The European city homes at their brilliant best in autumn

Paris

The start of autumn in Paris is signalled by La Rentrée when residents flood into the city from their summer break. Children head back to school and the shutters go up once more on shops and restaurants across the city. There’s a renewed energy, an autumn briskness matched by a briskness of purpose among residents but there’s still the opportunity to sit outside for the morning café and watch the world promenade past says Harris, just perhaps with the addition of a scarf and coat.

“Paris is certainly a more touristic city than Madrid but it has wonderful year-round life with transport options by road, air and rail equally good in every season,” he says. “It’s an extraordinarily beautiful and green city too,” he says. “Stroll through the Jardin du Luxembourg or Jardin des Tuileries in the autumn sunshine as the leaves turn and you’ll easily find a peaceful place to sit.”

Regular autumnal events in the city include Paris Fashion Week, Nuit Blanche, the late night opening of numerous galleries and museums, and a range of food and wine festivals to mark the harvest. Late October sees Art Basel Paris in the Grand Palais and there’s a full programme of ballet, opera and theatre performances.

Vienna

“Vienna’s prestigious 1st District punches way above its weight for wonderful culture, grand architecture and heritage,” says Alex Koch de Gooreynd, Partner in Knight Frank’s International Team. “It’s a relatively small area, just one of Vienna’s 23 Districts, but as the historic city centre and a celebrated UNESCO World Heritage Site, it holds so much beauty and splendour, and autumn is an ideal time to experience it. As you get closer to December, the Christmas markets appear. The city is wrapped in extraordinary lights, some so ornate they resemble chandeliers. It’s magical.”

Vienna has a proud café culture and throughout autumn cafés and restaurants offer weather-protected open-air tables. To experience the city at its autumnal best, Koch de Gooreynd suggests walking or cycling part of the Vienna Ringstrasse, a 5 km boulevard, known also as the Ring, that encircles the 1st District and is lined with historical landmarks. Or a little further afield, explore 700 hectares of vineyards that make Vienna the world’s only city with vineyards within the city boundaries.

Milan

Milan is Italy’s business and fashion heartland and that, combined with the desirability of the country’s Flat Tax Scheme for high-net-worth individuals, has brought an influx of wealthy new arrivals says Andrew Blandford-Newson from Knight Frank’s International Team.

“Milan has seen price growth of 5-6% in the past 12 months driven largely by the flat tax and the lifestyle on offer,” he says. “The city is Italy’s metropolitan hub, home to major banks and numerous private equity firms and setting up a business there is easy. “

What these new arrivals will discover in autumn is mild weather, parks filled with vibrant colours and a packed calendar of cultural treats. Annual autumn events include the four-week Jazz Festival and there are concerts, operas and musical performances at venues headed by Teatro de Scala.

To feel the heartbeat of the city, head to Brera suggests Blandford-Newson, the city’s fashionable and art-filled neighbourhood where intimate boutiques and cafés sit beside grand churches and art galleries. Shoppers also have the exclusive boutiques in the glass-domed arcade of Galletteria Vittorio Emanuele II and along Montenapoleone, often described as the world’s most expensive shopping street.

Milan’s popularity looks set to increase as it prepares to host the 2026 Winter Olympic Games with Cortina in February 2026. “The city is poised and ready,” Blandford-Newson says. “The infrastructure, previously upgraded for Expo 2015, has had further improvements, specifically to the road and rail network, and Milan’s three airports keep it well connected internationally. For residents, it all adds to the enjoyment of the city in autumn and year-round.”