Two of the world’s most visited and popular tourist destinations are the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands. They both have to offer impressive tourist experiences with beautiful scenes and amazing attractions.
The Canaries are a cluster of islands located in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of northwestern Africa. They qualify as an autonomous region of Spain and are known for amazing white and black sand beaches.
On the other hand, the Balearic Islands are located in the Mediterranean Sea off the eastern coast of Spain, typically known for 4 stunning islands in Ibiza, Mallorca, Menorca, and Formentera.
The temperature on both the archipelagos is warm, but the question that most tourists have is, which one is hotter between the Canaries and the Balearics? That’s what we’ll talk about here.
In this article, I’m going to talk about the climate and placement of both the island clusters and a comparison between the temperature in both the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands.
So, let’s get started.
The Climate on The Canary Islands
The Canary Islands experience a warm climate throughout the year. The summers are pretty warm and tend to be dry as well, with more than 14 hours of sunshine in the summer season.
On the other hand, when it comes to the winter season, the climate is more on the milder side, with the northern region getting a lot of heavy rainfall compared to other areas of the world.
The climate of these Islands can be considered sub-tropical. There’s an island vibe and warmth there, but the winter season will bring in a bit of a chilly zing to the overall weather. This is because the Canary Islands are much closer to the Equator than the Balearic Islands.
Read more here: Weather and Climate in Gran Canaria.
Want to know which of the four largest Canary Islands (Fuerteventura, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, and Tenerife) that is the hottest? Check this article: Which Canary Island Is the Hottest?
| JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 °C | 19 °C | 20 °C | 22 °C | 23 °C | 26 °C | 27 °C | 29 °C | 28 °C | 24 °C | 22 °C | 18 °C |
| 63 °F | 66 °F | 68 °F | 68 °F | 73 °F | 79 °F | 81 °F | 84 °F | 82 °F | 75 °F | 72 °F | 64 °F |
The Climate on The Balearic Islands
The climate of the Balearic Islands archipelago is Mediterranean in nature. This climate means that the summers are hot and dry, but on the other hand, when the winter season arrives, the weather gets much colder and also quite dewy.
Also check this article: Balearic Islands Weather – When to Visit!
The temperature can get pretty cold when it comes to the wintertime. Still, you can expect a good amount of sun and warm weather in the summer when a lot of people tend to visit islands like Mallorca and Ibiza to have a fun vacation on the beaches and enjoy their time. The fact that the Balearic Islands are further away from the Equator plays an essential role in this.
Want to know which of the four Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera) that is hottest? Check this article: Which is the Hottest Balearic Island?
| JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 °C | 17 °C | 18 °C | 20 °C | 22 °C | 26 °C | 28 °C | 30 °C | 27 °C | 22 °C | 18 °C | 16 °C |
| 59 °F | 63 °F | 64 °F | 68 °F | 72 °F | 79 °F | 82 °F | 86 °F | 81 °F | 72 °F | 64 °F | 61 °F |
Canaries or Balearics: Which is Hotter?
When it comes to the summertime, the weather in both the Canaries and Balearics is almost the same temperature. But if we look at the wintertime, the Canaries are less cold than the Balearics, which get very mild in temperature.
To get an apt idea of how the temperature compares in the Balearic Islands throughout the year, let’s look at the temperature in both these archipelagos in different months of the year.
January to March
When it comes to January, it is the coldest month of the year for both island clusters. In January, the temperature in the Canary Islands is around 17 °C (63 °F) on average, while the temperature in the Balearic Islands is 15 °C (59 °F).
The temperature increases a bit as the season moves towards spring. In February, the temperature in the Canaries is 19 °C (66 °F) on average, while in the Balearics, the temperature hovers around 17 °C (63 °F).
The weather trend is warmer in March as the temperature average is around 20 °C (68 °F) on the Canary Islands and on the Balearic Islands, which is approximately 18 °C (64 °F).
April to May
In the month of April, the average monthly temperature of the Canary Islands is around 22 °C (72 °F) while the temperature of the Balearic Islands is a bit lower, around 20 °C (68 °F) on average.
May is the month just before the peak summer season, where the temperature in the Canaries is 23 °C (73 °F) on average, and the temperature of the Balearic Islands is around 22 °C (72 °F) on average, which is quite close to the former.
June to September
In the peak summer season, the temperatures of both archipelagos are almost identical. In June, when most people tend to visit the islands of Spain, the average temperature is around 26 °C (79 °F) in both clusters.
As July comes around, this temperature rises a bit. In the Canaries, it is 27 °C (81 °F) on average, while in the Balearic Islands, it is about 28 °C (82 °F) on average.
August is the hottest month in both the Island clusters, whereas, in the Canaries, the average monthly temperature is 29 °C (84 °F). In the Balearic region, it can go up to 30 °C (86 °F).
September is when the temperature starts falling by a decent amount. The average temperature in the Canaries is 28 °C (82 °F), while in the Balearics, it is around 27 °C (81 °F) on average.
October to December
In October, the temperature in the Canary Islands is 24 °C (75 °F) on average, while in the Balearic Islands, this average is around 22 °C (72 °F). November is one of the winter months where this average falls to 22 °C (72 °F) in the Canaries and 18 °C (64 °F) in the Balearic Islands region.
Finally, in the cold month of December, the average temperature in the Canary Islands cluster is around 18 °C (64 °F) while in the Balearic Islands, this average lies about 16 °C (61 °F).
Conclusion
Both the Canary Islands and the Balearic Islands are similar in terms of overall climate and weather. However, the difference arrives in the winter season when the Balearic Islands can get much colder, and going there wouldn’t be the best decision in this case.
Still, you’re going to have wonderful experiences visiting both these archipelagos. I hope you learned a lot from this article and that you’re going to have a great time staying there with your loved ones. May you have a great day ahead of you!
