Best places to travel in November 2024

November is a classic time of year to visit Mexico, for one main reason: this is when the country launches itself into an exuberant festive mood for its Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), taking place around the first day of November. Yes, it’ll be busy, especially in Oaxaca and Mexico City, but that’s all part of the experience, as communities celebrate with parades, live music, and candlelit feasting in cemeteries. November is also a good month to visit the country as a whole: the rainy season has usually petered out by now and warm days have returned, making it a good time to explore Mexico’s smaller towns, beaches and coastal regions.

Temperatures drop and snow begins to fall, but this brings a raft of different experiences to a Canada trip. Winter festivals, ice-skating rinks and Christmas markets open toward the end of the month, making it a good time for a city break. Wrap up for a walking tour before sipping a hot chocolate, or stay cosy inside museums and galleries. You can still explore the country’s wilderness areas, too. Visitor numbers are low at this time of year, so you can enjoy views of the snow-smeared mountains in solitude. You might also catch the tail-end of the salmon run along British Columbia’s coast or the polar-bear watching season in Churchill.

While temperatures drop and the weather becomes less predictable in the northern half of the USA in November, regions like the Deep South, Florida, California and the Southwest remain mild and largely dry. It’s also an excellent time to visit Hawaii, where the sun still shines and you can enjoy the islands’ beaches and forested interiors before visitors arrive for the festive period. Autumn arrives later in the south, so you can still enjoy fall foliage in areas such as Shenandoah National Park and the Blue Ridge and Smoky Mountains. Avoid the week of Thanksgiving, which falls on the fourth Thursday of November, as travel will be busy and prices higher throughout the country.

November is one of the best months to travel to India, whichever region you decide to visit. With the exception of colder northern areas like Ladakh and the Himalaya, temperatures are warm but not stifling hot as they are in summer, and rainfall is generally low. The comfortable temperatures make November a good time for exploring the country’s cities and for viewing wildlife in the national parks, although be prepared for higher visitor numbers. Diwali, in some years, takes place in November, so you might see increased crowds around this time. For time on the beach, head to Goa, where you’ll enjoy warm, dry weather.

Spring is in full swing and temperatures are on the rise, though are still mild enough to make for comfortable hiking conditions along the coast and in the country’s national parks. Landscapes in the north are peppered with wildflowers after stormy downpours, and rainforests and wetlands are alive with birds and other wildlife. It’s also a good time to stroll city streets in the south, where it’s warm and dry, and for a road trip along the east coast before the days heat up. It’s warm and sunny on the beaches, although the water is a little cooler after the winter months.

Marking the beginning of South Africa’s summer, November brings pleasantly warm temperatures, without being as hot as later in the season. While rains arrive in some areas, such as Kruger National Park and KwaZulu-Natal, these tend to be short and stormy, leaving the air fresh afterwards. It means there are fewer visitors on safari in the Kruger, despite it still being a good time for seeing wildlife. Elsewhere, it’s a good time to drive the Garden Route, and you can still pause to see southern right whales off the coast before they migrate south.