Updated 25 September 2026
Go further than a short winter hop, the kind winter sun compared covers, and warm January weather costs you something: a longer flight, a bigger bill, or a trip that's really about diving. Here's how Dubai, Sharm el-Sheikh, Hurghada and Antalya compare month by month, with the nonstop fares we've seen from the UK.
Average daytime highs, November to March
This ranks the four by January, the coldest month across all of them in this window. The short-haul comparison ranks by a different month, so the two guides aren't comparing on the same basis.
| Destination | Nov | Dec | Jan | Feb | Mar | Nonstop from the UK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antalya, Turkey | 21.4 | 17.6 | 15.1 | 15.7 | 17.6 | ~4h 20m nonstop, Gatwick |
| Hurghada, Egypt | 26.5 | 23.6 | 21.2 | 21.3 | 24.0 | no recent nonstop fare seen |
| Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt | 28.6 | 25.1 | 22.4 | 23.0 | 26.4 | ~5h 25m nonstop, Gatwick |
| Dubai, UAE | 31.3 | 26.7 | 24.2 | 25.0 | 28.4 | no recent nonstop fare seen |
Multi-year historical averages, not a standard 30-year climate normal or a forecast: they tell you what a typical month looks like, not what the weather will do on your dates.
Antalya is not winter sun
It's on this page only because it's the fastest, cheapest way to reach the group. Antalya sits 5–10°C below the three Red Sea and Gulf picks every month from November to March, and its own seasonal note is direct about why: winter is "much quieter", with many beach-oriented services reducing operations while city areas carry on. January and February sit in the mid-teens. That is shoulder-season weather, closer to a mild UK spring day than a beach holiday, and the sea runs too cold over these months for swimming. Come for the city and the coast, not the water.
The four, one at a time
Dubai
Dubai is the warmest of the four even in January, when highs still average 24°C, and its own seasonal note calls this "the most comfortable season by far and the reason most visitors come". Two things count against it. We have not seen a recent nonstop fare from the UK, and mid-range hotels cost roughly twice what they do in Egypt and noticeably more than in Turkey.
Sharm el-Sheikh
December to February is the main European package season here, with air mild rather than hot and the Red Sea staying warm enough for diving in a wetsuit. It is also the only one of the three warmest picks with recent nonstop fares from the UK. Most hotels sit in their own bays along a long built-up strip, so if you want to see everyday Egypt, plan a trip into Old Market.
Recent nonstop fares from Gatwick
Hurghada
A similar Red Sea profile to Sharm el-Sheikh (swimmable sea, a December-to-February package peak, shorter days than summer), built more around all-inclusive resort stays than sightseeing. As with Dubai, we have not seen a recent nonstop fare from the UK, so compare what is on offer for your dates in trip search instead of assuming a flight time.
Antalya
By far the fastest and cheapest way into this group of four, with recent nonstop fares from both Stansted and Gatwick, but the trade is real: 15–18°C from December through February is shoulder-season weather, not the swimming heat the other three picks hold. It suits a city-and-coast trip built around the old town and day trips, not a beach week.
Recent nonstop fares from Gatwick, Stansted and Manchester
Two things both Red Sea picks share
- Wind is a defining feature of this coastline, not an occasional inconvenience: it is part of why the Red Sea is also a kitesurfing and windsurfing destination, and it can make a November or March day feel cooler than the daytime-high figure above suggests, particularly on the beach, not in a sheltered pool area.
- Both are built almost entirely around hotel zones along a developed strip rather than a walkable town centre: Hurghada's own note describes its non-resort infrastructure as "patchy", and Sharm el-Sheikh's hotels run near-continuously from Nabq Bay down to Sharm el-Maya. Independent, wander-out-of-the-hotel travel suits neither as well as it suits Antalya.
Before you book
Safety and entry rules change, so this guide does not summarise them. Check the UK government pages, which stay current, before you book: Turkey, Egypt, including regional risks in Sinai (covers both Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh), and the United Arab Emirates.
If a shorter flight would do
None of this is worth the extra flight time if a nearer destination is warm enough for what you want: winter sun compared covers the Canary Islands, Madeira, Cyprus, Malta and the Algarve on the same climate-data basis, all reachable from the UK in well under five hours.
Next steps
Related guides
- Winter sun compared: Canaries, Cyprus, Malta — Canary Islands, Madeira, Cyprus, Malta and the Algarve, compared on real climate averages and flight time.
- Christmas and New Year sun 2026 from the UK — What is confirmed for 24–31 December across the mildest UK-reachable destinations, and how mild each one is by the numbers.
- Spring sun 2027, March-April breaks from the UK — Which UK spring-sun destinations are worth it in March versus April, and what Easter 2027 changes about when to go.