It seems to happen every year—summer creeps up on us, and before we know it, we’re thinking about trips for autumn, or even winter. We know that many of you, like us, are always on the lookout for off-season holidays anyway. After all, flights tend to be cheaper, the sun is less aggressive, and attractions aren’t overrun with kids on school holidays.

So, to help you plan late-summer and autumn getaways, we’ve decided to share the best travel inspiration we’ve seen around the web over the past couple of months. Without any further ado, we’d like to present… The JFC Autumn Awards 🏆

Category: Autumn Active

Winner: “Venice to Mantua: by bike and boat along Italy’s glorious Po valley” from The Guardian

Why we think it’s great: A new spin on an old favourite. Venice’s bustling squares and tourist-filled gondolas make a beautiful city break, but wouldn’t it be nice to get on the water and see where it takes you? And then explore the countryside along the way?

The organised trip vibe might not be for everyone, although the option of rest days onboard the barge accommodation and independent adventures for more avid cyclists make it flexible. Otherwise, it offers great inspiration for a DIY cycle tour.

Runner-up: “Six of the best long autumn walks in Europe” from The Guardian. Inspiration for quiet trails away from the crowds in the mountains, by the sea, and through vineyards.

Category: Late Summer Savers

Winner: “32 Free Things To Do to Make the Most of Your Summer Travels” from CN Traveler

Why we think it’s great: Maybe you’ve already splurged on the airfare, the best accommodation, an experience of a lifetime, etc. Or maybe you spotted a deal too good to pass up, but just didn’t have time to save as much cash as you’d like for your trip. Either way, these tips for maximising a trip can be put to good use at any time of year.

Our favourite ideas on the list include packing up a picnic for lunchtime breaks in parks and by the water, booking a free airline stopover instead of just transiting through the airport, and getting involved in local community events.

Runner-up: “Ja! You can: how to travel in Scandinavia on a budget” from The Guardian. Typically among the most expensive places in Europe, we’ll never say no to advice on visiting the Scandinavian countries without breaking the bank.

Category: Foodie Fall

Winner: “In Cappadocia, ancient cave cooking and millennia-old food traditions live on” from euronews travel

Why we think it’s great: Everyone’s seen the stunning images of hot air balloons filling the skies over the fairy chimneys, monasteries and cave cities of Cappadocia, Turkey. Travellers come from all over the world to be among the hundreds of visitors to float over the region each day, but very few of us know much about the area’s rich culinary traditions.

Despite the rocky, otherworldly landscape, crops flourish in Cappadocia. Aside from the several indigenous varieties of grape and the ancient winemaking history, the unique cave cooking and cheese aged in pots should not be missed.

Runner-up: “Doughnuts from around the world” from CNN. From beignets to balushahi, we’d be lying if we said this list won’t impact our future travel plans.

Category: Evergreen Excellence

Winner: “Why you should visit the Caribbean island you’ve probably never heard of” from The Independent

Why we think it’s great: The Caribbean elicits all kinds of dreamy paradise imagery in our minds, and yet so many of us end up in a cookie-cutter beachside resort that we never leave.

Not only does this article teach us all about Sint Eustatius, an island we knew little about (aside from a brief Wikipedia rabbit-hole stumble), it also tells us how we can get there. There’s something quite reassuring about the fact that the island, with an area of little more than 11 square miles, doesn’t have a port that can handle cruise ships…

Runner-up: “Évora: is this underrated town Portugal’s prettiest?” from CN Traveller. You love Portugal, but you’ve already done city breaks in Porto and Lisbon, and been on a two-week beach holiday in the Algarve, so where to next? Évora, apparently!

So there you have it, our glorious Autumn Awards winners! We have it on good authority that they’d all like to thank their family and friends for these honours.

Stay tuned for more unexpected and prize-free awards ceremonies in the future.

Alaska is America’s last frontier, an absolutely massive expanse of rolling green hills, snow-capped mountains, and rocky fjords. It’s the best place in the US to see Arctic sights like glaciers, or the Northern Lights.

Our tour starts in Alaska’s capital: Juneau! This surprisingly-pretty-small town lays claim to one of the most accessible glaciers in the state, and maybe the world. You can drive right up to Mendenhall and tour the surface with ice-pick boots.

Juneau and its neighbouring pal Sitka are right on the water in Southern Alaska, making these the perfect stops for kayaking and whale watching without shivering too hard.

Next up is Anchorage, Alaska’s most populated city. Following the coastal trail from downtown to Kincaid Park will show you a bit of everything the area has to offer. That includes epic mountain views and possible glimpses of beluga whales and bald eagles.

If you’re still craving more ice after Mendenhall, you can find sixty glaciers near Anchorage. Portage Glacier is easy to reach by train or bus (followed by a boat trip across the lake), and lets you get up close. Tackling the hiking trail is probably the best way to get a real impression of this glacier's size.

Now it’s time to head for Fairbanks, via the great Alaskan Railroad Train. We'll be chugging past sparkling wetlands, the glorious mountain Denali, and possibly even (gasp!) moose. And you'll have the best view of it all from a glass-domed train carriage.

Northern Alaska is even wilder than the rest, and travelling there can be tricky. If you make the trek, you’ll be rewarded with a view of orange mottled tundra and a near-year-round Aurora lightshow.

These Arctic regions present a great opportunity for visitors to interact with the native culture of the land they’re admiring. In isolated areas, many rely on subsistence farming and fishing, both out of tradition and necessity.

You can learn about these cultures at any of Alaska’s native history museums, and support native sovereignty of local museums through the Ciri Foundation.

And when you’re ready to turn in for the night after a long (sometimes very long) day, Alaska has you covered with more craft breweries than you'd expect for such a small population.

Sayakturutchiaq!

All the important (or silly, or strange) travel news from across the web this week.

• The fare-saving art of “skiplagging” has been getting a lot of press recently, but airlines are now hitting back. One US traveller was forced to cough up the money he saved, and has now been banned from flying with American Airlines for three years.
• Good news for anyone planning to travel by Eurostar this year— contactless border checks have now been rolled out, which should help reduce long waiting times to board.
• Zero-carbon flights could be closer than we think, now that ZeroAvia has announced plans to roll out commercial flights on their hydrogen-electric engine plane by 2025..
• And finally, you might think yourself unlucky sitting next to a travel sick passenger on a flight, but just be glad you aren’t Habib Battah. The unfortunate traveller’s nose led him to discover some rather unpleasant bodily fluids in the footwell on his flight from Paris to Toronto… 🤢