Travel calendar No. 11
November
The most underrated month of the year.
November has a poor reputation in Europe and excellent conditions elsewhere. In Japan the maples turn, Thailand emerges from the monsoon, and Rwanda enters a short, walkable window.
It is the month for travellers who are not bound to the calendar, and who are rewarded with empty places.
Why this month
Why this month is special
Japan's autumn colour usually reaches Kyoto in the second half of November. It is one of the two weeks in the year when the city looks as one imagines it — and one that must be booked early.
Thailand is as good as it gets in November: dry, not yet full, and with a sea that has settled.
What is November best for?
Cities and long-haul travel. Venice, Paris and Vienna are empty and better value, the museums accessible. At the same time the calmest weeks of the year begin in the Maldives and Seychelles, and Thailand's Andaman coast opens its season. In Europe a house with a fireplace beats one with a terrace — obvious, perhaps, but it decides the evening.
Noted by Pure Voyage
Pure Voyage Atlas
Where this leads
The Atlas connects what belongs together: the region, the collections, the right season and the houses that sit within the same story.
The Region
Related Houses
Within These Collections
Rooms and Suites
Where to go now
Recommended destinations
Places coming into their best phase as Europe goes dark.
Tokyo, Kyoto and the Alps
Japan
A country where care is not a luxury but a premise.
- Best time to visit:
- Late March to May, October and November
- Suggested length:
- Twelve to sixteen nights
Bangkok, the Andaman Sea and the north
Thailand
A city on a river, a sea full of limestone.
- Best time to visit:
- November to early April
- Suggested length:
- Ten to fourteen nights
Virunga volcanoes and Nyungwe
Rwanda
One hour with mountain gorillas that changes the rest of the journey.
- Best time to visit:
- June to September, December to early February
- Suggested length:
- Four to six nights
Where we stay
Addresses that suit it
Town houses, coastal houses and a lodge in the mountains.
Aman — Otemachi, Tokio
Aman Tokyo
A Japanese house lifted to the 33rd floor: washi, stone, cedar and a lobby thirty metres high.
- Suits:
- First-time and returning Japan travellers who want calm above the city
- Suggested length:
- Four nights, ideally combined with Kyoto
Mandarin Oriental — Chao-Phraya-Fluss, Bangkok
Mandarin Oriental Bangkok
The Authors' Wing, the river at dusk and a standard of service rehearsed for over a century.
- Suits:
- Asia travellers who treat Bangkok as an opening, not a stopover
- Suggested length:
- Three nights, usually before beach or north
One&Only — Vulkan-Nationalpark, Ruanda
One&Only Gorilla's Nest
A eucalyptus forest at the foot of the Virunga volcanoes, an hour from the gorilla trails.
- Suits:
- Travellers who want a demanding encounter with comfort afterwards
- Suggested length:
- Three nights, two treks
On the move
Journeys this month
Rajasthan in its coolest and most agreeable weeks.
Through the month
Seasonal highlights
01
Maple colour in Kyoto
Ten to fourteen days that cannot be moved. Plan early.
02
Thailand after the monsoon
Clear air, a calm sea, houses before high season.
03
A short dry window in Rwanda
Good trekking conditions with far fewer people than in August.
Related collections
From the Collection
Read on
From the Journal
An Invitation
Once a month: hotels, new openings and travel ideas
One hotel that convinced us, with our advice on suite and season. The openings that actually matter. And a destination at its best right now. No offers, no advertising.