Best Countries to Visit in May

May is one of the easiest months to get Turkey right. Istanbul sits around 18 to 22C, Cappadocia's balloons fly in settled morning air, and the Aegean and Mediterranean coasts are warm enough to swim without the July heat. Ephesus, Pamukkale and Antalya are all comfortable to walk in May, and hotels cost noticeably less than they will in eight weeks. Packages average around Rs 82,000 per person.

May is Italy's best-value month. Everything is open, days are long, and Rome, Florence and Venice are busy but not yet at the July crush where queues and room rates both double. Temperatures of 18 to 25C suit long days on foot, the Tuscan hills are green, and the Amalfi Coast and Lake Como have opened for the season. Packages average around Rs 1,48,000 per person.

Golden Week runs from 29 April to 5 May, so the first week is expensive and crowded across Japan. Travel after it and May becomes one of the best windows of the year: 18 to 24C in Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka, fresh green on the hills, and far fewer foreign visitors than summer. Late cherry blossom still lingers in Hokkaido. Packages average around Rs 1,41,000 per person.

The Greek islands reopen properly in May. Ferries run to a full timetable, the sea is warm enough to swim by mid-month, and Santorini, Mykonos, Crete and Rhodes cost far less than they will in August. At around 21 to 25C, Athens, Delphi and the Acropolis are comfortable to walk rather than something to survive. Packages average around Rs 1,46,000 per person.

Bali's dry season begins in May, with warm days, lower humidity and calm water for snorkelling in Amed and surfing off Uluwatu. Prices sit below the July and August peak, which matters when the whole family travels. Beyond Bali, Java's temples and the boat trips out to Komodo are both in good condition. Packages average around Rs 42,000 per person.

May gives Spain its best walking weather, roughly 20 to 26C, before Andalusia turns fierce in July. Seville, Cordoba and Granada are doable on foot all day, Barcelona's beaches are warm without the summer crowds, and Madrid's parks and terraces are at their best. Room rates are still below peak. Packages average around Rs 1,14,000 per person.

Portugal in May costs less than almost anywhere else in western Europe and the weather is already settled at 20 to 25C. Lisbon's trams and viewpoints, Porto's wine cellars along the Douro, and the Algarve's cliffs and coves are all open and quiet. Flights connect through the Gulf in around twelve hours. Packages average around Rs 98,000 per person.

Georgia is at its best in May. Tbilisi is warm, the Kakheti vineyards are green, and the road up to Kazbegi is clear of snow. It is one of the shortest and cheapest flights from India to a European-feeling holiday, and food and wine cost a fraction of what they do further west. Packages average around Rs 59,000 per person.

May is the tail of Bhutan's spring window, before the summer rains close in around late June. Skies are clear enough for Himalayan views, rhododendrons are still in flower along the Druk Path, and the Paro and Punakha valleys sit at a comfortable 10 to 25C. It works well as a short school-holiday trip. Packages average around Rs 36,000 per person.

May is Nepal's second trekking season, with settled weather before the monsoon reaches the hills in June. The Annapurna and Everest trails are open and dry, though the haze thickens later in the month and Kathmandu and Pokhara get hot at midday. Higher routes are the better choice in May. Packages average around Rs 22,000 per person.

Croatia's season starts in May, which is the cheapest time to see it properly. Dubrovnik's walls, Split's Diocletian's Palace and the Plitvice lakes are all open with a fraction of the August queues, and the Adriatic is warm enough for a swim by the end of the month. Island ferries run a lighter but workable timetable. Packages average around Rs 99,000 per person.

May is the last comfortable month before Morocco's interior gets difficult. Marrakech and Fes sit around 22 to 28C, the High Atlas still has snow on the peaks and good day hikes below them, and Essaouira on the coast stays cool. Desert nights near Merzouga are pleasant rather than punishing. Packages average around Rs 96,000 per person.

May starts South Africa's dry winter, which is when the safari gets good. Grass thins out and animals gather at water, so the Kruger, Madikwe and Addo reserves are far easier for spotting than they were in summer. Cape Town is cooler at 10 to 20C but clear, and the Winelands and Garden Route are quiet. Packages average around Rs 2,07,000 per person.

Known For : Gardens by the Bay Universal Studios Singapore Marina Bay Sands

Singapore is the safe choice for the May school break. It is hot and showery, but almost everything worth doing sits indoors or under cover: Universal Studios, the Gardens by the Bay domes, the aquarium, and the hawker centres at Lau Pa Sat and Maxwell. Flights are direct from most Indian cities and the trip works with young children. Packages average around Rs 57,000 per person.

Best Time: January to November

271 Singapore Attractions

Known For : Black River Gorges National Park Underwater Waterfall Seven Coloured Earth of Chamarel

May is the start of Mauritius's drier winter, with days around 24 to 27C and less humidity than the January to March months. The lagoons at Belle Mare and Trou d'Eau Douce stay calm for snorkelling, Chamarel and Black River Gorges are better in dry conditions, and rates drop once the European season ends. Packages average around Rs 77,000 per person.

Best Time: April to June and September to December

146 Mauritius Attractions

The southwest monsoon reaches Sri Lanka's west and south coasts in May, so Bentota and Mirissa are the wrong call. The east is the opposite: Arugam Bay, Trincomalee and Pasikudah are dry and sunny, and Arugam Bay's surf season is starting. Yala and Udawalawe still give good sightings. Vesak Poya lights up temples across the island. Packages average around Rs 32,000 per person.

May suits France better than high summer. Paris runs 16 to 22C with long evenings, the Loire chateaux and their gardens are open and quiet, Provence is green before the lavender comes, and the Cannes Film Festival fills the Riviera in the second half of the month. Book Paris hotels early, since European travellers move in May too.

Baku is comfortable in May, around 20 to 25C, before the summer humidity off the Caspian arrives. The old city, the modern waterfront and the mud volcanoes on the Absheron peninsula all work as day trips, and the mountains around Gabala and Sheki are green. It is a short flight and an easy first trip to the Caucasus. Packages average around Rs 55,000 per person.

May is the best month for Uzbekistan, warm at 25 to 30C rather than the 40C the Silk Road cities reach in July. Samarkand's Registan, Bukhara's old centre and Khiva's walled town are all walkable, and the roses are out in the madrasa courtyards. Crowds and prices are both low. Packages average around Rs 52,000 per person.

Budapest in May is warm without the July heat, which matters in a city best seen on foot and by river. Buda Castle, the Parliament and the Danube cruises are all comfortable at around 20 to 24C, the thermal baths have their outdoor pools open, and the ruin bars of the Jewish Quarter spill onto the street. Hotel rates are still moderate.

Prague opens up in May. The Charles Bridge, Old Town Square and the castle are walkable at 18 to 22C, and the Prague Spring music festival opens on 12 May every year and runs into June. Day trips to Cesky Krumlov and Kutna Hora are at their best now, and the city is far cheaper than it will be in midsummer.

May is hot across Vietnam, and the south has already started its rainy season, so Ho Chi Minh City and the Mekong get afternoon downpours. The north is the better half of the country now: Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Ninh Binh and the terraces around Sapa and Pu Luong. Buddha's birthday brings decorated temples and processions. Packages average around Rs 60,000 per person.

England is at its most pleasant in May. London's parks are green, the Cotswolds and the Lake District are at their best, and daylight runs past nine in the evening, which stretches a short trip a long way. The Chelsea Flower Show takes over Chelsea for five days in May. Prices sit below the July and August peak.

May is the quiet window in Scotland: long days, the Highlands turning green, and the midges not yet out in force. Edinburgh is lively without the August festival crush, the North Coast 500 is clear, and Skye, Glencoe and Loch Lomond are all open. Distillery tours and castles fill a week comfortably.

May is when Iceland reopens. Highland roads start clearing, puffins return to the cliffs at Latrabjarg and Dyrholaey, and daylight stretches to around twenty hours by the end of the month. The Ring Road, Golden Circle and south coast waterfalls are all drivable without winter tyres, and prices sit below the June to August peak.

May is Switzerland's shoulder month and it is priced like one. Lakes Geneva, Lucerne and Lugano are green and quiet, waterfalls run hard on the snowmelt, and the lower cable cars and lake steamers are running. Some high passes and mountain railways stay shut until late May or June, so check before building a route around them.

Known For : Anse Lazio Snorkeling in Seychelles Sunbathing in Seychelles

May is the changeover in Seychelles, from the northwest monsoon to the southeast trade winds. Humidity drops and the light is good, though the southeast-facing beaches pick up wind and seaweed while the north and west stay calm. Anse Lazio, Anse Source d'Argent and the Vallee de Mai are all at their best. Packages average around Rs 1,02,000 per person.

Best Time: April to May, September to October

96 Seychelles Attractions

May in South Korea sits at 15 to 25C, past the cherry blossom and into full green. Seoul, Gyeongju and Busan are comfortable to walk, Seoraksan's trails are open, and the Lotus Lantern Festival lights up temples around Buddha's birthday. Jeju's coastal roads are clear and quiet before the summer rush.

Known For : Valetta Upper Barrakka Gardens Triton Fountain

Malta warms up in May, around 22 to 26C, which is enough to swim without the August heat or the cruise-ship crowds. Valletta's fortifications, the megalithic temples and the Blue Lagoon on Comino are all comfortable now, and the ferry to Gozo takes twenty-five minutes. Diving visibility is good from May onward.

Best Time: April to June

38 Malta Attractions

May opens Peru's dry season, ahead of the July and August rush on the Inca Trail. Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley get clear mornings and dry paths, Rainbow Mountain is walkable, and Cusco's nights are cold but bright. It is a long trip from India, so allow two weeks and build in time to acclimatise.

May is the start of the southwest monsoon on Thailand's Andaman side, so Phuket and Krabi get real rain from now until October. The Gulf islands are the answer: Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao stay dry and sunny through May. Bangkok and Chiang Mai are hot and cheap, and hotel rates across the country are at their lowest. Packages average around Rs 35,000 per person.

May is hot in Cambodia, into the mid-30s, and the first monsoon showers usually arrive during the month. The upside is that Angkor Wat is at its emptiest and cheapest, and the rain comes in short afternoon bursts rather than all day. Start at sunrise, rest at midday, and keep Koh Rong for the end of the trip.

Australia is heading into winter in May, so this is a trip for cities and the tropics rather than beaches. Sydney and Melbourne are cool and clear, Cairns and the Great Barrier Reef are at the start of their dry season, and Vivid Sydney fills the harbour with light installations, music and talks across late May and June.

May is shoulder season in Canada, which cuts both ways. Vancouver, Toronto, Quebec City and Niagara are mild, green and inexpensive, but the Rockies are still thawing and some Banff and Jasper trails, roads and lodges do not open until June. Go for the cities in May and save the mountains for later in the summer.

Known For : Grand Bahamas Paradise Island Bimini Island

May is the last quiet month in the Bahamas before the Atlantic hurricane season opens on 1 June. Days sit around 29C, the water is calm and clear off Harbour Island and Bimini, and rates are lower than the winter peak. It is a long way from India with no direct flights, so it suits a longer trip built around the United States.

Best Time: Anytime except the month of September

11 Bahamas Attractions