Travelling is good for your mind, body, and soul. It’s an enriching experience, a healing experience, a fun experience and, always, just a good way to rest. Depending on what you want to do and what season you want to do it in, your travelling plans and goals may change. There is an amazing number of things to do in fall, from swimming and getting a suntan (because that’s when the actually good weather starts in most resorts — without the scorching heat and all), to hiking and exploring the mountains.
Just after the exhausting heat yet before the murderous winter weather, travelling in fall may turn out to be a way more comfortable, pleasing experience, whatever it is that you plan on doing. Besides — who doesn’t love a leather jacket and a warm latte in their hand? So what fall travel destinations should you pick out in the wonderful year of 2019? As a European, I want to have a rundown of European places you could enjoy, and for what reasons.
While I might be just a tiny bit biased — being Russian and all — I speak from experience of talking to people who have visited Moscow when I say that fall is the best time to go. Moscow, as it is in 2019, is a very clean, welcoming location; in fall the heat dies down (and it gets surprisingly very hot in the summer, believe me), the leaves turn amber yet it doesn’t immediately go into harsh winds or rain. In Russia, we also have this phenomenon we call бабье лето (‘babye leto’) which translates to Indian summer and is seen throughout North America and Asia (apparently) and that’s a period when, around October, it suddenly gets very warm, pleasant and sunny, yet still satisfyingly autumn-ish.
The weather you usually see in fall compliments the gorgeous Red Square and Manezhnaya Square beautifully — it makes you feel like you’re in a fairytale. So do yourself a favour, and add Moscow to your fall travel destinations list, if you can. I specifically highlight Moscow because while St. Petersburg is an absolutely gorgeous must-visit city, it’s also filthy rainy there in fall. Like, terrible. UK style. So unless you want to constantly carry an umbrella on you and get your shoes filthy it might not be the best pick.
📍 The Red Square
Located in the wondrous, mountainous area of the Caucasus, Armenia is an oft-overlooked location. It has a gorgeous landscape, deep, rich historical background and absolutely mindblowing food. The historical heritage is especially interesting because Armenia is a touching point for many religions and a lot of ancient, long-forgotten history.
The people in Armenia are also very lovely and friendly — I say with no exaggeration that you can approach most people in any eatery and start up a conversation out of the blue (it’s like a very large-scale Waffle House at two in the morning) and they will be happy to indulge you. (Beware, though, they never stop telling stories.)
As a cherry on top, staying, eating and travelling around in Armenia will turn out much cheaper than most EU fall travel destinations you could pick out, all of that wrapped in a wrapping paper of fantastic climate. It’s up to you whether you choose to learn its history or go explore the gorgeous landscapes it has to offer; regardless, you are guaranteed to have a good time. And, potentially, gain a kilo or two — if you’re not careful. The cuisine is seriously good.
📍 Lake Sevan
📍 Garni Temple
Germany is a fantastic country as-is: it is way more accessible in terms of funds (and let’s be real — we all kind of have to worry about that these days) than most Western European countries, while offering a hefty amount of both cultural heritage and fantastic, fun bars and clubs for young people to hang out in.
However, this country gets its special fall travel destinations list mention because of its incredibly famous, fall festival called Oktoberfest. You can celebrate it in any of the towns across the nation, but the OG destination for this would be Munich. The almost three-week-long festival will be a delightful timepass with a lot of fun activities like fairs, delicious food and well, obviously, beer. Lots of beer. Like, seriously.
📍 Munich Oktoberfest
Greece is, hands down, one of the best fall travel destinations. There are way fewer people than in the summer which is always a plus; the temperatures get more manageable while still being warm enough for you to enjoy a nice swim; the prices plummet because this is not the in-demand season. A lot of people hail their October Greece-bound holidays as some of the best times they’ve ever had, and it’s definitely easy to figure out why: the abovementioned factors coupled with delicious Greek food and gorgeous architecture are sure to leave a lasting impression.
📍 Mykonos
Prague always makes way to European travel destinations lists, and there’s a lot of reasons why the main reason being the absolutely fantastic cityscape. The capital of Czech Republic is rightfully considered to be one of the most gorgeous cities in Europe, if not the world; filled with colourful baroque-style buildings, it has a lot of fun to offer.
Besides, Czech meats and pastries are legendary amongst Europeans — would you want to miss out on that? (I especially recommend trdelník, which is a sweet walnut and sugar pastry. Because, duh, I love dough.) Also, the airfares are hilariously cheap in fall — it’s an off-festival season, so you’ll be able to experience the city at your own leisure.
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