Venice & Carnivale..........
 

The 2007 Carnival is from 9th - 20th of Feburary. Has anyone spent time in Venice during Carnivale? Is it more crowded at the beginning or toward the end....or a complete madhouse the entire time??
Thanks for any info!!!

I've been in Venice at Carnivale time twice. It is, indeed, a glorious madhouse. Go. You'll not regret it.

DRJ...Did you go at the beginning or closer to the end of Carnivale??

Thanks for any info!!!

I was in Venice for Carnival this year, arriving the day before it started and leaving the Thursday before it ended.

Just my observation was that it was VERY crowded on the first weekend in particular. That is when they have the Historical Parade and the Flight of the Angel in San Marco Square. But, after the daytrippers went home in the evening, and most of the time during the week, it wasn't bad at all.

I had a wonderful time. I agree with DRJ. GO!

I was there in 2000 the last week end. It was so crowded that it really was hard to just cross bridges sometimes, but it was so fantastical, I am very glad I saw it.

We went this year and it was FANTASTIC - you must go!! We got such beautiful photos of all the costumes. It was definitely not a madhouse once you were outside the St Marks area. We watched the Flight of the Angel and the procession and got there early enough to stand in a good spot. We particularly enjoyed wandering around Dorsoduro. In fact, when we visited Tintoretto's house on the Fondamenta dei Mori in Cannaregio, it was hard to believe Carnivale was on. I think it was us and 3 other people. I really enjoyed Venice during this time - the sunlight had a melancholy, milky quality that just added to the wonderful ambiance of the place. Admittedly, we didn't visit the Basilica and the Doge's Palace because of the crowds but that just means we have an excuse to go back!

And a tip on the bridges: you can avoid the whole crowd thing altogether by paying about 50 cents to use a traghetto - these are gondolas designed to ferry people across the water. We even saw a dog amble happily down the gangplank and board one as if it was the most natural thing in the world for a dog to do! The journey takes about a minute and is really enjoyable. Of course you should try and visit the bridges but if you want to hop across the canal quickly, you should give a traghetto a try!

Here's a website with more info:

http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/...raghetto-2.htm

Thanks everyone....I love Venice...I usually go in November....just to avoid crowds. So I'm trying to decide if I really want to jump in head first to the festivites.
Cheers!!