Hello all,

I've read most of the threads and posts from this sub and have enjoyed them all, so thank you for that.

I'm from the US and have never traveled out, not because I haven't wanted to but because the oppurtunity was never there.

I'm 33 now and have 3-4 months where I would like to travel somewhere from November-March/April.

I don't really desire to see new things or experiences, I don't party much anymore and I really enjoy peace and isolation.

I'll be mostly doing what I normally do; online poker, meditating and going out for a meal, drink or coffee.

This is a list of things that are important to me:

- Sun/decent weather.
- Ability to play online/good internet.
- Walkability (close proximity to restaraunts/bars/cafe and would prefer not
to have a car etc.)
- English speaking, I know this might sound ignorant and I don't mean it in
that way, but I'm a newb and would like a good experience my first time.

My budget is like 1500usd/month for accomodations and whatever else goes with it. Budget isn't really a big deal but I don't want to blow a ton of money either.

Thank-you all so much in advance. I look forward to taking your advice.

What you're going to want is a direct broadband connection for your internet to minimize any chance of disconnection. How is your Spanish? Lots of great options in Latin America, Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, Peru, Colombia, Dominican Republic.

Spanish is non existent, that being said I learn quickly and am open to it. I'm ok travelling somewhere that will allow me to learn but don't want to go somewhere where I'm completely lost and will ruin the experience.

Outside the USA, weather is gonna be terrible in most English speaking places during those months (UK, Ireland, Canada, etc.).

I guess if you've got the budget, you could try Australia or New Zealand. It will be Summer there and weather will be great. I did a year in NZ and highly recommend it.

If you're on more of a budget, I'd recommend a major beach city in Mexico. Tons and tons of old geezers with less than 5 words of Spanish vacation here and many have homes. So obviously it's not an issue in certain cities (Cancún, Puerto Vallarta, los Cabos, even Mazatlán). You'll get pretty good bang for your buck as well. Internet should be fine. I've never had an issue here in Mexico City and there are/were many grinders in the beach areas.

Yea looks like on your budget somewhere in Central Am or Mexico is best. Also if you plan for only 3-4 months then its a bonus that you are not too far away from US.

Have a look at any 'Tourist town' in Mexico, for example Playa Del Carmen, from here you can search smaller towns close by if you want something alittle quieter(Tulum in this case). I mention the term tourist towns as here youll be guaranteed to be able to get by with English and meet other like minded people.

Check out Antigua, Guatemala, It seems to tick every box you are looking for.

Abit futher away options would be Cape Town, South Africa. Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam.

South Africa FTW. Fly into Cape Town. Then stay somewhere along the Garden Route or in the Winelands.

Excellent, cheap food. English-speaking. Wonderful weather (you'll be traveling when it's summer in the southern hemisphere and the weather in the Western Cape during the summer is spectacular). Great internet coverage.

Book accomodation using airbnb. Great options within your price range. (But note that hotels tend to be expensive in South Africa relative to the prices of other stuff. Airbnb and smaller lodges are excellent both quality and price-wise, though.)

You wouldn't need to get a rental. You can Uber into the Winelands or book a car service (make sure to verify the service is realiable). Uber and limos are A LOT cheaper than you might expect.

Requirement of peace and quiet can also be met outside of Cape Town.

If you're traveling towards the corners of your desired travel dates (November or April), Malta may be another option. English-speaking. Relatively cheap. Fair enough climatically. Great internet coverage. Lots of restaurants. Quiet and relaxing if you pick the right spot (don't stay in St. Giljan LDO).

Also, what about Panama or Costa Rica? I've never been and the official language in both countries is Spanish, but I'm sure you'd have no problem with English...

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EDIT: Oh, and I don't second the recommendations for South-East Asia. I love the countries suggested but I'd assume you'd have to up your budget if you want a place without the hustle-and-bustle, yet with the convenience of English-speaking people and nice shops and restaurants--you'd basically would have to pick a secluded 5* resort).

Costa Rica is going to be expensive, and Panama not to the same extent but somewhat similar, if youre liking the look of Costa Rica then just go to Nicaragua, very similar in every way except its >50% as cheap(from my experience). San Juan Del Sur a decent option and plenty of tourist friendly laid back beach towns around there.

I realize now that my op was misleading wrt to budget. I was speaking 1500usd for accomodations alone. My overall budget would be something like 3-4k/month would be fine.

Thanks, I was debating NZ as a possible candidate and had really ruled out UK, Ireland, Canada anyway for no specific reason but weather being **** just confirms it.

Cool, I'll check out Antigua and Guatemala.

This is exactly what I was looking for and what you recommended seems ideal. I hadn't thought about it or came across it.

Will I have problems traveling out of the US for 4 months straight? Will I have to obtain any special visas?

One more quick question while it's on my mind.

Rishikesh India, Anyone ever been there?

Visa depends on the country. For 4 months normally you will need one

Are they difficult to attain? How far out will I need to take care of this?

Is there a good resource for me to look into this?

Mexico's basic tourist visa will be good for 180 days and you'd just receive it on arrival, no hoops to jump through.

A lot of places are simple to visit for up to 3 months (like Europe for example), but might require looking into something longer term if you're planning to stay 4+ months.

Fwiw I meant Antigua the city/town in Guatemala, not the Caribbean island.

Glad you clarified pure, I wouldn't have known.

Ccheiden,

travel.state.gov is your friend, at least in terms of logistics. Has info about length of stay, visa requirements, necessary immunizations, and traveler's warnings for every country in the world.

I don't know about the internets and pokers, but of the countries mentioned so far, Aus/NZ and South Africa are pretty awesome for travel and seeing great things. Costa Rica was real nice too.

One thing for sure: if you do travel, make sure to write here and provide pictures of your adventures.

Yes, I have. If yoga/seeking an outside of your comfort zone spiritual experience is your thing, then yes, by all means, go to India. Rishikesh is a smaller place then your hustle and bustle of Varanasi, for instance, and you will be ok with English and WAY above your budget over there, but from what you said in your OP, I strongly do not recommend going to India as an initial experience. India is already challenging af as a veteran traveller

Hence I would second either choosing an Anglo-Saxon country (mainly NZ or Australia/never been to South Africa) for the familiarity, English speaking, peaceful settings, beautiful, or the known touristic destinations in Mexico/San Juan. Malta sounded like a cool option as well. You did not mention live poker, but Malta and Australia seem like the best holding this option as well. GL

Very cool! Thank you for your insight.

It's looking like South Africa is leading the race right now.

Regarding live poker, I get plenty of it while in here in the states so I really have no interest playing much elsewhere, I greatly prefer playing online anyway.

While personally I find the English speaking countries a bit more boring, South Africa definitely has a lot going for it. Cape Town is freaking gorgeous. The weather is great. There's tons of variety in outdoor activities - hiking, cycling, wind surfing, scuba diving, in addition to all the beaches. Plus it's great value as the Rand is weak right now, although I have no idea about apartment prices. You can eat a perfectly plated eggs benedict in a boutique cafe overlooking the ocean or sip high quality South African cabernet in a steakhouse for a fraction of what you'd pay in the England or Australia. And they have all this wild game meat that's fun to try, I really enjoyed the ostrich filets! I'd recommend staying in Cape Town at first, see if you like it, and if not move further down the coast to one of the many smaller beach towns where everything is more chill. Transportation does get a bit tricky outside the big cities though.

Some downsides - There's lots of pockets of sketchy areas that you'll have to watch out for. I never had any issues, but there were lots of places where the hotels/hostels strongly advised to take taxis/ubers at night, even though the area outside felt relatively safe to me. The income inequality is massive and you can see and feel some of the racial tension between the all the wealthier whites that you'll most likely be meeting and hanging out with vs the vast majority of the poor black population. It really is two different worlds. This bothers some people more than others.

GL with the search! Maybe an actual South African can chime in here!

Well, I would qualify that as follows.

Most importantly, the personal safety issue arises only in the metro area of major cities. In my experience, other places such as Stellenbosch, Franschhoek, Hermanus etc. are perfectly safe. An exception to that rule of thumb is that I wouldn't recommend driving certain highways at night even outside the big cities.

And even in a major city such as Cape Town, you have to differentiate. There are certainly no-go zones in the surrounding townships but you probably wouldn't wanna visit them anyhow.

Now, in Cape Town itself, at the places you actually want to be at, it is perfectly safe during daytime.

There are areas which are perfectly safe during nighttime as well (e.g., V&A waterfront). However, in general, you want to stay alert at night. You don't wander into deserted areas alone. You don't hike alone. You don't appear lost. If you're in an area which gets a tad more shady at night such as the CBD, you stay near the restaurant/hotel/club/building security until your taxi arrives.

But OP seemed interested in a quiet and relaxing environment. So I didn't imagine him partying on Long St for a week. I was thinking he'd be more likely to travel into the Winelands, the whale-watching spots, the quieter beach towns, the nature reserves/national parks, or the like. And most of those places are perfectly safe day and night.

In some parks, baboons may pose a greater threat than criminals.

RE: South Africa, a couple stories.

In Cape Town, I stayed at the Portswood, which is a couple blocks from the waterfront. Arrived AM after two overnight flights with a train ride in Germany in between, so I'm just exhausted.

Of course, the room isn't ready, so I go explore the waterfront area. Some scruffy-looking younger guy comes up to me with a story about something or another, he could use some help. I handed him a few rand, probably something like $5 USD. He said, "why don't you give me the rest of it?"

As I mentioned, I'm totally exhausted, I just walked away, saying, "no". To this day, not sure if I was being mugged, if the guy had a weapon and I got lucky, or what. Maybe it was nothing. Midday, right in public.

#2: One day, I got on a tour to the Cape of Good Hope. saw several things along the way, and when we got to the cape, the driver warned the ladies to leave their purses in the car.

Not two minutes after we got out, some lady in another group had her purse stolen by a baboon. The park rangers tried to chase it down, but of course it was much faster and more agile, and got away.

If OP does go to South Africa, I recommend going to see what the animals are doing. I had a few days in a place called the Karongwe private game reserve just outside Kruger, it was pretty amazing. (Say hi to Evans and Michael if you go there, if they are still around).

I imagine any of the reserves would be nice, or going into Kruger on more of a do-it-yourself adventure, but obviously can't speak to them.