Being retired and totally without a timetable, I’m looking for the next sit with a great weather forecast! Looking after pets is so much easier when you can get out with them and enjoy exploring. Sunny days for me after two weeks of almost non stop rain are a real plus.
I wonder if sitters prefer different weather conditions and why that might be. Or does everyone love the sunshine?
Thoughts anyone?
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We pick a warm climate every winter. This year we spent three months in Spain. Bad choice, even the Spanish were complaining about how cold it was and the rain. So sometimes it doesn’t work!
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Yes I’m in Spain and am resident in Madrid so I like to come south for the sunshine and heat! Particularly at winter time!
It’s not working too well in Murcia but I had a good week in Andalucía in Chiclana and Nerja.
I’m looking at the coast of Portugal but the weather is not very encouraging! It’s also an 8+ hrs drive!
If possible I like shorter trips to the next sit but sometimes it’s worth a stretch if the sit is for longer and has a great weather forecast.
Exploring in the rain isn’t much fun and same with the cold!
I don’t think I’d admit to Home Owners that their weather just isn’t good enough! Some of them have tried so hard to sell their sit to me lol!
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I spent the winter months in southern US. It worked. Especially since the north had snow storm after snow storm and frigid temps.
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I also miss the coastal experience being in Madrid. We have great reservoirs but no beaches! I also love walks along a promenade and fresh fish dinners! Many places off season are more attractive now, especially if the weather holds. I enjoy mixing time with seeing friends en route to the next sit if there are gaps between dates between sits. I reckon I take more exercise if it’s sunny and warm and I see lots of other people out and about. Spain normally delivers but I guess this rain is generally welcome for water supplies.
I just try to avoid torrential rain or more than a dusting of snow. Otherwise, I’m flexible.
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We spent four days in Madrid and only saw a tiny fraction of what we wanted to visit. We will definitely return.
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Yes, the reservoirs were very low in most of Spain.
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We love sun and warmth, but not too hot, and we don’t like humidity.
I guess that is why we love California! The San Francisco Bay Area is known for its “Mediterranean climate” and generally moderate weather year round. That is one of the reasons that it is so expensive to live there.
We love to be outdoors, hiking, biking, etc. in dry, moderate weather.
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Hi @Highfive
I did a 3 week sit in Murcia last mid February. Unfortunately there was a cold spell with night time temps dropping to 4c! The problem was this was a traditional villa with only a small wood burner to heat the whole place. I struggled to keep it burning through the night and ended up piling a load of extra duvets and blankets on the bed at night to keep warm. I guess I was fortunate the HO left such!
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Oh my…no offense but this made me chuckle! I’m formerly from LA, have spent lots of time in NorCal including SF and many summers on the Mediterranean in the S of France (our daughter now lives there) and have spent time in various lands on the Med and I can tell you the climate of SF is not quite like those places! lol.
On one trip to SF in July I had to buy a fleece lined winter coat because I was not expecting it to be so cold in July! I can promise you’ve I’ve never done that in the S of France, Italy, Greece or Southern Spain in July! And while there certainly can be moderate weather in winter SF gets that dense fog like nowhere else and even in summer it’s not like you’re going swimming much.
I love NorCal - did a house sit in San Rafael a couple years ago and love Napa, Sonoma, Santa Cruz is one of my favorite places (so sad about the Pier), etc but it’s quite different from the Mediterranean IMO.
I did get really lucky my last time there and the fog cleared just in time for the sunset at the GG bridge and I got fabulous photos!
And yes, SF is crazy expensive. For that kind of money I’d take San Diego for the better weather and sunshine.
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We are ALWAYS chasing the sun!!
Two winters ago we hoped for Portugal but dang it’s hard to even get an application in over there so we wound up in Malta and it was fabulously warm.
This winter we got lucky with a one month sit in Panama in December.
Next winter we are thinking New Zealand…
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The hotter the better for me! A hot climate with a swimming pool is my ideal sit Have done a couple of great sits in Australia, Caribbean and Palm Springs to escape the Canadian winter!
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Ha! My husband is from the Bay Area, I can’t tell you how many times at least one family member had to buy a touristy fleece during a summer trip to the frigid city. You might be familiar with the expression often credited to Mark Twain, “The coldest winter I ever spent, was summer in San Francisco”
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@mdarden1x well there you go! I’ll take the Mediterranean any day! 
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San Francisco is expensive, because it has high-paying jobs. San Diego is expensive, because lots of rich people, including retirees, want to live there. So for a tourist, yes, you can pick SD over SF, because you won’t be looking to earn a living there and stay long term.
For locals, even if they wanted to move from San Francisco to San Diego, it would be tough, because there are many fewer good jobs there.
And as someone else mentioned, San Francisco in known for having cool summers. The Bay Area has “micro climates,” because of its topography and such. Locals know to dress in (or to carry) layers.
The fog there has a big impact on the weather. Locals call it “Karl” and it even has social media accounts.
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We love the sun. 2023 winter, we did a cat sit in Singapore and this last winter, we did one in Sydney. We are getting ready to hit cold weather this week as we fly to South Korea for 
cherry blossom ahead of a Dogsit. Looking forward to eating hot Korean soups and stews
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We have 2-3 months in the UK, and then 2-3 months Spain, each time, because we have family that live in Spain. We don’t mind the bad weather too much, because we’re British so we’re used to it, but when the sun shines it’s fantastic.
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Loooove the sun. Two years ago we spent 8 months non stop in the sunny countries and that was the best year ever!
@Highfive one of our favourite sits was in Madrid, for 2 months last year. Just amazing. Super hot but what a lovely experience that was.
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Now I’ve got that Cliff Richard ‘Summer Holiday’ song stuck in my mind!
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