Ultra Network

The best places to travel in July

July is the height of the wild season: the Great Migration’s river crossings in Kenya, the Okavango Delta in flood, humpback whales in French Polynesia, Santorini at its peak, the Verbier Festival in the Swiss Alps, and the Mediterranean’s superyacht summer.

Updated · Ultra Network

22 destinations at their best in July.

Europe

IcelandMidnight SunVolcanoes under glaciers, geysers in snowfields, and the northern lights reflected in hot springs
  • Private helicopter landing on an active volcanic caldera
  • Ice cave exploration inside Vatnajökull glacier with glaciologist guide
Typical stay: 7 – 10 nightsGreecePeak Caldera Season — SantoriniAntiquity and azure infinity, concentrated in a single archipelago
  • Private guided Acropolis access at dawn before public opening hours
  • Superyacht island-hopping circuit: Mykonos, Delos, Naxos, Folegandros, Santorini
Typical stay: 7 – 14 nightsFrench RivieraSummer Superyacht SeasonWhere Europe's oldest money still takes its summer
  • Private superyacht charter along the Riviera coastline with Monaco port entry
  • Three-Michelin-starred dinner overlooking the Casino de Monte-Carlo
Typical stay: 5 – 14 nightsMontenegroSuperyacht SeasonEurope's newest riviera: superyachts, Byzantine walls, mountain fjords.
  • Sunset sailing through the Bay of Kotor aboard a restored traditional Jadran schooner, anchoring at the Island of Our Lady of the Rocks for a private seafood dinner
  • Exclusive island buyout of Sveti Stefan for a group of eight, with personal use of the 15th-century village, private beach, and resort spa
Typical stay: 5–10 nightsProvenceLavender SeasonLavender fields, rosé vineyards, and the light that invented Impressionism
  • Private lavender field dinner at sunset with Michelin-starred chef
  • Truffle hunting in the Vaucluse with trained dogs
Typical stay: 7 – 14 nightsAlbaniaRiviera Beach SeasonEurope's last undiscovered coastline, utterly and gloriously intact.
  • Private superyacht anchorage in Ksamil bay, with snorkelling over Greco-Roman ruins at Butrint
  • Exclusive guided tour of Gjirokastër's citadel and old bazaar with a local historian
Typical stay: 7–10 nightsFinnish LaplandMidnight SunTwo hundred aurora nights a year, two people per square kilometre, and the world's purest silence
  • Private aurora safari by snowmobile to a wilderness camp — hot berry juice under the northern lights
  • Husky sledding expedition across frozen lakes with your own team of Alaskan huskies
Typical stay: 5 – 10 nightsSwiss AlpsVerbier FestivalWhere alpine grandeur meets the world's most discreet hospitality
  • Private heli-skiing in untouched backcountry with certified mountain guides
  • Fondue dinner in a private mountain hut accessible only by snowcat
Typical stay: 7 – 14 nightsGeorgiaMountain Trekking SeasonEight thousand years of wine, walled in ancient amber stone.
  • Private qvevri winemaking workshop at a Kakheti estate — foot-treading and clay-vessel sealing
  • Sulphur bath private session in Abanotubani's historic bathhouse district, Tbilisi
Typical stay: 7–10 nightsPortugalAtlantic SummerAtlantic light, ancient palaces, and Europe's last wild coast.
  • Private sunset cruise along the Comporta coastline aboard a traditional rabelo, with a Lisbon sommelier presenting single-quinta Setúbal wines
  • Exclusive after-hours access to Sintra's Palácio Nacional da Pena with a royal historian, followed by dinner in the palace gardens
Typical stay: 7–12 nights

Africa and the Middle East

KenyaGreat Migration River CrossingsWhere the Great Migration meets private conservancy luxury
  • Hot air balloon safari at dawn over the Great Migration herds
  • Private conservancy game drives with no vehicle limits at sightings
Typical stay: 7 – 12 nightsRwandaDry SeasonThe mountain gorilla encounter — the most profound wildlife moment on Earth
  • Mountain gorilla trek — 1 hour with a habituated family in the bamboo cloud forest at 3,000m
  • Golden monkey tracking through the bamboo zone of Volcanoes National Park
Typical stay: 5 – 10 nightsBotswanaAnnual Delta FloodA 22,000 km² inland delta that floods each year — turning the Kalahari into Africa's greatest wildlife stage
  • Mokoro (dugout canoe) safari through the delta channels at dawn
  • Helicopter scenic flight over the Okavango's fractal waterways
Typical stay: 7 – 12 nights

Asia

The Americas

Galápagos IslandsWhale Shark SeasonEvolution's living laboratory — the world's most extraordinary wildlife encounter
  • Snorkeling with marine iguanas — the world's only sea-going lizards
  • Walking among giant tortoises on Santa Cruz highlands
Typical stay: 7 – 12 nightsColombiaMid-Year WindowColonial gold, Caribbean sea, and the world's finest coffee.
  • Private sunset cocktail hour on the ramparts of Castillo San Felipe with a local historian, followed by a chef's tasting of Caribbean-Colombian cuisine in a lantern-lit colonial courtyard
  • Exclusive emerald mine tour in Boyacá with a gemologist, selecting a rough stone to be cut and set by a Bogotá master jeweller
Typical stay: 7–12 nightsPeruAndean Dry SeasonThe Inca empire, the world's best restaurant, and cloud-forest silence.
  • Private sunrise at Machu Picchu — authorised early access with an IAMC-certified archaeologist before general admission, watching mist clear from the agricultural terraces
  • Luxury dinner train to Machu Picchu — glass-domed carriages, Andean cuisine, and live music ascending through cloud forest to the UNESCO site
Typical stay: 7 – 14 nights

The Indian Ocean and the Pacific

French PolynesiaHumpback Whale SeasonBora Bora and beyond — the South Pacific's most iconic overwater paradise
  • Sunset catamaran cruise across the Bora Bora lagoon
  • Drift diving the Tiputa Pass in Rangiroa (dolphin encounters)
Typical stay: 10 – 14 nightsNew ZealandSki Season — Remarkables & Heli-SkiingWhere the Southern Alps meet the world's last truly empty wilderness
  • Private helicopter access to Milford Sound with a fly-cruise of the inner fiords and doubtful sound
  • Heli-skiing the Harris Mountains above Wanaka — 2,000m vertical descents on untracked powder
Typical stay: 10 – 18 nightsPapua New GuineaDry Season / Diving PeakEight hundred languages and a world still inventing itself.
  • Private access to Mount Hagen Sing-Sing cultural show with a specialist tribal culture facilitator
  • Multi-day Sepik River longboat expedition visiting haus tambaran spirit houses and master carvers
Typical stay: 10–14 nights

The polar regions

Where to go in July, by what you love.

Every destination here is in its peak season in July. Choose by the kind of journey you have in mind:

  • For sun, sea and islands: Bali, French Polynesia, Greece, Galápagos Islands, Colombia and Sri Lanka.
  • For wildlife: Sri Lanka, Kenya, Rwanda, Arctic and Botswana.
  • For culture, food and wine: Iceland, Bali, French Polynesia, Greece, Galápagos Islands and Colombia.
  • For snow and mountains: New Zealand, Finnish Lapland and Swiss Alps.
  • For adventure and wild places: Iceland, Bali, Galápagos Islands, Colombia, Sri Lanka and Albania.
  • For wellbeing: Iceland, Bali, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, Finnish Lapland and Swiss Alps.

Planning a July journey.

Peak season is when the best suites, villas, guides and tables are most in demand, and the most sought-after of them are reserved well ahead. The earlier the plan begins, the more of them remain open to you.

An independent Ultra Advisor knows which of these destinations suits the journey you have in mind in July, what can still be secured, and how to join two of them into one trip. They design the itinerary around you, book every part of it and look after it until you are home.

Your questions.

Where is the best place to travel in July?

It depends on the journey you want. The most searched destinations at their best in July are Iceland, Bali and French Polynesia: Iceland for midnight Sun; Bali for mola Mola Season; French Polynesia for humpback Whale Season.

Where do luxury travellers go in July?

For sun, sea and islands, Bali, French Polynesia and Greece. For wildlife, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Rwanda. For culture, food and wine, Iceland, Bali and French Polynesia. All 22 destinations on this page are in their peak season in July.

How far ahead should I plan a July trip?

As early as you can for peak-season stays at the most sought-after hotels and villas. An advisor can tell you what is still possible for July, including at shorter notice.

Can I combine two destinations in July?

Often, when both are in season and the journey between them is easy. An advisor plans the route, the flights or private aviation and the timing, so the trip feels like one journey.

Does it cost more to plan a July trip with an advisor?

Usually not: most advisors are paid by the hotels and suppliers they book, so the rate is typically the one you would pay directly, and asking Ultra for an advisor is free.

Tell us about the July journey you have in mind.

Recommendations chosen for you, an itinerary crafted around them, and every booking managed by an independent Ultra Advisor.

Free to ask, no obligation.