Great Places to Visit This Fall

Fall is a great time to travel, and not only to enjoy the beautiful scenery enhanced by autumn foliage, but it often means fewer tourists, lower airfares, and better bargains. If you are thinking about a fall vacation, you can’t go wrong with any of these amazing destinations.

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, and Montana - Yellowstone is hard to beat if you want awe-inspiring scenery, friendly western hospitality, and an abundance of wildlife in your fall vacation. The “closest thing to a safari experience in the lower 48,” it’s home to 67 species of mammals, like moose, bears, wolves, bison, elk, and lots more.

Scottish Highlands, Scotland - Though the weather is brisk, the Highlands is one of the most amazing places in all of Europe for viewing gorgeous autumn colors in a country already renowned for its out-of-this-world scenery.

Transylvania, Romania - There are few better places than Romania for taking advantage of all that is Halloween and beautiful fall scenery at once. Stop in Bucharest first to get a better idea of the nation’s history and visit the Palace of Parliament and the National History Museum, surprisingly filled with Roman artifacts.

West Virginia, United States - West Virginia is home to some of the most picturesque fall colors in the eastern half of the U.S, with an extensive array of gold, crimson, and pumpkin shades. Just an hour from Washington, D.C., Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, offers many hiking trails with amazing views.

Bavaria, Germany - Southern Germany is home to some of Europe’s most breathtaking scenery, with endless Alpine forests that pop brilliantly with color against mountains dusted with snow during the fall. Bavaria is like the Vermont of Europe regarding the number of deciduous trees, with every turn like walking into a different Bob Ross painting.

Rocky Mountains, Colorado - Colorado is well known for its gorgeous display of Aspens that blanket mountains across the state with incredible golden bronze and dazzling yellow hues.

Thingvellir National Park, Iceland - The days remain long, and temperatures in Iceland are still more than manageable in the fall. After mid-September, the night sky begins to put on its spectacular natural light show known as the aurora borealis, a blanket of illuminations made up of countless shades of green, blue, red, and yellow returns and lasts until the end of the winter.

Switzerland - There’s no better time to visit Switzerland than the fall, especially from September through mid-October, when the weather is more likely to cooperate. In the country’s southern region, you’ll find the incredibly picturesque city of Lugano, set along the shore of Lake Lugano on the border of Italy.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee - This famous national park is one of the best in the country for fall foliage. It puts on a magnificent show of color with miles and miles of landscape ablaze in a gorgeous tapestry of brilliant hues. Drive the scenic six-mile Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail and enjoy plenty of great fishing and hiking.

Waterton Lakes, Alberta, Canada - Fall in Waterton Lakes is an incredibly tranquil time, ideal for peaceful solitude. The days are still long and often unseasonably warm, while the landscape takes on gorgeous new colors as it transitions into the new season, bringing a whole new face to this spectacular mountain park.

Loire Valley, France - When the leaves on the 185,000 acres of grapevines begin to turn and the summer tourists head home, there’s no better time to visit the Loire Valley of France. As the pageant of colors blankets the hillsides and valleys in late October, it’s truly an unforgettable sight.

Nova Scotia, Canada - In Nova Scotia, you’ll encounter friendly locals, some of the freshest seafood you’ll ever taste – whatever is on your plate for dinner was probably taken out of the surrounding cold waters that morning – and an authentic European feel.

Ready to start planning your fall getaway? We are here to help. 

Deborah Shah and Associates - Chapel Hill, NC

919-205-3216

grandtravelpartners.com