Why September & October Are the Best Months to Fly from the UK

The moment the school summer holidays end, fares fall off a cliff. Santorini from £189 return on easyJet from Gatwick in late August can drop to £79 return in mid-September on the same route. That is not a small saving. That is the difference between a holiday that hurts your bank account and one that doesn't.

Croatia follows the same pattern. Split from £61 one-way on Ryanair from Stansted in September versus £130-plus in the last week of August. Jet2 fly Split from Manchester from around £54 one-way in September, down from peaks of £110 in July. The flights go to the same place. The sea is still 24 degrees.

Portugal is arguably the sweetest spot. Faro from £31 one-way on Ryanair from Stansted in September is genuinely achievable on a Tuesday or Wednesday. August on the same route regularly hits £95 one-way. The Algarve in late September has empty beaches and temperatures still in the high 20s.

Spain holds up strongly too. Malaga from £39 one-way on easyJet from Bristol in September, compared to £80-plus in August. Seville and Barcelona see the same swing. If you do not have school-age kids, flying mid-week in September is one of the most straightforward money-saving moves you can make.

Rome in August is 34 degrees, the locals have left, and every restaurant near the Colosseum is a tourist trap running on reduced staff. Rome from £49 one-way on Ryanair from Stansted in October puts you in the city when it is 22 degrees, the streets are calmer, and the queues at the Vatican are half the length. Went last October and it felt like a completely different city to the one I'd visited in July two years before.

Lisbon in summer gets uncomfortably hot, routinely hitting 38 degrees inland, and the main tram routes are so rammed you sometimes give up and walk. Lisbon from £44 one-way on TAP Air Portugal from Heathrow in September or October means 25 degrees, manageable crowds, and a city that actually has breathing room. easyJet also fly from Gatwick from around £41 one-way on the same timeline.

Marrakech is the one people overlook. Summer there is brutal, regularly 40-plus degrees in the medina, and wandering the souks stops being enjoyable quickly. Marrakech from £57 one-way on easyJet from Gatwick in October gives you 28 degrees, golden evening light, and a city that rewards slow walking. Ryanair fly from Stansted from £52 one-way around the same period. It is the version of Marrakech you actually want.

Istanbul from £89 return on Pegasus from Stansted in October is one of the best-value city breaks you can book right now. Summer Istanbul is 32 degrees and heaving. October brings 18-20 degrees, crisp air over the Bosphorus, and a city that moves at a pace you can enjoy. Turkish Airlines fly from Heathrow from around £105 return if you prefer a direct service with better bag allowance.

New York in October is a cliché for a reason, the temperature sits between 12 and 18 degrees, the humidity has gone, and Central Park actually looks the way it does on film. New York JFK from £329 return on British Airways from Heathrow is a realistic October fare if you book six to eight weeks out. Virgin Atlantic regularly match that from Heathrow, and I've seen it dip to £289 return on a Tuesday departure.

Morocco beyond Marrakech deserves attention in October too. Agadir from £61 return on Jet2 from Manchester is one of their better-value long-haul-ish routes in autumn. The Atlantic coast stays warm well into October, crowds thin dramatically after school term starts, and the resort town functions far better at 70 percent capacity than at full summer crush.

Booked a last-minute trip to Bologna in October 2024, mostly because Ryanair from Stansted had dropped to £29 one-way and I wanted a long weekend. Had been to Bologna once before in June and found it fine but forgettable, too busy, too hot, racing around between sites. October was something else entirely.

The temperature was 17 degrees, perfect for walking. The food markets were full of locals doing their actual weekly shop, not tourists photographing prosciutto. Stayed in a small hotel off Via dell'Indipendenza for £58 a night, which would have been £95 in summer. The whole three nights cost me under £320 including flights, hotel, and eating and drinking extremely well.

The thing nobody tells you is that travelling out of season changes your relationship with a place. You stop rushing. You sit in cafes without feeling like you're burning daylight. Bologna in October was quieter, cheaper, and more genuinely Italian than the June version. Bologna is still available from £31 one-way on Ryanair from Stansted in September and October. Do not overthink it.

September and October reward people who don't have their hands tied by school holidays. If that is you, use it. The prices are lower, the temperatures are still good across most of Southern Europe and North Africa, and the places you're visiting are actually functioning for the people who live there, not just for the tourist rush.