We’ve trawled the web for interesting low-cost destinations and a consensus is difficult to find, but here are a few of the best budget destinations that we have visited:
Mexico beaches,  Cuba, Jamaica, Morocco, Nepal, Cambodia

Venice Beach, LA, CA in mid-summer. Photo by Aron Msk.

Beaches in southern California such as Los Angeles’ Venice should be reaching perfect highs of around 77F (25C) and lows around 60F (15C) while on the other side of the country in Miami, Florida, temperatures could be heading towards toasty highs of 90F (32C), with lows of 74F (23C), the last months before the weather starts to get really muggy and oppressive. Still, two great months for southern US beaches.

This is also a terrific time to take a road trip around America’s cool canyons and national parks, especially the Grand Circle canyons near Las Vegas for incredible rock formations and Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming (mostly) for volcanoes and wildlife.

Summertime is also a terrific time to experience some of North America’s great festivals such as the Calgary Stampede in Canada July;  Cheyenne Frontier Days (rodeo+music) in Wyoming USA July;  Hog Heaven at Sturgis’ massive bike jamboree in South Dakota August. Of course the Covid-19 situation may discourage crowd events so check events at source.

Check possible American Festivals 2021

USA Map

Palm Beach, Aruba island, Caribbean.

Weather in much of the Caribbean these months  is likely to be stormy or at least cloudy, with beaches strewn with seaweed and flotsam. But a handful of budget islands in the far southwest near Venezuela continue to get fine tho’ hot weather thru August. These are mainly ABC – the Dutch Antilles of Aruba, Bonaire (speciality: scuba diving) and Curaçao.

Bermuda’s not in the Caribbean, it’s about 1,000 miles off the Florida coast in the Atlantic.  The best time to visit the island is from June to October when  the pink-sand beaches sprawl in temperatures of about 30C, with long daylight hours, low rainfall and warm seas around 25C.

Mexico is low cost as always, it’s easy to reach (from USA/Canada) and sunny though hot and humid during the summer so plenty of bargain vacations can be found on Mexico’s Maya Riviera beaches such as Cancun  – with  incredible Maya sites are only a couple of hours away. And then there’s Cabo San Lucas on the Pacific coast.

Caribbean Map

A Capybara in Brazil’s Pantanal wetlands, photo by Berrucomons.

In Latin America Brazil is about the only place that’s good to visit at this time, especially to spot animals in the vast Pantanal wetlands tho’ parts were severely burned during wildfires  some months ago.

Other South American countries can get very cold at this time since this is mid-winter. Peru, for example, is very chilly in high tourist places and the Inca Trail may be blocked by snow on high passes.

Latin America Map

Castro de Barona, Rias Baixas, Galicia, north Spain. An ancient Gaelic fortress straddled by beaches and an easy drive from the end of the pilgrim highway at Santiago de Compostela. North Spain beaches are staggeringly beautiful at this time of year tho’ the Atlantic Ocean is always a bit chilly.

Europe during these summer months is brilliant though southern areas of Spain and Italy will be unpleasantly hot. Decent hotels get packed out in August, so try to holiday in June/July. If not, never mind, there will be crowds but book accommodation ahead and enjoy rubbing shoulders with humanity!
This is a great time for festivals, both inner city and out in the country, so check our European Festival listings for July and August if you fancy a cultural break. We are particularly fond of the lovely, crazy Chaumont International Garden Festival in France’s Loire Valley.

For Culture Vultures London is a great choice with its world-beating free museums and galleries. Other sensational cities of western Europe such as Paris,  Barcelona and Vienna are also perfect for historic sights, pleasant strolls and odd happenings in warm/hot weather.

Beach seekers can find varied, unusual vacation places with the necessary sunshine and good value in France, Croatia,  and north Spain, the latter which also offers spectacular cities such as Santiago de Compostela, Bilbao and San Sebastián-Donostia.
Island and beach hopping in Greece is a great way to see a lot but not a very cheap option. Still fast ferries do the job smoothly and conveniently. Hop from Athens to Santorini island (Atlantis!), to Mykonos, to Crete etc.

Check possible UK Festivals 2021

Europe Map

A leopard hanging out in the Eastern Serengeti, Tanzania wildlife safari. Photo by Harvey Barrison

This is the perfect time for wildlife viewing in Africa’s great game parks such as Tanzania and Kenya big game safaris or even the massive, beastly migration. Meanwhile Namibia, Botswana and South Africa offer wonderful self-drive wildlife safaris – and don’t forget that South Africa is still one of the world’s cheapest holiday destinations.

North Africa is overheated during these months unless you’re by the sea… Egypt’s Red Sea coast is cheap and cheerful. Morocco’s Atlantic Coast is also useable and  backed by a colourful and interesting culture not far away.

Africa Map

A sheepish welcome to Lhasa, Tibet (China).

Summer is really the only time to visit Tibet and especially Lhasa, a high altitude destination with a brilliant local culture but considerable poverty and recent influx of Han Chinese. Beware flying in from sea level as the chance of experiencing severe altitude problems is, appropriately, high. See Altitude Sickness

India is also awaiting your visit but it’s massive so focus, don’t try to see everything at once! Kerala, down south is perfect at this time though the country’s primary sights are in the Golden Triangle around Rajasthan which will be incredibly hot in the summer.

Around much of Asia the monsoon rains will be falling, and/or heat and humidity will be oppressively high.

Best vacation places at this time are Bali’s beaches (currently the cheapest regular vacation destination after Europe) and calm culture, or the exotic attractions of Tibet, Russia (St Petersburg is amazing and the Hermitage Museum incredible) and Papua New Guinea.

Thailand is not at it’s very best but if you avoid west coast beaches where rain is frequent it should be acceptable and very low cost. We are fans of Koh Samet, easy to reach from Bangkok airports, relaxed, varied accommodation and foods, lots of beaches.

Asia Map

Kepler Track fjord, New Zealand. Photo Samuel Bordo.

New Zealand is heading into mid-winter at this time so less than perfect but still fine for walking, the country’s most popular activity. For example the South Island’s Kepler Track  is a very well-built 60 km (37 miles) circular trail passing through the spectacular scenery of Fiordland National Park.

Southern Australia is generally in great shape in their summertime i.e. US winter, with Sydney and Melbourne buzzing with energy and things to do. However, the east coast is  suffering an unusual number of massive forest fires and it’s not going to get any better as summer kicks in.
On the Gold Coast early summer temperatures head into the 30Cs with occasional rain, albeit short and exciting tropical storms rather than north European drizzle. Surfer’s Paradise becomes very loud, pricey and overcrowded during the Christmas holidays. Far north Australia is best avoided at this time due to extreme heat, drought and forest fires.

Northern Australia is terrific from May to October, meaning mainly the activities resort of Cairns, the sadly bleached Great Barrier Reef zone and Darwin, but weather in the south – Sydney, Melbourne, Great Ocean Road etc – will be cool and probably damp.

Australasia Map