Honeymoon in Greece

I love Santorini but you should know that almost all the tourist businesses close down at the end of October on all the Greek islands, including Mykonos. Business drops off dramatically during October so there's no reason to keep things going in November. This means that most hotels, restaurants, shops and galleries will be closed. If they want a quiet honeymoon with little or no nightlife it could work, but weatherwise it will be chilly, windy and cloudy then.

Jonny, As the previous reply indicated, the Greek islands will be somewhat "quiet" at that time of year. Another concern is the very short one week time frame. Transportation to and from the islands is not as "developed" as other places in Europe, so will take longer (frequency of Ferries may be reduced in November also). Does the one-week time frame include the two days she'll lose at the beginning and end of the trip? Depending on her interests and preferences, some other locations she might consider are Paris or somewhere on the Amalfi Coast. Venice is often suggested as a good honeymoon location also. Good luck!

There is at least one daily ferry to either Santorini or Mykonos every day of the year. There are flights as well, on Aegean Airlines and Olympic Air.

Jonny, I know you mean well, but not a good choice for Nov; the Medit. is not the Caribbean.... toooo far away, takes tooo long to get there from SF, then too cold to enjoy!. She should look at Virgin Islands, perfect in November, and save Greece for another time -- May/June is ideal. Please, if you are a friend, redirect her thinking; otherwise she will be v. angry with you afterwards.

Agree with other posters - Greek Islands in November - cold, windy and closed down. Besides options mentioned what about Southern Spain or the Algarve, southern Portugal - they are generally still warm in November although enjoying the beaches (ie laying around getting a tan) might be a challenge anywhere along the Med in Nov.
Leaving a visit to Europe to another time and hoping on a plane to one of the Hawaiian Islands might be a better way to truly enjoy a one week honeymoon in November.

Jonny, She might also consider Hawaii. A very easy and short trip from your area, and definitely good for a honeymoon. Saving the more elaborate European honeymoon for a more opportune (and hopefully longer) time would be prudent, considering the time-of-year.

If Europe is where they want to lie on the beach, I suggest the south of Spain or Amalfi Coast of Italy. Both should be quite pleasant in November. Still plenty of services available too. Greek Islands in November? No

Take a look at the Canary Islands. Maybe they'll be warm then.

I always surprise how little some people understand geography. Look at map. Greek Isles are location near the 40th latitude. And what is located near the 40th in the US ?? --- Washington, Philly, Denver. San Francisco is further south than the Greek Isles. As much as anything the location on the globe determines much of the weather. Granted, the surrounding water can impact the temperature but the hours of daylight and thus warming is same. You would not find the beach in northern California a good place to hang out in November and the Greek Isles are similar. Even the recommendations for Italy, southern France, Costa del Sol, etc., while better are not the same as Florida or even southern California. More like northern Florida. Now, my strong recommendation for one week would be Costa Rica on the north west corner. No jet lag, relative short flight, and some great resorts on the coasts. Save Santorini for September.

Other good options would be Aruba, Grand Cayman, or my favorite, tiny Caye Caulker in Belize.

FWIW, we didn't take what we considered a 'honeymoon' until our first European trip - 16 years after our wedding. ESPECIALLY having to fly from the west coast, I'd rather have my eyes clawed out than endure that flight only to have less than a week there. Sorry 8^( ... my vote is either Hawaii, etc., or a nice weekend honeymoon and a 'proper' European trip later when they have more time......and probably a LOT less stress!

Def check out Costa Rica in November. The people are nice, the place is beautiful, and you won't have to deal with jetlag or a long flight. They have lots of travel packages. Check out Tamarindo Beach on the northwest coast...beautiful beach and hotel there. Or, she could always wait until May or June and then go to Greece! But 1 week really isn't worth it to go to Europe IMHO.