Best time to go to California for a perfect weather and where to go?
Discover the perfect time to visit California from seasonal norms in many locations like Carlsbad or Temecula on this page.
When is the best time to go to California?
When is the best time to go to California? Here's some information to help you in your decision:
- In California, the weather is good everywhere in June, July, August and September
- The weather is good all year in Los Angeles
- On average, the warmest months in Los Angeles are July, August, September and October, and the coldest months are January, February and December
- The rainiest months in this city are January, February and December
- The cities with the best climate are Los Angeles , San Diego, San Clemente, Channel Islands National Park, Encinitas, Gaviota, Hollywood, Joshua Tree National Park, Lompoc and Malibu, with good weather at least 11 months a year
- The best months for swimming in Los Angeles are June, July, August, September, October and November
Annual weather in California
For information about the climate and the weather city by city in California for a specific month, click on the corresponding line below:
| Month | Our opinion | View Details | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 20°F to 70°F | tolerable weather* | |||
| February | 18°F to 70°F | tolerable weather* | |||
| March | 23°F to 76°F | good weather* | |||
| April | 32°F to 83°F | good weather* | |||
| May | 40°F to 90°F | perfect weather* | |||
| June | 52°F to 103°F | perfect weather* | |||
| July | 59°F to 106°F | perfect weather* | |||
| August | 58°F to 106°F | perfect weather* | |||
| September | 49°F to 99°F | perfect weather* | |||
| October | 36°F to 86°F | perfect weather* | |||
| November | 27°F to 76°F | good weather* | |||
| December | 18°F to 68°F | tolerable weather* |
Best time to travel to California by cities
Los Angeles
The best months to go to Los Angeles are january, february, march, april, may, june, july, august, september, october, november and december.
Palm Springs
The best months to go to Palm Springs are march, april, may, june, july, august, september, october and november.
San Diego
The best months to go to San Diego are january, february, march, april, may, june, july, august, september, october, november and december.
Temperatures and rainfall in California
On these 3 graphs, we present the evolution of temperatures of California and month-by-month rainfall for the cities of Los Angeles , Palm Springs, San Diego, San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, as well as the month-by-month sea temperature for coastal cities.
Peak visitor numbers and tourist seasons in California
Find out when California has its high tourist season (the period when the influx of tourists is highest) and off-peak tourist season using our data and figures.
Tourist seasons in California
The months with low numbers of tourists are: January, February, March, April, May, October, November and December. The number of visitors to California is high in: June, July, August and September.
- Very low season in California: January, February, March and November.
- Low season in California: April, May, October and December.
- High season in California: June and September.
- Peek season in California: July and August.
Figure: Visitor index for California month by month
Average price for flights to California
A return flight between London and Los Angeles is generally cheaper if you go in march ($ 519 on average): this is the best time for travellers on a tight budget. In contrast, you may end up paying $ 312 more for your airline ticket to Los Angeles if you go in august.
Where to go in California?
This table allows you to see the maximum temperature for each city and our opinion on the weather month by month (see colour legend below the table).
| Cities | jan. | feb. | mar. | apr. | may | jun. | jul. | aug. | sep. | oct. | nov. | dec. |
| Los Angeles | 68°F | 68°F | 70°F | 74°F | 76°F | 79°F | 85°F | 86°F | 86°F | 81°F | 76°F | 67°F |
| Palm Springs | 63°F | 65°F | 68°F | 76°F | 81°F | 94°F | 97°F | 95°F | 92°F | 81°F | 70°F | 61°F |
| San Diego | 68°F | 67°F | 67°F | 68°F | 70°F | 74°F | 77°F | 79°F | 81°F | 77°F | 72°F | 67°F |
| San Francisco | 59°F | 61°F | 63°F | 67°F | 68°F | 72°F | 76°F | 76°F | 77°F | 74°F | 65°F | 59°F |
| Lake Tahoe | 40°F | 40°F | 41°F | 50°F | 58°F | 70°F | 79°F | 77°F | 72°F | 59°F | 49°F | 38°F |
| Napa Valley | 56°F | 59°F | 63°F | 70°F | 77°F | 85°F | 90°F | 90°F | 88°F | 77°F | 63°F | 54°F |
| San Clemente | 67°F | 67°F | 67°F | 68°F | 70°F | 74°F | 79°F | 81°F | 81°F | 77°F | 72°F | 67°F |
| Santa Barbara | 67°F | 65°F | 67°F | 70°F | 74°F | 79°F | 83°F | 83°F | 83°F | 77°F | 72°F | 65°F |
| Yosemite National Park | 40°F | 38°F | 40°F | 47°F | 54°F | 68°F | 76°F | 76°F | 70°F | 58°F | 47°F | 38°F |
| Angeles National Forest | 61°F | 59°F | 63°F | 68°F | 72°F | 81°F | 86°F | 86°F | 85°F | 76°F | 68°F | 59°F |
| Anza-Borrego Desert State Park | 67°F | 67°F | 72°F | 79°F | 85°F | 95°F | 99°F | 99°F | 95°F | 85°F | 74°F | 63°F |
| Big Sur | 59°F | 59°F | 59°F | 61°F | 63°F | 67°F | 70°F | 70°F | 72°F | 68°F | 65°F | 59°F |
| Cambria | 63°F | 63°F | 65°F | 67°F | 70°F | 74°F | 76°F | 77°F | 77°F | 74°F | 68°F | 61°F |
| Carmel-by-the-Sea | 59°F | 59°F | 59°F | 61°F | 63°F | 67°F | 70°F | 70°F | 72°F | 68°F | 65°F | 59°F |
| Channel Islands National Park | 63°F | 61°F | 61°F | 63°F | 63°F | 65°F | 68°F | 70°F | 72°F | 70°F | 67°F | 63°F |
| Chico | 59°F | 59°F | 63°F | 70°F | 79°F | 90°F | 99°F | 97°F | 92°F | 79°F | 65°F | 56°F |
| Cleveland National Forest | 67°F | 67°F | 68°F | 72°F | 74°F | 81°F | 86°F | 88°F | 86°F | 79°F | 72°F | 65°F |
| Crescent City | 52°F | 52°F | 54°F | 58°F | 61°F | 65°F | 68°F | 70°F | 68°F | 63°F | 56°F | 52°F |
| Death Valley National Park | 63°F | 67°F | 74°F | 81°F | 90°F | 103°F | 106°F | 106°F | 99°F | 85°F | 72°F | 61°F |
| Encinitas | 67°F | 65°F | 67°F | 68°F | 68°F | 72°F | 77°F | 79°F | 79°F | 76°F | 72°F | 65°F |
Legend:
perfect weather
good weather
tolerable weather
bad weather
very bad weather
About California
What can I do in California?
Beaches / swimming
Nature and countryside
Culture and heritage
Sports
Family travel
Crafts / shopping
Gastronomy
Nightlife
Is this weather information for California reliable?
Climate data for California has been gathered every day since January 2009. The analysis of these meteorological data for California allows us to determine the average for each month in Los Angeles , Palm Springs, San Diego, San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Napa Valley, San Clemente, Santa Barbara, and 81 other cities.
So yes: this data is reliable except in cases of temporary climate disruption in the region.