Where to go in November

The finest month — Día de Muertos on the 1st and 2nd combines perfect dry-season weather with Mexico's most profound cultural ceremony.

The dry season re-establishes: excellent conditions return and Loy Krathong is unmissable.

Dubai at its peak energy — perfect temperatures, full events calendar, the whole city running at capacity.

The second shoulder window — quieter and cheaper than October, still excellent weather.

The sweet spot transition: dry season returning, low crowds, good value — the locals' favourite.

Peak autumn foliage — arguably Tokyo's most beautiful month, rivalling cherry blossom.

Summer opens — warm, sunny, and 30% cheaper than December.

Quiet and cheap — perfect for museum-lovers and those who travel to escape, not to tan.

Calm and cheap — excellent for museum visits, food tours, and neighbourhood exploration.

Dry season returns — good conditions at shoulder prices before the Christmas peak.

Pre-summer sweet spot — 24°C, beach season in full swing, before the December holiday price explosion.

Budget Rome returns — wet, quieter, and the Vatican Museums almost to yourself.

Most businesses closing — for the solitude-seeker only.

Late autumn: foliage fading, crowds thinning, prices easing toward winter levels.

The forgotten month — grey and quiet, but the Christmas market stalls are assembling by month's end.

The coast retreats — most places close, but the dramatic winter atmosphere is genuinely beautiful.

Dark, cold, very cheap — aurora opportunities grow as nights lengthen toward winter.

Monsoon properly returns — good for budget culture trips, bad for anything outdoors.

Cold and grey, but affordable and culturally rich — good for food, art, and low cost.

Amsterdam at its cheapest and least visited — only 2 hours of sun per day tells the full story.

NE dry season establishes itself — conditions improving rapidly, prices rising from monsoon lows.

Cool and increasingly wet — good for culture-focused visits on a budget.

Pre-Christmas quiet — good cultural access, bad weather, budget prices.

Rain easing slightly — the second wet season's end is in sight, and Christmas preparations beginning.

Macy's Thanksgiving parade is spectacular — but the holiday crowds and prices follow.

Peak autumn foliage — the most beautiful month in Japan, and the most crowded.

Wet season beginning — prices drop, showers return, and the cyclone season technically opens.

The quiet before Christmas — good theatre prices, empty galleries, and only 2 hours of daylight.

Still very wet and flood-prone — conditions improving slowly, but not yet safe to plan around.

Northeast Monsoon arrives — Singapore's wettest period, but the indoor culture and city infrastructure are fully insulated from the rain.

The wettest month of the year — 222mm. Budget but genuinely challenging.

Summer returns with rain — prices rising ahead of Carnival season.