The case for shoulder season

There is a moment in the second week of September on the Ligurian coast when the sea is still twenty five degrees, the restaurants have stopped turning tables and the ferry to Portovenere has seats. It lasts about three weeks. It is, in our experience, the best time of the year to be there, and almost nobody plans for it because school holidays and habit push everything into August.

Where it works

Not every destination has a shoulder season worth chasing. The Maldives is a wet or dry proposition and the difference is real. But the Mediterranean, North Africa, Japan and most of Europe have weeks either side of peak when the weather holds and the crowds do not.

Marrakech in April: the Atlas still has snow, the medina is twenty six degrees, and riad rates are a third below Christmas and Easter. The Cyclades in the first half of June: the meltemi wind has not started, the water has warmed, and the tables at the good tavernas are yours. Kyoto in late November: the maples are at their peak in the temple gardens and the hotel rates have already started to fall.

What you give up

Some things are closed. The beach club in Portofino shuts in mid October whatever the weather. A few of the island restaurants in Greece close their kitchens after the last big ferry of the season. We know which ones and will tell you before you book.

What you gain

Rooms that were impossible in August become available. Upgrades that hotels cannot offer at full occupancy become likely. And the people who work at these places, who have been running at capacity for ten weeks, have time to talk to you. That last point matters more than it sounds.