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Best Time to Visit South Africa

Climate based on Cape Town20152024

The best overall time to visit South Africa is February (excellent, score 99/100). The single best 14-day window: Jan 1 – Jan 14. Avoid July if you can — it scores lowest at 51/100.

Year-at-a-glance heatmap

Each cell shows a daily "visit suitability" score combining comfort (temperature), dryness (rainfall), and sunshine. Hover for details.

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5
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Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Less suitable
More suitable

Best 14-day travel windows

Top pick
Jan 1 – Jan 14
14-day window • Score 99/100
Alternative 1
Jan 20 – Feb 2
14-day window • Score 99/100
Alternative 2
Feb 3 – Feb 16
14-day window • Score 99/100

Month-by-month breakdown

January

Excellent
98/100
  • 26°C / 18°C
  • 15mm total
  • 13.3h sun/day

February

Excellent
99/100
  • 26°C / 18°C
  • 10mm total
  • 12.2h sun/day

March

Excellent
94/100
  • 24°C / 16°C
  • 29mm total
  • 10.9h sun/day

April

Excellent
86/100
  • 22°C / 14°C
  • 32mm total
  • 9.9h sun/day

May

Good
70/100
  • 20°C / 12°C
  • 58mm total
  • 8.7h sun/day

June

Fair
53/100
  • 18°C / 11°C
  • 123mm total
  • 8.0h sun/day

July

Fair
51/100
  • 16°C / 10°C
  • 115mm total
  • 8.4h sun/day

August

Fair
56/100
  • 17°C / 10°C
  • 80mm total
  • 9.0h sun/day

September

Good
65/100
  • 18°C / 11°C
  • 51mm total
  • 10.0h sun/day

October

Excellent
82/100
  • 21°C / 13°C
  • 36mm total
  • 11.8h sun/day

November

Excellent
88/100
  • 22°C / 15°C
  • 23mm total
  • 12.5h sun/day

December

Excellent
94/100
  • 24°C / 16°C
  • 28mm total
  • 13.1h sun/day

Plan your trip to South Africa

Found your dates? Use TimeOffCalendar to line up the trip with your time off, public holidays, and your partner's schedule. Free for one person, forever.

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Climate data from Open-Meteo Archive API. Daily normals computed from 10 years of historical observations.
Best Time to Visit South Africa (2026): Month-by-Month Weather Calendar