Cape Town – their summer (December-February) 11-12+, winter (June-August) 5-6, everything else 8-10.
Phuket & southern Thailand – 9-11 the whole year, worst March-April and September-October at 11-12.
Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire – 10-12 every single month, no days off.
Namibia & Sahara in season (October-March) 11-12+, cooler dry months (May-September) 8-10 but still savage.
Simple rule: UV 8+ = reapply every 90 minutes even under umbrella. UV 11+ = you burn through clouds, car windows and bad decisions.
SPF that actually works (not marketing garbage)
SPF 30 blocks 97 % → fine for weak winter sun only.
SPF 50 blocks 98 % → your tropical minimum.
SPF 70-100 blocks another half percent → worth it only if you’re ghost-pale or stuck in UV 11+ all day.
Cheap ones that don’t lie: Nivea Sun Protect & Moisture 50+, La Roche-Posay Anthelios Pocket 50+, Hawaiian Tropic Silk Hydration 50 (feels like nothing on skin).
Reef-safe picks: Altruist 50, Green People 50, ThinkSport 50.
Dehydration & heat-stroke hacks that actually save lives
Drink 500 ml water + pinch of salt + lemon every two hours before you’re thirsty.
Freeze a bottle overnight → ice-cold water all day.
Eat salty stuff (chips, olives, nuts) – you lose 1-2 g salt per litre of sweat.
Early heat-stroke red flags:
you stop sweating but still boiling
goosebumps on chest in 35°C
suddenly confused, quiet or aggressive
pulse over 140 lying down
→ shade + wet T-shirt on head/neck + salty water, call help if not better in 10 min.
Vaccines & boring but important stuff
Hep A + Typhoid – anywhere with street food.
Rabies pre-exposure – desert nights or animal places.
Japanese Encephalitis – rural Bali or Vietnam long stays.
Yellow fever – some African countries demand it even in transit.
Dengue – no vaccine for most, so 40 % DEET + permethrin clothes at dawn/dusk.
Travel insurance that actually pays when you fry (2025 winners)
SafetyWing Nomad – cheapest decent one (40-50 $/month), covers heat exhaustion.
World Nomads Explorer – best for adventure add-ons.
Allianz Annual with hazardous pack – direct billing in good clinics.
IMG Patriot Extreme – highest limits for super remote spots.
Never buy the airport junk, they deny everything over 30 °C.
Print this or screenshot it:
two 200 ml SPF 50+ water-resistant bottles per person per week
2 L reusable bottle + rehydration salts
wide hat + UV sleeves (yes you’ll look like a tourist dad, no you won’t care)
aftersun with aloe + 1 % hydrocortisone for day-one mistakes
insurance PDF offline
The sun is free. Medical evacuations are not.
Tan hard, stay alive, come home golden.
