We’ve been thinking a lot about how important timing is for travel. Specifically, the fact that many places are wildly different at different times of the year. There’s high season, of course – when all of the tourists come. And there’s low season, when places are left to the locals. There’s also ‘shoulder season’, the times in between (typically, at the start and end of high season, for a few weeks).
In many places – but not all – summer is high season and winter is low season. We spent the month of January in Limassol, which was very much low season there. So too, Cabo Verde, which was quiet as anything until the week of Carnaval. Here in Kotor, it is low season right now. It’s clear that our quiet little town is nothing like what it is in the height of summer, with four – or more – giant cruise ships coming in each day. Here we discuss some of the pluses and minuses of travel during different times of year.
High Season
The great thing about high season is that everything is arranged for you: museums are open longer hours, there are special events, there are many tours available, transportation runs more often, etc. The less-great thing is that everything is arranged for everyone else, too: they’re also there, standing in line in front of you for everything, getting into your otherwise-perfect photos, driving hotel prices up. Much of this depends, of course, on where you’re going and what you intend to do. Some places are always crowded (Agia Sofia comes to mind, or the Vatican). And some places are off the beaten path, so that you’ll never find crowds.
Low Season
The best way to describe travelling in low season is that everything is better and easier, except that there is much less of it. For instance: in December in Kotor, we never have to make a reservation for dinner. But many restaurants close. Buses are free from crowding, but they run less frequently. This time of year, accommodations are usually much less expensive. (Although some places, like Scandinavia, lower prices during the summer, so that people can enjoy their vacations.) Locals also tend to have a lot more time to chat, so you can develop relationships or practise a language.
The most significant downside to low season, though, is the weather. Sometimes there is an excellent reason to avoid a place during off-season. Like six weeks of torrential rains. Our advice if you are considering avoiding the crowds is to pay particular attention to the weather. And, of course, to the availability of any activities you are really keen to do there. There’s no swimming in Kotor now, at least not for us (though we do occasionally see human polar bears in the water!)
Shoulder Season
One solution to the problem, a Solomonic splitting of the baby, is to travel in between high and low seasons. For many places, this is March-May or September-October. The idea is that you will have the best of both worlds: fewer crowds and lower prices, but also more or less the same options and only slightly less good weather. This can be a brilliant solution if you’re flexible about times. But again, make sure you check in advance whether particular activities will be available to you then.
And so…
We struggle with this one all the time. We really hate crowds. And, as meanderers on a budget, we really love saving money. Every time we walk along our beloved molos in Limassol, or our equally-beloved waterfront in Kotor, we imagine all of the tourists spilling out of restaurants, sunbathing, taking pictures. That would obviously add liveliness, but we might not get a seat at our favourite coffee-shop. So if you’re keen to do a regular rota of sight-seeing in an efficient way and you don’t mind doing it with hundreds of strangers, then high season is for you. But if you want a slower pace and you care more about interacting with people and absorbing the atmosphere in a less frenetic way, then we encourage you to look into low-season travel. Weather permitting, it might be the perfect option!
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