🇺🇸 UNITED STATES
Acadia National Park
Granite peaks, lobster shacks and rocky shores on the coast of Maine.
Nature & hiking✈️ 7h4 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUL–OCT
☀️ WHEN TO GO
Where to go on holiday in August
August is the busiest month for holidays from the UK. Here's where's at its best, from cool mountains and northern coasts to safari and Bali's dry season.
Where to go on holiday in August: 37 guides
🇳🇱 NETHERLANDS
Amsterdam
Canal boats, bike rides and pancakes, with a direct train from London.
City break✈️ 1h3 to 4 nights£££
BEST TIMEAPR–AUG
🇫🇷 FRANCE
Annecy
A clear Alpine lake, canal-lined old town and mountains made for paragliding and cycling.
Nature & hiking✈️ 2h5 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇪🇸 SPAIN
Asturias
Green mountains, cider houses and sandy coves on Spain's cool, rainy northern coast.
Nature & hiking✈️ 2h7 nights££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇵🇹 PORTUGAL
Azores
Whales, crater lakes and hot springs on green volcanic Atlantic islands.
Nature & hiking✈️ 4h7 nights££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇮🇩 INDONESIA
Bali
Temples, rice terraces, monkeys and warm sea, at very good value.
Beach✈️ 17h10 to 14 nights£
BEST TIMEAPR–SEP
🇨🇦 CANADA
Banff
Turquoise lakes, glaciers and elk wandering through town in the Canadian Rockies.
Nature & hiking✈️ 10h5 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇩🇪 GERMANY
Berlin
Huge playgrounds, a zoo in the middle of town and history on every corner.
City break✈️ 2h3 to 5 nights££
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
🇲🇾 MALAYSIA
Borneo
Orangutans, pygmy elephants and rainforest river cruises, with islands to finish.
Nature & hiking✈️ 15h10 to 14 nights££
BEST TIMEMAR–AUG
🇫🇷 FRANCE
Chamonix
Skiing under Mont Blanc in winter, cable cars and glaciers in summer.
Skiing✈️ 2h7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJAN–MAR, JUL–AUG
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇩🇰 DENMARK
Copenhagen
Old-fashioned fairground rides, harbour swims and the home of Lego next door.
City break✈️ 2h3 to 4 nights£££
BEST TIMEMAY–AUG
🇵🇪 PERU
Cusco
Gateway to Machu Picchu, with llamas, Inca walls and the Sacred Valley.
Adventure✈️ 13h10 to 14 nights££
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
🇫🇴 FAROE ISLANDS
Faroe Islands
Waterfalls falling into the sea, puffins and grass-roofed villages.
Nature & hiking✈️ 3h4 to 6 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–AUG
🇵🇱 POLAND
Gdańsk
Tall painted merchant houses, amber shops and Baltic beaches a short train ride away.
City break✈️ 3h3 to 4 nights£
BEST TIMEJUN–AUG
🇨🇦 CANADA
Halifax
Lighthouses, lobster rolls and the world's highest tides on Canada's Atlantic coast.
City break✈️ 7h5 to 7 nights££
BEST TIMEJUN–OCT
🇨🇭 SWITZERLAND
Interlaken
Mountain trains, glacier views and turquoise lakes in the heart of the Swiss Alps.
Nature & hiking✈️ 2h5 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇵🇱 POLAND
Kraków
A castle with a fire-breathing dragon, an underground salt mine and great value.
City break✈️ 3h3 to 4 nights£
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
🇲🇰 NORTH MACEDONIA
Lake Ohrid
A deep, clear lake ringed by mountains, with old stone churches above the water.
Nature & hiking✈️ 3h5 to 7 nights£
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇸🇮 SLOVENIA
Ljubljana
A green, car-free old town, a castle on the hill and Lake Bled less than an hour away.
City break✈️ 3h4 to 7 nights££
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
🇳🇴 NORWAY
Lofoten
Jagged peaks rising from the sea, red huts and the midnight sun.
Nature & hiking✈️ 4h5 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–AUG
🇮🇩 INDONESIA
Lombok
Quiet surf beaches, jungle waterfalls and car-free islands next door to Bali.
Beach✈️ 17h7 to 10 nights££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇺🇸 UNITED STATES
Los Angeles
Disneyland, movie studios and miles of beaches in the sunshine.
City break✈️ 12h7 to 10 nights£££
BEST TIMEAPR, JUL–OCT
🇰🇪 KENYA
Maasai Mara
Lions, elephants and the great migration on game drives across the savannah.
Adventure✈️ 9h4 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJAN–FEB, JUL–OCT
Showing 24 of 37 guides
Also good in August
Not quite at their best, but still a good time to go.
- Alentejo
- Ambergris Caye
- Asheville
- Bacalar
- Bangkok
- Barbados
- Barcelona
- Bergen
- Boston
- Brașov
- Cancún
- Cape Verde
- Cappadocia
- Cartagena
- Corsica
- Costa Rica
- Crete
- Dordogne
- Dubrovnik
- Galápagos Islands
- Ghent
- Gozo
- Grand Canyon
- Hallstatt
- Hoi An
- Istria
- Kanazawa
- Kaş
- Kefalonia
- Kotor
- Lake Garda
- Lisbon
- Madeira
- Maldives
- Malta
- Matera
- Maui
- Mauritius
- Menorca
- Mexico City
- Miami
- Milos
- Naxos
- New York
- Okinawa
- Orlando
- Paphos
- Paris
- Penang
- Plitvice Lakes
- Porto
- Prague
- Puglia
- Queenstown
- Ronda
- Rovaniemi
- San Francisco
- Saranda
- Saxon Switzerland
- Sri Lanka
- Syracuse
- Tbilisi
- Tenerife
- Tokyo
- Tromsø
- Valencia
- Vienna
- Washington, D.C.
- Zadar
Where to go on holiday in August: common questions
Where is good to go in August that isn't too hot?
Asturias, the Azores, the Alps (Annecy, Interlaken), Lake Ohrid, the Lofoten Islands, Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Canada are warm but comfortable. In the US, San Diego is milder than most of the country.
Is August a good time for safari?
Yes. The Maasai Mara's Great Migration and Namibia's dry season make August one of the best months for wildlife, though it's also the busiest, so book early.
How can we make an August holiday cheaper?
Fly midweek, go somewhere slightly less obvious (Gdańsk instead of Barcelona, Asturias instead of the Costa del Sol), or look at the last week of August when prices start to drop.
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Found somewhere you like?
Put it on standby with the rest of your family's ideas. Everyone spreads their points in secret, gets one veto, and the draw picks where you go.