Hot places in January: temperatures, rain and entry rules for 9 destinations

The hot places in January are in the southern hemisphere summer and in the tropics. Of the nine we checked, Ho Chi Minh City is the hottest, with an average daytime high of 32.0°C, ahead of Perth (30.8°C) and Singapore (30.6°C), according to national weather services.

Sun and rain do not move together. Victoria in Seychelles is the wettest place on our list in January, with 403.7 mm of rain over 20 days, while Ho Chi Minh City is almost dry, with 12 mm over 2 days. Sydney (26.5°C) and Cape Town (26.1°C) are the mildest of the nine, though both are summer cities. The tables below set the highs, the nights and the rain side by side, compare January with the months either side, and list what a British passport holder needs for each country.

This page does not list flight times, because they change with the airline, the airport and the season. Your departure airport's timetable is the place to look. For other trip ideas, see our holiday ideas from the UK, and for the paperwork behind each destination, our entry requirements hub.

Ho Chi Minh City, with an average January high of 32.0°C. Six of the nine places average 30.0°C or more by day: Ho Chi Minh City, Perth (30.8°C), Singapore (30.6°C), Windhoek (30.3°C), Buenos Aires (30.1°C) and Victoria (30.0°C). Rio de Janeiro is just under at 29.4°C, and Sydney and Cape Town sit lower, at 26.5°C and 26.1°C.

The reference periods run from 1961 to 1990 for Cape Town, Windhoek and Rio de Janeiro to 1991 to 2020 for Ho Chi Minh City and Singapore, so a gap of a degree between two rows is not worth acting on. The top of the ranking is firmer: Ho Chi Minh City's high is 1.2 degrees above Perth's and 5.5 above Sydney's.

Ho Chi Minh City is both the hottest and the driest place on the list, with 12 mm of rain over 2 days. Cape Town follows with 15 mm over 5.5 days and Perth with 17.6 mm over 2.3 days. Cape Town is the cooler of the three, at 26.1°C by day.

The wet group is led by Victoria, with 403.7 mm, then Singapore with 221.6 mm and Buenos Aires with 138.7 mm. Rio de Janeiro has 114.1 mm over 12 days, Sydney 96.0 mm over 12.3 days and Windhoek 85.6 mm over 12.5 days. Victoria counts rain on 20 days of the month.

It depends on the place, and the figures show it. Rain is easing at Singapore (331.9 mm in December, 221.6 mm in January, 105.1 mm in February) and at Ho Chi Minh City (128 mm in November, 41 mm in December, 12 mm in January, 8 mm in February). It is building at Windhoek, where rain climbs from 29.3 mm in November and 30.7 mm in December to 85.6 mm in January and 91.4 mm in February.

Victoria peaks in January: 403.7 mm, against 305.9 mm in December and 249.2 mm in February. Buenos Aires is also at its wettest of the three months in January (138.7 mm) and at its hottest (30.1°C). Sydney gets wetter as the summer goes on, from 79.2 mm in December to 96.0 mm in January and 128.6 mm in February, while Rio de Janeiro eases from 169 mm to 114.1 mm and 105.3 mm.

February is warmer than January at six of the nine places, by less than a degree, and level at Sydney. Windhoek and Buenos Aires are the exceptions: Windhoek cools from 31.4°C in December to 30.3°C in January and 28.7°C in February as the rain arrives, and Buenos Aires drops from 30.1°C to 28.7°C.

Warmest at Victoria (24.5°C) and Singapore (24.3°C), coolest at Cape Town (15.7°C). Ho Chi Minh City (23.4°C) and Rio de Janeiro (23.3°C) stay close to the warmest pair, so you will not need a jumper there after dark.

The widest gaps between day and night are at Perth, Windhoek and Cape Town. Perth drops 13.0 degrees from its 30.8°C high to a 17.8°C night low, Windhoek 12.6 degrees and Cape Town 10.4. At Singapore the gap is 6.3 degrees and at Victoria 5.5, so the evenings there are almost as warm as the afternoons.

Five of the eight countries need no visa for a short tourist stay: South Africa, Argentina, Brazil, Vietnam and Singapore. Seychelles needs no visa but asks for a travel authorisation that you apply and pay for online. Australia needs a visa, and Namibia needs one too, either on arrival or as an e-visa. Passport rules vary more than visa rules, from the length of your stay for Australia, Argentina and Seychelles to six months after arrival for Namibia, Brazil, Vietnam and Singapore.

For Australia, see our guide to the Australian visa for UK citizens, and for other destinations the entry requirements hub. Two details change the plan. Namibia's rule is recent, since 1 April 2025, and Vietnam's stay is 45 days, shorter than the 90 days of South Africa, Argentina and Brazil.

On 1 November 2026 the GOV.UK pages name one area where the FCDO advises against all but essential travel: river areas in the west of Amazonas State in Brazil, far from Rio de Janeiro. The pages for the other seven countries name no such area. Read the FCDO advice for Brazil before you choose a region.

Some warnings are about the season. The Australia page says the risk of bushfires is higher from October to February, and points to the bushfires section of its safety and security page. The Vietnam page gives the tropical storm season as May to November, so January falls outside it. The Seychelles page adds Ebola health measures: foreign nationals must spend at least 21 days outside the Democratic Republic of Congo before they can enter.

The Australia, Singapore and Vietnam pages also carry a notice about travel disruption from the escalation in the Middle East, including airspace closures and cancelled flights. It tells you to check the travel advice of every country you transit through and the latest updates from your airline or tour operator.

• Hottest by day
  Ho Chi Minh City (32.0°C), then Perth (30.8°C) and Singapore (30.6°C).
• Driest
  Ho Chi Minh City (12 mm), Cape Town (15 mm) and Perth (17.6 mm).
• Warmest nights
  Victoria (24.5°C) and Singapore (24.3°C), with Ho Chi Minh City (23.4°C) and Rio de Janeiro (23.3°C) close behind.
• Mildest days
  Cape Town (26.1°C) and Sydney (26.5°C), the only two of the nine under 29°C.
• Longest stay without a visa
  South Africa, Argentina and Brazil, up to 90 days each, as GOV.UK reads them on 1 November 2026.

Pick the row that matters most to you, then check the entry table for that country. If you are still choosing between months, our travel tips for UK travellers list what to check before you go.

• Which countries are hot in January?

  Among the places we checked, Vietnam, Australia (Perth), Singapore, Namibia, Argentina and Seychelles all average a daytime high of 30.0°C or more in January. Brazil is just under at 29.4°C at Rio de Janeiro, while South Africa (Cape Town, 26.1°C) and Sydney (26.5°C) are warm rather than hot.

• Where is the hottest place in January?

  Among the nine places we checked, Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, with an average daytime high of 32.0°C, ahead of Perth in Australia (30.8°C) and Singapore (30.6°C), according to national weather services.

• Where is hot and dry in January?

  Ho Chi Minh City averages 12 mm of rain over 2 days in January, Cape Town 15 mm over 5.5 days and Perth 17.6 mm over 2.3 days. Ho Chi Minh City is also the hottest of the three, at 32.0°C by day.

• Is Australia hot in January?

  Yes. Perth averages 30.8°C by day in January, with 17.6 mm of rain, and Sydney 26.5°C, with 96.0 mm. GOV.UK says the risk of bushfires is higher from October to February, and British passport holders need a visa for Australia.

• Is Cape Town hot in January?

  Warm, rather than hot: 26.1°C by day and 15.7°C at night, with 15 mm of rain over 5.5 days. GOV.UK says British passport holders can visit South Africa without a visa for up to 90 days.

• Is Singapore rainy in January?

  Yes, with 221.6 mm of rain in January, but it is easing from 331.9 mm in December and falls to 105.1 mm in February. Days are 30.6°C and nights 24.3°C.

• Is Seychelles wet in January?

  Yes. Victoria averages 403.7 mm of rain over 20 days in January, the most of the nine places and more than in December (305.9 mm) or February (249.2 mm). It is also hot, at 30.0°C by day and 24.5°C at night.

• Do British passport holders need a visa for Namibia?

  Yes. GOV.UK says that since 1 April 2025 you need a visa, either on arrival at a port of entry or as an e-visa applied for online, and your passport must expire at least 6 months after you arrive.

• Is January a good month for Buenos Aires or Rio de Janeiro?

  Both are hot and wet. Buenos Aires averages 30.1°C by day and 138.7 mm of rain over 9 days, Rio de Janeiro 29.4°C and 114.1 mm over 12 days. Neither needs a visa for a stay of up to 90 days, according to GOV.UK.