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Your need-to-know this month
From the new wine regions on the rise to a feast of fall colors, September’s travel highlights are made to be savored
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Why Japan is to fall for
Spring’s cherry blossom season might hog the limelight, but autumn—known as aki—in Japan is just as spectacular. As the country’s famous maple trees turn a distinctive deep red, leaf peepers tend to gravitate to picturesque Kyoto or the lakes around Mount Fuji. But there are plenty of off-the-beaten track spots for kōyō (autumn leaves) viewing, too.
Hop on a bullet train from Kyoto or Osaka to Yamaguchi on the southwest tip of the island of Honshu, where Chomonkyo Gorge is especially dazzling, and enjoy front-row views of nature’s show.Harvest season’s grape escapes
With September harvest time in full swing, in-the-know travelers are toasting emerging wine destinations that offer excellent sips without the crowds. Georgia, in Eastern Europe, is the birthplace of wine, dating back around 8,000 years. Today, visitors can take their pick of wine bars in the capital Tbilisi or get back to the source at vineyards in Kakheti, a two-hour drive away.
Back in the U.S., Monticello in Virginia was recognized for the first time at the latest Decanter World Wine Awards, with Chestnut Oak Vineyard picking up a prestigious gold medal. Other on-the-rise regions include Arizona’s Verde Valley and the Greek island of Crete.A new era of ecotourism
With recent headlines around tourist taxes and visitor limits, Copenhagen is taking an alternative approach to quell the effects of overtourism. A new pilot project called Copenpay has been offering incentives to well-behaved visitors in hopes of attracting a more climate-conscious, sustainability-minded crowd.
The recent summer program—which could be rolled out permanently—gave free coffees to travelers getting around by bike, veggie lunches for volunteering on an urban farm, and complimentary kayak rentals for helping with a harbor cleanup, among other rewards. Stay tuned to see if this pilot becomes a permanent fixture.Fast-track to faraway lands
Forget the long waits at the local post office—Americans can finally renew their passports online again. The digital application process is currently in beta (it originally soft-launched in 2022, closing again a year later) and has a list of eligibility criteria, including having not lost your passport, being 25 or older, and not needing to change any details like name or gender.
Even if you can’t snag a new passport without leaving the house, the State Department plans to open more passport offices in six U.S. cities—including Orlando and Charlotte—to keep up with demand as more and more Americans travel abroad (48% now hold passports, up from just 5% in 1990).From Berlin to Barcelona—on a budget
Ireland-based budget airline Ryanair was part of a race for the skies that brought down flight costs and opened up previously untapped stops for cheap breaks around Europe. Connecting over 250 airports in 37 countries, its 3,600 daily flights touch down everywhere from Madeira to Riga, with prices starting at less than $20 one way.
Now this super-affordable network is available to book for the first time on Expedia, earning travelers OneKeyCash, as well as the chance to explore more of Europe at a bargain price. Hmm, now where to fly to first…

Fiona Kerr
Writer
Fiona Kerr is a food-loving travel journalist and former features director at Condé Nast Traveller. Her writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Telegraph, Elle Decoration and the The New York Times. When she gets to a new country, her first stop is usually the local supermarket.

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