Summer crowds are gone, flights are cheaper, and the sun is still out — which is exactly why September and October have become the smart traveller's favourite months. Travel comparison site Omio has crunched the numbers to name the best places in Europe for a shoulder-season break, scoring destinations on the post-August drop in visitors, September and October weather, onward travel options and how easy each place is to reach.
Coming out on top: Split, Croatia's Adriatic port city. Regional visitor numbers fall by around 80 per cent across September and October compared to August, yet daytime temperatures still sit between 20°C and 24°C. Add a striking coastline that works as a launchpad for island-hopping — Hvar, Brač and Vis are all within easy ferry reach — and the case is fairly convincing.
Italy takes the next two spots. Bari, the gateway to Puglia, comes second, with its old town, seafront promenade and easy access to the region's whitewashed towns. Bologna, in third, trades beaches for food: it's the capital of Emilia-Romagna, home to fresh egg pasta, mortadella and some of Italy's oldest university streets, all far more pleasant at 24°C than in August's heat.
Corfu is the only Greek island to make the cut, holding average highs above 21°C in both months — warm enough for a last swim, calm enough to actually get a taverna table. And if you're chasing the warmest option on the list, Granada in southern Spain delivers average September highs of 27°C, with the Alhambra noticeably easier to book and explore once the summer peak is over.
The wider point is simple: travelling just after the school holidays often means lower flight and hotel prices, sometimes cheaper costs on the ground too, plus a more relaxed version of places that can feel overwhelmed in July. You keep the sunshine, lose the queues and the peak-season mark-ups. For anyone with flexible dates and a hankering for one last warm-weather trip, these five spots make an easy shortlist.
Reported by Condé Nast Traveller UK.
