Anon

I was contemplating visting Rome, Florence, and Venice in the spring. I want to catch the low-season rates and to avoid the crowds, but I thought March might be too cold and I wanted to avoid Easter. Will I be able to find low-season rates for hotels and airfare in April?

Marianna

Hi Anon,
I live and work in Rome as a tour guide and I have to say that March can be quite lovely in this city. We have some lovely crisp, clear sunny days and whilst it is still a little cool it is a great time to be here if you come prepared with a warm coat and scarf. April is quite busy because of the Easter period and a lot of other European countries take a break adding their holidays to the Easter break either before or after. Definately Easter itself is very, very busy here
In my opinion May is one of the most wonderful months to be here. You will have wonderful weather and still miss the worst of the crowds.
Having said all that, it is always reasonably busy in this very popular tourist destination that is Rome.
If you or anyone else would like any other help or advice, please feel free to email me direct at
[email protected]

az

Anon--We visited Rome in late May/early June of this year, and both air fares and hotel prices increased significantly on June 1. You can easily check the price changes by going to the airline/hotel websites and putting in different dates (months)for your travel/lodging. I think you will be "pre-season" in April.

Book Chick

Anon,
It's kind of a tricky question, because some hotels will raise their rates at Easter & simply keep them there through October. But there should be some bargains to be had if you look carefully & although the weather can be still a bit capricious, there will be good weather to be enjoyed in April.

Buon Viaggio!
BC

Diane

We went for 3 weeks this past May. There were many tour groups in Florence and Venice and Rome, but elsewhere it was quite delightful. We had several discounted rates throughout the trip since it was May.

Carol

We visited Italy in March of this year. The weather was wonderful...sunny just about every day. The only rain we saw was on the way to the airport to come home. We never needed more than a light jacket or sweater.

The best part was that it is definitely not high season and the crowds are lighter.

From what I've heard, the only exception to this would be Easter week. My daughter was in Italy for Easter break a few years ago and thought the crowds were awful and advised us not to go then. If you don't mind crowds, it shouldn't matter.

xxxxxx

We were in Rome last March and a weather was wonderful and there were crowds everywhere especially in Florence. Many school kids travel that time. However, our tickets were very inexpensive

Kelly

I visited Italy the last 10 days in April last year, to avoid the Easter crowds. The problem I ran into was 2 other holidays during that time (I forget which but one was May 1) and it was really crowded. It was explained to me that most Italians take off the whole week between those holidays and travel. It was a great time, but really crowded.

A.M.

I was in those cities in April last year, all were busy and advertized high season rates, the holidays in April and any time are especially busy. Go for March and book early.
A.M.

kym

I have lived in Venice and can tell you - anythime after the week before Easter is considered tourist season and the crowds are unbeliveable. I would seriously consider going duriny early Marsh - It's wonderful anytime but so much better without all the extra booths set up for the tourists.....Have FUN!