"This is so ridiculously over-exaggerated. If even 60% of ALL the rooms in Venice are EVER completely booked up six months in advance, I will be on the next plane to buy any hotel whose owner I can convince to sell.

Sure it gets crowded, but not THAT crowded!"

This isn't the slightest bit exaggerated. Sure, not all the hotels will be booked - the very expensive and very cheap dives that are not in demand don't fill up as fast. But if you want to get into the best and most popular mid range places like the Academia or La Calcina, 6 monthes advance is not too early. Two years ago I tried booking in November for May hand 2/3 of the hotels that I tried were already booked.

As far as mobs and lines are concerned, that is no exaggeration either. You can barely move from the croeds in some places. The lines are hours long for the major sites.

<<Two years ago I tried booking in November for May and 2/3 of the hotels that I tried were already booked.>>

In November, a lot of hotels don't even have their reservation books OPEN for the following summer!

My lampoon was directed at your broadly suggesting that the entire period from mid-May to mid-September requires six months advance booking - - and that all the attractions are overwhelmingly clogged. That's just waaaayyyy too overstated!

We have traveled to Italy the first week of May and the second week of September. Both times the weather was ideal! We enjoyed the May trip because we were tired of winter and ready for spring - it was exactly that. We loved the second week of September because the grapes were ready for harvest and the sight was a wonder to behold throughout Tuscany. On the other hand, we went to Venice in June and they had a freak cold snap with the wind blowing off the Adriatic which was similar (according to the Venetians) to their November weather patterns, including thigh high flooding every evening! I wouldn't have planned or traded that experience for anything. Wonderful trip planning to you...

"In November, a lot of hotels don't even have their reservation books OPEN for the following summer!"

This is utter nonsense, as is the rest of your drivel.