Is fall Europe’s new peak journey season?

As worldwide journey has surged over the previous few summers, you’ve got most likely seen the headlines: Locals in Barcelona are fed up with the barrage of tourists. Throngs of vacationers are visiting Rome’s Trevi Fountain. Tourism taxes at the moment are required on peak days in Venice, Italy.

If that is purpose sufficient so that you can commerce the crowds, warmth and steep costs of a European summer season trip for fall foliage and a little bit tranquility, you are not alone.

Over the previous few years, airways have seen a shift in how (or, extra exactly, when) individuals are touring.

Across the nation, a rising variety of vacationers are forgoing journeys in late July or August and as an alternative opting to attend till the summer season warmth subsides altogether.

It’s turned autumn, as soon as the doldrums of the journey calendar, right into a low-key excessive season.

“We’re heading in[to] a transition from where August is less peaky, to October being really peaky,” Delta Air Lines president Glen Hauenstein mentioned at an trade convention earlier this fall. “This is an interesting new development.”

Is October the brand new August?

The numbers assist inform the story.

During the primary 30 days of October, passenger visitors at U.S. airports surged almost 7% greater than in September, in response to information from the Transportation Security Administration.

In reality, airports this October had been solely barely quieter than they had been in August, traditionally a linchpin of the summer season rush.

And that was despite the threat of flight delays amid the ongoing government shutdown.

Several factors contribute to this shift.

School calendars bump up summer trips

For several years now, airlines have observed that school start dates across the country have crept earlier and earlier in August, causing more families to cram in summer vacations before the Fourth of July.

That has made June and early July a bonanza at airports and tourist hot spots.

Skirting the crowds and higher pricing

At the same time, travelers who are not tied to an academic calendar seem to have heeded years of travel advice.

Instead of vacationing during the summer, they’ve turned to the fall “shoulder season,” the typical sweet spot for crowds and pricing after the summer but before the end-of-year holiday rush.

“Hotel prices have been out of control in Europe at some of the top destinations, and I think there’s been a fair amount of fatigue on that,” said Paul Tumpowsky, chief revenue officer at Fora Travel.

“People as a result … they’ve basically noticed, jeez, I can go to these places in September, October, and they’re far nicer — not as hot,” he added. “And far less crowded.”

Plus, fall is when airlines are more likely to offer cheaper fares and award deals.

Case in point: A recent bonus miles promotion from Air France and KLM’s Flying Blue loyalty program recently inspired TPG social media manager Annie Black to book a spontaneous Halloween weekend jaunt to Ireland.

“When all the pieces lined up where I could go to Europe for way less than I thought, I took the chance,” Black said. “Also, the weather there right now is perfect autumn, which is obviously a draw.”

Airlines adjust flight plans for 2026

Airlines think the fall vacation is here to stay and are adjusting their plans accordingly.

In the past, carriers surged flights, planes and staffing across the entire summer to cater to vacationers before pulling back once travelers returned to work, school and regular schedules in the fall.

“We were always creating that ‘church for Easter Sunday’ for June, July, August,” Hauenstein said in September. “This allows us, as we move forward, to spread that out a little bit more.”

Similarly, United Airlines plans to end its peak summer schedule a week earlier, executives shared last month, citing “more balanced demand levels across more of the year.”

That includes the late winter months, which airlines — ever since the COVID-19 pandemic — had already pegged as a more popular season for young adults and empty nesters to visit mild destinations in southern Europe, like Portugal, Italy and Spain.

Add in the fact that airlines (especially United) are simultaneously launching flights to less touristy, more novel destinations like Greenland and Bari, Italy, and it’s clear, Tumpowsky believes, that travelers are craving more novelty and fewer crowds.

“My general feeling is that the world has gotten smaller — and also more crowded with tourists,” he said. “I think the idea of trying to spread out worldwide is a thing. But also just sort of spreading out over the calendar year.”

What this means for consumers booking a trip

What do these changing travel habits mean for consumers?

Get started now if you’re vacationing in June or July

June (and early July) is still the year’s ultimate peak travel rush, so you’ll want to book early.

As it happens, many airlines and hotels have already opened bookings for summer 2026, if you’re hoping to snag competitive award deals.

Remember: In most cases, if you book an award flight and your plans change later, you can typically receive a refund for your points or miles (and taxes and fees).

Repricing flights: What you need to know about canceling trips when you find a cheaper fare

Plan your calendar accordingly

On the other hand, if you really want to travel in the summer but have some flexibility with dates, tailor those 2026 time-off requests around an August getaway (or even September, after Labor Day).

Recent years have brought better fares at the tail end of summer and the very beginning of fall — before the crowds return in October and for the holidays.

Riding the fall bandwagon? Consider this option

Concerned it’s too late for a trip this fall? Tumpowsky offered his top pick for travelers setting their sights on next autumn.

“If you could be on the Amalfi Coast [in Italy] the first week in October, you’d be pumped,” he said. “The restaurants are not crowded, and there’s no traffic, and it is gorgeous — 75 degrees.”

Other options: 12 European destinations that are best experienced in the fall

What about the holidays and winter?

For years, TPG has suggested flying internationally for Thanksgiving week, typically the year’s top domestic travel rush, as a way to score cheaper fares and award redemptions.

It’s a trick that’s brought senior editorial director Nick Ewen to France, Finland and Wales over the past decade — while most Americans were sitting down to turkey dinners.

Up next for Ewen in 2026: Switzerland.

For his part, Tumpowsky is seeing travelers set their sights abroad both to explore new places and save money; sometimes, he noted, the all-in cost of skiing in the French Alps can beat a shorter trek to Colorado. The same applies to visiting Europe instead of the Caribbean in December.

“People have shifted their thinking to, ‘Oh I’ll go to the Christmas markets. I’ll go to London for Christmas,” he said. “I think it’s easier to get up and go these days.”

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