Venice.. Early May or late Sept?

[lightsleeper]

When is a better time frame to visit Venice... Cruise will either start or end there.

Have read that in late Sept/Oct water rises and you may be walking "on Water"

Is this true? if so, may opt for early/middle May before schools out in US

Any help would be appreciated

[cberge]

When is a better time frame to visit Venice... Cruise will either start or end there.

Have read that in late Sept/Oct water rises and you may be walking "on Water"

Is this true? if so, may opt for early/middle May before schools out in US

Any help would be appreciated

 

If you are worried about the rising tide waters in Venice,and yes they can rise and flood SM,but they put little walking stands over the water or rent boots,then May would be a good month to visit re cruise.

[cruisemom42]

Venice sees a lot of visitors over the course of a season. Last time I was there in early May and it seemed people and places were a bit "fresher" at the start of the main tourist season. Our weather was excellent. I'd definitely visit again at that time of year.

 

Early September could still be pretty hot, muggy (in Venice) and crowded.

[mapleleaves]

My trips to Venice have been in mid to late May. The temps were comfortable during the day and we usually needed a sweater in the evening. On our last trip our dinner companions on the cruise said the first week of May had been rainy and cold for the entire week. Look at a web site like http://www.wunderground.com where you can easily access historical data for any given city.

 

I prefer early season ... vendors aren't worn out from a busy tourist season so they're fresh and happy to see you.

 

Aqua Alta typically starts Oct/Nov

[roothy123]

I've never been to Venice, but will be there in late September this year. I was a little hesitant to go there in late September, but now I'm OK with it. From what I've read and heard, there can be some rain and mist at that time, but normally not very many instances of the high water. Even if there is, as one person mentions, if it gets high enough, there will be high walkways placed around San Marco square - and San Marco is normally where there's high water, not all over the city. The water normally recedes within 3-4 hours. Here's more info: Graphical tide predictions are on ISTITUZIONE CENTRO PREVISIONI E SEGNALAZIONI MAREE (http://www.comune.venezia.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/IT/IDPagina/1748). (You may need to go up top to ask for English version.) You can also get notified of acqua alta via SMS message if read enough Italian to fill out form. (That was from website http://goeurope.about.com/od/venice/qt/acqua_alta.htm). Also San Marco & Rialto webcams at http://www.comune.venezia.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeBLOB.php/L/EN/IDPagina/42385.

 

Late Sept. is still pretty much high tourist season with lots of tourists, but I would guess that May is also. Also, mosquitos can be a problem many months, including up to November.

 

Many of the hotels book up pretty fast, so if you're going early or staying late after your cruise, I would not wait too long to book. It's also very expensive there, so booking early is a good idea if you want to cut costs.

Edited January 9, 2015 by roothy123

[eetonaee]

We were in Venice near the end of October 2014 and were greeted by high water in San Marco as we walked to our nearby hotel from the vaporetto stop.

 

As mentioned the only high water is in the square and we experienced it a couple of times in the middle of the day.

 

I would be more concerned about the crowds of people. When we were there the streets and squares were still packed with visitors. I can't imagine what it is like in mid summer. If May or September is the less busy then that is the one I would choose.

 

[CathyCruises]

We were there in early May this year and it was lovely. It did not seem to be AS crowded as we've experienced another visits. However we did experience a little acqua alta on Guidecca where we were staying, but nothing too troublesome.