The skeletons and ghouls are turning up already... This one, right, appeared promptly on September 1st at Universal Studios Florida, in Orlando.

September doesn't just mean "end of summer" or "Back to School"; it starts Halloween Season.

Fall's a great time for a getaway, and it makes sense these days to plan a trip around Halloween events in October and even September: theme park events, from Sesame Place Spooktacular for little kids, to scary Halloween Horror Nights at Universal theme parks, to "Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party" at Disney World...

Or families can visit a favorite city, and take in haunted houses, scary fun at children's museums, Boos at Zoos...

Or head out of the city, to Halloween-themed weekends at country inns.

find many Halloween events  | Halloween in NYC  | Disney Halloween around the world  | more fall vacation ideas

Think you know it all, about Disney World -- enough to give tips to other families?

Once again Mickey's looking for experts, for the 2011 Walt Disney World Moms Panel (- dads welcome, too.) Throughout the year, the Panel fields questions online from would-be visitors to Disney World.

To apply, head to www.disneyworldmoms.com/2011 starting Sept. 13 2010; the search only continues until Sept. 17th, so be quick! Those who get picked as panelists get a training trip to Disney World. (And all who apply can join an online "Mickey Moms Club" with access to special planning tools, news, and downloads.)

Disney World has four major theme parks, two waterparks, 20 resorts, and an area as big as Boston: it's a complicated -- and expensive-- place, and visitors can definitely benefit from some Q and A!

And while we're doing Disney news... Canadian residents can save 25% this winter on Disney cruises. The deal is valid for most 7-night Caribbean sailings from January 8 to February 26, 2011, in several stateroom categories. Head to disneycruise.com/canada, or call (800) 230-3667, or a travel agent, and use booking code "CAN".

more about Disney World  | Tips for Visiting Disney World  | Disney Cruises

Update: through Thursday and Friday, Earl was downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane, then 2, then 1, and eventually to a tropical storm. Still, Earl has reached winds of 70 mph and brought wind and rain in its path up the East Coast. Saturday's trajectory: Earl passes Massachusetts in the morning and continues to Nova Scotia, Canada -- see projected path. Beach-goers who head to the shores after the storm need to watch out for dangerous rip currents and surf conditions.

Hurricane Earl threatens North Carolina's Outer Banks, a popular vacation area with award-winning beaches -- read more at About.com's Southeast US Travel site.

Earl will also affect weather in a much larger area, continuing up the coast. Some places may be severely affected; see a visual of Hurricane Earl's projected path at CNN.com, where a meteorologist notes the bad timing for Labor Day: "It's not going to be nice vacation weather anywhere from South Carolina up through Maine."

Every year, legions of families head to the beach for a final weekend over Labor Day, but this year they may face bad weather and dangerous currents and surf. Hurricane Earl is expected to reach North Carolina by Friday morning, and Cape Cod by Friday evening. Optimists hope the storm won't make landfall and will pass quickly, allowing some good days of weather afterward. But forecasters say that, even if Earl stays 80 miles off-shore, hurricane-force winds may still hit Cape Cod; such winds extend up to 90 miles from the center of the storm.

more about Outer Banks NC  | more about hurricane season

*Photo of Ocracoke Island, courtesy of North Carolina Tourism.

October's a full festive season now -- with costume parades, fright nights at theme parks, boos at zoos-- and you can count on Disney theme parks to put on a great show.

Some highlights, at Disney parks around the world: special-ticket events parties, such as Mickey's Not-So-Scarey Halloween Party, at Disney World; a grand finale "Disney's Halloween Party" on October 31st, at "Euro-Disney" outside Paris; "Nightmare in the Sky" Pyrotechnics Show, at Disneyland Hong Kong; Haunted Mansion Holiday at the original Disneyland theme park in California...

See more about:

• Disney Halloween at theme parks around the world
• lots more Halloween Events

*Photo courtesy of Disneyland Resort.