As the seasons change, many ships will start repositioning journeys to their winter sojourns. Others may stay where they are (in the Mediterranean for example), but the fares begin to fall. (This is not the reason the season is called the Fall however!).

Certainly, if you prefer to avoid the crowds, and you don't like the extremes of summer heat, this can be a great time to travel in the Mediterranean. You may find the Eastern Mediterranean, Egypt and Holy Land all a lot more hospitable than they are in summer, and also perhaps that the sightseeing is so much more enjoyable without the crowds.

But at Mundy we should declare a bias; our favourite autumn cruise itineraries are those which explore Canada and New England between Montréal or Québec and New York or Boston. Beautiful cities, good food, lovely national parks, and an explosion of colours, aromas and flavours. The trees are brilliant reds, yellows and oranges, and vines and orchards are ripe with fruit.

Ships complete their European seasons and set forth to the Far East and on to Australia and New Zealand, south to the Indian Ocean and South Africa, and west to the Caribbean and South America. Look out for some great fares on these voyages.