On one trip to Venice, we stayed two weeks and didn't do everything we had planned. We did several day trips by train into the Veneto and also did the Brenta Canal boat trip.

Thanks HappyTrvlr, if you stayed two weeks and didn't do everything you planned, then I'm sure we'd be fine with a week. I was thinking that maybe we could go to Padua or Verona.

Did you stay in an apartment, or stay in two different hotels?

I would probably split the time with another destination (a lake or in the mountains), but that's me. I'm not the biggest fan of Venice on this forum.

FWIW, it will still be very crowded in Venice in September, and it could still get hot and humid (at least by my California girl definition).

I was wondering if it would be hot in September. We are planning to go earlier in the month so that we will be there for our wedding anniversary on September 11.

In terms of crowds, is it still possible to find a little solitude away from St. Mark's square and the main tourist areas? If not, is October a better time?

This trip report of mine from 2010 begins with 8 nights in Venice. My traveling companion had never been to Venice before and never felt the need to leave Venice to find something interesting to do. I had been a dozen times or so and the same was true for me.

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/how-do-you-know-they-are-not-killers-an-italy-trip-report.cfm

Hub and I have been to Venice 3 times and found lots to do. By the time you visit the major sites, you'll have filled up quite a few of those days. Plus, you'll lose the last day to travel as international flights leave early.

If Murano, Burano, Cemetery Island, the Scuolas (Scuoli), the churches, the museums, St. Mark's Square, Doge's Palace aren't enough, just walk around with no agenda and pretend you are in the 14th century.

A day trip to Padua or Verona would work as well.

We stayed in an apartment in Canareggio for the whole two weeks, one owned by a friend of a friend, not listed publicly.
Our day trips were to Padua, and Bassano del Grappa, both wonderful and very different places. We also visited the islands of Murano, Burano,and Torcello as we have on other trips to Venice.
We returned to the Veneto on another separate trip as we liked it and wanted to see more, especially Vicenza which I also recommend highly. We were focusing on Palladian architecture.
Verona would be another a good choice or the Lakes where we have spent a lot of time as well. The Dolomites are spectacular and in striking range of Venice. So many choices!

In September, its still warm, though generally not unbearably hot, and it can rain too. However, few places, other than St Mark's Square/Basilica and the Rialto bridge will be crowded. Most tourists are there for the day and in the evening it nice and calm. There are plenty of interesting neighborhoods with interesting sites that will not be overrun with sightseers or shoppers.

I think that you will find enough places to visit and explore for a week.

Will you be flying in and out of Venice?
How long you stay in Venice may depend on your budget as hotels are expensive, although renting an apartment is an option too. You may want to plan a day trip to Verona, or to Florence, or stay in Florence.

While the lakes are lovely, its just too far for a day trip.

Why not do Venice and Veneto? Padua is fantastic, Ferrara is a little bit of secluded heaven great for casual bicycling, Vicenza has a dreamy center, and futher afield there are Verona, Ravenna, Bologna, and Trieste. The issue is where to base yourself. It feels strange to stay in Venice and then take daytrips to the rest of Veneto - - but it works incredibly well. Staying in Padua isn't bad, but there are fewer options, and Padua does not feel like it cares about you as a tourist. Bologna or Ferrara might be good options for an alternate center, balancing nights between there and Venice.

ellenm-thanks for the link to your trip report! I don't think we'd have any problem at all entertaining ourselves for a week just in Venice!

TDudette-yes, Murano and Burano are on our list. We are the kind of people that can spend a day just wandering, and it sounds like Venice is perfect for that.

Happytrvlr-Bassano del Grappa was on our shortlist as well as a possible day trip. It's starting to sound like we'd only be scratching the surface in a week!

Maxima-yes, we would be flying in and out of Venice from New York. We already have 4 nights booked at a hotel, so we would either have to extend that stay, or find another place for the other 3-4 nights.

Is Florence doable as a daytrip if we just wanted to see the Duomo, Baptistry, and maybe David? Husband says yes, but it's 2 hours each way on the train, so that is a long day. I guess we could always decide when we get there, although then we wouldn't have advance reservations for the museum. But, it could be a long, well planned day I suppose, if we want to. I know the Lakes are too far to go for the day.

dfourh-thank you for the ideas of Ferrara and Vicenza. We also thought of maybe a couple of days in Bologna before Venice. Certainly a lot to think about.

I guess the question is do I want to take a couple daytrips from Venice, or, do I want to stay somewhere different for a couple of nights to get a different feel for things?

Another rec for Vicenza. It is a beautiful little city, filled with lovely architecture. I prefer it over Verona or Padua. Florence is a long day trip, but if, as you say, you mostly want the museums, etc. it is doable.

lhopp, it's 2.5 hours each way Venice-Florence, plus time to get to/from the train stations at each end. Only you can decide if that's worth the time. But if you haven't been to Florence before, I'd leave it for another trip. There's so much more to see than Duomo-Baptistery-David.

Thank you Jean, that's what I was thinking, that Florence is too much for a daytrip. No we haven't been there before; we missed it on our last trip. I'm sure it deserves a few days minimum, and will fit well with a future Italy trip after this one to visit Cinque Terre and the countryside of Tuscany.

I'm focusing in on just Venice this time around, and maybe a daytrip that is nearby if we feel like it.

We have been to Venice three times and always in September. The weather has been beautiful.

The last time we rented an apartment for our 8 day visit. I would have recommend you try it but I see that you have already made a hotel booking.

We had no problem filling our 8 days just with Venice and the islands. We did St. Michele, Murano, Burano, Lido and of course Guidecca. Enjoyed just exploring.

We’ve visited Venice three times, the first time for a week, when we fell in love with Venice. After that trip, we returned a couple of times, each for two months, and we’re back there next March for two months. Seven nights sounds good.

There’s an English (or more properly, Welsh) bloke who has moved there with his wife, and he’s writing a blog here:
http://jonesesavenezia.blogspot.it/ it’s fun.

If you click on my user name, you’ll find a couple of long trip reports that I wrote about Venice, visiting Vicenza, the islands and some other stuff. It might give ou an idea as to how a longer visit plays out.

Thank you everyone for your sound recommendations. We've decided to spend the entire trip in Venice, and maybe do a daytrip if we have time & want to.

Now we need to find a hotel for the other 3 or 4 nights (we are already booked for 4 nights at Al Ponte Mocenigo).

Good choice! You certainly won't run out of things to do - we haven't, after a total so far of 9 months!

My DH is the Welsh bloke whose blog Peter kindly recommends. Before moving here 7 months ago we'd spent a total of 8 weeks on holiday here, starting with a week in 2005, then a week each year 2007-2009, then 2 weeks each in 2010 & 2011. And during all 6 holidays we never felt the need to leave the city. In fact we still haven't done any day trips, with the exception of an outing to Castelfranco to see the Giorgione - oh, and we spent one night in Verona to see an opera.

If you are at all interested in contemporary art, most of the Art Biennale exhibitions will still be on in September & they can easily use up 2 weeks on their own. Even if you're not, it's a chance to see into some normally inaccessible places - uninhabited palaces, ex churches, ex industrial spaces, etc.

At any time of year it's easy to find peace & quiet away from the few main hotspots. And so far I'm finding October seems *more* crowded than September, in the places that get crowded - more older, post-children tourists largely, I think, particularly French & Italian.