Spring has landed and the Northern Hemisphere is hotting up, fast. Many regions are entering their high season, with prices and crowds on the rise. But the best warm places to visit in March include plenty of crowd-free sun too.
Across the world, beach resorts are dusting off the loungers and firing up the cocktail blenders. Many of the world’s great cities are waking from their winter slumber. Anticipation rises with the temperatures, so expect an uptick in competition for the best stays, and book early. Here’s where’s hot in March.
Warm places to visit in March
Filter below by price or temperature to find the best warm destination for you based on KAYAK data, or keep reading for more info on the best hot spots this month.
Best warm places to visit in March in the US
Spring brings with it the welcome return of warmer temperatures to much of the US. On the mainland, Florida is the go-to warm place to visit in March, while Hawai‘i is as reliably sun-soaked as ever.
1. Kailua-Kona, Island of Hawai‘i
- Average temperature: 72°F
The Big Island is the most geologically diverse and jaw-dropping of the Hawai‘ian archipelago. And the town of Kailua-Kona is one of the warmest places to visit in March in the US.
The star of the show is undoubtedly Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park and its two active volcanoes. At its center, enormous but passive Mauna Loa dominates. Far below, Kīlauea, with its vast steaming double crater that’s been coughing up lava continuously for 25 years. If it’s too hot to hike, drive around the rim of Kīlauea crater. Follow the road as it descends to the sea and you’ll pass the spectacular Chain of Craters.
Back at sea level, sun-soaked beaches are ready to bake the warmth back into your bones. Kua Bay is my pick, a perfect crescent of snow-white sand and sea that understandably draws in the crowds from nearby Kailua-Kona. If it’s too busy for your taste, hike the coastal trail to nearby Kukio Beach.
2. Key West, Florida
- Average temperature: 73°F
The farthest flung of all Florida’s keys, Key West offers a dreamy beach vacation in March. Average temps hover in the mid 70s but regularly get close to 80 during its long sunny days. Don’t forget to pack your bikini and board shorts then.
At only seven square miles, you don’t have to travel far to find the sea. Smathers Beach is the regular go-to where you can rent everything from a lounger to a catamaran. To avoid the spring crowds, Fort Zachary Taylor State Park at the southwest tip offers a more remote, tranquil setting.
Key West’s geography and size conspire to make it a popular place to visit in March. KAYAK data shows average hotel prices of $535 a night. If that doesn’t put you off, make sure to explore your inner writer at Hemingway House, take in the sunset and street performers with sundowners at Mallory Square and then gorge on seafood at the Conch Republic.
Best beach vacations in March
For many, me included, temperatures across most of the US don’t yet warrant a pure beach vacation in March. Expand your horizons, however, and you’ll find a stretch of golden sand with your name on it nearby.
3. Malé, Maldives
- Average temperature: 82°F
The capital island of the Maldives is your entry point to its many island jewels in the glistening crown of the Indian Ocean. If there’s one absolute consistency the Maldives offers, it’s year-round warm temperatures, with the February average a perfect 82°. Magically, it tends to hover around this temperature 24/7, wavering only a few degrees between night and day.
Densely populated and built up to its ocean-fringed limits, Malé sits in stark contrast to the rest of the nation. That alone makes it worth exploring for its insight into Maldivian life.
There are markets to explore, a museum and mosques to visit. None is better than the intricate coral-built Old Friday Mosque that celebrates the arrival of Islam. Once you’re done with city life, hop on a boat to nearby local island Thulusdhoo, where you can rent a beachfront hotel room for a fraction of the price of most resorts.
4. Cancún, Mexico
- Average temperature: 79°F
On the Gulf of Mexico’s southern tip, washed by the warm Caribbean Sea, Cancún has everything going for it. In March, when long sunny days stretch into longer balmy nights and the beaches and bars are at their best, it buzzes with sun-kissed vacationers. Late in March sees Spring Breakers pour in, so best plan your trip for earlier in the month.
Peak season comes with a cost beyond the crowds, as hotel prices average $333 a night. Book a stay in the Zona Hotelera and you’ll be in beach bar and nightclub nirvana. The heart of it sits around Kilometer 9 on Avenida Kukulkan where glitzy high-rise hotels, pounding clubs and expensive restaurants cluster for your attention.
Of course the real magic is to be found in the incredible wonders of the Yucatán Peninsula beyond the city. The legacy of the Mayan civilization is foremost among them at Chichen Itzá Park.
5. Koh Samui, Thailand
- Average temperature: 82°F
Thailand’s island paradise of Koh Samui is the ultimate manifestation of a dream beach vacation. While flights are expensive, averaging $1,331 according to KAYAK data, rock bottom hotel prices more than cover the difference for a two week vacation. A stay costs an average of just $77 a night.
Despite its ever-growing popularity, it is still my default go-to for somewhere hot and cheap in March. The reasons for this are manifold and go beyond the ribbons of white sand and sublime seas that encircle it. Although they do play an admittedly major part.
There’s the buzz of touristy Chaweng Beach, where beach bars serving long cold cocktails blend day seamlessly into night. At Bophut Fisherman’s Village you’ll find traces of the Koh Samui of old and its Friday night market is still among the best you’ll find in Thailand. Go hungry to make the most of the street food, from racks of toasted insects to incredible mango sticky rice.
6. Florianópolis, Brazil
- Average temperature: 75°F
Floripa, as the locals call it, is the magic island of Southern Brazil. It is a place of mangroves and lagoons, dunes and rolling hills, and a multitude of tiny islands. It is also beach central, blessed with 42 of the finest stretches of sand you’ll ever see. March is the end of high season, when crowds thin but days are still bright and warm.
Arrive and you’ll soon see be enamored. A mosaic of Brazilian, Italian, German and Azorean cultures mashed up and dropped onto a beachy wonderland. The food, architecture and cultural traditions all reflect as much – esoteric, intriguing and delicious.
In particular, the food. Named a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy, its deep well of culinary traditions have combined beautifully with the region’s freshest seafood. Cockles and shrimps are fixtures on every menu, but it’s the local oysters that steal the show. Dive in.
Best warm cities to visit in March
If a beach vacation isn’t your thing, mild March temperatures make it a great month to hit the big city. And there are some true metropolises to explore. Nowhere shines brighter in spring for me than Asia, where hot and cheap Ho Chi Minh City and New Delhi hotel prices average around just $50 a night.
7. Medellín, Colombia
- Average temperature: 72°F
Buried in a narrow valley between towering Andean peaks, Medellín is a city bustling with vigor and purpose. Its remarkable transformation is in no small part thanks to its mountain setting and lovely year-round climate. March is the driest month with daytime temperatures lingering in the high 70s.
Dubbed the City of Eternal Spring, Medellín has become a hub for green technology, art and culture. A stroll through its streets will show you why. Historic and modern architecture, from the neo-Romanesque Catedral Metropolitana to the huge metal Monumento a la Vida sculpture. A thriving fashion scene fueled by a long history of textile manufacture. Fine-dining restaurants fuse the best of Colombian and European cuisines to great effect.
To see it all in its full majesty, take the Metrocable car from deep in the city to high on the slopes. Known as “the cheapest sightseeing tour in the world”, it costs around a dollar.
8. Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
- Average temperature: 82°F
With south Vietnam in the firm grip of dry season, March is a great time to explore its often sweltering cities. Daytime temperatures hover in the high 80s, humidity is at its lowest and rain is a distant memory. None is more dazzling and vital than Ho Chi Minh City, where the country’s past and present are combining to drive its commercial and cultural future.
The sheer pace of life in HCMC can easily overwhelm anyone new to its streets. Despite its status as an established tourist destination, many of its best features are hidden in plain sight and easy to overlook. Early morning walks in Tao Dan Park to watch the city awake. Evening explorations of District 4, where kerbside dinners on plastic stools will blow your gastronomic mind.
9. Dubai, UAE
- Average temperature: 72°F
With temperatures rising, March is the last month to enjoy Dubai at its best before the summer swelter settles in. High daytime temperatures kiss 80°, perfect for city wandering, and evenings stay warm enough to dine al fresco.
Dubai is a startling city to look at. It sits in stark contrast to the desert that besieges it on every side. Yet its opulence and excess is dizzying. There is almost nothing you can’t do here, such is the glut of culture and entertainment on offer.
My favorite thing about Dubai, however, is the desert – and March is the best time to explore it. Take a safari through the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve in search of oryxes, red foxes and caracals. Sandboard down vast desert dunes. Fly falcons from a hot air balloon. Dine under the stars at a Bedouin camp.
10. New Delhi, India
- Average temperature: 72°F
In March, New Delhi is at its temperate best. Not yet a summer furnace, free of winter fog and autumn monsoons, it is dry, warm and spellbinding. The groomed elegance and order of New Delhi provides some respite from the crumbling chaos of Old Delhi, but you can’t properly experience one without the other.
The British legacy is writ large across New Delhi’s colonial architecture, nowhere more so than the colonnaded circular Connaught Place, now a gaudy shopping mall. Head instead for Humayun’s Tomb, a fine example of Mughal architecture in the same vein as the Taj Mahal.
At glorious Lodhi Park, get a truer sense of the city. Stroll its rambling grounds and historic monuments. Join locals playing cricket, picnicking and taking a moment to escape the mania of the streets beyond. As the sun sets, the sky shades orange and red in a panoply of lovely colors.
Where is hot and cheap in March?
With spring temperatures thawing in the Northern Hemisphere, the options for a hot and cheap vacation have improved rapidly. Mexico remains a stalwart, as are the sleepier resorts further south in Belize, Guatemala and the rest of Central America. In fact, quick and cheap flights put most of South America within easy distance. Need help narrowing your options? Try KAYAK Explore.
FAQs
For anyone based in the US, the cheapest warm place to vacation is going to be in the US mainland or Mexico. Depending on the time of year, much of the US will be warm. But in winter months, warmer spots like Florida and California see big price rises. Mexico, however, offers lots of variety and more consistent pricing year round.
The warmest places in Europe in March are in the south – Portugal and Mediterranean islands like Cyprus. For beaches, Portugal’s Algarve should be your first port of call. Spain’s weather in March also makes for wonderful city breaks and is the best month of the year to explore Seville. And don’t forget the Balearic Islands – Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza all shine in the springtime sun.
More travel inspiration
Recommendation ranking of cities:
Our recommendation ranking of where to go is calculated based on the presented five factors: average flight prices, average hotel prices, average, high, and low temperatures, and average precipitation. Flight prices, hotel prices, and precipitation constitute inverse factors, the less the better. All factors are equally weighted.
From the ranked destination lists, destination exclusions may have been applied in cases of insufficient data or according to the official travel advisory at the time when the data analysis was conducted.
Flight and hotel prices:
Average prices are estimated from KAYAK internal data from the search period ‘2024/10/03 to 2025/01/03’ for the travel period ‘2025/03/03 to 2025/04/30.’ Flight prices include economy class return trips for one traveller, and hotel prices represent the nightly rates for a standard double room for hotels with three stars or below. Price insights may vary depending on the exact departure airport and over time as travel dates are approaching.
Weather (monthly average, high, and low temperatures, and average precipitation):
Weather data is pulled from a third-party site, Weatherbase, and has not been verified by KAYAK. Monthly average temperature and precipitation data are based on historical insights from the past 102 years. Weatherbase data is updated in real-time from the US Census Bureau and other databases worldwide.