Where to go
The best places to travel in February: carnival, cinema and almond blossom
February is short, cold and full of festivals. Six places at their best this month, from the masks of Venice to reindeer racing down the main street of an Arctic city.
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In a mountain village in central Sardinia, a dozen men in black wooden masks and sheepskins move slowly through the streets. Heavy cowbells hang on their backs, and every step lands with a thud you feel in your chest. The same weekend, gondolas glide past masked figures in Venice.
February is carnival month, when Catholic Europe celebrates before Lent. It is also when almond trees bloom in southern Portugal, the sun returns to Arctic Norway and humpback whales gather off Hawaii. These six places are not merely acceptable in February. This is their moment.
Short answer: where should you go in February?
For carnival, Venice is the classic and Mamoiada in Sardinia the most unusual. For mild weather and early spring, the Algarve is the best bet in Europe, and Berlin hosts the Berlinale film festival. Further afield, Kauai offers whale watching at its peak.
Best for carnival: Venice
Best for something you have never seen: Mamoiada, Sardinia
Best for mild weather: the Algarve
Best for a city break: Berlin
Best for whales: Kauai
Das Stue
Das Stue in the former Danish embassy, Berlin.
Berlin: the Berlinale and cinemas in the cold
Each February Berlin hosts the Berlinale, one of the world's major film festivals, running from 10 to 21 February in 2027. Unlike Cannes, it is open to the public, and tickets for screenings go on sale a few days beforehand.
The festival gives the city a reason to go out in the depths of winter. Between films, walk through the Tiergarten, spend a morning on Museum Island and eat your way around Kreuzberg and Neukölln.
The catch: tickets for the headline films disappear quickly. Choose smaller titles from the programme instead, where the director often takes questions after the screening.
Das Stue: the former Danish embassy
Das Stue occupies the former Royal Danish Embassy in the Tiergarten, and some rooms look straight into Berlin Zoo. The festival hub at Potsdamer Platz is a short walk through the park. For travellers who like design with a story behind it.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Das Stue
The Gritti Palace
The Gritti Palace on the Grand Canal, Venice.
Venice: carnival at its finest
The Venice Carnival lasts around two weeks and ends on Shrove Tuesday, which falls on 9 February in 2027. The city fills with people in elaborate costumes, many of them Venetians who have made their own, posing in silence on St Mark's Square.
The best moments come early in the morning, before the day-trippers arrive, when a costumed figure crosses an empty bridge in the mist. Buy a mask from one of the small workshops rather than the stalls near the Rialto.
The catch: carnival weekends are packed and hotel rates can double. Come midweek if you can.
The Gritti Palace: a doge's home on the Grand Canal
The Gritti Palace was the home of a doge in the sixteenth century and faces the Grand Canal, across the water from the dome of Santa Maria della Salute. St Mark's Square is five minutes away. For those who want Venice as it looks in the paintings.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at The Gritti Palace
Koa Kea
Koa Kea on the ocean at Poipu, Kauai.
Kauai: humpback whales off the coast
Every winter, humpback whales swim from Alaska to Hawaii to mate and give birth, and from December to April you can watch them from the shore on Kauai. January to March is the peak. Stand on a clifftop on the south coast and you will often see the spout before the whale.
Kauai is the greenest of the Hawaiian islands. Walk the rim of Waimea Canyon, see the Na Pali Coast by boat or helicopter when the weather allows, and base yourself on the sunnier south shore.
The catch: in winter the north shore gets big surf and more rain. Check conditions before swimming or hiking there.
Koa Kea: a small hotel in Poipu
Koa Kea is a small oceanfront hotel in Poipu on the south shore, where winter weather is most settled. From the lawn by the pool you can spot whale spouts offshore on a good day. For couples after quiet and a sea view.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Koa Kea
Su Gologone
Su Gologone near Oliena, Sardinia.
Mamoiada: Sardinia's oldest carnival
High in the mountains of Sardinia, far from the beaches, the village of Mamoiada keeps a carnival far older than the one in Venice. The mamuthones wear black wooden masks, sheepskins and dozens of kilos of cowbells. They move in step, slowly and heavily, while the issohadores in red jackets throw lassos at the crowd.
The main processions are on carnival Sunday and Shrove Tuesday, and the village's mask museum explains the ritual behind them.
The catch: you will need a hire car. Mamoiada is inland, and public transport is sparse in February.
Su Gologone: a country hotel below the Supramonte
Su Gologone sits near Oliena at the foot of the Supramonte mountains, a short drive from Mamoiada. The hotel is filled with local art and craft, and its restaurant is known for suckling pig roasted over an open fire. Stay here to see a Sardinia few visitors know.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Su Gologone
Vila Vita Parc
The clifftop gardens of Vila Vita Parc in the Algarve.
The Algarve: when the almond trees bloom
From late January into February, almond trees blossom across the Algarve, white and pale pink along the inland roads. Local legend says a Moorish king planted them so his northern queen, homesick for snow, would see white fields in winter.
The coast is quiet. The beaches are empty, the golf courses open and the cliffs at Ponta da Piedade and the Benagil cave have room to breathe. Drive inland to Silves and Monchique to see the blossom.
The catch: the sea is cold in February and many beach restaurants are shut. This is a trip for walking and eating, not swimming.
Vila Vita Parc: gardens on the clifftop
Vila Vita Parc spreads across the cliffs near Porches, with large gardens running to the edge and steps down to the beach. With several restaurants and a spa on site, you need not leave. Suited to slow days and good food.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Vila Vita Parc
Home Hotel With
Home Hotel With on the harbour in Tromsø.
Tromsø: Sámi Week and the return of the sun
Sámi National Day falls on 6 February, and Tromsø marks it with Sámi Week. The highlight is the Norwegian reindeer racing championship, with reindeer pulling their drivers down Storgata, the city's main street. It is every bit as odd and as entertaining as it sounds.
By February the polar night is over and the days lengthen quickly. You still get long hours of darkness for the northern lights, but enough daylight for dog sledding and snowshoe walks.
The catch: February is busy in Tromsø, with visitors from all over the world. Book northern lights tours and hotels early.
Home Hotel With: on the quayside
Home Hotel With stands on the harbour in the centre of Tromsø, named after Richard With, who founded the Hurtigruten coastal voyage. Storgata and the reindeer races are minutes away. A practical, central base for daily excursions.
Book your stay: Check availability and prices at Home Hotel With
Good to know before you book
Carnival moves every year: it follows Easter, so the dates shift. In 2027 Shrove Tuesday is 9 February.
School holidays fill flights: half-term in the UK and winter holidays across Scandinavia fall in mid to late February.
Festivals mean pricier hotels: book early for Venice during carnival and Berlin during the Berlinale.
A car is essential in Sardinia, the Algarve and Kauai.
February travel: your questions answered
Where is the best place to travel in February?
For carnival, Venice and Mamoiada in Sardinia. The Algarve is best for mild weather and almond blossom, and Berlin hosts the Berlinale film festival.
When is Venice Carnival in 2027?
It runs for roughly two weeks and finishes on Shrove Tuesday, 9 February 2027. Weekends are the busiest days.
Can the public attend the Berlinale?
Yes. Tickets for most screenings go on sale a few days in advance, though the biggest premieres sell out quickly.
When do the almond trees blossom in the Algarve?
Usually from late January into February, most visibly inland around Silves and Loulé.
Where can I see whales in February?
Hawaii is at the height of humpback season, and the south shore of Kauai and the island of Maui are among the best places to watch from land.