 Cusco · Peru — 27 rainy days, 216 mm · instead June
  80

…and 205 more, 81 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Too hot by the numbers126 places

Afternoons that feel like 35 °C or more, or heat the humidity turns sticky. A dry, sunny month cannot average this away.

• 🇲🇾 Kuala Lumpur · Malaysia — 40°C afternoons · instead February
  62
• 🇹🇿 Zanzibar · Tanzania — 39°C afternoons · instead September
  86
• 🇹🇭 Bangkok · Thailand — 38°C afternoons · instead December
  69
• 🇧🇷 Foz do Iguaçu · Brazil — 38°C afternoons · instead July
  54
• 🇹🇭 Khao Lak · Thailand — 38°C afternoons · instead February
  91
• 🇮🇳 Kochi · India — 38°C afternoons · instead January
  74
• 🇹🇭 Krabi · Thailand — 38°C afternoons · instead February
  91
• 🇲🇾 Langkawi · Malaysia — 38°C afternoons · instead February
  89

…and 118 more, 40 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Too cold by the numbers75 places

Afternoons that feel like −5 °C or below. Fine for a ski trip; not for walking a city.

• 🇨🇦 Churchill · Canada — -28°C afternoons · instead July
  34
• 🇬🇱 Ilulissat · Greenland — -16°C afternoons · instead July
  31
• 🇨🇦 Winnipeg · Canada — -15°C afternoons · instead June
  34
• 🇲🇳 Ulaanbaatar · Mongolia — -14°C afternoons · instead June
  35
• 🇮🇳 Leh · India — -12°C afternoons · instead August
  42
• 🇫🇮 Levi · Finland — -11°C afternoons · instead March
  73
• 🇷🇺 Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky · Russia — -11°C afternoons · instead July
  43
• 🇫🇮 Ruka · Finland — -11°C afternoons · instead March
  82

…and 67 more, 28 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.

Bad air by the numbers51 places

A monthly mean air-quality index in the poor or unhealthy bands.

• 🇸🇦 Riyadh · Saudi Arabia — AQI 205, unhealthy air · instead February
  91
• 🇨🇳 Beijing · China — AQI 170, unhealthy air · instead April
  59
• 🇮🇳 Gulmarg · India — AQI 157, unhealthy air · instead January
  85
• 🇮🇳 Kolkata · India — AQI 156, unhealthy air · instead January
  82
• 🇮🇳 Delhi · India — AQI 150, poor air · instead February
  90
• 🇮🇳 Agra · India — AQI 148, poor air · instead February
  92
• 🇨🇳 Xi'an · China — AQI 146, poor air · instead April
  68
• 🇨🇳 Chengdu · China — AQI 143, poor air · instead April
  73

…and 43 more, 14 of them well-known. Every destination page carries its own February verdict.