10 Best Luxury Travel Destinations for an Extraordinary October

Trying to decide where to go in the month of October? It’s a perfect time to travel, and there are plenty of luxurious options from which to choose. Here’s our curated list of the best luxury travel destinations in the world in the month of October.

where to go in the month of October

October is here – where will it take you? Where should it?

You could visit a cosmopolitan city (we’re thinking Paris, New York, Rome or Tokyo). Or take a cultural journey to Muscat, Oman. Halloween means there’ll be spooky good fun all over the world.

Looking for something more bucolic? Head to New England or the Lake District in the UK for the spectacular views of the autumn leaves. Feeling the need for adrenaline-fueled adventures? It’s perfect bungee-jumping weather in Queensland, New Zealand. Or take flight in New Mexico in a hot air balloon.

More in the mood for the beach? Ditch your shoes and set up shop at a barefoot luxury resort in Cabo. New England, New Zealand, New Mexico — it’s all waiting for you this October. Let’s go!

the 10 best luxury travel destinations in the world in the month of October

Here are our top 10 ideas for luxury travel this month.

1. Cruise the Mississippi River.

This is the perfect moment to make like Huck Finn: American Cruise Lines offers nine different itineraries for a leisurely cruise on the iconic American waterway.

2. See the leaves in New England.

Sure, it’s a cliché – but there’s a reason that leaf peepers stream toward New England in early October. Fall foliage peaks at that time in the eastern United States, and it’s spectacularly beautiful. Columbus Day is always the second Monday in October, and the long weekend is perfect timing for a visit to Vermont, New Hampshire, or Western Massachusetts.

If you go earlier, head further north – perhaps to coastal Maine, where Portland is a charming and vibrant place to set up shop for your visit. Acadia National Park is perfect for hiking and spectacular views. If you arrive during the third week of the month, head for Boston and Cambridge, where there should still be some color left on the trees.

3. Visit the Lake District or Western Ireland

The Lake District in the UK and western Ireland are both beautiful in autumn, with trees ablaze with color. Go and experience Keats’ season of mists and mellow fruitfulness.

4. Take to the sky in New Mexico. 

It’s the ideal time to visit Santa Fe, when the temperatures are comfortable, and the chile harvest and the festival season are both underway. Catch the Santa Fe Independent Film Festival, which highlights New Mexican and American films. And the stunning Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta—the largest of its kind.

5. See the flowers in New Zealand. 

If spring is more your thing than fall, you’re in luck – its springtime in the Southern Hemisphere. In Queenstown, the flowers will already be in full bloom. You can have an active vacation full of bungee jumping, skydiving, canyon swinging, mountain biking, and paragliding. Or you can just chill and soak up the incredible scenery.

 

6. Have an adventure in Oman. 

In October, the temperature averages 85 degrees Fahrenheit, making it an ideal time to visit this beautiful sultanate, known as the “the Norway of the Middle East.”

Oman’s terrain encompasses a majestic desert, fjords, green oases, and long coastlines on the Persian Gulf, Arabian Sea and Gulf of Oman with lovely beaches. The capital, Muscat, is home to the Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque (the only one in the country open to non-Muslims, featuring an 8-ton chandelier made of 600,000 crystals). And the old Muttrah quarter, right by the sea, with its labyrinthine souk and busy fish market.

There’s culture, too: performances will be underway at the Royal Opera House. And if you’re looking for a more active vacation, the east coast offers 4-wheel drive adventures and two 5-star resorts.

7. Experience spring in Mauritius

It’s springtime in Mauritius in October, as well; the weather is warming up, but it’s not yet humid or rainy. The flowers will be in bloom, the rain forest will be alive with activity, and the beaches – as always – will be incredible.

8.  Loll on the beach in Los Cabos

Los Cabos is actually two towns at the southern tip of Mexico’s Baja California Peninsula — Cabo San Lucas and San José del Cabo. It’s a dream destination that until recently had one serious drawback: many of the plush resorts didn’t have a beach suitable for swimming.

But that problem has been solved. The relatively new Montage Los Cabos features one of the best swimmable beaches in the area. Yay! The other relatively new resort on the Golden Corridor is the Solaz, a Luxury Collection property set on 34 acres with spectacular views and five swimming pools.

9. Find your bliss in Bhutan.

This remote Himalayan kingdom known for its ‘Gross National Happiness Index’, mountain peaks, green valleys and forests, and cliff-side Tiger’s Nest Monastery is largely untouched by the outside world. Hikes to sacred mountains and remote temples are the high points of a visit this time of year. And the temperatures will be cool enough to make that even more fun.

10. Hit the road for Halloween

It’s the month of Halloween, and if you love the holiday as much as we do, why not hit the road and experience it in a new destination? You could go to Romania, birthplace of Count Dracula. Join the party in Aspen, Colorado. Or soak up some culture and also some spooky fun in London – visit the Tower of London at twilight, and make sure the ravens are still there.

best luxury travel destinations in the world in the month of October

That’s it! Ten great options for a getaway this month. October is calling. Where will it take you? Wherever you decide to go, have fun out there!