I am thinking of checking out of my life for a month, possibly in October or November, and taking a month off from work.

Would love to go to one place and just relax - not too much traveling...maybe rent a house somewhere.

I like to hike, run, sleep in, and good weather. Any suggestions on where to go that would be nice in the fall? I am thinking a house in the hills of Italy or maybe in South America? I am just starting to think about this and would welcome advice/suggestions! Thanks.

That is fairly late for much of Europe. I would consider Sicily.

I've taken a month off - 6 weeks actually for my last trip to Italy! This time around will be 3 weeks....

October would still be nice for Italy, the weather is crisp and cool. Not quite sure of how you define "good weather", if you want sun and warm weather all the time, than somewhere south of the Equator would suffice.

I agree with Navigator, and I would also consider Italy, maybe Monte Argentario or somethis along those lines. Enjoy!!!

Italy is usually beautiful that time of year..even as far north as Venice.

We were in New Zealand in November a couple of years ago. Marvelous. Maybe the northern end of N. Island; semi-tropical in the (antipodean) spring.

Hi miz,

If you would like to wake up and get out of your rut rather than just relax, I suggest Paris -- any time of year.

I would love a month there.

October is still a great time to visit Paris. In fact, in my opinion, anytime is the right time to visit Paris!

Thanks everyone. Any tips on the type of place I should visit for a month? I was thinking laid-back, walkable town, where the most pressing decision is what to make for dinner. Saw some apartments for rent in Valencia (Spain) Crete (Greece) and Sicily. Any further input? I have never taken this type of vacation before so I am banking on your experience

Ohmyohmyohmy...
THIS IS MY DREAM! I like my job but a month off? Let me see how fast I could rent an apartment in Paris!?!

And just walk around...sit in cafe's and read...shop in various markets...

WOW! Well done you!

MizMV,

Off the top of my head, from my life experience, in Oct/Nov I would consider:

* Sicily

* Istrian Peninsula (hill town)

* Todos Santos, Baja California

* New Zealand

For me, I'd go to the west coast of Mexico.

You mentioned that you'd like to just relax in one place, but that doesn't necessarily mean having organized activities for the whole month. Have you thought of taking a language course for 1-2 of the four weeks? It would integrate you into the town where you're living; leave you with enough free time to sightsee, run, sleep in and hike; provide you with some companions to engage in some of those activities (who knows, maybe the sleeping in part, too); and leave you with something (in addition to photos) to show for it when you got (something that you could even put on a resume). I spent about 2 months "alone" in France and Spain doing language courses when I was between jobs, and I had a great time: made some new friends in exotic places (I now have friends I can stay with in Amsterdam, Australia, Singapore, Tokyo, Cuba, Libya and Mongolia), learned useful skills that have helped me in my career and saw more of the towns than I otherwise would have.

I spent a month in Grenoble in September - good weather (and great hiking) but not hot - probably not warm enough for you in October. However, a town like Montpellier in the South of France might be a good choice.

If I had a month now (in October or November), I'd probably spend it in Chile or in a small university town in Mexico (Morelia or Guanajuato - not sure I spelled the last one correctly).

By the way, I was in New Zealand in November last year (North and South Island - about 8 different places) and it wasn't particularly warm or sunny. I loved it - it's just that the weather wasn't terrific.

If you haven't discovered slowtrav.com yet, take a look there. You'll find lots of ideas with great reviews of villas and rentals. Wherever you choose to go, have fun and know that many, many of us are very envious!

I'll be in Florence from Sept. 6th to October 7th. Picked Florence because of a guy,(long story)but really look forward to taking a cooking class or two and hopefully improving my very simple Italian.

For those of you who did this, how did you readjust? It was hard enough after being gone for just 2 weeks.

How about hire a boat/barge and tour around the waterways in Southern France?

In October,the weather shall be quite nice, countryside full of golden colours,the rivers/canals far less busy; with a boat,you don't have to pack/unpack,but be mobile-go/stop whenever/whereever your whims take you.

Around the waterways, there are many little old towns for exploring, great local food/produce for tasting, many opportunities for hiking /biking.

I still have my old Pan Am ticket to the Moon but it seems so unlikely now !