Where to Go in September 2027: 18 Best Places to Travel

A September trip starts with two questions, why travel this month and what a place gives you now that it would not in August. September's answer is the end of the northern summer. The Mediterranean is still warm while the August crowds go home, and the festival season begins, from Mexico's Independence night to Oktoberfest. Glacier keeps its high road open past the summer peak. In southern Africa the dry season gathers game at the waterholes, and whales calve off the Cape coast.

For September 2027, plan around a date: Florence's lantern night on September 7, Valletta's Victory Day regatta on September 8, Mexico City's Independence night on September 15, Oktoberfest from September 18 or La Mercè around September 24. For the sea, Santorini, Fethiye, Valletta and Dubrovnik are past the August peak, and Lisbon is the mild Atlantic city. Glacier, Jackson Hole and Moab have their parks with fewer visitors than in July. Namibia, the Maasai Mara and Hermanus have the safari and the whales.

• Festivals: the Rificolona in Florence (September 7), Mexico's Independence night (September 15), Oktoberfest (from September 18) and La Mercè (around September 24).
• US parks: Going-to-the-Sun Road in Glacier is typically open until the third Monday of October.
• Warmest: Moab and Fethiye, highs of about 31.4 °C (89 °F); warmest sea: Fethiye, 28.0 °C (82 °F).

September 2027 at a glance

Highs are September averages for 2013 to 2022. Daily budgets are Budget Your Trip's mid-range costs per person. The season compares September with an average month in official tourism statistics. See where to go in August for the month before and October for the month after.

Late summer by the sea

Four of these five seas are 24.2 °C (76 °F) or warmer in September, and Lisbon's Atlantic is the cool one.

Santorini, Greece

Best for a warm sea with fewer crowds than August

• Weather: highs 27.1 °C (81 °F), lows 21.0 °C (70 °F); 5 mm (0.2 in) of rain; sea 24.8 °C (77 °F)
• Season: peak, 1.87 times an average month in the South Aegean
• Daily budget: about $281 a person, mid-range, the highest here
• Plan it: 10-day Greek islands itinerary, 7-day Greece itinerary, Greece guide

Santorini's sea is still 24.8 °C (77 °F) in September. By the end of the month the crowds at the caldera lookouts thin out. The island is the largest of a ring around a flooded caldera, left about 3,600 years ago by one of the largest eruptions in recorded history.

Overnight stays in the South Aegean fell by 29% from August to September 2025, but September is still peak season here. Oia's narrow paths get congested at sunset, and the island now caps cruise visitors at 8,000 a day. Come in the last week, and budget for the highest daily cost given here.

Watch the sun go down over the caldera from Oia. In the midday heat, see Akrotiri, the Bronze Age town buried in volcanic ash. Take a boat to Nea Kameni and walk around its crater rim, then swim off the black pebbles of Kamari, the island's longest beach. Order fava santorinis, a purée of a pea grown on the island. Tomatokeftedes are fritters of the Santorini cherry tomato. Take home a bottle of Vinsanto, the island's sweet wine, from SantoWines in Pyrgos.

Giles Laurent (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Three blue domes of Oia above the caldera, Santorini

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Lisbon, Portugal

Best for warm days past the August peak

• Weather: highs 26.3 °C (79 °F), lows 17.1 °C (63 °F); 41 mm (1.6 in) of rain over about three wet days; sea 18.2 °C (65 °F)
• Season: peak, 1.15 times an average month in Greater Lisbon
• Daily budget: about $194 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 7-day Portugal itinerary, Portugal guide

Lisbon keeps its summer weather into September, while overnight stays fell from their August peak in 2025. Lisbon, the second-oldest capital in Europe after Athens, climbs its hills above the Tagus.

The Atlantic off Lisbon is cooler than the other seas in this group. Choose Lisbon for the city, and Fethiye or Valletta for a swim. Tram 28 draws long lines in the busy season. Skip it and go up the hills on foot.

Go early to Belém Tower, the 16th-century gateway of the explorers. Have pastéis de nata in Belém, where monks first made the custard tarts. Wander the lanes of the Alfama, which survived the 1755 earthquake, and keep one night for fado. Bacalhau à Brás, shredded salt cod with egg and potato, comes from Lisbon. Finish with a glass of ginjinha, the sour-cherry liqueur. For a gift, take home tinned fish from Conserveira de Lisboa.

Tobias Scheck (CC BY 2.0)

Lisbon rooftops with the 25 de Abril Bridge, September

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Fethiye, Turkey

Best for the warmest sea and Turquoise Coast beaches

• Weather: highs 31.3 °C (88 °F), lows 19.8 °C (68 °F); 17 mm (0.7 in) of rain; sea 28.0 °C (82 °F)
• Season: peak, 1.90 times an average month in foreign arrivals at Dalaman Airport

At 28.0 °C (82 °F), Fethiye's September sea is the warmest of the 18, and the Turquoise Coast is past its August peak. Modern Fethiye is a harbor town on the site of ancient Telmessos, with Lycian tombs cut into the cliff above it.

Days still reach 31.3 °C (88 °F). Make this a swimming trip, and keep the ruins for the morning and evening. Leave the Lycian Way, which starts near Fethiye, for a cooler month.

Spend a day at Ölüdeniz, the lagoon known for its turquoise water and Blue Flag beach. From the harbor, take a boat tour of the gulf's islands, with swim stops. Climb to the Tomb of Amyntas and walk the empty lanes of Kayaköy, the abandoned Greek village 8 km south. Gözleme, the Turkish stuffed flatbread, makes a quick lunch.

Hsuparneeuq (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Ölüdeniz lagoon near Fethiye, mid-September

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Valletta, Malta

Best for the Victory Day regatta and warm nights

• Weather: highs 29.4 °C (85 °F), lows 22.1 °C (72 °F); 26 mm (1.0 in) of rain; sea 26.8 °C (80 °F)
• Dates: Victory Day and the Grand Harbour regatta, September 8, 2027; Independence Day, September 21
• Season: peak, 1.10 times an average month for Malta as a whole

On Victory Day, September 8, rowing boats race in Valletta's Grand Harbour in the traditional regatta. Malta's fortified capital is the smallest in the European Union, and the whole city is a UNESCO site.

A trip across the next two weeks gets both holidays, with Independence Day on September 21. Valletta has the warmest nights of the 18 and a sea warm enough for a long swim. Of the five sea picks, Valletta is the one with holidays to plan around. Start your sightseeing early, before the heat and the cruise passengers from the Valletta Waterfront.

Watch the regatta from the Upper Barrakka Gardens, whose terrace looks over the Grand Harbour. When the sun is high, step into St John's Co-Cathedral, the Knights' church, to see its Caravaggio. Then take the ferry across to the Three Cities. Snack on pastizzi, savory pastries filled with ricotta or peas. Have a ftira, the ring bread filled with tuna or sardines, for lunch.

Peter Grima (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Rowing boats racing in the Victory Day regatta, Grand Harbour, 8 September

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Dubrovnik, Croatia

Best for a warm sea after the August peak

• Weather: highs 26.0 °C (79 °F), lows 18.3 °C (65 °F); 140 mm (5.5 in) of rain over about nine wet days; sea 24.2 °C (76 °F)
• Season: peak, 1.52 times an average month in Adriatic Croatia
• Daily budget: about $180 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 10-day Croatia itinerary, Croatia guide

Go to Dubrovnik in September for its walled old town after the summer crush. Overnight stays on the Croatian coast fell by more than half from August to September 2025. The old capital of the Republic of Ragusa sits inside an unbroken ring of medieval walls, a UNESCO site.

The sea stays warm enough to swim, but Dubrovnik gets the most rain of the Mediterranean picks here. Choose Dubrovnik over Santorini on price, at about $180 a day against $281.

Walk the city walls, about 1,940 m around, at opening time or late in the afternoon. Take the ferry from the old port to Lokrum for a swim. Ride the cable car up Srđ for the view over the old town. Rožata is the city's custard, flavored with a rose liqueur. Oysters come from Ston, up the coast.

Richard Mortel (CC BY 2.0)

Walking Dubrovnik's city walls, early September

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Harvest and festivals with 2027 dates

Each of these five cities has a festival in September, and around Florence the Chianti grapes come in.

Munich, Germany

Best for Oktoberfest, which opens September 18

• Weather: highs 20.1 °C (68 °F), lows 10.6 °C (51 °F); 85 mm (3.3 in) of rain over about ten wet days
• Dates: Oktoberfest, September 18 to October 3, 2027
• Season: peak, 1.15 times an average month in the city
• Daily budget: about $195 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 4-day Munich itinerary

The 192nd Oktoberfest opens in Munich on September 18, 2027, when the first barrel is tapped at noon in the Schottenhamel tent. In the organizer's words, Oktoberfest is "the world’s largest folk festival", a beer festival and a funfair in one on the Theresienwiese.

Plan Munich for the second half of September, when most of the festival falls. The grounds and tents are free to enter, but around seven million visitors come, so book your room early. Nights drop to 10.6 °C (51 °F), cool enough for a jacket.

Away from the Wiesn, start at Marienplatz for the New Town Hall's Glockenspiel. Stroll through the Englischer Garten, one of the world's largest city parks. Buy lunch at the Viktualienmarkt, held daily except Sundays and holidays. Order Weißwurst, the white veal sausage, before noon. Later, order obatzda, the beer-garden cheese spread. Take home coffee from Dallmayr, the delicatessen on Dienerstrasse.

Martin Fisch (CC BY 2.0)

Oktoberfest on the Theresienwiese at night, late September

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Barcelona, Spain

Best for La Mercè and a warm sea

• Weather: highs 26.7 °C (80 °F), lows 17.9 °C (64 °F); 84 mm (3.3 in) of rain over about nine wet days; sea 24.7 °C (76 °F)
• Dates: La Mercè, centered on September 24, 2027 (program not yet published); the Diada, September 11
• Season: shoulder, 1.04 times an average month in the city's hotels
• Daily budget: about $204 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 4-day Barcelona itinerary, Spain guide

La Mercè, Barcelona's main festival, centers on the feast day of September 24 and brings human towers, a fire-run and fireworks. Gaudí's Barcelona has a Gothic old town on Roman walls and sandy city beaches.

The 2026 festival ran over the last week of September. Plan for the same week in 2027. Catalonia's National Day, the Diada, comes two weeks earlier. Choose Barcelona over Munich for a festival with a warm sea, but expect crowds and about nine wet days.

Book a timed ticket for Gaudí's Sagrada Família in festival weeks. Walk the Gothic Quarter and end the day on the beach at Barceloneta. At La Mercè, watch the castellers build their towers. Stay for the pyro-musical, fireworks set to fountains and music at the foot of Montjuïc. Order pa amb tomàquet, bread rubbed with tomato. Escalivada is grilled peppers and eggplant, and crema catalana finishes the meal.

Jordiferrer (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Castellers start a human tower in Plaça de Sant Jaume during La Mercè, September

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Dublin, Ireland

Best for the Fringe Festival and Culture Night

• Weather: highs 18.3 °C (65 °F), lows 9.9 °C (50 °F); 72 mm (2.8 in) of rain over about eight wet days; sea 14.8 °C (59 °F)
• Dates: Dublin Fringe Festival, 16 days in September, 2027 dates not yet published; Culture Night, one night in September (September 18 in 2026)
• Season: shoulder, 0.90 times an average month for Ireland
• Daily budget: about $201 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 3-day Dublin itinerary, Ireland guide

The Dublin Fringe Festival runs for 16 days each September, with new work by emerging artists. Ireland's capital sits on the Liffey and is known for its pubs.

Culture Night adds a free one-night program. Pick Dublin over Inverness for a city with a festival on, at about $201 a day against $269.

Settle into a traditional pub for an evening. See St Patrick's Cathedral, where Jonathan Swift was dean, and walk St Stephen's Green. On a wet day, go up to the Gravity Bar of the Guinness Storehouse. Try Dublin coddle, sausages and rashers stewed with potato. Irish stew is the other dish to order.

Dario Dal Lago (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The River Liffey at dusk, early September

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Mexico City, Mexico

Best for Independence night in the Zócalo

• Weather: highs 25.1 °C (77 °F), lows 12.6 °C (55 °F); 201 mm (7.9 in) of rain over about 19 wet days
• Dates: Cry of Dolores, night of September 15, 2027; Independence Day, September 16
• Plan it: Mexico, Guatemala and Belize itinerary, Mexico packing list

On the night of September 15, Mexico's president rings the bell Hidalgo rang in 1810 from the National Palace balcony, before a crowd that fills Mexico City's Zócalo. The next morning, a military parade runs from the Zócalo to Reforma.

September is the rainy season, and Mexico City is the wettest of the 18, with rain on most days. Choose Mexico City for the Grito, a night no other month has, and carry a rain layer. Expect crowds and closures around the Zócalo on both days of the holiday.

Book the Frida Kahlo Museum, her blue house in Coyoacán, for a rainy afternoon. Climb through the Bosque de Chapultepec to its castle, and ride a painted trajinera along the Xochimilco canals. Chiles en nogada, stuffed peppers in walnut sauce, are made in August and early September, while pomegranates are in season. Pozole, the hominy stew, is served for Independence Day.

VBlume (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Fireworks and the Mexican flag over the Zócalo on Independence night (El Grito), 15 September

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Florence, Italy

Best for Rificolona lanterns and the Chianti harvest

• Weather: highs 27.9 °C (82 °F), lows 16.1 °C (61 °F); 91 mm (3.6 in) of rain over about seven wet days
• Dates: Festa della Rificolona, September 7, 2027; Chianti Classico Expo in Greve in Chianti, 2027 dates not yet published
• Season: peak, 1.41 times an average month in Tuscany
• Daily budget: about $202 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 7-day Italy itinerary, 10-day Italy itinerary, Italy guide

Children carry paper lanterns through Florence's parishes on the night of September 7 for the Festa della Rificolona, the eve of the Nativity of Mary. Florence is often called the birthplace of the Renaissance. September is also grape-harvest month in the Chianti hills, after the summer's heat.

Come in the first week for lantern night, then give a day to the Chianti country as the grapes come in. In 2026 the Chianti Classico Expo filled the square of Greve in Chianti in the second week. Tuscany is still in its peak season. Expect crowds at the big museums.

Book a timed entry for the Uffizi, then climb inside Brunelleschi's dome. At sunset, walk through the Oltrarno up to Piazzale Michelangelo for the view back over the city. Lampredotto, the tripe sandwich of Florence's street stalls, is the lunch to try. Save bistecca alla fiorentina, the thick T-bone, for dinner. In the bakeries, look for schiacciata con l'uva, the grape flatbread of the harvest. For a gift, buy Acqua della Regina cologne at the Santa Maria Novella pharmacy, a public pharmacy since 1612.

Diego Delso (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Florence and the Duomo from Piazzale Michelangelo, a September evening

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National parks and the first fall colors

In the parks of the American West, September keeps Going-to-the-Sun Road open, and all three parks have fewer visitors than in July. The aspens and larches start to turn. Halifax and Inverness are the cooler city picks.

Glacier National Park, USA

Best for Going-to-the-Sun Road with fewer visitors than summer

• Weather: at West Glacier, highs 20.4 °C (69 °F), lows 5.0 °C (41 °F); 56 mm (2.2 in) of rain over about six wet days
• Dates: Going-to-the-Sun Road, typically open until the third Monday of October; Lake McDonald boat tours, to September 29, 2027
• Season: peak, 2.11 times an average month in the park
• Daily budget: about $148 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 5-day Glacier itinerary

In September, Going-to-the-Sun Road still crosses Logan Pass in Glacier National Park, and the park drew fewer visitors in September 2025 than in July or August. The Montana park is a range of glacier-carved peaks and long lakes. In the fall its western larches turn bright yellow.

Go early in the month, because services wind down through September. The Logan Pass shuttle ended on Labor Day in 2026. Bad weather can close the alpine road early. Do not save Logan Pass for your last day.

Drive up to Logan Pass and walk the Highline Trail along the Garden Wall. From the same pass, take the trail to Hidden Lake as well. On the west side, take a boat out on Lake McDonald, the park's largest lake. Look for huckleberries, Montana's state fruit, picked wild in the mountains around the park.

TerryDOtt (CC BY 2.0)

Autumn color along a stone-walled stretch of road below the peaks of Glacier National Park, 30 September

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Jackson Hole, USA

Best for the Fall Arts Festival and bugling elk

• Weather: highs 21.9 °C (71 °F), lows 1.6 °C (35 °F); 66 mm (2.6 in) of rain over about seven wet days
• Dates: Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival, September 8 to 19, 2027
• Season: peak, 1.95 times an average month in Grand Teton National Park

The 43rd Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival fills the middle of September 2027 with gallery walks and the QuickDraw. Out of town the elk rut is on, and the bulls bugle across the valley. Jackson is the valley town below the Tetons and the gateway to Grand Teton National Park.

Come in the festival's second week, when the aspens turn gold and the bears feed up before hibernation. Even in the low season, Jackson's hotels average $640 a night. Pack a warm jacket, because nights here are the coldest of the 18.

Float the Snake River across the valley floor under the Tetons with a licensed outfitter. Ride the Aerial Tram up Rendezvous Mountain in nine minutes, but check its September dates first. In town, the National Museum of Wildlife Art looks out over the National Elk Refuge.

Carolyn (CC BY 2.0)

Oxbow Bend on the Snake River with Mount Moran and turning aspens, 23 September

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Moab, USA

Best for the Moab Music Festival and red-rock arches

• Weather: highs 31.4 °C (89 °F), lows 12.1 °C (54 °F); 29 mm (1.1 in) of rain over about four wet days
• Dates: Moab Music Festival, September 1 to 17, 2027
• Season: peak, 1.13 times an average month at Arches National Park
• Plan it: Utah Mighty 5 road trip

Go to Moab in the first half of September, when the 35th Moab Music Festival is on. The red-rock town is the gateway to Canyonlands and to Arches National Park. Arches holds more than 2,000 natural sandstone arches, the highest density in the world.

Moab is the warm one of the three US parks. Hike early or late in the day and rest through the afternoon. Arches needed no timed-entry reservation in 2026, but you can be turned away at the entrance when the park is too congested, so arrive early.

Drive out to the Island in the Sky district of Canyonlands, a mesa above the canyons of the Green and Colorado rivers. Hike the 8-mile rim trail at Dead Horse Point. On a mountain bike, ride the Slickrock Trail, Moab's famous route over the sandstone. Order your fries with fry sauce, a pink dip popularized in Utah. A Navajo taco comes piled on frybread.

Andrew Kearns from Mill Valley, United States (CC BY 2.0)

Delicate Arch under a stormy sky in Arches National Park, 10 September

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Halifax, Canada

Best for a mild harbor city and a film festival

• Weather: highs 21.1 °C (70 °F), lows 11.7 °C (53 °F); 100 mm (3.9 in) of rain over about seven wet days; sea 18.1 °C (65 °F)
• Dates: Atlantic International Film Festival, 2027 dates not yet published (September 16 to 23 in 2026)
• Season: peak, 1.19 times an average month in Halifax Metro

September brings Halifax the Atlantic International Film Festival and Nova Scotia's blueberries and apples, and the sea keeps the city mild into autumn. September is the city's third-mildest month. Halifax's waterfront sits on the world's second-largest ice-free harbor.

Go before October, while the Citadel still runs its full program. Hotels in Halifax Metro were 89% full in September 2025, as full as in August, so book a room early. Storms can reach the city in September, as Hurricane Juan did in 2003.

Start on the waterfront boardwalk along the harbor. Then cross to Dartmouth on the harbor ferry, North America's longest-running saltwater ferry. Up on Citadel Hill, watch the drill at the Halifax Citadel. Eat a Halifax donair, the take on the doner kebab that the city named its official food in 2015. Finish with blueberry grunt, a Maritime cobbler cooked on the stovetop.

Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Downtown Halifax across the harbor at sunset, 24 September

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Inverness, UK

Best for Highland autumn and Loch Ness

• Weather: highs 17.2 °C (63 °F), lows 9.2 °C (49 °F); 68 mm (2.7 in) of rain over about 11 wet days
• Season: peak, hotel occupancy 1.17 times the year's average in Scotland
• Daily budget: about $269 a person, mid-range
• Plan it: 7-day Scotland itinerary, 10-day Scotland itinerary, Scotland guide

Go to Inverness in September for the start of the Highland autumn, one of the Highlands' most beautiful seasons. Inverness is the Highland city at the north end of the Great Glen, where the River Ness flows out of Loch Ness. Red deer and gray seals are frequent sightings in the Highlands.

Choose Inverness over Dublin for wildlife, with bottlenose dolphins off Chanonry Point and red deer in the Highlands. Scotland's hotels were still 87% full in September 2024, close to August. Inverness is also the coolest of the 18, with about 11 wet days.

Loch Ness holds more water than all the lakes in England and Wales combined. Walk along the River Ness to the Ness Islands, wooded islands joined by Victorian footbridges. Go out to Culloden Battlefield, where the Jacobite army was defeated in 1746. On a rising tide, watch bottlenose dolphins hunt salmon off Chanonry Point. Cullen skink is the smoked-haddock soup of the northeast. Cranachan, raspberries and oats with cream and honey, began as a harvest dessert.

Kognos (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Urquhart Castle above Loch Ness with a yacht on the water, 22 September

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Safari, whales and southern spring

South of the equator it is early spring, with the dry season at Etosha and the calving season off Hermanus.

Namibia

Best for dry-season waterholes in Etosha

• Weather: in Windhoek, highs 30.4 °C (87 °F), lows 11.6 °C (53 °F); almost no rain
• Dates: Fish River Canyon hiking trail, permits to September 15
• Season: shoulder, international arrivals 1.08 times an average month in 2023

By September, Namibia has gone months without rain, and the wildlife of Etosha National Park gathers at the few waterholes left. Namibia is desert country, from the red dunes of the Namib to Etosha's salt pan.

Go in the first half of the month to hike Fish River Canyon, since trail permits stop in mid-September. After the warm, dry days, the clear skies make for stargazing among the dunes. Check Etosha's status before you book, since a wildfire burned about a third of it in September 2025.

Spend an evening at the floodlit Okaukuejo waterhole in Etosha, which draws elephants, lions and black rhinos. The red dunes around Sossusvlei and Deadvlei rise over 200 m. Climb one early. Later in the month, view Africa's largest canyon from the rim of Fish River Canyon. In Windhoek, try kapana, beef grilled over an open fire at the markets. Take biltong, air-dried cured meat, for the long drives.

Christoph Strässler (CC BY-SA 2.0)

An elephant family drinking with springbok at Gemsbokvlakte waterhole, Etosha National Park, 23 September

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Maasai Mara, Kenya

Best for the migration herds on the Mara plains

• Weather: in Nairobi, highs 25.6 °C (78 °F), lows 13.9 °C (57 °F); 30 mm (1.2 in) of rain over about three wet days
• Season: shoulder, international arrivals 1.01 times an average month for Kenya, after an August peak

The Mara River crossings everyone pictures usually peak in July, but in September the migration herds are still on the Maasai Mara's plains. The reserve is contiguous with Tanzania's Serengeti, and the herds head back south when the dry season ends in late October.

Come in September if the herds matter more than a river crossing. Kenya's arrivals dip after August, while visits to the Mara stayed above its average month in September 2025. Nairobi is the gateway, with its own national park about 7 km from the center.

Before or after the Mara, take a game drive in Nairobi National Park, one of Kenya's most successful rhino sanctuaries. Watch the rescued calves at the Sheldrick elephant orphanage in its daily public hour. The Karen Blixen Museum is the Out of Africa author's farmhouse below the Ngong Hills. Nyama choma, roast meat and most often goat, is Kenya's national dish. Eat it with ugali, the maize porridge, and collard greens (sukuma wiki).

Charles J. Sharp (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A wildebeest herd pouring down the bank to cross the Mara River, early August

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Hermanus, South Africa

Best for land-based whale watching in calving season

• Weather: highs 19.2 °C (67 °F), lows 11.0 °C (52 °F); 50 mm (2.0 in) of rain over about six wet days; sea 15.2 °C (59 °F)
• Dates: Southern right whales from the cliffs, June to early December; Hermanus Whale Festival, early October, 2027 dates not yet published (October 2 to 4 in 2026)
• Season: shoulder, tourist arrivals 0.97 times an average month for South Africa
• Plan it: 5-day Cape Town itinerary

From the cliff paths of Hermanus in September, you can watch southern right whales in the middle of their calving season. Hermanus, once a fishing village, is less than two hours' drive from Cape Town. September walks are drier, as most of the town's rain falls from June to August.

Stay into early October for the Whale Festival. With the second-coldest sea of the 18, Hermanus is for whale watching from the cliffs.

Start at the Old Harbour Museum, on the town's whaling past, where the cliffs make a whale lookout. Hike the fynbos trails of Fernkloof Nature Reserve, home to over 1,300 plant species. Spend an afternoon on the Hermanus Wine Route in the Hemel-en-Aarde valley. Eat snoek, the Cape fish, smoked or grilled. Bobotie is spiced minced meat baked under an egg topping.

Olga Ernst (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Southern right whales at the surface off Hermanus, 13 September

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Where to go in September in the USA

Glacier National Park is the pick for September, when it drew fewer visitors in 2025 than in July or August. All three parks are still busier than an average month. For a festival, go to Jackson Hole for the Fall Arts Festival (September 8 to 19) or to Moab for the Moab Music Festival (September 1 to 17).

Where should you go in September with kids?

Take kids to Hermanus, where you can watch whales from the cliffs, or to Nairobi, whose national park and elephant orphanage sit on the city's edge. For a beach week, Fethiye and Valletta have the warmest seas of the 18, at 28.0 °C (82 °F) and 26.8 °C (80 °F).

Plan your September trip

Every MonkeyEatingMango trip plan shows the measured weather for its month. The packing list generator, free for now, uses the same records to pick the gear for a destination's month.

Pick a place and a week, and the planner writes the days, with a time and a cost on every stop: plan a September trip.

Last updated October 2026.

Common questions

Where is warm in September?

Over 2013 to 2022, Moab averaged September highs of 31.4 °C (89 °F) and Fethiye 31.3 °C (88 °F), with Windhoek in Namibia and Valletta next. Fethiye also has the warmest sea of the 18, at 28.0 °C (82 °F).

Where should I go in Europe in September?

For the sea, go to Santorini, Valletta or Dubrovnik, or to Fethiye on Turkey's coast. All four are past the August peak, with seas of 24.2 °C (76 °F) or more. For a festival, Munich's Oktoberfest opens on September 18, 2027, Barcelona's La Mercè centers on September 24 and Florence's lantern night falls on September 7.

When is Oktoberfest 2027?

The 192nd Oktoberfest runs from September 18 to October 3, 2027, on Munich's Theresienwiese. Entry to the grounds and tents is free.

Is September a good time to visit Glacier National Park?

September is a good month for hiking in Glacier National Park. Going-to-the-Sun Road is typically open until the third Monday of October. In 2025 the park drew fewer visitors in September than in July or August. Days at West Glacier average 20.4 °C (69 °F) and nights 5.0 °C (41 °F), and some boat tours stop in mid-month.

Is September a good time to visit Greece?

September in Santorini brings highs of 27.1 °C (81 °F), about 5 mm (0.2 in) of rain and a 24.8 °C (77 °F) sea, by monthly averages for 2013 to 2022. Overnight stays in the South Aegean fell by 29% from August to September 2025.

Is September a good time to go to Italy?

September in Florence brings highs of 27.9 °C (82 °F), the Chianti grape harvest and the Rificolona lantern festival on September 7. Tuscany is still busy, at 1.41 times its average month in 2025.

Where should I go in September in the USA?

Glacier National Park is the pick for Going-to-the-Sun Road after the summer peak. Jackson Hole has the Fall Arts Festival (September 8 to 19, 2027) and bugling elk, and Moab has the Moab Music Festival (September 1 to 17) and the arches.

Where can I see whales in September?

In Hermanus, South Africa, southern right whales calve close to the cliffs between June and November, so you can watch them from land.

Is September a good time to visit Barcelona?

Barcelona's main festival, La Mercè, centers on the feast day of September 24, with human towers, a fire-run and a pyro-musical at the foot of Montjuïc. The 2027 program is not yet published. The sea averages 24.7 °C (76 °F) and highs 26.7 °C (80 °F), and September is shoulder season in the city's hotels.

What is the weather in Lisbon in September?

Over 2013 to 2022, Lisbon averaged September highs of 26.3 °C (79 °F) and lows of 17.1 °C (63 °F), with 41 mm (1.6 in) of rain. The Atlantic off Lisbon is cool, at 18.2 °C (65 °F). Overnight stays in Greater Lisbon fell by 10% from August to September 2025.

Is September a good time to visit Dubrovnik?

Overnight stays on the Croatian coast fell by more than half from August to September 2025, and Dubrovnik's sea stays at 24.2 °C (76 °F). Highs average 26.0 °C (79 °F). Expect some rain, about 140 mm (5.5 in) in the month.

Is September a good time to visit Mexico City?

Mexico City's Independence night falls on September 15, when the president gives the Cry of Dolores from the National Palace balcony to a crowd in the Zócalo. September 16 is the national holiday. September is also the rainy season, with 201 mm (7.9 in) of rain over about 19 wet days.

Is September a good time to visit Moab?

The Moab Music Festival runs from September 1 to 17, 2027, and Arches and Canyonlands are open, with highs averaging 31.4 °C (89 °F). Hike early or late in the day. Arches was still busy in September 2025, at 1.13 times an average month.

What are the cheapest places to travel in September?

Glacier National Park ($148) and Dubrovnik ($180) have the lowest mid-range daily costs per person of the 18 September picks with a budget figure, in Budget Your Trip's traveler-reported averages (updated September 2026). Glacier's figure could not be checked against a hotel average.