Best City to Spend a Rainy Day

Last updated on 04/24/2024

Best Cities for Rainy Day Activities Ranked

As winter approaches, the weather starts shifting from hot and humid to cold and wet. Winter is still a great time to travel, with fewer tourists and lower costs for flights and hotels.

However, there’s nothing worse on vacation than waking up to see it’s pouring rain, and having to find a last-minute indoor activity that still has availability and isn’t too expensive. Don’t worry though, researchers at InsureMyTrip have found out which city is the best to spend rainy winter days.

Stay Dry and Thrive: This City is the Best for a Rainy Day

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overall Score

Rank	City / Country	Country	Overall
1	London,UK	UK	7.39
2	New York,USA	USA	5.93
3	Paris,France	France	5.63
4	Athens,Greece	Greece	5.60
5	Los Angeles,USA	USA	5.37
6	Rome,Italy	Italy	5.33
7	Istanbul,Turkey	Turkey	5.29
8	Marrakesh,Morocco	Morocco	5.24
9	Berlin,Germany	Germany	5.13
10	Bangkok,Thailand	Thailand	5.02
11	Barcelona,Spain	Spain	4.93
12	Edinburgh,UK	UK	4.92
13	Cape Town,South Africa	South Africa	4.91
14	Delhi,India	India	4.90
15	Mumbai,India	India	4.84
16	Madrid,Spain	Spain	4.83
17	San Francisco,USA	USA	4.71
18	Chicago,USA	USA	4.61
19	Toronto,Canada	Canada	4.57
20	Dublin,Ireland	Ireland	4.45
21	Porto,Portugal	Portugal	4.44
22	Amsterdam,Netherlands	Netherlands	4.42
23	Lisbon,Portugal	Portugal	4.35
24	Medellin,Colombia	Colombia	4.34
25	Birmingham,UK	UK	4.26
26	Melbourne,Australia	Australia	4.13
=27	Manchester,UK	UK	4.09
=27	Montreal,Canada	Canada	4.09
29	Mexico City,Mexico	Mexico	4.06
30	Buenos Aires,Argentina	Argentina	4.01
31	Glasgow,UK	UK	3.98
32	Singapore,Singapore	Singapore	3.97
33	São Paulo,Brazil	Brazil	3.91
34	Tokyo,Japan	Japan	3.80
35	Rio de Janeiro,Brazil	Brazil	3.71
36	Sydney,Australia	Australia	3.67
37	Prague,Czech Republic	Czech Republic	3.60
38	Boston,USA	USA	3.55
39	Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia	Malaysia	3.48
40	Miami,USA	USA	3.47
41	Auckland,New Zealand	New Zealand	3.41
42	Stockholm,Sweden	Sweden	3.35
43	Hong Kong,China	China	3.24
44	Taipei,Taiwan	Taiwan	3.16
45	Doha,Qatar	Qatar	3.13
46	Manila,Philippines	Philippines	2.94
47	Lyon,France	France	2.91
48	Copenhagen,Denmark	Denmark	2.69

Our best city for a rainy day is London, with an overall score of 7.39, London has more than 200 museums and 1,000 ‘rainy day’ activities according to TripAdvisor, making it the best for the quantity of activities. London also has a decent number of theater shows at 155 and quite a few comedy clubs at more than 110. However, be aware, London tends to be on the more expensive side, scoring just 5.51 overall in our cost metrics, with the average workshop costing $102.

The second-best city for a rainy day is New York City, with an overall score of 5.93, for a high number of theater shows and comedy clubs, with almost 200 comedy clubs in the city. Third best city for a rainy day is Paris, with an overall score of 5.63. Paris also has 1,000 ‘rainy day’ activities.

The remaining top 10 cities for a rainy day are Athens (5.6), Los Angeles (5.37), Rome (5.33), Marrakech, Morrocco (5.29), Berlin (5.24), and Bangkok (5.13).

If you love having something to do on vacation or have young children to entertain, we recommend traveling to Europe during the rainy months. With four European cities in the top five for the number of activities, with Berlin(6.14) and Rome (5.48) following London (10) and Paris (7.19).

Perhaps unsurprisingly, countries that aren’t as well-known for having a large number of rainy days rank lower for the number of indoor activities. The five worst cities for rainy day activities are Manila, Philippines with overall activities score of 0.36, Doha, Qatar (0.39), Medellin, Columbia (0.73), Miami (0.89), Lyon, France (1).

Best Rainy Day Cities Ranked by Number of Activities

If you’re interested in entertainment and want to see lots of stage shows we would recommend Los Angeles, with an overall shows metric of 9.91. This is from more than 150 theater shows and more than 210 comedy clubs. New York closely follows with an overall shows score of 9.23, in third is London with 7.44, followed by Chicago with 6.8 and San Francisco with 6.33.

Best Rainy Day Cities Ranked by Number of Shows

When traveling costs are an important factor, in the majority of countries visiting museums or going to the theater all cost money. If you’re interested in visiting a more cost-effective city we’d recommend Delhi, India, with an overall cost score of 9.04. Delhi has some of the least expensive cinema tickets, with two costing just $7 on average. This is a fraction of the cost it would cost in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with our most expensive cinema tickets, two tickets can set you back $43 on average.

Best Rainy Day Cities Ranked by Average Activity Costs

Of course, a vacation isn’t just about what you do, but also where you stay. According to our data, the city with the highest-quality stay is Istanbul, with an overall quality of stay score of 9.69. This is from over 2,000 hotels and an average restaurant rating of 4.37/5 stars. Other cities with highly rated hotels and restaurants include Kuala Lumpur (8.86), Marrakesh, Morocco (8.25), Athens (7.89), and Rome (7.61).

Best Rainy Day Cities Ranked by Quality of Stay

Conclusion

Overall, there are loads of great cities to visit during the wet winter months, with London, New York, and Paris being the top overall cities across all our metrics. If you’re interested in having a wide variety of choices with what you can do during the day we would recommend, London, Paris, and Berlin. If costs are your main concern, cities like Delhi, Marrakesh, and Mumbai, India.