After reading comments on this site about Venice, I'm having second thoughts about going there next July. It sounds as if it will be horrendously crowded. Should we go to Verona instea?. we will be in Switzerland for a week and I wanted to spend the second week in Northern Italy. Several days hiking in Cortina and then finish off in Venice for a city experience. <BR> <BR>My husband and son have never been to Italy so I thought they might be interested in Venice, it's so special. But I don't want them to have a negative first impression. Walking around the main sights shoulder to shoulder in a mob would be awful. Maybe I should wait until we can go in winter? <BR>

We contemplated avoiding Italy this past summer after all the hype about the crowds that would be there for the Jubilee, especially in Rome, but we went anyway --in July of all times, when normally it's most crowded. Guess what. We found the crowds in Rome, Venice, Florence, and Verona all less than the last two times we visited. We got through the line at the Vatican in a lot less time that we did two years before. Don't try to guess when and where the crowds will be. Just go and have fun. Thinking of going to Verona instead of Venice for first timers is just plain silly, in my opinion, even though I love Verona -- it's no Venice!

Ditto!!!

Wrong place to ask this question. The lemmings on this board will all chime in about what a great place Venice is. Venice is nice, but a little to kitschy for my taste. Want real Italy? Go to Verona.

Hi! As one of the lemmings [I did sign my e-mail address] and having been to both Venice and Verona as well as one of the people who complained about the crowds, I still feel that Venice has to be seen, it is a beautiful city and ofers alot in that respect. However Verona is still more Italian and should not be missed either. I personally prefer cities like Verona or Vicenza which was a nice city especially after the mobs in Venice. <BR> Enjoy! alan

Was in Venice the last two years in April and May when the weather was perfectly lovely. A gondolier we befriended says that Venice is very bleak and cold in the winter, so perhaps that's not the best time to go, even if it would be less crowded. Speaking of crowded, this last spring we ended up staying very close to the train station because our departure to Paris was to be at 7 a.m. We feared that the area would be too crowded and too noisy, but it turned out to be quite nice. We stayed at a converted monastery called Hotel Abbazia (e-mail: [email protected]) and were given very nice rooms on the ground floor, facing a little courtyard. The front desk was extremely efficient and helpful, which I have found not always to be the case among the jaded commercial set in Venice. The crowds just added to the "atmosphere".

Forget the Venice naysayers. One sentence sums it all up: There's no city in the world like Venice!

Jane.. <BR> <BR>You can easily do both. From the description of the first part of your holiday plans, my guess is that you would definitely prefer Verona for the city experience, because it is a great city, and there is room to move around and truly experience it. <BR>As for Venice, there is at least one fast train per hour from Verona, and it takes just 90 minutes. I agree with the other posters that you do have to see Venice at least once, but this way you can do it comfortably, and arrive without the hassle of luggage etc., with your major valuables, safely locked in your Verona room safe. After all the hubbub and bustle and crowds of Venice, it is really nice to to sit outside in the main square at Verona, opposite the arena, and enjoy a quiet meal, at half the price of Venice, with twice the service. Just make sure you are'nt clashing with any of the Opera festivals in Verona. The Verona website will indicate when they are next year.

I am 61 years old and I waited for a long time to go to Venice, because I wanted my first time to be perfect. We finally wnt last March, and it was pretty perfectL locely cool weather with no rain, no crowds, no smelly canals, and low-season rates. I'm glad I waited. <BR> <BR>That said, I would choose to go to Venice rather than not go -- even in July. But if you want to see the "real" Venice, you will have to get away from Piazza San Marco. After you have seen the cathedral and toured the Ducal Palace, take a nice long walk. Cross over the Accademia Bridge, from where the view is incomparable, and just keep walking. Or take the vaporetto as far as the Rialto Bridge and try to find your way back. You'll get lost, but you will see something other than mobs of tourists. Venice is not just to be "seen," but to be experienced. There's no place else like it on earth. <BR> <BR>That's my advice on the subject. <BR> <BR>Enjoy, <BR>Sandy

Go to Venice! I was there in July, too, and while there are certainly crowds in the area around Piazza San Marco, it is very easy to escape them. I stayed at La Calcina, a lovely hotel in the Dorsoduro section of Venice. It fronts on the Guidecca Canal, and is just enough out of the crunch of tourists to feel away. Yet it is a short walk anywhere. <BR> <BR>I think the beauty of Venice is in wandering the streets, especially at night, over the bridges, into the nooks and crannies of the city, listening to the sounds of the gondoliers, & watching the gondolas go by. <BR> <BR>There is no place else like Venice, it's worth it. <BR> <BR>Another thought-- Verona has its opera season through a good part of July, and finding a place to stay there can be quite difficult for that time. I had wanted to stop there last year for a day or 2, and, in September, couldn't find a reservation for July anywhere!

As Paule pointed out, the Opera Season is on in Verona all through July. ALL hotels, from budget to luxury, are booked out. In Venice, if you're willing to pay, there should always be a 4-star hotel with availability. <BR> <BR>Unless you're specifically interested in attending an opera at Verona's Arena (very unique and something Venice can't offer) Patrick put it very well: though very nice, Verona ain't Venice. <BR> <BR>Crowds ... In no quarter of Venice there'll be as many crowds as in Piazza Bra at 1:30am after an opera show. Ok, once the Piazza empties quite fast I'm just trying to be cute Last time we were in Venice in July the city was indeed crowded, specially with daytrippers. So what? At 7am Piazza San Marco was deserted. Using our "trick", we visited St. Marks Basilica with no more than 20 people inside. We got to Campo del Moro and Madonna dell'Orto church with NOBODY (tourists or Venetians) in sight. In the main Ghetto campo, there were no more than 30 tourists around. And I could go on and on. <BR> <BR>Playing it smart, one only can't escape fighting the crowds in the Ducal Palace. But this is large enough to hold large crowds pretty well. Stay off the St Mark's square, Rialto and to a lesser extent the Accademia area from 9am to 1pm and from 3pm to 6:30pm and you'll be asking yourself: where, after all, are these huge crowds? <BR> <BR>My only concern regarding a visit to Venice in July has been the heat ... though living in sunny Brazil, there's no way the heat and me are able to get to good terms. I hate swetting all over, specially at night. A room with a/c is therefore a must. Also, strolling from about 1pm to 3pm is a no no. We either find an a/c restaurant or a shadded outside table to spend these hours over lunch, or go for a siesta at the hotel after a snack. <BR> <BR>Paulo <BR>

Thanks everyone! We're definitely going to include Venice. Although the suggestion to stay in Verona and visit Venice is tempting, we really try to keep the transportation side of our trips to a minimum. And it would be ironic if we stayed in Verona to avoid the crowds and got cought in an opera mob. We'll save Verona for our next trip. <BR> <BR>

Just to follow up -used the recommendations on this board and reserved two rooms at the Pensione La Calcina. Thanks again to everyone for their input.