Mild winter destinations: São Miguel, Marrakech, Oualidia and Mallorca

São Miguel, Marrakech, Oualidia or Mallorca? Four mild winter destinations compared, with the weather, hand-picked hotels and ideas for days out.

Lunch outdoors. A garden still worth exploring in January. A few days somewhere milder, without expecting summer. Between December and February, afternoons at our four destinations average 16 to 21°C. If swimming matters, check that the hotel has a heated pool. The sea is for the hardy.

São Miguel, Marrakech, Oualidia and Mallorca offer four different ways to escape the winter. We compare the weather, days out and a few hand-picked hotels, and we say where rain, cold evenings or a seasonal closure are part of a winter stay.

Where is it mild in winter? The four destinations compared

• São Miguel, Azores: the smallest difference between daytime and night-time temperatures, and the nights stay mild according to long-term averages. The trade-off is the most frequent rain. Where to stay: Santa Bárbara on the north coast and WHITE on the south coast.
• Marrakech: the warmest, driest afternoons, but cold evenings. Where to stay: Berber Lodge, in an olive grove south of the city.
• Oualidia, Atlantic coast: mild and steady, with a little more rain than Marrakech. Where to stay: La Sultana Oualidia, on the lagoon.
• Mallorca: the coolest of the four, with one or two frosty nights a month in winter at Palma airport on average, but almond blossom in February. Where to stay: Es Racó d’Artà, in the hills near Artà.

Figures are for each weather station. Safi, further south on the same coast, is only a rough guide for Oualidia. A rainy day means at least 1 mm of rain. Sources: IPMA for Ponta Delgada; WMO climate normals, archived by NOAA, for Marrakech, Safi and Palma.

São Miguel: thermal pools and hotels on the Atlantic

Santa Bárbara sits on São Miguel's north coast, above the dark-sand beach of the same name near Ribeira Grande. In winter, the draw is indoors. On rainy days, the spa offers massages and treatments, including water therapy in its heated indoor pool. There's yoga too, and the villas and Retreat Studios each have their own hot tub.

WHITE, its smaller sister hotel, stands a few metres above the rocky shore near Lagoa on the south coast, and every suite looks out to sea. That matters more in winter: even on a grey day, the Atlantic is right outside your window, and treatments take place in a hut on the clifftop. To see both coasts, split your stay between the two.

On rainy days: warm water.

• Caldeira Velha: a natural monument on the northern slope of the Fogo volcano, in the same municipality as Santa Bárbara, with iron-rich pools between 25 and 35°C.
• Parque Terra Nostra in Furnas: a volcanic spring at 42°C feeds the thermal pool in the garden. The warm water makes Furnas worth the trip even when it rains.

On a clear day: hike to Lagoa do Fogo, the lake in the middle of the island. The only waymarked trail to its shore is just over 10 km there and back; on the way down, you can see along the south coast to Vila Franca do Campo. If the cloud is low or the rain heavy, choose another outing: you won't see the lake or the coast, and the path turns to mud.

For more on the island, see our guide São Miguel: where to stay and our Azores page.

Marrakech: sunny afternoons, cold evenings

By day you sit among the old olive trees; in the evening, the rooms have heating and a fireplace. Berber Lodge, near Oumnass south of Marrakech, suits a winter trip that mixes days in the city with afternoons in the countryside. The set menu changes daily, based on what's available at the market, with some vegetables from the lodge's own garden.

In the city, the medina, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1985, is home to the Koutoubia mosque and Jemaa el-Fna square. Visit the Jardin Majorelle around midday, when it's warmest; the Musée Yves Saint Laurent is right next door.

Oualidia: winter days on the lagoon

La Sultana Oualidia sits between the lagoon and the Atlantic. In winter, the heated indoor pool in the spa matters most, and every room has its own terrace with a hot tub.

The hotel runs birdwatching trips on the lagoon all year, with a guide, by boat or kayak; you may see herons, spoonbills, cormorants and flamingos. For a day trip, consider the Portuguese fortified town of Mazagan in El Jadida, up the coast towards Casablanca. A UNESCO World Heritage site since 2004, it's worth seeing for its old cistern. For more ideas, see our guide to Oualidia in Morocco.

Mallorca: quiet fincas and almond blossom

Winter is Mallorca's quietest season. Es Racó d’Artà is spread around an old finca in the hills near Artà, next to the Llevant Natural Park. On cool days there are spa treatments, and Sa Finqueta, a separate house, has a fireplace.

February is almond blossom month on Mallorca, and Son Servera, not far from Artà, holds its traditional Firó de la Flor d’Ametller fair. When it rains, head for the caves on the east coast: the Coves d’Artà on Canyamel bay, and the Coves del Drach in Porto Cristo, where every tour includes a concert on the underground lake.

Can Ferrereta in Santanyí, the second hotel in our piece Quiet Mallorca, closes for the season from mid-November and isn't an option again until March. For more on the island, see our Mallorca page.

Which destination suits which winter month?

• December, including Christmas and New Year: São Miguel, Marrakech or Oualidia.
• January: Marrakech for dry, warm afternoons; São Miguel for mild nights, though it rains more.
• February: Marrakech, with afternoons averaging almost 21°C; Mallorca for the almond blossom; or São Miguel.
• March: all four, with Can Ferrereta in Santanyí reopening for the season on Mallorca.

Before you book

Not every hotel takes bookings all winter. If a booking calendar shows no rooms, that doesn't necessarily mean the hotel is closed, so it's worth asking directly.

Before you go

The Musée Yves Saint Laurent is closed on Wednesdays, and the Coves del Drach on 25 December and 1 January. La Sultana's birdwatching trip costs MAD 2,300 per couple.

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