Best Places to Travel in March: Where Luxury Travel Is at Its Best
If you’re searching for the best places to travel in March, you’re looking at one of the most transitional and rewarding months in the travel calendar. March sits at the edge of spring in the northern hemisphere — winter is loosening its grip, the crowds of high summer are still months away, and a remarkable range of destinations are either approaching their peak or offering ideal shoulder-season conditions before the surge of April and May arrives. At the same time, the southern hemisphere is moving through its own seasonal shift, with post-summer warmth settling across Africa and South America in ways that open up safari, trekking, and wildlife experiences that are genuinely outstanding.
The best places to travel in March reward travelers who understand the value of being slightly ahead of the curve. In Japan, the first cherry blossoms open in late March — and the travelers who time their arrival to the first days of bloom rather than the peak crowd days of early April experience something more intimate and more genuinely beautiful. In Portugal, March delivers spring warmth without summer pricing. In Rwanda, the gorillas are accessible year-round, but March conditions in the forest are exceptional. The destinations below are where we send our clients in March, and where the seasonal alignment makes a meaningful difference. Our guide to the best places to travel in February covers the preceding month, and the best places to travel in April picks up where March leaves off.
- Best spring bloom: Japan for the opening of cherry blossom season
- Best safari: Rwanda for gorilla trekking in ideal forest conditions
- Best European spring: Portugal for warmth, culture, and pre-peak pricing
- Best Middle East: Oman for ideal temperatures before the summer heat arrives
- Best wildlife: Costa Rica for dry season biodiversity at its peak
- Best cultural festival: India for Holi and the final weeks of ideal Rajasthan conditions
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The Best Places to Travel in March
March is defined by transitions — seasonal, cultural, and experiential. It is the month when the world’s most beautiful bloom season begins, when southern hemisphere safaris shift from summer abundance to the clarity of the approaching dry season, and when Europe opens up for travelers who want spring warmth without summer crowds. The destinations below represent the strongest options for the month, each delivering something that March specifically makes possible.
Japan — One of the Best Places to Travel in March for Cherry Blossom Season
Japan in late March is one of the best places to travel in March for travelers who want to experience one of the world’s most celebrated natural events without the full intensity of peak-bloom crowds. The sakura season typically begins in Tokyo and Kyoto in the final week of March — exact timing varies by a few days each year based on winter temperatures — and the first days of bloom, when trees shift from bare branches to a light dusting of pale pink, are arguably more beautiful and certainly less crowded than the full-bloom peak that follows in early April. Kyoto’s Philosopher’s Path, the moat at Chidorigafuchi in Tokyo, and the grounds of Osaka Castle are all extraordinary at this point in the season, and the combination of spring warmth, long afternoon light, and the particular quality of early bloom make late March one of the finest windows for photography and unhurried exploration.
A March Japan itinerary benefits from extending south to destinations where bloom arrives earlier — Hiroshima, Kyushu, and the western coastal towns often reach peak bloom before Kyoto, giving travelers the opportunity to follow the season northward over the course of a ten to fourteen night trip. For travelers who want to experience Japan without the cherry blossom crowds entirely, late March also offers the option of focusing on the Japan Alps, Kanazawa, or the Tohoku region, where spring arrives later and crowds remain thin. Japan’s luxury infrastructure — ryokan, kaiseki dining, and private cultural access — is excellent regardless of the season, but the spring window brings a particular beauty to garden-facing rooms and outdoor hot spring baths that is worth planning around specifically. For travelers considering Japan later in the season, our guide to the best places to travel in May covers the post-blossom spring window in detail.
- Best for: Couples, photographers, cultural travelers, families
- Why March: Early cherry blossom bloom; manageable crowds before April peak; spring warmth beginning
Rwanda — Gorilla Trekking and East Africa at Its Most Intimate
Rwanda in March is one of the most rewarding safari destinations in Africa, and for travelers seeking a wildlife experience that operates on a genuinely different emotional register from a conventional game drive, it is one of the best places to travel in March on the continent. The mountain gorillas of Volcanoes National Park are accessible year-round, but March offers particularly good forest conditions — the long rains haven’t yet begun, the vegetation is lush from the preceding short rains, and the gorilla families that have been habituated to human presence spend their days in accessible areas of the park that make for manageable but rewarding treks. Each permit allows one hour with a gorilla family — an hour that virtually every traveler who has experienced it describes as one of the most profound of their lives.
Rwanda’s luxury lodge scene has developed into one of the finest in East Africa, with a small collection of properties positioned on the edge of Volcanoes National Park that deliver exceptional service and guiding within a genuinely remote setting. Beyond gorillas, Rwanda offers golden monkey tracking, chimpanzee habituation in Nyungwe Forest, and an emerging cultural and culinary scene in Kigali that rounds out an itinerary with genuine substance. The country is exceptionally clean, safe, and well-organized by regional standards, making it one of the most straightforward African destinations for couples, families, or multi-generational groups. Rwanda pairs naturally with a Tanzania extension — the Serengeti in March is transitioning toward the long rains, with the wildebeest herds moving north and predator activity still strong — for a broader East Africa itinerary covering two very different but equally compelling wildlife experiences.
- Best for: Couples, wildlife enthusiasts, experienced luxury travelers, multi-generational groups
- Why March: Good pre-long-rains forest conditions; accessible gorilla families; lush green landscape
Portugal — Spring Warmth and Culture Without the Summer Crowds
Portugal in March is one of the best places to travel in March in Europe for travelers who want genuine spring warmth, exceptional food and wine, and a pace that the country simply cannot deliver during the peak summer months. The Algarve coast in March is extraordinary — almond trees finish their bloom in late February and wildflowers begin to cover the clifftops and inland fields in a carpet of yellow, purple, and white that is one of the most underrated seasonal spectacles in southern Europe. Temperatures along the south coast reach the low-to-mid 20s on clear days, warm enough for coastal walks and outdoor dining, while the north — Lisbon, Porto, and the Douro Valley — sits in the pleasant mid-teens, ideal for urban exploration on foot without the heat that makes summer city visits exhausting.
Lisbon in March delivers what the city is actually best at — cobblestone neighborhoods like Alfama and Mouraria navigated at leisure, fado heard in intimate venues rather than tourist restaurants, and a table at a wine bar serving the natural wines and small plates that have made the city one of Europe’s most interesting food destinations. The Douro Valley, a two-hour drive or train journey north of Porto, offers one of the world’s great wine landscapes in March — the terraced vineyards are budding, the river is full, and the quintas that receive visitors for tastings and overnight stays are operating without summer reservations pressure. A Portugal itinerary of eight to ten nights in March that moves between Lisbon, the Alentejo plains, and Porto covers the country’s three defining landscapes in conditions that most summer visitors would not recognize as the same place.
- Best for: Couples, food and wine travelers, cultural enthusiasts, multi-generational groups
- Why March: Spring wildflowers; ideal temperatures; pre-peak pricing; Douro Valley budding season
Oman — One of the Best Places to Travel in March in the Middle East
Oman in March is one of the best places to travel in March for travelers seeking a Middle Eastern destination with genuine depth, dramatic landscapes, and ideal weather conditions before the summer heat becomes prohibitive. Temperatures in March sit in the mid-to-high 20s across most of the country — warm enough to enjoy the coast and the desert comfortably, cool enough for hiking through the wadis and exploring the ancient fortresses of the Hajar Mountains without restriction. The Wahiba Sands, Oman’s most dramatic desert landscape, are at their finest in March — the light across the dunes in the early morning and late afternoon is extraordinary, and the nights are cool enough to sleep comfortably in the luxury desert camps that have become one of the country’s signature experiences.
Oman distinguishes itself from its Gulf neighbors through a combination of authentic cultural depth and extraordinary natural variety that is unusual in the region. The medieval city of Nizwa, the clifftop villages of the Jebel Akhdar plateau, the marine turtle nesting beaches of Ras Al Jinz, and the turquoise swimming holes of Wadi Shab and Wadi Bani Khalid are all within reach of a well-designed ten to twelve night itinerary that begins and ends in Muscat. The capital itself is one of the most elegant and welcoming cities in the Gulf — the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque, the Mutrah Souq, and the waterfront corniche deliver cultural substance that rewards more than a single afternoon. For travelers considering the broader Arabian Peninsula window, our guide to the best places to travel in February covers Dubai and UAE conditions in the adjacent month.
- Best for: Couples, cultural travelers, adventure and active travelers, multi-generational groups
- Why March: Ideal pre-summer temperatures; desert and wadi conditions at their best; full cultural access
Costa Rica — Peak Dry Season and Extraordinary Wildlife Access
Costa Rica in March sits at the heart of its dry season, making it one of the best places to travel in March for travelers seeking a Central American wildlife and nature destination at its most accessible. The Pacific coast — from the Nicoya Peninsula through the Osa Peninsula and its extraordinary Corcovado National Park — is at its driest and most navigable, with trails through the rainforest clear, wildlife pushed to accessible areas near water sources, and the visibility needed for wildlife photography consistently good. The resplendent quetzal, one of the most visually spectacular birds in the Americas, is in its nesting season in the cloud forests around San Gerardo de Dota and Monteverde through March, and dedicated birding guides produce reliable sightings at this time of year that are exceptional even by Costa Rican standards.
Costa Rica’s luxury offering has matured into one of the most compelling in Central America, with a collection of small, design-conscious lodges positioned across the country’s most distinctive ecosystems — rainforest, cloud forest, volcanic highlands, and Pacific coast — that deliver both exceptional wildlife access and a level of comfort that reframes what an eco-lodge can be. A well-designed Costa Rica itinerary in March of eight to ten nights combines the Arenal volcanic region, the cloud forests of Monteverde or San Gerardo de Dota, and a few nights on the southern Pacific coast for whale watching, nesting sea turtles, and the extraordinary biodiversity of Corcovado. For families with children, Costa Rica in March offers some of the most engaging and age-appropriate wildlife experiences available anywhere in the world, without the logistical complexity of longer-haul destinations.
- Best for: Wildlife enthusiasts, families, nature photographers, active couples
- Why March: Peak dry season; resplendent quetzal nesting; exceptional trail and wildlife access across all ecosystems
India — Among the Best Places to Travel in March for Culture and Festival
India in March offers two compelling reasons to visit that are difficult to replicate at any other point in the year. The first is Holi — the Festival of Colors, typically falling in late February or March, which transforms cities, villages, and palace courtyards across northern India into scenes of extraordinary, joyful chaos. Colored powder fills the air, music plays from every direction, and the combination of abandon and beauty creates one of the most photographically and emotionally rich days in the travel calendar. Experiencing Holi from a rooftop in Jaipur, from the ghats of Varanasi, or from the courtyards of a heritage haveli is transformative in a way that few other cultural events can match. The second reason is the final weeks of genuinely comfortable conditions across Rajasthan — temperatures in March are warm but manageable, the monsoon is months away, and the palaces, forts, and desert landscapes of the region are accessible without the punishing heat that arrives in April and May.
A March India itinerary for luxury travelers typically follows the Golden Triangle — Delhi, Agra, and Jaipur — extended through Rajasthan toward Udaipur, Jodhpur, and the Thar Desert. The collection of heritage palace hotels and converted forts that operate as luxury properties across Rajasthan is one of the finest in Asia, with properties like the Taj Lake Palace in Udaipur, SUJÁN Jawai in the leopard country of southern Rajasthan, and Raas Devigarh in the Aravalli hills delivering experiences that are impossible to replicate anywhere else on earth. March is also an excellent month for a Kerala extension — the southwestern coastal state, with its backwaters, Ayurvedic traditions, and extraordinary spice and seafood culture, is at a comfortable seasonal point before the monsoon arrives in June. India is among the best places to travel in March for travelers who want cultural intensity at its peak combined with conditions that still allow full engagement with the landscape.
- Best for: Cultural travelers, couples, photographers, experienced luxury travelers
- Why March: Holi festival; final weeks of comfortable Rajasthan temperatures; full heritage property access
How to Choose the Best Places to Travel in March
The best places to travel in March are defined by two distinct travel philosophies — getting ahead of the curve, and catching the tail end of peak season before it closes. Japan and Portugal reward travelers who arrive before the peak crowds of April and May. Rwanda and Costa Rica are destinations where March conditions are simply excellent on their own terms, without reference to what comes before or after. India and Oman offer a final window of ideal conditions before the heat of the approaching summer changes the character of the experience entirely.
March is also one of the most important planning months for later in the year — Japan cherry blossom dates are announced, summer safari availability opens up, and the Antarctic season for the following January begins to fill. Whatever your March destination, it is worth using the planning process as an opportunity to get ahead on the rest of the year as well. Our advisors work across all of the destinations above and can help you identify the precise dates, properties, and routing that make a March trip exceptional rather than merely good. To explore the full year, visit our guides to the best places to travel in February, best places to travel in April, and best places to travel in May.
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