This is the moment to cast aside perennial worries about travelling with pre-schools - like will they sleep, moan or drive you bonkers? - and enjoy cheap, crowd-free deals for families who don;t have kids at school.

Late summer and early autumn, after the schools went back, used to be our favourite time of year to go away. Still warm, but not too hot. Cheaper, less crowded. Better than high summer in every way. In the five years before school got her, we took my daughter on autumnal breaks to Barcelona and Paris and discovered that, off-season, small children and cities really do mix. She also loved Greece, the Balearics and Cantabria. France was brilliant. Though we were, on occasion wrong footed by the mistral and campsites that closed on September 1, even when it was still baking hot. Brittany was best. Its deserted shortbread sands, where my daughter and her toddler friend charged unfettered by reins or pushchairs, more than making up for a few hiccups in the weather.

Sadly, my son won’t be enjoying the same preschool treats as his sister. The fact that her school has a blanket ban on all leave of absence means that, though still firmly in the preschool camp, he is effectively tied to the school holidays too.

If he understood he’d probably have had a lump in his throat when his sister went back to school too.

Below are some websites to help families with under fives make the most of this golden time:

Flights We’re so used to budget airlines now it’s easy to forget there are other options. Families with young children would do well to check out charter flights operated by tour operators using a flight retail website such as the Charter Flight Centre. They are not only geared up for families but also frequently the cheapest way to travel to mainstream holiday destinations such as the Spanish costas and Greek islands. The downside is that they are not particularly flexible, usually flying out on specific days of the week with a fixed duration of one or two weeks.

For wider choice, or less mainstream destinations, compare fares using a website such as Cheapestflights.co.uk that searches scheduled, budget and charter flights.

Don’t forget that the headline prices returned by your search may not include taxes and charges.

Self-drive Ferries are a good choice for this age group. Packing is limited only by what you can squeeze into your car, there is usually a play area, and you do not have to remain seated meaning toddlers can toddle and eat and go to the loo when they need to. Driving long distances the other side can be a pain. But very young children will often sleep in the car, meaning fewer stops.

They are also very good value when demand is low. We couldn’t find anything for under £200 when we looked in August. But next week, you can get from Dover to Calais on P&O from as little as £35 each way. We have also found good prices on Norfolk Line and Speedferries. If you want to compare prices, try Ferrysavers.co.uk

Packages You may have resisted packages all your adult life. Actually, with this age group, they can work very well. All the big companies such as Thomson offer cheaper holidays at this time of year. Also up market family companies such as Sunsail Neilson , Club Med and Mark Warner

This September Mark Warner is offering seven nights at Paleros in Greece from £425 per adult, £365 per child (2-12) and £100 per infant. That’s a 35 per cent saving on the August price and includes flights, transfers, accommodation, meals with wine, kids’ clubs (2-17 years) and some activities. There are similar savings in other destinations.

Accommodation Whether you stay in an English country cottage, French Chateau, Italian villa, accommodation prices drop dramatically when schools go back. We recently stayed at a property in Devon where the weekly rental price was reduced by more than 200 per cent after the school holidays.

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