Tired of British Summer? Here are the Hottest Places on Earth (from UK to UAE)

Ahh, the British summer. You know the drill – a shy sunbeam nervously rears its shaky head, a weak stream of light shines out across the country, and Brits commit exodus en masse to the park – only to come charging back home moments later as the skies erupt…at which point it then proceeds to rain for a week. Imagine this cycle repeating for three months, and you’ve basically nailed the British summer – constant dashed expectations, uncertainty about whether to wear a hooded raincoat or a bikini, weather which seems to enjoy playing with our emotions and cities which essentially grind to a standstill at the first feeble hint of sun. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had it with our weather – so if, like me, you’re in need of a bit of escapism – here’s a list of the hottest places on Earth. Some are so un-hospitably, scorching hot that they’ll have you worshipping our rainy season, while some might just have you googling the next outbound flight – read on!

1. El Aziziyah, Libya

Often accredited with the dubiously desirable title of ‘hottest place on earth’, El Aziziyah made history in 1922 when a weather station recorded the highest temperature ever measured on earth: a skin-melting 136.4 degrees Fahrenheit. Although El Aziziyah sadly lost its claim to fame when the World Meteorological Organization announced the 1922 recording to be invalid, temperatures regularly climb to over 120 degrees in the summer so it’s still blisteringly hot and a solid contender for the title, which I’m sure is a great comfort to the poor people who live there.

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2. Badlands, Australia

With its scorched red sand and scrubby little shrubs, Badlands would look more at home on Mars than Mother Earth and it’s aptly named, too – though weather stations aren’t maintained here (why would they be, in a place where hardly anyone dares to live?), a NASA satellite picked up a land surface temperature of 156.7 degrees back in 2003. A British summer isn’t looking so bad now, huh?

3. Bangkok, Thailand

We take that back! It’s not all volcanic levels of skin-scorching doom in the world’s hottest places – based on year-round averages of high/low temperatures, Bangkok is the hottest city in the world, and if someone offered me a one-way ticket right now, I certainly wouldn’t turn it down. Fragrant Thai curries, a beautiful, bustling city, temples galore and year-round sunshine? Don’t mind if I do!

4. Sweihan, United Arab Emirates

Here’s another entry which is giving me itchy feet – with temperatures reaching a record level of 122.9 degrees Fahrenheit in 2015, UAE is a pretty exciting place to feel the burn! Definitely an off-the-beaten-track holiday destination, UAE is perfectly designed to enjoy desert life. Think cool white clothing, leafy desert oasis’, bumpy camel rides and designer shades and you caught me…I’m booking my flight from London to Abu Dhabi as I write!

A British summer may seem pretty feeble after checking out some of the hotspots on this list, but there’s something to be thankful for – at least your skin is clinging to your skin because of rain, and not because it’s been welded there by a furnace-like sun! If you’re looking to head south to sunnier climes, we thoroughly advise taking a trip to the last two entries on our list, rather than either of the former – you’ve been warned!