Don’t feel like gray days? These are the best swimming destinations for holidays in November

Stock up on warmth at the end of the year: Many Germans are wondering what to do with the rest of their vacation. In November it usually gets uncomfortably cold at home, it is still too early for winter sports and too late for hiking and cycling.

City trips are also not for everyone. But staying at home and letting valuable vacation days go to waste is not an option. How about a beach vacation? We show six sun targets that shine in November.

1. Tunisia: Djerba – cheap South Pacific dream in the Mediterranean

In just three flight hours to the east coast of Tunisia: Djerba is currently the fastest destination when it comes to maximum sun and sand. This also applies to the price-performance ratio. The flat island is also called the “South Seas dream in the Mediterranean” because of its white beaches, the turquoise sea and the many palm trees.

At seven hours sunshine during the day and temperatures of around 22 degrees Celsius it is pleasantly warm in the deck chair. The sea feels almost as warm, the water temperatures are around 20 degrees. The November escape to Djerba has two major advantages: many activities such as cycling, beach volleyball or beach hikes are only fun outside of the main season, as it is far too hot for them in summer.

• Hotel tip: Iberostar Mehari Djerba, 7 nights including half board, flight and hotel transfer from 520 euros per person

2. Egypt: Hurghada – bathing paradise on the Red Sea

Subtropical desert climate gives Egypt mild winters and wonderfully warm climate in autumn and spring – the perfect time for a relaxed beach holiday. The Red Sea coast is peppered with bathing resorts: from El Queseir, Makadi Bay, Sharm el Sheikh, Lahami Bay or Marsa Alam to the well-known beach classic Hurghada. They all score in November with nine hours of sunshine a day and more than 25 degrees.

The water temperature is only slightly lower at 24 degrees. The underwater world is also a reason to cheer. Even snorkelers can see many colorful fish on the coral reefs off the coast. Divers will find the best conditions from September to November. Windsurfers and kitesurfers have the most fun in Dahab, Safaga and Hurghada at this time of the year.

• Hotel tip: Steigenberger Aldau Beach Hotel, 6 nights all-inclusive with flight and hotel transfer from 859 euros per person

3. Cape Verde Islands, where eternal summer reigns

Islands of Eternal Summer: This is what the 15 Cape Verde islands, nine of which are inhabited, are also called. They are located in the middle of the Atlantic, south of the Canary Islands and around 500 kilometers off the west coast of Africa at Senegal – and can be reached in a six-hour flight. The sun shines there 350 days a year, from January to June not a single drop of rain falls. The optimal travel time begins in November and lasts until March, when the air temperatures are at a pleasant 23 to 28 degrees. The temperature of the Atlantic is then still well over 20 degrees.

Sal, the smallest of the inhabited islands, is flat and lures in the south with long and wide sandy beaches. The desert island of Boa Vista is characterized by light sand and shifting dunes as well as lonely beaches with turquoise water. The most European island in the archipelago, Sao Vicente, was made famous by the singer Cesaria Evora, who was at home in the bars of the port city of Mindelo.

If you don’t just want to relax on the beach, but also want to move around in an exotic landscape, head for the island of Santo Antao. The rugged hiking island is blessed with spectacular scenery: Coffee, bananas and mangoes grow in the valleys, the mountains rise to 1600 meters. The highlight is a hike along the steep coast.

• Hotel tip: Robinson Cabo Verde, 7 nights all-inclusive with flight, train to flight and hotel transfer from 1940 euros per person

4. Canary Islands: Gran Canaria, where spring reigns forever

A little north of Cape Verde are the Canary Islands. All seven Atlantic islands are quite different, but what they have in common is their year-round mild climate: temperatures rarely drop below 20 degrees throughout the winter. The third largest island, Gran Canaria, attracts with eight hours of sun and daily values ​​between 21 and 27 degrees and water temperatures around 21 degrees – pleasant bathing weather.

A special feature of the island is that its volcanic mountains, which are up to 2000 meters high, act as a weather divider. It divides Gran Canaria into a rather wetter, cooler north and a drier, warmer south. Here is also the six kilometer long Playa de Maspalomas beach. It is the flagship of the island, because this is where the sea meets the desert. Because right behind the beach there are high dunes of up to 20 meters.

In addition to a number of sandy beaches, Gran Canaria also has the Monumento Natural del Roque Nublo nature reserve, which is ideal for hiking. Exciting destinations include the cave village of Cuevas Bermejas or a visit to a rum distillery on a sugar cane plantation.

• Hotel tip: Hotel Riu Gran Canaria, 7 nights all-inclusive with flight, train to flight and hotel transfer from 1053 euros per person

5. United Arab Emirates: Autumn and winter escape to Dubai

No chance for the bad weather blues: The capital of the United Arab Emirates can be reached in a good six-hour flight from Germany and also lives up to its reputation as a superlative destination when it comes to beach holidays. There are kilometers of sandy beaches on the turquoise blue sea on the various islands heaped up.

Popular beach holiday destinations are also the beaches Jumeirah Beach or the party beach Barasati, the only public beach where alcohol is sold. The climate is at its best in November: warm but not too hot daytime temperatures of 27 degrees Celsius and the sea is bath tub warm.

• Hotel tip: DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Dubai – Jumeirah Beach, 7 nights including breakfast, flight, train to flight and hotel transfer from 1999 euros per person

6. Thailand: Insider tip Koh Lanta

Among the islands in southern Thailand, Koh Lanta is one of the least known. It is 70 kilometers south of Krabi in the Andaman Sea, just a short ferry ride from the mainland. Mass and party tourism are foreign words on the island, which is 30 kilometers long and six kilometers wide – and that’s the intention. There are no shopping malls or large hotels, small corrugated iron shops and fruit stalls line the only street, which gives Koh Lanta additional charm. White sandy beaches lined with palm trees hide between small bays and jungle-covered hills.

A ranking by the English Sunday Times, in which Kantiang Bay in the southwest was voted one of the ten best tropical beaches in the world, shows how beautiful the beaches are there. There are few accommodations along the half-mile stretch of powdered sugar beach, including the multi-award-winning Pimalai Resort & Spa. With a lot of sensitivity and Thai architecture, it is almost invisibly embedded in the jungle and offers breathtaking views of the sea from everywhere.

In front of it are the five rugged limestone cliffs of Koh Haa, which not only give a romantic picture at sunset, but also fascinate snorkelers and divers with their underwater world. Apropos: The Phi Phi Islands, made famous by the film “The Beach”, can be seen from Kantiang Bay and can be reached by boat on a day trip. November is the ideal month to visit because the rainy season ends and Koh Lanta Marine Park (which includes 50 small islands) reopens after the annual six-month conservation period. In addition, the humidity is relatively low, the temperatures are not yet extremely high at around 28 degrees and the sky is mostly blue.

• Hotel tip: Hotel Pimalai Resort & Spa, 6 nights including breakfast from 1707 euros per person