Vacation Help Needed Please

I haven't been to Majorca, but I spent 1 week on Ibiza.  LOVED IT!!! It was in May and the weather was already hot.  Not Texas HOT but in the high 80's.  I never thought they received that much rain in the Balearic islands.  I'd do a little more research.

On to Plan B, I liked Costa Rica.  If you don't mind driving, you can find lots to do.  I stayed in Tamarindo, more of a surf/beach town.  But within a couple hours, you can be in the rain forest, or volcano tour, or the historical sights.  Spanish is the native tongue, but it's super easy to communicate in English.

I don't have anything positive to say about Japan.  Went there three times in the Marines. SUPER EXPENSIVE, not real easy to communicate, and October would be COLD.

Nicaragua?  San Juan del Sur is a quiet beach town, there are mountains for hiking up to the giant Jesus, it's close to Lake Nicaragua with a volcano right in the middle of it.  Biking would be leisurely as the roads are terrible...

Also, I'll second Italy.  Tons to do...spend a few days in Rome, a few on the coast, and a few biking?

Heading to Belize tomorrow!!! Vaca report upon return... Caye Caulker, Sailboat trip and Placencia then back to DFW...

Italy might be a good option. There are organized Bike tours of Tuscany (wine and bikes!), or you can rent a car and enjoy the drive. Southern Italy has beaches so you could combine the 2. Great history, culture, food and English is spoken in most big cities.

There are organized wine/bike tours in France (Bordeaux/Burgundy) also.

How about Ecuador?   Easy to get to from Dallas -- quite cheap -- and lots of outdoorsy stuff to do (hiking, mountain biking, etc.)    Plus, you can spend part of the time in the Galapagos if you like animals -- fantastic experience.  

The airfare is high, but the cost/day for traveling, eating and accommodations is very cheap, as long as you don't want/need 4-5 star accommodations.

Thailand

Indonesia

Vietnam--Hot Runner, where are you? hmm, maybe sleeping.

Zanzibar

Lots of beaches at each.

Hot Runner is awake now!  You're always welcome to visit (and even stay with me, if you like kitties!) but October isn't the best time weather-wise. It's still rainy season, though not quite as obnoxiously humid as "summer". You can expect pretty much a daily thunderstorm followed by a few hours of showers, usually late afternoon or evening. Things dry out a bit in November but don't expect dry days or anything remotely "cool" until late Nov. or early December. Central Vietnam (Danang, Hue, Hoi An) is much worse, with erratic weather and typhoons. Worst time for the beach. The north should be good, though. My mom and I did a cool bike tour a few years ago from Sapa to Dien Bien Phu in the north....in July. Definitely easier at a drier time.

Actually, when I saw October, I immediately thought Himalayas. Late fall's the best time for trekking--not too cold yet, higher passes still open, rainy season over. It's a great frustration of mine that my job keeps me from trekking at that time. Nine days is a little short, but if you did a shorter trek that doesn't go super high, you should be okay. Nepal is cheap with loads of treks and some MTB tours. Bhutan may put you over budget but the fee there is set...no surprises, and very worth it. Tibet itself is kind of a pain in the butt with complicated permits and restrictions that change without notice, plus a somewhat diluted culture, but there are neighboring areas of China (Yunnan, Sichuan) that have excellent trekking. A good resource for the latter is Wild China, or the locally based and Tibetan-run Khampa Caravans, in Zhondgian ("Shangri-La") in Yunnan Province.

Finally, my favorite spot in Europe, Bolzano and surrounding areas in northern Italy. You can't go wrong there. Nice small city; amazing hiking ranging from day hikes thru gentle hills to brutal multi-day treks with via ferrata, endless miles of bike trails and quiet roads, amazing food and wine. For biking, you can just ask at the train station or one of the Sportler outlets and they can provide maps. You can rent city cruisers, MTB's, and roadies. On our last visit, we liberated the free city bikes and rode them to Verona, then took them back on the train. In my next life, I plan to be a resident.

Happy trip planning!