January can feel like the gloomiest month in the calendar, but it’s an amazing time to travel with something for everyone from snow to sun or even a safari. Start the New Year in style with a trip to one of the best places to travel in January.
In the US and Europe, cold weather makes it a great time to visit ski resorts, go hiking, or experience the frozen wildernesses. While in Central and Southern America, the weather is warm and it’s much quieter than later in the year. Africa is in full bloom and as it’s birthing season in the Serengeti, making January an amazing time of year to go on safari. For more holiday inspiration here’s my rundown of the best places to travel in January.
Best places to travel in January in the US
1. Sun Valley, Idaho
- Learn more: Ketchum travel guide
- Why visit in January? Amazing skiing for beginners and skiing pros.
As well as lots of snow, Sun Valley has history. It’s known as America’s first destination ski resort thanks to it being the first to open a chairlift, in 1936. Nearly 100 years later, it’s still my favorite US ski resort. Base yourself in the postcard-perfect town of Ketchum, charming but sophisticated as all the best mountain resorts are, its hotels, restaurants, and bars are après ski central.
Above it, a magic mix of terrains spread across two towering peaks. The gentle slopes of Dollar Mountain are ideal for kids and beginners to find their snow legs. If you are a serious skier, try out Bald Mountain, affectionately called Baldy. As famed for its lack of lift lines as it is for its perfect pitch, Blady has 65 individual runs and endless opportunities for trail riding. A nirvana for snow lovers.
While you’re there find the quiet nook over Seattle Ridge on Baldy’s southern slope. Known as the Sunrise Zone, it opened in 2021 adding 380 acres of terrain filled with perfectly spaced firs and steep chutes. Just watch out for powder pockets and serious rock drops.
2. Montgomery, Alabama
- Learn more: Montgomery travel guide
- Why visit in January? Celebrate the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr.
On the third Monday of each January, Martin Luther King Jr Day is celebrated. In 2024, that Monday falls on the same date as MLK’s actual birthday – January 15th. MLK was the minister of Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery and it was here that he led the bus boycott, fighting racial segregation following Rosa Parks’ heroic actions in 1955.
His legacy lives on in Montgomery, not least thanks to the Equal Justice Initiative, which runs three powerful experiences here. The Legacy Museum takes visitors through 400 years of US history through the lens of racial segregation, enslavement, and terrorism.
The National Memorial for Peace and Justice occupies a six-acre area on a hilltop overlooking Montgomery. Deeply sobering, Then there is the Freedom Monument Sculpture Park. This 17-acre site celebrates the courage and resilience of those enslaved, built on the banks of the Alabama River. An immersive journey into the lives of enslaved people, it features poignant stories, original dwellings, and indigenous art.
3. Death Valley, California
- Learn more: Death Valley travel guide
- Why visit in January? Experience the valley while avoiding scorching temperatures.
January is a good time to visit Death Valley and avoid the extreme heat of the valley experiences in the summer. America’s largest national park (outside of Alaska) at more than 5,300 square miles offers plenty to explore. And it’s not just hellish, barren, lunar-like landscapes – Desolation Canyon, anyone?
Death Valley is alive with nature and experiences. Badwater Basin salt flats should be your first stop, the lowest point on the continent at 282 feet below sea level. Make sure to look high up east to the cliffs of the Black Mountains for a sign showing the sea level. To the west, Telescope Peak towers more than two miles above you.
Among the sand dunes, mountains, and salt flats, you’ll also find oases. Hidden in an unassuming canyon, Darwin Falls is a rare year-round waterfall in Death Valley. A haven for life, it teems with ferns and cattails, tree frogs and toads, and bighorn sheep.
For the full experience, camping is the most popular form of accommodation. Or for something more luxurious, base yourself in Las Vegas and make your visit a day trip.
4. San Antonio, Texas
- Learn more: San Antonio travel guide
- Why visit in January? The events, from All-American Bowl Day to restaurant week.
The oldest of Texas’ major cities, San Antonio typically confronts the New Year with a can-do attitude. Events happen all month long, from food fares to sporting contests. It’s not even that cold, with temperatures lingering in the mid-60s. Walking and exploring its colonial streets, it almost feels like spring.
If you’re visiting in the first week of January, you can enjoy the best of the city’s famed River Walk. With holiday season lights staying up until January 7th, it’s the best time to see them minus the Christmas crowds. Football fans should take a day out on January 6 for All-American Bowl Day. Grab a cold beer and hot dog to watch high school all-stars compete in a game that can decide NFL futures.
Refuel with some epic deals during restaurant week. Running January 15-27, it’s actually more like two weeks of delicious eatin’ and overindulgin’ (this is Texas, after all). Many of the city’s top restaurants offer prix fixe brunches, lunches, and dinners for budgets from $25 to $55.
Best places to travel in January for winter sports
5. Arctic Circle, Sweden
- Why visit in January? Snowboarding without the crowds.
In the frozen wilderness of Europe’s far north, adventure awaits. The icy January landscapes of Sweden are a playground for snowbound fun without crowds. Try snow-shoeing and cross-country skiing, reindeer and dog sledding, ice fishing and, if you’re particularly brave, ice diving.
For something special, head to Uddjaure Lake and try your hand at ice driving. From January 6 until late March, Lapland Ice Driving turns the lake’s vast frozen surface into the world’s best racetrack. Or rather, racetracks – no fewer than 13, including five full-scale exact replica Formula One circuits. Hop in one of the 30 supercars available and test your skills on the frozen equivalent of the Nürburgring.
Continue the lake theme with a stay at the wild and extraordinary Arctic Bath, a few hours’ drive east. Set in an otherworldly landscape, this floating spa has to be seen to be believed. You’ll need to fly into nearby Luleå and rent a car to get around but in landscapes like these, the journey is half the fun.
6. Harbin, China
- Learn more: Harbin travel guide
- Why visit in January? Experience the world’s largest ice and snow festival.
For a one-of-a-kind winter vacation, Harbin in China is your place. Each January the capital of China’s northernmost province hosts the world’s largest ice and snow festival.
Kicking off on January 5th, this is ice sculpting on an unimaginable scale. Explore lifesize castles, an island of giant sculptures, ice slides, and a towering Ferris Wheel where you can view it all. Elsewhere parks across the city freeze into extraordinary works of ice-bound art. January is the best time to visit too, as crowds don’t appear until February for the Chinese Spring Festival.
While you’re there, take the opportunity to dive into the local culinary scene, a mix of Russian, Mongolian, and northern Chinese cuisine. Hotpots and dumplings, stewed, smoked, and pickled, all warming and delicious are extra appealing when served in a restaurant made of ice.
For some classic winter sports, 90 minutes on the bullet train will take you to the Yabuli ski area, China’s biggest ski resort. Spread across three mountains and multiple small resorts, its 49 trails are blessed with consistently great snow. Hotels do vary in quality, for somewhere with good facilities stay at Club Med Yabuli.
7. Zermatt, Switzerland
- Learn more: Zermatt travel guide
- Why visit in January? A magical atmosphere, views and epic skiing.
Perhaps the greatest of Switzerland’s many epic ski resorts, Zermatt is a mecca for high adventure and high society. It’s also high altitude; Switzerland’s loftiest resort is only accessible by train so there are, blissfully, no cars.
Adventurers come for its skiing and snowboarding as well as the Matterhorn, Europe’s most iconic and recognizable peak. On the Matterhorn, you can explore its trails, climb its sheer faces, and jump off it if you’re really wild. Or just admire it from afar with a mulled wine at one of the gorgeous mountain huts on the surrounding slopes.
Outside of sports, decades of rich and famous visitors have cultivated an aura of glamor including high-end shopping, boutique hotels, Michelin star restaurants (book way in advance), and fantastic après ski. Prices can be high but are tempered by the magical atmosphere and views.
The archetypal ‘must-do’ when visiting is a trip on the mountain train up to the summit of the Gornergrat. At 10,000 feet, the destination is spectacular but it’s the ride that will take your breath away. Crushingly scenic, it winds over 33 minutes through some of Switzerland’s most stunning panoramas.
Best places to travel in January around the world
8. Panama
- Learn more: Panama City travel guide
- Why visit in January? Experience the Panama Jazz Festival.
Long, narrow, and fringed by two extraordinary coastlines, what Panama lacks in facilities it makes up for in beauty. Start your trip in the capital city which has enough to entertain for a short stay. Do as most visitors do and visit Casco Viejo. The old quarter and one-time gangland is now a thriving tourist district. Packed with great restaurants, bars, and boutique hotels spilling from shabby chic colonial houses.
January is a great time to visit as the city plays host to the annual Panama Jazz Festival. One of the city’s biggest events, it draws international artists to perform, educate, and celebrate leading jazz figures. In 2024, that’s Panamanian drummer and composer Billy Cobham.
A short flight but a world away from the city is the archipelago of Islas Secas. A super eco retreat owned by a billionaire conservation philanthropist, 13 of its 14 islands will remain forever undeveloped. Book a stay on the 14th island for a sustainable vacation showcasing the magical environment to its guests.
9. Southern Serengeti, Tanzania
- Why visit in January? The perfect month to see newborn wildebeest and antelope.
What better way to celebrate a new year than experiencing birthing season in the southern Serengeti? Across the vast savanna of Tanzania, new opportunity and new life springs forth everywhere you look.
Sandwiched between rainy seasons, January offers the perfect window to see the region at its lush and verdant best. This bounty of vegetation means great feasting for wildlife and their new offspring.
Thousands upon thousands of newborn wildebeest and antelope calves flood the plains. And they’re not alone. Lion and cheetah cubs, baby elephants, and zebra foals are taking their first steps, never far from their parents’ sides. The thicker undergrowth can make them harder to spot on safari, so you’ll rely on your guide more than ever.
To maximize your nature time, book a roving safari trip with a reputable operator like family-run Bushtops Safari Camps. Glamping at its very best, the roving Bushtops are remarkable creations, luxe tents that fold up and follow the action. For this experience fly into Arusha Kilimanjaro airport and take a local flight to the nearest airstrip.
10. Patagonia, Argentina
- Why visit in January? A once in a lifetime road trip and perfect weather conditions.
January is peak season in Patagonia, so expect crowds. But once you see the sheer scale of the place, you’ll realize crowds aren’t going to be a problem. Big mountains, big valleys, big lakes, and big skies – nature has done nothing by halves here.
I’ve opted for Argentinian rather than Chilean Patagonia, if only as an excuse to fly into Buenos Aires. From here track west across the country to the famed RN-40 highway, point yourself south, and just go. The route guides you through huge arid grasslands and steppes and past precipitous Andean peaks. Keep an eye out for the granite monolith of Monte Fitz Roy, not that it’s easy to miss.
January conditions are perfect to get out amongst it all. Kayak the lakes of Los Glaciares National Park. Boat to the Perito Moreno Glacier for an unnervingly up-close encounter and if you can face the trip, commit to heading south for Ushuaia. The world’s southernmost city is the perfect launch point for expeditions into the Tierra del Fuego. Or even more spectacular, for ocean journeys south deep into the Antarctic.
Discover more of the best places to travel
Check out my guide to the best places to visit in December and the best places to visit in February for more vacation inspiration. Or for something closer to home, check out the best winter vacations in the US. Looking for something warmer? Check out the 10 best warm places to go in January.
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