Best time to travel to Italy
 

I am planning a trip to Italy the last week of August. I've been reading all of your posts, gleaming a lot of helpful information. I did the same last year for my trip to England and Scotland and had a great time.

I've been reading that late August may not be such a good time to go. However, I choose this time of year because it will still be warm and the crowds will be all but gone.

Any thoughts? Thanks.

August will still be HOT and HUMID, not warm, and Italy will be crowded. If you have a choice, wait until the end of September or even into October.

There will still be crowds of tourists, even in mid-September. I remember Rome and Capri as being especially crowded.

Late August will not be warm - it will be very hot. And it will still be mobbed - not crowds all but gone. (For that you would have to wait until late Oct or early Nov.)

My favorite time is May. Warm - but not hot, not yet crowded, long days so you can do nice romantic walks after dinner, everything green and tons of flowers.

Ok, thanks for the info. I'll have to beg my boss and see if I can push the vacation back a month.

The other problem is that in, say, Rome, August is the month when anyone who can gets the heck out of town. They evacuate, and you're left with tourists and the Romans who have to cater to them. (Others, too, of course, but truly, it is vacation month, and they VACATE. Same in Paris and other places, of course.)

You cannot possibly imagine how HOT it can be in July and August. The hotels there with air conditioning have brown outs of energy. The rooms are never really cool. I loved Italy, but we were there in late June and early July and the severe temps nearly spoiled the trip.

I was in Rome late last May and it was hot at that time....and very crowded.

I've been to Rome twice in late September/early October and it was much nicer. Weather was still nice but not too hot and definately less crowded.

i'll be in venice and florence in early-mid october?
how will the weather and crowds be?
i've been to italy in july before - never again.

We went late June - early July last trip. It was very hot and humid in Rome and uncomfortable for us. It felt worse walking through the Forum, where there was little cover. When we went to Florence, it was actually warmer but felt more comfortable as it wasn't quite as humid. The last place we stayed, Urbino in the hills of Marche, was fine. We even stayed in a room without AC and didn't miss it. That said, I'm glad we're going in October this time! I much prefer cooler/colder weather to hot!

Hi dp,

Good time to visit.

((I))

What about Italy at the New Year? Too cold?

I spent new year's 1999/2000 in Italy and it was the trip of a lifetime! In the North there was some frost on the ground at dawn a couple nights, but it the temperature was pleasant overall. Had a couple misty-rainy days but that beats oppressive heat and crowds any day!

Not too cold for me, but then again I live in Massachusetts!

Middle of Sept to middle of October would be a great time.