laura

My husband and I are considering vacationing in Italy in November. We are first time travelers to Italy and plan to spend a couple of weeks there. Will the hours of operation of museum/attraction be shorter? Generally, do smaller hotels close for "off season"? Is there really an off season in Italy and when is it? I would appreciate any advice anyone could give me about disavantages to travel at this time of year in Italy?

Santa Chiara

I think Italy in November (early, especially) is best of all. Nothing is closed except in southern resort areas. Lines are short. People are more patient since they aren't dealing with tourists 24/7. <BR><BR>Imagine vendors selling roasted chestnuts on street corners, mustard and red and dark green hills of Tuscany, foggy mists in Bologna and points north, Venice on a clear, crisp day. And did I mention: no crowds. <BR><BR>Also, in the smaller villages you can find sagre (festivals celebrating the local whatever: funghi, olio, vino), and did I mention that is when the oil is pressed, the wine bottled, the good times roll? Enjoy.

Moncia

Hi Laura,<BR><BR>My cousin and I were in Italy last November and we had great sunny days and lousy cold, rainy days. It wasn't crowded with tourists like in the summertime. We started in Venice, then headed to Umbria and Tuscany, then to Milan for our flight out. Venice was perfect every day and once we hit the Um/Tu area, the clouds set in and we had much cooler weather. Another friend went a few years ago, same timeframe, and had good weather throughout her trip. <BR><BR>We were disappointed with the cold, cloudy weather while in Tuscany. We were ready to be out all day and explore the vinyards and country side. Our day of arrive in Siena was around the high 40s and rainy. It was miserable walking in town in the rain. But at least it didn't rain throughout our trip.<BR><BR>We didn't find the hotel prices a whole lot less, but reasonable (Venice for $100, Assisi for $55). <BR><BR>If interested, I have my journal, hotel and restaurant information, and a bunch of photos from the trip on my web site at http://www.luvtotravel.homestead.com/home.html

Howard

Here's another endorsement of travel in Italy during November. We did it the latter part of the month in 1999 and had a great time. Sure, we had some rain, but it didn't deter us. Temperature-wise, it was leather jacket weather!<BR>It's much less crowded, and just about everything is still open. We even found everything, including hotels and restaurants, still open in the resort towns on the Amalfi coast. They don't start closing down until December.

Jean

Don't know your itinerary, but I would visit the Lakes on another visit. We were in Bellagio on Lake Como in mid-October and it was very quiet. Some businesses were already closed for the season. We still had a great time there, but November could be another story.

Jean

Don't know your itinerary, but I would visit the Lakes on another visit. We were in Bellagio on Lake Como in mid-October and it was very quiet. Some businesses were already closed for the season. We still had a great time there, but November could be another story.