Best Honeymoon Destinations in November

November is when the Andaman coast dries out, so Krabi, Phi Phi and Phuket move into their best stretch of the year just as wedding season peaks at home. It is also the easiest trip to put together at short notice: direct flights from most Indian metros, and resorts at every level from a quiet beach hut to a private pool villa. Packages average around Rs 35,000 per person.

Known For : Stay in an Overwater Bungalow Ithaa Undersea Restaurant Scuba Diving in Maldives

The Maldives changes over during November. Early in the month you can still catch the tail of the wet southwest season, with grey afternoons and choppy crossings, while the second half usually settles into the dry northeast season the resorts are known for. If your dates are flexible, book the last two weeks. One island, one resort, no planning to do. Packages average around Rs 89,000 per person.

Best Time: December to April

102 Maldives Attractions

Sri Lanka swaps coasts in November. The eastern season around Arugam Bay and Pasikudah is finishing and the west and south open up, so Bentota, Mirissa, Galle and Unawatuna are the ones to book. It is the shortest flight on this list and cheap enough that a week can cover the hill country by train and then the coast. Packages average around Rs 32,000 per person.

November is the month Japan is worth the longer flight. The maples in Kyoto and around Tokyo usually colour mid to late in the month, which is the best week of the Japanese year to be walking temple gardens in Arashiyama or sitting in an onsen at Hakone. Book rooms early, because domestic travellers book these weeks too. Packages average around Rs 1,41,000 per person.

Known For : Tanah Lot Uluwatu Bali Swing

Bali still works in November, with the caveat that the wet season is building: expect warm, heavy afternoon showers rather than washed-out days. That is also why rates soften before the December rush. Ubud is the better base this month for the rice terraces, waterfalls and private-pool villas, with a few nights in Seminyak or Nusa Dua at the end. Packages average around Rs 64,000 per person.

Best Time: April to October

302 Bali Attractions

Vietnam in November splits in two. The north is at its best, with clear cool days in Hanoi, Halong Bay and the terraces around Sapa. The centre is the problem: Hue, Da Nang and Hoi An can still be wet in the first half of the month, at the tail of the typhoon season. Plan the north, or leave the centre for the second half. Packages average around Rs 60,000 per person.

For clear Himalayan views this is the month. The monsoon has drained away and the air over the Annapurnas and the Everest range is as clean as it gets all year, which matters if you have paid for a mountain-facing room in Pokhara or a scenic flight. Add Kathmandu's old squares and a couple of nights in Nagarkot. Packages average around Rs 22,000 per person.

Bhutan is quiet, cold at night and beautifully clear in November, which is arguably its best month. Couples get the Paro valley, the walk up to Tiger's Nest and the dzongs at Punakha without the spring crowds. Everything is arranged for you through a licensed operator, so there is very little for a newly married couple to organise. Packages average around Rs 36,000 per person.

Known For : Burj Khalifa Dubai Aquarium & Underwater Zoo At the Top Burj Khalifa

Dubai becomes comfortable in November. Daytime heat drops to the point where a couple can sit outside, walk the Marina in the evening and take a desert camp overnight without suffering. It also suits a short honeymoon of four or five nights, which is what most couples can manage right after the wedding. Packages average around Rs 41,000 per person.

Best Time: November to April

127 Dubai Attractions

November starts Cambodia's cool dry season, and the Angkor temples are far kinder to walk around now than in the monsoon months. Siem Reap has grown a good set of small boutique hotels with pools, so it works as a three or four night pairing with a beach elsewhere rather than as a whole honeymoon on its own.

Known For : Anse Lazio Snorkeling in Seychelles Sunbathing in Seychelles

November is a transition month in the Seychelles, between the southeast and northwest winds, so the sea is often at its calmest and the beaches on Praslin and La Digue are quiet. It is the most private option here and the most expensive: two or three islands over a week, mostly small hotels rather than big resorts.

Best Time: April to May, September to October

96 Seychelles Attractions

Oman is one of the better-kept honeymoon ideas for November, when the heat finally breaks. Muscat is calm and low-rise, the wadis are cool enough to swim, and a night under canvas in the Wahiba Sands is comfortable rather than punishing. Good for a couple who want quiet rather than nightlife. There are few fixed packages, so most Oman honeymoons are quoted as a private itinerary with a car and driver.

Known For : Seven Coloured Earth of Chamarel Le Morne Brabant Underwater Waterfall

Mauritius is warming up through November and the lagoon inside the reef stays calm. Worth knowing: the southwest Indian Ocean cyclone season formally opens around the middle of the month, though storms very rarely arrive this early and the real risk sits in January to March. Belle Mare and Grand Baie are the calmest coasts. Most properties are all-inclusive, so the resort you pick sets the whole budget.

Best Time: April to December

147 Mauritius Attractions

By November Jordan has cooled to the point where Petra is a pleasure to walk rather than an endurance test, and nights in a Wadi Rum camp are cold enough to want the extra blankets. Finish with a few days floating in the Dead Sea. This is a touring honeymoon rather than a lying-down one.

Egypt's best window opens in November. Cairo and Luxor are comfortable in the middle of the day, a Nile cruise between Luxor and Aswan is unhurried, and the Red Sea at El Gouna or Marsa Alam is still warm enough to swim and dive. A good pick if you want sightseeing and a beach in the same trip.

This is Rajasthan's month. The heat has gone, the evenings are cool, and the lake palaces at Udaipur and the havelis of Jaipur and Jodhpur look their best. It is also the practical choice if you have four or five days and no paperwork or long flight to organise, and heritage hotels are used to honeymoon bookings.

31 Attractions

Finland is for couples who would rather chase the aurora than a beach. November is dark, which is the point, and Lapland is usually under snow by the end of the month, though early November can be patchy. Glass igloos and small cabins near Rovaniemi and Saariselka are the honeymoon stay. Bring proper cold-weather clothing rather than buying it there.

Tromso sits under the aurora belt and November nights are long enough to give you several chances in a week. Days are short and often overcast, so treat the lights as a bonus and build the trip around the fjords, a whale-watching boat and the cable car above town. Bergen adds a gentler few days at the end.

November is late spring in New Zealand, with long evenings and the lupins out around Tekapo. Milford Sound, Queenstown and the Bay of Islands are all comfortable, and the summer crowds have not arrived. Note that the ski season is over by now, so plan around lakes, walks and wine rather than snow. It is the longest flight on this list.

Known For : Dal Lake Gulmarg Gondola Houseboat Stay

Kashmir in November is cold, clear and almost empty, and the chinars around Dal Lake have turned. A houseboat with a bukhari going and shikara rides in the late afternoon suit a quiet honeymoon well. Do not come for skiing: Gulmarg does not have reliable snow until January. Flights and roads can be disrupted, so keep the plan loose.

Best Time: March - June; September - November

45 Kashmir Attractions

Shimla, Manali and the Parvati valley are cold and very quiet in November, before the December snow crowds arrive. Wooden lodges with heating and a fire, short walks in the deodars and clear mountain mornings are what this month offers. Rohtang and the higher passes close, so keep the itinerary low and simple.

45 Himachal Pradesh Attractions

November is Switzerland's in-between month. The ski lifts have mostly not opened, some mountain railways and higher passes close for maintenance, and the valleys can sit under cloud for days. If you go, base yourself in Lucerne or Interlaken, use the trains and treat it as a quiet indoor trip. Better in December or February.

Stockholm is the reason to consider Sweden in November. The old town is atmospheric in the cold, the museums are good for a wet afternoon, and the Christmas markets in Gamla Stan open towards the end of the month. Lapland is really a December onwards trip, so check what is open before booking anything up north.

Iceland in November is dark, windy and often stormy, and that is the trade for long aurora nights and near-empty roads. Stay south, keep drives short, and use the Blue Lagoon and the smaller local pools rather than planning a ring road circuit. Ice caves start opening this month. Not a soft option for a honeymoon.

Vienna and Salzburg carry Austria in November. Concert halls, coffee houses and the Christmas markets that open in the second half of the month are the draw, not the mountains: the ski resorts are mostly still waiting for snow. Good for a couple who like cities and do not mind grey afternoons.

Italy is quiet and cheap in November, and Rome, Florence and the Tuscan hill towns are pleasant to walk with no queues. The honest warning is rain: this is one of the wetter months, and Venice sees its high water most often now, so pack for it and keep museums in reserve.

Paris in November is grey, wet and much less crowded, which suits a couple happy to spend afternoons in galleries and long evenings over dinner. The Riviera and Provence are mild but largely shut down for the season. Treat this as a city honeymoon rather than a countryside one.

Nainital, Mussoorie and Ranikhet are cold and clear in November, with the Nanda Devi range visible on good mornings. Rishikesh stays milder and is the gentler base of the two halves of the state. Higher treks and the Valley of Flowers are closed by now, so keep to the hill stations and short walks.

58 Attractions

Turkey is a hard sell in November. Istanbul is cold and wet, the Aegean and Mediterranean resorts largely close for the winter, and the Cappadocia balloons are grounded fairly often when the weather turns. If you go, make it Istanbul plus Cappadocia and expect to be indoors a fair amount. Better in spring or early autumn.

Kerala is still wet in November. The northeast monsoon runs through into December here, so the backwaters and Munnar are green and cheap but the beach days at Kovalam and Varkala are not reliable. Worth it if you want a houseboat, an Ayurvedic week and low rates, and not if you have your heart set on sun.

50 Attractions

Known For : Radhanagar Beach Cellular Jail Scuba Diving In Andaman

November is the weakest month to plan the Andamans. Cyclone activity in the Bay of Bengal peaks in November and the northeast monsoon still brings rain, so the ferries to Havelock and Neil are the first thing to be cancelled. The islands are lovely from late December onwards. If you must go now, keep the last two nights in Port Blair as a buffer.

Best Time: October to June

81 Andaman Attractions