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While it isn’t as favored as Summer, Autumn has its plus points. The leaves on the trees start to turn orange and red, the weather turns and being indoors suddenly feels cozy. Autumn food is much more interesting than Summer food and digging out your winter coat is always a pleasure. Sunbathing, perhaps the dullest pastime known to man, is put to rest and walks in the countryside become so much more pleasant.

There are those who would disagree with me however, many feel a sense of foreboding in anticipation of winter as Autumn arrives. The forthcoming lack of sunlight and warmth makes normally sunny people feel dark and cold. These are the sort of people who start flicking through holiday brochures as soon as the sun sets on the last day of Summer. Not many people think of traveling to Portugal in the Autumn but this could be the best time to visit.

The Algarve in Southern Portugal reaches about 22C in October. While this perhaps isn’t enough to sunbathe in in is about twice what we would expect to experience in the UK. The weather is mild and there is plenty to see and do in Portugal‘s most popular tourist destination. 9 million overseas visitors travel to the Algarve each year but most of them will be gone by October. If the beach isn’t your cup of tea how about a rustic rural retreat.

Another area of Portugal more suited to the Autumn is the city of Porto on the west coast. Porto is one of the cheapest cities in western Europe, you can stay for €10 a night if you don’t mind staying in a Hostel. Cheap flights can also be found if you have the luxury of being able to travel outside of school holiday dates. According to The Guardian:

Porto used to be a grim, industrial port, but the old docks have been reclaimed and the buildings that cluster haphazardly on the gentle slopes of the river bank have been painted in pastel colours and now look vaguely Neapolitan. Adding to the prettiness of the scene are old port boats moored on the Douro and graceful bridges arcing over the water.

More and more people are booking in last-minute holiday breaks at an increased paced compared to last year. Consumer confidence and competitive pricing is tempting more holidaymakers back into travel, particularly in the U.K. and Germany. Figures show that up to 14% of holidays booked in June 2010 were booked only four weeks or less before the departure date, an increase from June 2009.

Holiday Booking Agencies are not the only ones set to benefit from the rise. Hotels and local business in the popular holiday areas as well as short term transportation like car rental and van rental, or leasing agencies are also ready to service eager holiday makers.

In the U.K. holidaymakers are eager to take advantage of the rising Pound value against the weakening Euro, with the prospect of travelling to mainland Europe being a more affordable choice than usual. Meanwhile in Germany, unemployment figures have continued to fall as the economy stabilizes, giving consumers a renewed confidence to make spontaneous purchases and investments.

The ash plume from Iceland’s Eyjafjallajökull volcano as well as riots in Greece and Thailand also put some vacationers off making bookings earlier in the year. “People are anxious early in the year whether they will still have their job in summer to pay for a holiday trip,” said Klaus Kraenzle, an analyst at GSC Research in Dusseldorf.

The increase of online booking is also making it easier, faster, and cheaper to find the holiday best suited for consumers. Price comparison websites make it even easier to search for the best deals. “To get the best deal, consumers are spending more time online and that’s reducing the time between booking and travel,” said Caroline Bremner, global travel and tourism manager at Euromonitor International in London.

“People are booking later than ever before,” said Nina Meyer, a spokeswoman for L’TUR Tourismus AG, Europe’s largest last-minute-travel organizer. L’TUR’s package-tour sales are ahead of last year and the company aims to sell 1 million journeys for the year, up from 2009’s record 832,000, which produced revenue of 360 million euros ($464 million), she said.