Mildura weather: When is the best time to visit north-west Victoria?
The Mildura weather is stiflingly hot in summer, but the climate of Mildura provides mild winters. The best time to visit north-west Victoria is between May and September.
Mildura, a 542km drive north-west of Melbourne, is not the first destination that springs to mind when visiting Australia. But along with Albury, Echuca and Goolwa, Mildura is an excellent base for a few days on a Murray River road trip. It also has several fascinating national parks nearby to explore before the final Mildura to Adelaide drive.
But the Mildura weather will play a major part in a visit to north-west Victoria. Go at the wrong time of year, and you start realising just how close you are to the searing hot outback.
Your Mildura checklist
- Find the best accommodation.
- Book a half day visit to the Trentham Estate Winery and Mildura Wetlands…
- … Or a nature-focused Hattah Lakes 4WD tour.
Mildura weather in summer
Mean maximum temperatures in Mildura can get stiflingly high during the Australian summer. According to the Australian Government’s Bureau of Meteorology, Mildura’s mean maximum temperature in January is 32.5°C. It’s over 30 degrees in December, February and March, too. This might be fine while hanging around by the Murray River, but the best things to do in Mildura are excursions to the national parks. At the Yanga Woolshed or Yanga Homestead in the Yanga National Park over the New South Wales border, these temperatures are going to be seriously unpleasant.
The same applies at the Murray Sunset National Park, whether camping near the pink lakes or looking for kangaroos. It’ll be tough going on a Hattah Lakes day tour in the Hattah-Kulkyne National Park as well, while the true outback in the Mungo National Park will be much hotter than the Mildura weather would have you believe.
In short: avoid summer in Mildura.
Mildura weather in winter
Winter in Mildura, however, is pleasantly mild. And given that you’re likely to be fairly active while visiting, the Mildura weather in winter is pretty conducive to a good experience. July is the coolest month in Mildura, with mean maximum daily temperatures of 15.5°C.
The weather in Mildura is only a little warmer in June and August, but the months of May and September provide a happy medium in terms of the Mildura climate.
Crucially, rainfall in Mildura doesn’t alter all that much from month to month. It’s low all year round – from 19.44mm in March to 28.7mm in October.
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