February 2027 puts most of its big events into the first ten days. Hokkaido's snow festival, Chinese New Year, Rio's Carnival and the start of Ramadan all fall in that stretch. After that the month gets calmer, and the second half is the better time for dry-season trips to the Yucatán, Costa Rica, Goa and Angkor, and for the end of the southern summer in Cape Town and Patagonia.
Below we go through the month in order, with where to be on each date and where to avoid.
The calendar at a glance
| Dates in 2027 | Event | Where | What it means for travellers |
|---|---|---|---|
| Until 9 February (official start date not yet confirmed) | Venice Carnival | Venice, Italy | Masks and costume events; hotels full on the final weekend |
| 4 to 11 February | Sapporo Snow Festival | Sapporo, Japan | Hotels near Odori Park fill months ahead |
| 5 to 13 February (main parades 7 to 9 February) | Rio Carnival | Rio de Janeiro, Brazil | Peak hotel rates; Sambadrome tickets needed for the parades |
| 6 February | Chinese New Year and Tet | China, Vietnam and Chinese communities worldwide | Packed transport for about a week either side; some closures |
| Expected from about 8 February | Ramadan | Muslim-majority countries | Daytime restaurant closures and shorter opening hours |
| The days before Lent (2027 programme not yet announced) | Goa Carnival | Panaji and other Goan towns | Street parades and floats |
| All month | Classic Inca Trail closed for maintenance | Peru | Machu Picchu open by train and bus only |
1 to 5 February: snow sculptures in Sapporo
The first week of the month is all about the cold. In Sapporo, the Japan Meteorological Agency puts February's average high at about 0°C (33°F) and nights drop to around minus 6°C (21°F). Snow falls on roughly 25 days of the month, and the city gets only three or four hours of sunshine a day.
That snow is the reason to go. During the Sapporo Snow Festival, Odori Park fills with sculptures the size of buildings, lit up in the evening, and the Susukino district has ice carvings along its streets.
The festival's official site maps the sculpture sites, and the days before it opens are a good time to fly in, because the sculptures are nearly finished and hotel rates have not yet peaked.
Hokkaido also has some of the most reliable powder snow in the world, and February is its snowiest month. Niseko is the best-known ski area and the most used to foreign visitors, with English widely spoken. It is about two to three hours by road from New Chitose Airport. Furano and Rusutsu are quieter.
Otaru, with its canal and glassworks, makes an easy half-day out of Sapporo, and the hot springs at Jozankei are good after a day on the slopes. The pavements are icy, so pack boots with deep grip. Falls on ice are one of the most common reasons visitors end up at a clinic.
Hokkaido is also the better option for skiers whose other choice is Europe. The Alps can have excellent snow in February, but the winter school holidays in Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands all fall this month.
Lift queues get longer, chalet prices go up and the roads to the resorts jam on Saturdays. If the Alps are your only option, check those holiday dates and pick a week that avoids them, or wait until March.
5 to 13 February: Carnival in Rio, and an early Lent everywhere else
Easter falls on 28 March in 2027, so Carnival comes early this year. In Rio de Janeiro it begins on Friday 5 February. The main samba school parades at the Sambadrome run from 7 to 9 February, and the Champions' Parade of the winning schools follows on Saturday 13 February.
This is the height of the Brazilian summer. Brazil's weather service, INMET, records afternoons around 32°C (90°F), nights around 24°C (76°F) and short, heavy storms on about seven days of the month. The sea is near 26°C (78°F).
Most of the Rio Carnival happens outside the Sambadrome. Street parties called blocos take over neighbourhoods from Santa Teresa to Ipanema, and they are free. A night in the grandstands is still worth doing once. The parades run late, and the last school of a night can finish after sunrise.
If you missed the sale for the main nights, the Champions' Parade is usually easier to get into. On the days between parties, take the train up Corcovado to the Christ the Redeemer statue early, before cloud builds on the summit and the queues grow, then watch the sunset from Arpoador rock. For more on the festival itself, see Carnival in Brazil.
Carnival week brings the highest hotel prices of Rio's year, and many hotels sell only multi-night packages. Rates drop sharply once the parades end. If the party matters less to you than the beach, aim for the second half of February.
You get the same weather and the same views from Sugarloaf at a much lower cost. Keep phones and cameras out of sight at blocos and on the beaches, where pickpocketing is common.
Venice's Carnival ends on Shrove Tuesday, 9 February. The organisers had not confirmed the official start date when we checked. Goa holds its own Carnival in the days before Lent, with floats and music through Panaji. Its 2027 programme has not been announced yet.
6 to 14 February: the New Year rush in Asia
Chinese New Year and Vietnamese Tet both fall on 6 February 2027. The holiday sets off one of the largest seasonal migrations in the world. Trains, flights and hotels across China and Vietnam are packed for about a week either side, and many family-run shops and restaurants close for several days. Big hotels, chain restaurants and the major sights mostly stay open.
Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand's Chinese communities also celebrate with lion dances and lanterns. If you want to see the festivities, book early and accept the crowds. If you are just passing through, avoid routes into China and Vietnam that week.
Ramadan is expected to begin around 8 February, depending on the sighting of the moon, according to astronomical forecasts reported by The National. In Morocco, Jordan, Egypt and the Gulf, many restaurants close during daylight hours and some sites shorten their opening times. Visitors should avoid eating or drinking in public on the street during fasting hours. Hotels keep serving guests, and the evenings after sunset are lively.
Mid-February: dry season in the tropics
Once the festivals are over, the middle of the month is the best time for the tropical dry-season destinations.
Mexican Caribbean
On the Yucatán Peninsula, Cancún, according to Mexico's Servicio Meteorológico Nacional, averages about 29°C (85°F) by day and 20°C (67°F) at night in February. It rains on about four days and the sea is around 27°C (80°F). The hurricane season, which runs from June to November, is months away.
The mild heat makes a full day at Chichén Itzá comfortable, as long as you get there at opening time, before the coaches and the midday sun arrive. Where you stay shapes the trip. Cancún's hotel zone is built for all-inclusive resorts. Playa del Carmen has a walkable centre and the ferry to Cozumel's reefs.
Tulum is smaller and more spread out, with Mayan ruins on a clifftop above the sea. Seaweed called sargassum can wash up on this coast. It is usually worst from late spring through summer, but the amount changes from year to year, so check recent reports before you pick a beach hotel. Prices rise around US holiday weekends.
Costa Rica's Pacific coast
Guanacaste is hotter and drier still. Liberia, the main town, averages about 34°C (94°F) by day and 21°C (70°F) at night, with almost no rain in February. The sea along this coast is around 27°C (80°F). The dry season runs from about December to April here and on the central Pacific coast, so February sits right in the middle of it.
That means dependable beach days at Tamarindo or Nosara, which you can combine with the cooler cloud forest at Monteverde and the volcano country around Arenal. The Caribbean side has a different weather pattern and can be showery. The roads between regions are slow, so a route with three bases works better than one with five.
Hire a car with good clearance if you are heading to Monteverde. Manuel Antonio National Park caps daily visitor numbers and closes one day a week, so buy tickets online in advance. More on the country: Costa Rica.
Goa
Goa is in its best stretch of weather. Panaji averages about 32°C (90°F) by day and 21°C (69°F) at night, there is no rain on average, the sea is around 28°C (83°F) and the sun shines for about ten hours a day. The humidity of March and April has not built up yet.
North Goa, around Anjuna, Vagator and Morjim, has the nightlife and the markets. South Goa is slower and better for families, with beaches such as Palolem, Agonda and Patnem. The two ends are a couple of hours apart by road, so pick one base or split your stay.
The Basilica of Bom Jesus in Old Goa and the Fontainhas quarter of Panaji show the state's Portuguese past. Goa has two airports, Dabolim in the south and Mopa in the north, so check which one your flight uses.
Angkor
The temples of Angkor are at their most comfortable from November to February, and late February is the last good window before the heat of March and April. Siem Reap averages about 34°C (92°F) by day and 22°C (72°F) at night, with about one rainy day in the month. Start at Angkor Wat at sunrise.
Afterwards, most groups head straight to the Bayon, so you can avoid them by visiting Ta Prohm first, with its tree roots growing over the stones, and the Bayon later. You need to cover your shoulders and knees to climb the upper levels of Angkor Wat. Two full days cover the main temples.
A third lets you add the carved pink sandstone of Banteay Srei and the floating villages on the Tonlé Sap. Siem Reap itself is a relaxed town with good food. See the Cambodia page for more.
Not every tropical destination is at its best in February. Fiji and much of the South Pacific are in the wet season and the middle of the cyclone season, which runs from about November to April. Madagascar sees its heaviest rain and cyclones from January to March, when many unpaved roads become impassable and some park lodges close.
If you are set on Fiji, buy insurance that covers weather disruption, and book refundable transfers to the outer islands, since boats and small planes are the first services to stop in a storm. Otherwise, the Yucatán gives you the same warm water with settled weather. Madagascar is best saved for April to November.
Late February: the end of the southern summer
Cape Town
Cape Town gets better as the month goes on. The South African school holidays are over, so the beaches and wine estates are quieter than they were in December and January. February is also one of the driest months, with rain on about two days. Afternoons average about 27°C (81°F) and nights about 17°C (62°F).
For Europeans, there is the added benefit of hardly any jet lag. The southeasterly wind, known locally as the Cape Doctor, can blow hard for days at a time. When it does, the cable car up Table Mountain stops running, so check its status each morning and keep a spare day in your plans.
Most visitors misjudge the sea. Across the Cape Town area, the water averages around 19°C (66°F). But on the Atlantic beaches at Clifton and Camps Bay, cold water rising from the deep keeps the sea bracing even on a hot afternoon. Muizenberg and St James on False Bay are noticeably warmer.
Ferries to Robben Island sell out in summer, so book them online before you fly. The drive along Chapman's Peak to Cape Point, returning via the penguins at Boulders Beach, takes a full day. Start before 8am to stay ahead of the tour coaches. See the South Africa page for the wider country.
Patagonia
Late summer is the most dependable time to hike in southern Patagonia. In El Calafate, Argentina's Servicio Meteorológico Nacional records February averages of about 19°C (67°F) by day and 7°C (44°F) at night. It rains on about three days and the sun shines for around eight hours a day.
Daylight lasts well into the evening, the trails around Mount Fitz Roy are free of snow, and boats run daily on Lago Argentino to the glaciers. The boardwalks in front of the Perito Moreno Glacier need half a day. El Chaltén is about three hours from El Calafate by bus, and most of the classic hikes start from the edge of town.
The best known is the day walk to Laguna de los Tres, below Fitz Roy. Its last hour is steep and exposed, so turn back if the wind is strong. Across the border in Chile, the W Trek in Torres del Paine caps the number of people at its refuges and campsites, so they book up months ahead.
Patagonia is also the alternative for anyone who had planned to walk the Inca Trail. The classic trail closes every February for maintenance, as the official Machu Picchu site announces each year, and February is the wettest month of the Andean rainy season.
Landslides can disrupt the railway to Aguas Calientes. Machu Picchu itself stays open, and you can reach it by train and bus. Bring rain gear and aim for a morning entry slot.
Getting between the February places
Several of these trips combine well. Mérida, the Yucatán's colonial capital, is linked to Cancún by the Tren Maya and by frequent first-class buses, and Valladolid makes a good overnight stop between them, close to Chichén Itzá and to the cenotes of Ik Kil and Suytun.
In Costa Rica, shared tourist shuttles run between Liberia, Tamarindo, Arenal and Monteverde. They are slower than a hire car but avoid the stress of mountain roads after dark. Siem Reap is a short flight from Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore, so it slots easily onto the end of a Southeast Asia trip.
In Goa, taxis and app cabs connect the beaches, and the Konkan Railway runs north to Mumbai and south to Kerala for travellers who want to continue along the coast.
In the far south, El Calafate is about three hours' flight from Buenos Aires. Buses run to Puerto Natales in Chile, the base for Torres del Paine, in roughly five to six hours including the border crossing. In Hokkaido, the airport train from New Chitose reaches Sapporo Station in about 40 minutes, and the JR line continues to Otaru along the coast.
Cape Town to the winelands is under an hour by road. The Garden Route, if you want to add it, is a drive of several days east along the coast towards Port Elizabeth (Gqeberha), with stops in Hermanus for the cliffs and Knysna for its lagoon.
Two routes for the month
Six days in Cape Town and the winelands. Stay in the City Bowl or Gardens, which keeps the waterfront, the Bo-Kaap and the cable car a short ride away.
- Day 1: On the first day, take the Robben Island ferry from the Nelson Mandela Gateway at the V&A Waterfront.
- Day 2: On the second morning, go up Table Mountain if the cable car is running, then walk down through the Company's Garden to the Bo-Kaap. If it is closed, swap this day with the fourth.
- Day 3: Give day three to the peninsula loop described above.
- Day 4: Day four is a gentler one at Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden, with a swim at Muizenberg.
- Days 5 and 6: For the last two days, move out to Stellenbosch or Franschhoek, both under an hour's drive from the city, and sleep there rather than driving back after tastings. Popular estates take lunch bookings weeks ahead in summer. The Franschhoek Wine Tram lets you visit several estates without needing a designated driver.
Four days in Rio after Carnival. Stay in Ipanema or Copacabana.
- Day 1: Spend day one on the beach and at Arpoador for sunset.
- Day 2: On day two, go up Corcovado early, then spend the afternoon in Santa Teresa.
- Day 3: Day three is for Sugarloaf and the Selarón Steps.
- Day 4: On day four, take a boat to Ilha Grande or walk in the Tijuca Forest. Book Corcovado train tickets online for a morning slot.
The AI Trip Planner can turn either route into a day-by-day plan with costs that fit your budget.
Paperwork, bookings and money
Entry rules depend on your passport, so check the official government source for every country on your route. Brazil brought back e-visas for citizens of the United States, Canada and Australia in 2025, and many European passport holders still enter visa-free. India requires most visitors to apply in advance through its official e-Visa portal.
Cambodia issues e-visas through evisa.gov.kh and also offers visas on arrival at its main airports. Japan, Mexico, Costa Rica, South Africa, Argentina and Chile let many nationalities in without a visa for short tourist stays. The site's visa section has guides to several more countries.
The festival trips need the longest lead times. Book Rio for Carnival six months or more ahead, because the good hotels sell out early and the Sambadrome grandstands go on sale the year before. Sapporo hotels near Odori Park fill for festival week, so book as soon as your dates are fixed.
In Costa Rica, two to three months ahead is usually enough, though lodges at Arenal and Monteverde fill sooner. A month or two ahead generally gives a good choice in Goa, Siem Reap and Cape Town, as long as you avoid the first fortnight of the month.
Several of the cheapest options this month come down to timing. Rio's room rates drop sharply after Carnival, and the weather stays the same. A ski week in late February avoids Sapporo's festival-week prices. On the Yucatán, nights in Mérida or Valladolid cost less than on the coast and put you closer to Chichén Itzá.
At Angkor, a multi-day pass works out better value than several single-day tickets. Costa Rica's public buses connect the main towns for far less than private shuttles, if you have the time.
On health, dengue occurs in Brazil, Mexico, Costa Rica, India and Cambodia. The mosquitoes that carry it bite during the day, so use repellent all day, not just at dusk. Drink bottled or filtered water in India, Cambodia and Mexico.
Goa's beaches have strong rip currents every season, so swim only between the lifeguard flags. In Patagonia, the main danger is sudden wind on exposed trails. See a travel clinic at least six weeks before you go, and check that your insurance covers skiing or trekking.
What to pack, place by place
- The hot places. For Rio, Goa, Siem Reap and Guanacaste, where afternoons reach the low to mid 30s, pack loose cotton or linen that dries quickly, a wide-brimmed hat and high-factor sunscreen. Add a light rain shell for Rio's afternoon storms. Carry a scarf or long trousers for the temples at Angkor and the churches of Old Goa.
- Cape Town and the Yucatán. Cape Town and the Yucatán have warm days, but nights drop to the high teens or around 20°C, so bring a light jumper. In Cape Town, add a windproof layer for the Cape Doctor.
- Patagonia. In Patagonia, days around 19°C fall to about 7°C at night and the wind is strong, so take a waterproof and windproof jacket, a fleece, broken-in boots and sunglasses.
- Sapporo. Sapporo needs full winter kit: thermal base layers, an insulated jacket, gloves, a hat and boots with good grip.
How we checked this
The climate figures are long-term averages from national weather services, mostly their 1991 to 2020 normals, with older periods where newer ones are not published: 1981 to 2010 for Rio de Janeiro and 1997 to 2010 for Siem Reap. Event dates come from the organisers or official calendars, and entry rules from government portals; we checked them all in November 2026. You can read more about how we research our guides.
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