South Africa in May: where is it warmest?
In May, East London is the warmest place with 23 °C by day, Orania the coolest with 14 °C. 10 of 10 destinations have good holiday weather.
All destinations in May, warmest first
Long-term averages for the month: daytime high, sea, sunshine and rainy days.
| Place | Score | Air | Sea | Sun | Rain days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East London | 91 | 23° | 23° | 7 h | 5 |
| Pietermaritzburg | 87 | 23° | – | 6 h | 6 |
| Durban | 78 | 23° | 24° | 7 h | 6 |
| Pretoria | 93 | 22° | – | 7 h | 3 |
| Gqeberha | 88 | 22° | 19° | 7 h | 6 |
| Cape Town | 84 | 20° | 15° | 6 h | 7 |
| Stellenbosch | 81 | 20° | – | 6 h | 9 |
| Soweto | 93 | 19° | – | 7 h | 3 |
| Johannesburg | 93 | 18° | – | 7 h | 3 |
| Orania | 84 | 14° | – | 7 h | 3 |
South Africa in May: quick answers
South Africa in May: where is it warmest?
The warmest places in May are East London (23 °C), Pietermaritzburg (23 °C) and Durban (23 °C).
South Africa in May: where is the sea warmest?
The sea is warmest at Durban (24 °C), East London (23 °C) and Gqeberha (19 °C).
South Africa in May: where is the weather best?
The best holiday weather in May – warm, sunny and dry – is in Pretoria, Soweto and Johannesburg.
South Africa month by month
South Africa: weather & best time to visit
Climate averages 1996–2025, not a forecast. Data: Copernicus ERA5 / ERA5-Land via Open-Meteo.com (CC BY 4.0), NOAA OISST, WMO 1991–2020 (NOAA NCEI), GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Sources & licences