8 ways to extend your summer vacation.
By most academic calendars, summer is over after Labor Day. But fall doesn’t officially begin until late September, and warm weather in many destinations means you can effectively extend your summer vacations throughout the month, with the bonus of fewer tourists — and, often, lower prices.
So, whether you’re an empty nester, a millennial foodie or a seeker of hot spots without the crowds, here are eight ways to stretch your summer.
MAINE For families with young children
Maine holds on to its summer for several weeks into September when many resorts and camps popular with multigenerational clans remain open. Throughout the month, vacationing children tend to be 5 years old or younger, not ready for school or structured programming at these retreats, which tend to scale back activities.
“You can still explore sea life and tidal pools, but after Labor Day, it’s more families bonding with the kids rather than the kids going off to camp,” said Bob Smith, owner of Sebasco Harbor Resort, which is marking its 90th season on Maine’s Midcoast, about an hour’s drive from Portland.
Sebasco packs picnic baskets for beach outings (rooms from $179, with meal plans $50 for an adult; children younger than 12 whose parents are on the meal plan eat free). The resort stocks child-size fishing gear and golf clubs for the free three-hole practice course. The recreation center has vintage candlepin bowling played with balls small enough for little hands.
A three-hour drive north of Portland, Grant’s Kennebago Camps on Kennebago Lake offers cabins, communal dining and family activities such as moose watching from a canoe (rates, including meals, start at $165 per adult; $60 for children 7 through 12).
GULF ISLANDS, BRITISH COLUMBIA For empty nesters
The start of the college academic year signals empty-nest seaso. Indulge this by ferrying around Canada’s Gulf Islands, clustered between the British Columbia mainland and Vancouver Island.
Salt Spring Island is the largest of the southern Gulf Islands, which also include Galiano, home to restaurants like Pilgrimme, and secluded Saturna, where travelers can watch for orca whales from land.
“In addition to being a transition time from family to adult vacations, September is harvest month,” said Jeremy Milsom, owner of the sevenroom Salt Spring Inn on Salt Spring Island (rooms from about $142). “We have tons of culinary delights grown and made here.”
Within walking distance from the inn is the Saturday farmers market, as well as kayak and bike rental services for venturing to lavender farms, wineries and tranquil coves.
Traveling between the islands requires coordinating the BC Ferries schedules. With groups of six to 12, Arbutus Routes cycling company will customize seven-day cycling tours that may visit four of the islands (2,999 Canadian dollars a person).
MARTHA’S VINEYARD, MASSACHUSETTS For hot-spot seekers
Popular with celebrities and politicians, Martha’s Vineyard, roughly 7 miles south of Cape Cod, quiets down somewhat after Labor Day. Weekends are still booming, especially with weddings, which testify to the fine weather of Sep
tember, though bargain midweek rates and a roster of events aim to entice visitors.
“For those who are in the know, September is most frequently cited as the best month to enjoy Martha’s Vineyard,” said Chris Bird, general manager of the Harbor View Hotel, which offers the third night free for midweek bookings through Oct. 31 (rooms from $389). “It’s truly still summer without the crowds and high humidity.”
Cape Air recently announced year-round service between the island and Kennedy International Airport in New York (from $398 round trip). For bargain accommodations, try the hostel HI Martha’s Vineyard where dormitory beds cost $38 and private rooms are $99 (open through mid-october).
ASHEVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA For food lovers and adventurers
Easy access to the Blue Ridge Mountains, combined with a creative community that has energized everything from craft beer to kayak design, has made Asheville a destination for millennials, foodies and adventurers. It’s also affordable; Airbnb lists apartments from $60 and cabins from $75.
Staying at the new Foundry Hotel is more expensive (rooms from $289), but the reinvented 19th-century steel foundry is also a design attraction for nonguests, with a market stocking Ashevillemade goods and the Benne on Eagle restaurant from the chef John Fleer, serving “Appalachian soul food.”
“This business helped create the city skyline that you see today,” Larry Crosby, the hotel’s historian and director of guest services, said.
The hotel is also helping revive the Block neighborhood, a former hub of African American commerce and the site of a walking tour during Chow Chow, a new culinary festival, this year from Sept. 12-15 devoted to southern Appalachian culture, including foraged dinners and food truck feasts (ticket prices vary; some events are free).
Work it off in local style aboard a Bellyak, a kayak derivation in which paddlers lie on their bellies and use their hands, clad in webbed gloves, to paddle. Adam Masters designed the Bellyak to be closer to nature, and his company offers half-day tours on the Tuckasegee River ($95) or delivers vessels to paddlers downtown to float the French Broad River ($35).
BERMUDA For adventurous guys
The British-accented Atlantic island of Bermuda has long been a favorite of family travelers, honeymooners and cruise passengers. In recent years, it has nurtured an adventurous streak that makes it appealing for those who love being outdoors.
“As Bermudians, we’ve grown up testing ourselves against physical challenges our island lends itself so well to — cliff climbing, abseiling, ocean kayaking, scuba, trails running and triathlon,” Rosemary Jones, author of the Bermuda guide for Avalon Travel’s Moon Handbook series and a spokeswoman for the Bermuda Tourism Authority, wrote in an email.
In 2017, the island, which generally prohibits visitors from renting cars, began allowing some electric vehicle rentals, making it easier to get around for those who don’t want to ride scooters. (Current Vehicles offers the Renault Twizy for about $100 a day.) Use one to get to Clarence Cove in Admiralty House Park to rock climb a sea cliff free-solo style (trusting the water to break your fall). Run, hike or walk some of the 18-mile Bermuda Railway Trail National Park.
The weather is still fair in September, which is also hurricane season, and when deals spike. The Fairmont Southampton offers an all-inclusive stay at $299 a person for lodging, meals and snacks. The Rosedon Hotel has rates from $276 in September, about half its August rates.
WYOMING For adventurous women
Guest ranches in the West tend to lose their family patrons just as prime fly-fishing season begins. The Lodge & Spa at Brush Creek Ranch shares 30,000 acres near Saratoga, about an hour’s drive from Laramie, with a working cattle ranch and 20 miles of private fishing riverfront.
“September has ideal flows, the river is clear, and the temperatures are good,” said Matt Anderson, the ranch’s director of activities and outfitting. Learning to fly-fish, he added, takes a lifetime to master, and the industry is encouraging women to fish.
Fly-fishing is part of the all-inclusive activities on the ranch, which include horseback riding, archery, mountain biking, yoga and hiking on 50 miles of trails. The ranch raises its own wagyu cattle that supply the kitchen, and it offers a number of culinary classes, including cheese making and butchery.
Lodging includes log homes ideal for groups. All-inclusive rates start at $700 a person in September versus $900 in August.
ISCHIA, ITALY For romantics
Like nearby Capri without the spotlight, Ischia in the Gulf of Naples enjoys summerlike temperatures in September, ideal for hitting the beaches of the volcanic island.
“Ischia is a small slice of Italian ‘dolce vita’ that still remains rather under the radar,” wrote Joan Roca, chief executive and founder of Essentialist, a membership-based travel planning company, in an email. “There is an authenticity to Ischia that is hard to find these days, and there is a sense that life carries on throughout the year with or without tourists.”
The island’s thermal springs, such as the popular Poseidon Thermal Gardens, have been patronized by travelers since the Roman era. Matteo Della Grazia, who owns the tour company Discover Your Italy, which offers a six-day tour of Naples and Ischia (from 3,225 euros, or about $3,590), recommends the Sorgeto Beach hot springs, which mix with the ocean to create “hot, warm or cold water just like in the best spas, but these are free and available year-round,” he said.
Inland is known for the terraced vineyards that form the winemaking heart of the island below Monte Epomeo.
Splurge like Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, who summered at the 128-room Hotel Regina Isabella (from 517 euros). The more affordable Albergo Il Monastero occupies the Aragonese Castle, dating to the Middle Ages, with olive groves on its own island, which is connected by a bridge to Ischia (doubles from 125 euros).
MESA VERDE NATIONAL PARK, COLORADO For history fans
Mesa Verde National Park protects nearly 5,000 archaeological sites related to the Ancestral Pueblo people, who left behind cliff dwellings and other structures in the canyons of Southwest Colorado 600 to 1,300 years ago (admission, $25 per vehicle). After the summer crowds have left, the ruins of elaborate housing warrens tucked under sandstone overhangs are more peaceful.
“In September, you still have the warmth of summer, leafed-out green deciduous trees and highs in the low 80s or high 70s,” said Kelly Kirkpatrick, director of tourism for Mesa Verde Country. “The crowds have died down, but all the services are still open.”
While travelers can tour most of the park throughout the year, three of its big cliff dwelling sites are only accessible via ranger-guided tours, which stop running between Sept. 22 and mid-october (tickets are $5).