Flooding in Venice
 

My wife and I are planning to visit Venice later this year. Yesterday I watched a program on the 'sinking of Venice'. There were numerous views of people walking through deep water and/or on raised side walks due to the rising tide and sinking of the city. Unfortunately the program did not specify how often this occurred nor the time of year.

Has anyone experienced such an event and how much did it cramp your stay?

Aqua Alta (Google it)- usually winter - November/December.

We were in Venice for 8 days from Dec 27 to January 4. We had about 3 days of Aqua Alta. The apartment we rented had one pair of boots that fit my husband, and we had noticed a nearby place to buy ones for me. I sent my husband out one morning to buy these boots. Otherwise, we would have been trapped in our immediate area. But, the water generally subsides in the morning (mid to late morning, depending) and then doesn't return until late evening. Of course, it entirely depends on when high tide is. It didn't cramp our stay at all. Indeed, everyone just wears knee high waterproof boots and keeps on going.

It happens more often in winter time, but you may experience it also in other times of the year. It is important that you know it may happen, but is not something that should change your teavel plans.

We experienced acqua alta on two days at the end of November, but our hotel was in a part of town that was unaffected by the high water so we had no problems. The flooding varies from neighborhood to neighborhood since nothing is on the same level. Piazza San Marco is at the lowest level and so is most often flooded. As others have said, except in extreme conditions, the water recedes since it is tidal.

artsbabe, you must have experienced the aqua alta in your early January days. We were in Venice from December 26-29th and had very little rain and no flooding at all.

DaveJJ, in my previous experience, it was not a problem because they put out the boardwalks. Of course, we were never there when it was extremely high.

MelJ -- It was on the 30, 31 and 1st, so you just missed it. New Year's Eve sloshing around in Piazza San Marco was an interesting experience!

ellenem spelled correctly, aCqua alta.

Among my about 15 times visits to Venice in last 10 years, most were in winter Nov - Mar (when it's more likely to happen than other times) so I have experienced different levels of acqua alta. It's rare but when it happens like 100 cm above sea levels or more you better be careful.

You can read the details here.
http://www.veniceword.com/weather.html

The worst (but also the best in a sense, experience and photo chance wise, to be honest) I had was on 1st Dec 2005. Water was about 60 centimetres high at certain spots of Piazza San Marco. That's above duck board walkway Could be about 120 cm above sea level. Usually it starts at P. San Marco because it is one of the lowest part of Venice. We were staying in Canneregio where it was much shallower to almost no water. I bought a cheap plastic overboots that could be tied above the knee and walked toward San Marco.

These are the pics I took then. Some are surreal.
http://s23.photobucket.com/albums/b3...lta/?start=all

It started in the early morning and ended by noon or so. That's how acqua alta goes most of the time.

This is funny. My very first question of Fodors was about tides in Venice. And this was a very useful answer that I received about 18 months ago.

“Try this website”. http://www.oconnells.com.au/

El cheapo over boots can be bought – I think they cost about 15 Euro – made of plastic. They go over your shoes, and look pretty horrible. We never tried them.

Your hotel may have rubber boots that you can borrow, or otherwise boots cost about 30 Euro. Once there is a high tide forecast, then boots appear at lots of shops. They can be very stylish – think mauve boots with a stacked heel - or your garden varieties of “wellies”.

Acqua Alta is tidal, not “flooding”, and so goes to a 12 hour cycle. San Marco floods first, particularly the north side (the clock tower and Quadri side). The area around Rialto floods less, as it is higher – hence its name – Rio = land, alto = alta = higher. Dorsoduro also floods less. It’s quite fun, as a difference in elevation of only a few inches makes all the difference.

Boots are worth having, because there’s nothing worse than being confined to your hotel for a precious two or three hours while you wait for the tide to subside.

Flooding is not inevitable – it depends on tide levels, and weather conditions as well. Once a tide higher than say 90 cm is forecast, then you’ll need boots to get around.

Here's a link to the tide charts by month for 2010. After you open a particular month, right-click on the image and you'll be able to rotate the chart for easier reading. The days of the month are in bold blue, and the smaller black numbers are the times (24-hour clock) of the high and low tides each day. If you study it a bit, you'll notice the highest loops/tides occur at and just after full moons and new moons. If your visit is during the waxing and waning phases, there probably won't be acqua alta.

http://www.comune.venezia.it/flex/cm.../IDPagina/1847

This link shows where the flooding occurs at increasingly higher water levels. Click on the play > button at the lower left corner, then watch the blank map fill with blue as the water rises.

http://www.comune.venezia.it/flex/cm...IDPagina/13333

Artsbabe, it seems we are always dodging bullets when we travel. Very lucky!

Thanks everyone for your input especially the links.