The beautiful subtropical weather of South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley is definitely one of the biggest attractions for Winter Texans. There could be as much as a 100-degree difference between South Texas and places like Northern Minnesota or South Dakota.

The Rio Grande Valley is definitely a joy to live in, especially if the other option includes snow, ice and all things frozen. The average high between December and February runs from 70-74 degrees (but can reach into the 80s) and lows are generally between 49 and 54 – with the token warning once or twice a year that a frost is on its way, sending full-time residents scurrying to cover their outdoor plants.

The mild winter temperatures – and no snow – allows folks to get out and be active during the winter months. For Winter Texans that means playing golf, racing RC cars, playing pickleball, shuffleboard, horseshoes, cycling, bird watching and many other outdoor activities – often with temperatures in the 70s.

Wayne Watts said, in 2018, he would be back home right now shoveling snow and feeding the horses. Instead, he was outdoors watching his Winter Texan friends playing softball.

“The weather here is perfect – you can do a lot in this weather,” he said. “But when you feed the horses you gotta go back out and clean what they ate.”

Virgil Kappes said he heard a person could add 10 years to his or her life by wintering in the Valley, away from the miserable cold weather.
Not only is there joy in leaving the frozen tundras, but there are also health benefits. Jim McDermid of MN said he has heart and vascular disease and in the Valley the weather is good enough that he can walk almost every day and the land is flat enough that he does not have to climb while he walks.

Ed Martens, who used to run the Senior Texan Softball League and its all-star games every March, said (in 2019) he has benefited from his years of living in the Valley, even though he may not be playing softball anymore.

“It keeps me active,” he said. “There's no way I want to live where it's snowing and frozen. I love that we can play softball pretty much all year.”

The nation's warmest “Polar Bear Dip” also takes place on South Padre Island every January 1. Hundreds of Winter Texans join locals sprinting into the Gulf for a quick plunge. The event is highly popular in areas where the courageous jump into 35-degree water. That's something that South Texas “dippers” don't have to worry about.

The weather is also perfect for golf during the Winter Texan months. Several parks have groups that schedule scrambles on a weekly basis to play on one of more than 20 different courses spread throughout the Valley.