Save by visiting Paris and Barcelona in the fall

Just lucky, I guess, but when I made flight reservations for our upcoming trip that includes Paris and Barcelona next month, I snagged a price of $669 each for arrival in Paris and a return from Madrid. And this isn't on a budget airline, it's American (with one leg on Iberia; hoping we'll get some good ham in our meal), and larger planes.

I don't recall the particulars, but I think I booked around 60 days in advance of our arrival flight, a time frame that is reputed to provide the best deals. Day of the week seems to matter, too; after watching fares for weeks, my daughter just got an incredible $122 round-trip price from Philadelphia to New Orleans in October, again almost exactly 60 days out. She had been seeing prices around $300 for a while, and that would have been the price for flights back a day later.

A little recent research found few bargains for a mid-September arrival in Europe, probably because it's only three weeks away. The best deal on a round-trip to Paris was on TAP, the airline of Portugal, at $804. Next was Aer Lingus at $903, while United came in at about $1,200. Ouch! Although that's still less than we've paid in some past years.

Move your departure a month, though, and things get more reasonable, with TAP under $600 and United at $814, or nearly a third less than in September.

I like to first check flights on Google Flights, then book directly with the airline, since going through a website like Expedia rarely saves money and can result in the loss of frequent-flier miles.

But isn't it cold in October? It could be chilly in Paris, although with an average high of 61F and a low just below 50, it shouldn't be uncomfortable. Given it's latitude - Paris is at approximately the same as the North Dakota / Canadian border - there will be fewer hours of sun, and it will rain a bit. That will just make visits to a museum, the opera or a brasserie all that more comforting. Our first time there was during a mid-December cold snap and we even saw some snow, but that did not spoil our experience, and the holiday decorations brightened chilly walks back to our apartment.

The Pont de Bir Hakeem over the Seine, in fall late afternoon dusk.

You could argue that the early sunset makes the City of Light even more beautiful.

The Champs-Elysees decorated for the holidays in 2009. The decorations have been changed to a more modern style (which I don't care for).

We've scheduled our trip to start in Paris and end in Spain, visiting Madrid after Barcelona. That way we'll go north to south as the weather cools, and we'll expect mid-70s during the day and lows around 60 in Barcelona, perhaps a little cooler in Madrid.

There are other very good reasons to go in the fall, such as fewer other tourists to elbow and a full cultural calendar, such as at the Palau de la Musica Catalana, or at museums accessible by the Paris Museum Pass. In Paris, it will be a few weeks after the "rentree," so restaurateurs will have shaken down their new menus introduced after returning from August vacation, and game is more easily found on the cartes.

You can have a snack outside or in at the Palau de la Musica Catalana in Barcelona.

In Paris, we'll be staying at this cozy apartment in the residential 15th arrondissement. Perhaps its best feature is the location in a non-touristy area and very near a street filled with great food shops, including one of the city's best bakeries, fromageries, produced stands and butchers. That will make it easy for us to pick up whatever we need to have snacks or meals in the room. And while it's a bit away from tourist central, there are easy Metro and bus connections close by.

Our bedroom in Paris, with a queen bed.

A pretty square near our apartment in Paris.

In Barcelona, we'll stay at the most popular property we represent, in an El Born 3 bedroom apartment that is laid out to be very comfortable for a couple. We have stayed here before, as a family of five in a 4 bedroom apartment, and visit the charming owner each time we're in Barcelona. It really is kept as clean as the photos depict.

Our Barcelona apartment will have a modern kitchen and large windows to balconies.

This is a great central location, where we will be able to walk to a wide range of eating places and shops, as well as cultural attractions like the Picasso Museum, which we finally plan to visit.

So, if you're booking now for a fall visit to Barcelona or Paris, first look for the best airfare and then check out a selection of the apartments we can offer at www.likelivingthere.com, where you can fill out a Trip Plan that will help us suggest appropriate vacation rental apartments. The website shows only a sample, and availabilities get better the later you go. You also can drop us an email at info@likelivingthere.com with your trip basics Either way you contact us, we'll respond promptly with suggestions, photos and details about both the apartments and their neighborhoods, so you can have a true Like Living There experience.