Weather

When to go

Truth be told, any time is a good time to be somewhere in Australia. When it’s cold down south, it’s magnificent in the north and the Centre; when it’s too hot and sweaty up north, the southern states are at their natural finest. There are also the numerous festivals and other public spectacles that are on show every month, from the summertime food-and-wine banquets and large-scale concerts, through mid-year arts celebrations, to end-of-year footy finals, horse races and yachting contests.

The seasons in Australia are the antithesis of those in Europe and North America. Summer is December to February; the weather and longer daylight hours are tailor-made for swimming and other outdoor activities across much of the country. Summer is also school holiday period and consequently high season for most places. Unless you want to compete with hordes of grimly determined local holiday-makers in ‘Are we there yet?’ mode for road space, places on tours, seats on transport, hotel rooms, camp sites, restaurant tables and the best vantage points at major attractions, you should try to avoid Australia’s prime destinations during the peak of school (January) and public holidays. See Holidays for more information. During these times, you’re also likely to encounter spontaneous rises in the price of everything from accommodation to petrol.

Winter is June to August, when temperatures drop with the latitude. This is officially designated the tourism low season for most of the country, but not the Northern Territory, Queensland and top of Western Australia. Winter in this northern stretch offers respite from the humidity of the wet season (which runs roughly from October to March, with the heaviest rain falling from January onwards; the Dry lasts from April to September) and the temperatures are highly agreeable. It’s also when roads and tracks are most accessible up north. Autumn (March to May) and spring (September to November) both enjoy a lack of climatic extremes everywhere.