Where to go in September: late-summer seas, harvests and Oktoberfest

September rewards travellers who time their trip by the week. In the first days, European beaches empty as schools go back while the sea stays warm. By mid-month the Okavango and Ladakh are at their clearest, the Mid-Autumn Festival lights up East Asia and Oktoberfest opens in Munich.

By the end of the month, Georgia's grape harvest is under way. The best destinations this month are Crete, the Algarve, Munich, New York, Lake Bled, Ladakh, Botswana's Okavango Delta and Georgia. This guide walks through the month in order, showing what each week brings and where to be.

The month's weather in one table

Week one: 1 to 7 September

The opening week belongs to the beaches. Across Europe the summer holidays end in the first days of the month and family crowds go home. The Mediterranean keeps most of its summer warmth, because water cools far more slowly than air.

In the United States, Labor Day falls on Monday 6 September 2027, the last long weekend of summer. American resorts are busy for those three days and then quieten.

Crete

Crete is the largest and one of the warmest Greek islands, which gives it a longer season than the Cyclades. By September the strong summer north wind tends to ease, the gorges are cooler to walk and grape and olive harvests start in the villages.

The island is about 260 km end to end and the north-coast road is slow in places. Split a seven-to-ten-day stay between Chania in the west and Heraklion or Rethymno in the centre.

• Visit the Minoan palace of Knossos at opening time or late afternoon, before or after the tour coaches.
• Samaria Gorge is a one-way walk of about 16 km down to the Libyan Sea, ending at Agia Roumeli, a village with no road. Organised trips that include the bus and the return ferry save a lot of work.
• Elafonisi's pink-tinged sand and the lagoon at Balos fill the beach days.

More island ideas sit on our Greece page.

The Algarve

The south coast of Portugal keeps its summer weather well into autumn, and September is when its cliff paths become comfortable. The Atlantic is cooler than the Mediterranean all year, so swimming here refreshes rather than warms.

Four outings define a first visit:

• the Seven Hanging Valleys trail along the cliff tops;
• a boat or kayak trip to the sea caves near Benagil;
• the rock arches of Ponta da Piedade at Lagos;
• sunset at Cape St Vincent near Sagres.

Faro has the airport and a compact old town, but the classic cliffs and coves lie between Albufeira and Sagres. Lagos makes a good single base with beaches in walking distance.

For calmer water, the sandbar islands of the Ria Formosa near Faro and Tavira are reached by small ferries. Five to eight days is enough, or ten with Lisbon.

Tennis in New York

Early September is also when the US Open tennis reaches its final rounds in the United States. The tournament usually ends on the second Sunday of the month, though the 2027 dates have not yet been confirmed on the official US Open site.

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Week two: 8 to 14 September

The second week is the quiet sweet spot. Europe's shoulder season has settled in, the big festivals have not yet started, and two very different wilderness destinations reach their peak.

It is also, statistically, the height of the Atlantic hurricane season, which is the main reason to keep away from the Caribbean, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico this month. If you must go, Aruba, Bonaire and Curaçao lie south of the usual storm tracks.

The Okavango Delta

September sits late in the dry season in Botswana. Water from the annual flood still fills many channels of the Okavango, while the bush has thinned and animals concentrate around the remaining water. That makes it one of the strongest months for big-game viewing. Afternoons are hot and dawns cool.

Most delta camps are reached by light aircraft from Maun, and bush planes enforce strict luggage limits, usually in soft bags. A two-camp stay that pairs a water-based camp with a land-based one gives you both mokoro trips in dugout canoes and game drives in the Moremi Game Reserve.

Four to seven nights is typical. Botswana's tourism model favours small numbers of visitors and higher prices, so camps are expensive but sightings are rarely crowded.

Lake Bled and the Julian Alps

Lake Bled, about 40 minutes' drive from Ljubljana, is one of the most photographed views in Slovenia. By mid-September the summer queues for rowing boats have shrunk, the lake is still warm enough for a short swim on sunny days, and the trails of Triglav National Park remain open.

A few days here might take in:

• a pletna boat or rowing boat to the island church;
• the walk up to the Ojstrica viewpoint;
• the boardwalks of Vintgar Gorge;
• a day in Ljubljana's old town.

Bled is at its best early, before day-trip buses arrive and when mist often lies on the water. For a quieter base, Lake Bohinj, about half an hour further into the mountains, has the same alpine scenery and direct trail access.

Driving on Slovenia's motorways requires an electronic vignette bought online before you set off. Allow four to six days, and expect rain on some of them.

Week three: 15 to 21 September

Festival week. The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on Wednesday 15 September 2027, with lanterns and mooncakes across China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Singapore and Hong Kong, where the public holiday is the following day. In Singapore it is a celebration rather than a day off.

The festival is a lovely time to be in Hong Kong or Singapore. The western Pacific is also in peak typhoon season, though, so anyone heading to the Philippines, Taiwan or Okinawa should leave buffer days around boats and connections.

Munich and the opening of Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest starts in September, not October. According to the city of Munich, the 2027 festival runs from Saturday 18 September to Sunday 3 October on the Theresienwiese in Munich.

Expect beer halls, traditional costume, fairground rides and a costume parade on the first Sunday. Entry to the grounds and tents is free, but tables inside the big tents are reserved months ahead, often by groups.

Without a reservation, arrive early on a weekday, when part of each tent is kept for walk-ins. Weekends after the opening fill fast and gates can close when tents are full.

Munich beyond the beer tents

Away from the fairground, the English Garden has river surfers on the Eisbach wave and a traditional beer garden at the Chinese Tower. The Deutsches Museum and the Residenz fill a wet day.

Neuschwanstein and Lake Königssee make good day trips; see our guide to castles in Germany. Munich hotels are at their most expensive of the year during the festival, so travellers who want the city without the crowds should come in the first half of the month.

Ladakh and its festival

Ladakh lies north of the main Himalaya, so the monsoon that drenches the rest of India mostly misses it. September follows the summer peak of domestic tourism but keeps the clear skies, open passes and running flights.

The Ladakh Festival, with masked dances, archery and polo, usually runs over four days in the second half of the month. The 2025 edition ran from 21 to 24 September; the 2027 dates have not been announced.

The essential stops:

• the monasteries of Thiksey, Hemis and Diskit;
• the drive over Khardung La to the Nubra Valley;
• the lake of Pangong Tso;
• the climb to Leh Palace.

Leh is at about 3,500 metres, so spend the first 48 hours resting in town. Foreign nationals need a Protected Area Permit for Nubra, Pangong and several other valleys, arranged through a local agency or online. Allow seven to ten days including acclimatisation.

Week four: 22 to 30 September

The month ends with harvests and city life. In the second half of September, the UN General Assembly brings heads of state to Midtown Manhattan, and in Georgia the grapes are coming in.

New York

After the sticky heat of August, New York becomes comfortable for walking again. The cultural season starts with new Broadway shows and gallery openings, and the High Line, Brooklyn Bridge Park and Central Park are at their most pleasant.

Walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, see the Whitney at the southern end of the High Line, cycle in Central Park and take the ferry to Ellis Island. Little Italy's Feast of San Gennaro, an 11-day street fair, always includes 19 September; its 2027 dates are not out yet.

The General Assembly week pushes up hotel rates and closes roads on the East Side. Travellers with flexible dates should stay in Brooklyn or Long Island City, both a short subway ride from Manhattan. Four to six days is a good length.

Tbilisi and the Kakheti harvest

Rtveli, Georgia's grape harvest, usually runs in the Kakheti wine region from late September to mid-October. Families and wineries pick, press and seal the juice in buried clay jars called qvevri, a method UNESCO lists as intangible heritage, and a harvest stay often includes the chance to help.

In Tbilisi, the sulphur baths of Abanotubani and the cable car to Narikala fortress are the first things to do. The Georgian Military Road leads north to Kazbegi and the Gergeti Trinity Church, where nights can be cold and early snow can briefly close the road late in the month.

Georgia is good value by European standards and still far from overrun. Tbilisi's city festival, Tbilisoba, follows on a weekend in October.

Where not to go at the end of the month

Thailand's Andaman coast is in one of its wettest months, with rough seas stopping many island trips. On Vietnam's central coast the wet season is beginning in Hoi An and Hue, and Dubai and the Gulf are still in summer heat. Crete, the Algarve and Georgia make better use of the same days.

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Linking the weeks together

Many travellers string two of these places into one September trip, and the connections are easier than they look.

Munich, Bled, Crete and the Algarve

Munich and Lake Bled pair well. Trains run from Munich to Ljubljana via Salzburg or Villach, and Bled is under an hour from Ljubljana by road, with the station of Lesce-Bled a short bus ride from the lake. Combined with Oktoberfest, that gives a week of beer halls, mountains and lakes.

Crete is linked to Athens by short flights and overnight ferries from Piraeus to Heraklion and Chania, so an Athens stopover is simple. Faro has direct flights from many European cities, and trains run from Faro to Lisbon in around three to four hours if you want to add the capital.

Ladakh and the Okavango

Ladakh is usually reached by flying from Delhi to Leh, a flight of about an hour and a half across the Himalaya. The roads from Manali and Srinagar open in summer and usually stay open into October, but they are long two-day journeys over high passes.

The roads are better on the way out than the way in, because arriving by road gives the body time to adjust to altitude. Inside Ladakh, shared and private taxis run on set routes, and permits are checked at checkpoints.

For the Okavango, the hub is Maun, with flights from Johannesburg and Gaborone and a few from Cape Town. Many visitors combine the delta with Victoria Falls, reached by light aircraft or by road via Kasane, and with Chobe National Park, known for its large elephant herds in the dry season.

Getting around on the ground

In Georgia, marshrutka minibuses link Tbilisi with Sighnaghi, Telavi and Stepantsminda cheaply, but a private driver gives far more freedom to stop at monasteries and wineries along the way. Ride-hailing apps work in Tbilisi itself, and the metro covers the city centre.

In New York, the subway runs around the clock, and trains from JFK and Newark connect to Manhattan, which is usually faster than a taxi in traffic.

Within Munich, U-Bahn lines U4 and U5 stop at Theresienwiese, right beside the Oktoberfest grounds. Day tickets cover the whole city, so there is no need for taxis during the festival, when roads around the fairground are busy.

On Crete, KTEL public buses run along the north coast between Chania, Rethymno and Heraklion and out to Samaria's trailhead at Omalos in season, a useful option for travellers who do not want to drive the island's winding mountain roads.

On the Algarve, the coastal railway runs from Lagos through Faro to Vila Real de Santo António on the Spanish border, though many stations are some distance from the town centres.

Seven days in Georgia

1. Days 1 and 2, Tbilisi. Sleep in the old town around Sololaki or Abanotubani, within walking distance of most sights. Ride the cable car to Narikala late in the afternoon, then walk down to the sulphur baths; private rooms there are booked by the hour, so reserve one the day before. Keep day two for the Dry Bridge flea market and the museums on Rustaveli Avenue.
2. Days 3 and 4, Kakheti. Sighnaghi is about two hours east of Tbilisi by road. Stay at a family winery guesthouse there or near Telavi, and ask ahead whether you can join the harvest, since picking days depend on the grapes. Two wineries a day is plenty, as each tasting comes with food.
3. Day 5, the Military Road. Head north via Ananuri fortress above the Zhinvali reservoir. Stepantsminda (Kazbegi) is around three hours from Tbilisi without stops; sleep there for the mountain views.
4. Day 6, Kazbegi. Walk up to Gergeti Trinity Church, about an hour and a half from the village, or take a 4x4 taxi. Start early, because clouds often gather around Mount Kazbek by midday, and bring a warm layer: the village sits at about 1,700 metres.
5. Day 7. Drive back to Tbilisi in the morning and keep the afternoon for a last walk and supper.

Five days in western Crete instead

Base yourself in Chania's old town for all five nights, and spread the days like this:

• one day for the Samaria Gorge on an organised trip;
• one for Balos lagoon by boat from Kissamos;
• one for Elafonisi, about an hour and a half's drive away;
• the rest for Chania's harbour and Rethymno's old town.

Heraklion and Knossos are about two and a half hours east if you fly out from there.

What goes in the bag

• Crete and the Algarve. Evenings fall to around 18 to 20°C, so summer clothes plus one light sweater are enough, but walking the Samaria Gorge or the Algarve cliffs needs closed shoes with grip. The Atlantic off Faro averages about 20°C, and some swimmers will want a short wetsuit for snorkelling.
• Munich and Ljubljana. With nights around 10 to 12°C and rain on about 13 or 14 days, both call for a waterproof jacket and quick-drying shoes.
• Leh. Temperatures swing from about 23°C to 9°C and are colder on the passes, so pack a down jacket, sunglasses and high-factor sunscreen for the altitude.
• The Okavango. Dawn around 14°C and afternoons above 30°C mean layers you can strip off by noon, packed in a soft bag that meets small-plane rules.
• Georgia and Crete's churches. Churches and monasteries ask for covered shoulders and knees, and women often cover their heads in Georgian churches.

Borders and paperwork

• Greece, Portugal, Germany and Slovenia are all in the Schengen area, so one entry covers all four. The EU's Entry/Exit System now registers non-EU travellers at the external border, and the ETIAS pre-travel authorisation is due to follow; check its status on the EU's travel-europe site.
• Visitors to the United States under the Visa Waiver Program need an ESTA, applied for only through the official CBP site.
• India issues e-Visas through indianvisaonline.gov.in, and Ladakh's Protected Area Permit is separate.
• Georgia lets citizens of many countries stay visa-free for long periods; the list is on the Georgian consular site.
• Check Botswana's rules with its embassy, and see our visa hub for country guides.

Lead times, risks and savings

When to book

Okavango camps have very few rooms and September is a top month, so book nine to twelve months ahead. Book a Munich hotel for Oktoberfest as soon as your dates are fixed, because central rooms go first and prices climb as the festival nears.

Ladakh flights should be booked two to three months out, as the small airport has limited daily services. New York hotels are best booked three months ahead, earlier for the General Assembly week. Crete, the Algarve and Slovenia need about two months for good choice, with late offers appearing in the second half of the month.

Health and safety

Altitude sickness is the main risk in Leh, and it strikes fit people too. Drink water, avoid alcohol for the first days, and go down if a severe headache or breathlessness at rest appears.

Northern Botswana is a malaria area, so ask a travel clinic about tablets, and follow your poler's instructions on a mokoro, as hippos are dangerous in the water. Pickpockets work the Oktoberfest crowds.

The Samaria Gorge can close on days of strong wind or heavy rain, so keep a back-up day. Respect beach flags on the Algarve, where Atlantic currents can be strong.

Saving money

In Munich, Deutsche Bahn's Bayern-Ticket gives a day of unlimited regional train travel across Bavaria for a group, which makes Alpine day trips cheap. In New York, the High Line, the Brooklyn Bridge and Central Park cost nothing, and the Staten Island Ferry is free with views of the Statue of Liberty.

Georgia's family guesthouses with home-cooked dinners are good value. On the Algarve, regional trains between Faro and Lagos can replace a hire car for town-based trips. In Botswana, a mobile camping safari in Moremi costs far less than a fly-in lodge.

How we checked this

Climate averages come from national weather services' long-term normals, mostly for 1991 to 2020; Maun's figures cover 1961 to 1990, Leh's 1951 to 2020, and some sunshine records reach back to the 1960s and 1970s. Sea temperatures are long-term monthly averages. Event dates come from the organisers or the host cities, and everything was checked in November 2026. You can read more about how we research our guides.