What’s the best time of year to visit Venice? This page is offered by visitvenice.co.uk, owners of beautiful apartment rentals in Venice, Italy, as a general overview guide to weather, high tides and seasons in Venice – also giving you guidance on when the city is likely to be most and least crowded.
Spring and summer in Venice
Venice's mediterranean climate means that spring and summer see glorious sunshine, and sunset is a particularly enjoyable time of day
We find that the most popular times of year for visitors are April/May/June and September/October, because in these months the crowds are not at their peak, and the weather is predictably balmy. The city will begin to bloom and you will see flowers trailing over the edges of garden walls, and bursting from planters outside windows. In high summer the daily high temperature averages 27C. Early evenings are a marvellous time to take a drink or a meal at a canalside restaurant, with the sunset’s reflections on the water. (The Gaisma site gives you Venice’s sunrise/sunset times for today and a month or two ahead.)
Autumn in Venice
Venice floods from time to time in autumn and winter, but with the wellies we provide it's all part of the experience
Typically our visitors don’t switch the heating on until the second half of October, and up to that point they are likely to enjoy lots of sunshine (October gets an average of 7 hours of sunshine each day). The sunshine continues into November (we have sat out for a coffee in St Marks Square in the last week of November), but it begins to be mixed in with fog – and the occasional flood.
Very high tides tend to congregate around the full moon and the spring and autumn equinoxes, but they need also a combination of pressures and storm surges in the Adriatic. Most tides are well under 100cm above the average tidal height, which causes almost no impact in the Cannaregio area. At 110/120 cm, you will need to ensure you are using the welly boots we provide in our rental properties, because there may be 5-10cm of water on nearby pavements (you may even feel a bit smug as you see some other visitors scrambling for pairs in the shops!). Above this level you may need to stay at home for a few hours, but there have only been 14 such instances since 1923 (see box on right hand side), and the “Moses” flood gates will put a stop to this sometime in 2012 or 2013. Our three properties are well protected: two are above the ground floor, and Casa Battello has a “flood plate” which, when put in place, will easily protect the house up to the level of the highest historic records.
You will be alerted to very high tides by a siren blast, but you can also look at the predictions (very accurate) from the specialist centre the city runs to deal with and record tides – and even sign up for SMS alerts.
Winter, low season and Christmas in Venice
A pale magic: the lagoon island of Burano seen from Torcello in the depths of winter
From mid November onwards, Venice is at its quietest – one of the rare times of year when it is genuinely “low season”. This can be a great time to visit if you like shadows, fog and uncrowded museums and art galleries! There is a Wagner festival every year towards the end of November, when the average high is 12C.
In the run up to Christmas, the bustle begins again. Street markets become more vibrant and candied treats and chestnuts become part of their fare. December is a dry, cold month, roughly on a par with September for days with rain. Over the Christmas/New Year break you have every chance of getting several days of warm, very bright sunshine with extravagantly blue skies.
Happy Christmas! Yes, this photo was indeed taken on Christmas day. Some of the most striking sunshine and colours can be found at this time of year
January, February and March return us to the season of the occasional high tide. These are very quiet months with the exception of the madness and inrush for the Carnival period.
Our three rental properties are available year-round, and we always aim to give you the information that will help you to make the most of Venice at any time of year.
