November Holiday Inspiration

[JesusMaryAndJosephAndTheWeeDon]

I'm looking for holiday ideas for this November. More finding something suitable to keep both DH and I happy that's suitable for the time of year.

Just the two of us, no kids. Healthy but not extravagant budget.

The difficulty is DH doesn't do swimming or water sports and isn't really a fan of lying on the beach relaxing. He wants to be sightseeing. I'm normally pretty happy with an active holiday, especially if we can incorporate a few hours here and there for me to have a swim and chill by the pool, but this year I feel ready for some down time to relax in the sun.

Our last two holidays have been lovely but busy and I am ready to switch off. The one before was a nice mix, we had one beach day, and the other days we went out sightseeing each morning but several days got back early enough for me to have a couple of hours by the pool with my book. The plan was to do similar this summer but things took longer than anticipated and we ran out of time.

So I am looking for ideas, places where we can mix sightseeing with a bit of beach/pool time, in November. Normally we we would do that sort of holiday at a time of year when Europe is warm, so I am a bit unsure what to go for.

I was wondering about Thailand but got a bit overwhelmed with the sheer amount of stuff to pack in and the travelling distances.

Any ideas or suggestions gratefully accepted!

How about Mexico? There are some fab hotels and you would get a good package price at that time of year.

I don't know much about Mexico. Once went over the border from California but I understand that's not representative.

I know there are lots of nice AI resorts but is there much to do within easy distance of them? How is it to get around?

Tenerife

Cape Town, been 3 times. It has everything from sightseeing to beaches. It’s stunning.

No it doesn't it, it says that for Xaisomboun province only, no issue with going to Luang Prabang, plain of jars or Vientiane, which are the more typical tourist destinations. I don't know that Laos is your best option though unless you've travelled extensively in Asia, it's fabulous but infrastructure is more limited than in neighbouring Thailand or Vietnam. Bali might be a good option, or Bali combined with Yogyakarta for a Borobudur and Prambanan cultural fix for your husband. You also can't go wrong with Thailand.

Thanks that's helpful, I think the distance to Chang Mai is one of the issues I am having with Thailand. Perhaps if we discounted it then things might look more realistic.

Someone up thread said it was likely too expensive. What kind of budget do you find you need?

We're not interested in the Canaries, but thanks.

I would always vote for Thailand/SE Asia and I think 2 weeks is plenty.

Thailand, plenty of people do ‘fly and flop’ and most of the Tui resorts are based around Kao Lak, but I think it would be a shame not to do some exploring.

A couple of nights in Bangkok and then fly down to either Krabi or Phuket and do some islands there? katie_ellison on Instagram has a video with a great itinerary. I think a few nights in Chiang Mai could be doable as you can fly direct from both Bangkok/Phuket.

You could also consider a few nights in Kuala Lumpur and fly back from there for a bit more city/exploring for your husband?

Vietnam is mostly in rainy season, I think, so a bit cold and wet.

Another vote for South Africa, Cape Town then a hire car to do the Garden Route.

Like others I would suggest Thailand having been many times. If you're not bothered about the beaches you can base yourself in Bangkok and / or Chaing Mai and do local sightseeing as well as day trips. You can find lovely hotels with swimming pools on a budget. That way you can do sightseeing in the mornings and chill by the pool in the afternoon (or vice versa).

You can fly to Chiang Mai from Bangkok very cheaply using Air Asia or a similar budget airline.

I would definitely recommend Thailand or Cambodia. Have you considered Goa?

Madeira - nice hotels, good walking and very scenic? Good food too.

Tui do a direct flight to Phuket too, a package with them comes in at £1150 each although you can obviously spend more!

Is everyone much younger than me with more energy?

I can’t imagine doing Thailand in 2 weeks. The flight alone knackers me. I’d say three weeks at least, especially with the jet lag and all.

Vietnam is still in the 30s.

In fact Thailand has broken all records this year with heat. It’s been in a permanent heat wave for over a year now. maybe it will finally cool down this winter…

I might consider Budapest OP. It’s a beautiful city. I’m quite keen to visit Valencia also as it has a massive 9km park running through the centre. I’d like to see that.

For 1500 each Thailand, direct flight with TUI and a BnB.
We go to either Khao Lak (Phuket) for 3 weeks Nov/Dec and have a fab time, loads of trips (book locally James Bond island by long boat, jungle tours, man made lake etc) food is amazing and very cheap, beautiful beaches, wonderful people.
Or Puerto Vallarta Mexico pacific, we stay in Sayulita as we have friends there, it's so chilled, beautiful beach, hikes etc, car hire is a good idea as you can then explore Punta Mitre, PV etc - more expensive than Thailand but also fab.

How about Jordan OP - ? Or is that too close to conflict for you at moment ? Great sightseeing!! I've been to California in November and that was great weather if you get hotel with a good pool plus lots of sight seeing. I don't like humidity so far easts bit of a nightmare for me

We would love to do Jordan but it is a bit close for comfort to conflict tbh. I have seen an amazing trip to Petra that is bookmarked for the future.

We've done California several times and aren't ready for another trip yet. Plus it has got really expensive out there recently.

We have considered India yes, but I think we would want to do the bigger tourist sites rather than Goa. We haven't thought of Cambodia, have you been?

Oman?

@JesusMaryAndJosephAndTheWeeDon yep I agree about the expense- mind you Sterling is up against dollar since we went last October. Yep we feel same about Jordan - sounds like you like similar holidays to us. I would have suggested Andalusia too but as you say we aren't talking 'hot' - mind you we did have 28 degrees in November in Crete and Athens a few years ago . Had you thought about somewhere like Argentina ?

Malaysia is a good option too- some lovely places both sightseeing and lying around-

We loved Andalusia and will probably go back sometime but when it is a bit warmer, May/June probably.

Greece is on our radar but had thought by November lots of the tourist areas were a bit closed for winter.

We haven't thought of Argentina. TBH I hadn't really thought of South America at all

@JesusMaryAndJosephAndTheWeeDon I've actually been to Athens in December and it was still lovely and busy - it's definitely quieter on the islands but a mixed bag - places like Crete and Cyprus still have plenty of year round residents and the interesting sights are still there!! I may have been lucky but have never had it under 23 degrees when I've been in recent years .