Italy in August?

We leave for Rome on July 29th for three days. Then on to Venice for three more. I made plans prior to reading about the reasons you mentioned but have since talked to others who have been there at that time. It will be hot so be sure to get a room with AC. As far as the city shutting down no. Things will still be open and should be less crowded if people avoid these cities during August.

Simran - Suprise - Rome and Venice NEVER close down!!! Average temp. that time of year is 72-82 and both cities will be very busy , as popular locations always are !!!!

Ciao, Greg

It will be very hot and humid. The cities do not close down - you may find a few small family run restaurants closed - but for the most part everything will be open and busy.

Safe Travels

simran,, it will likely be very very hot. I roasted, but I wouldn't have skipped it for anything. Make sure hotel has a/c,, drink lots of water, and bring a hat.

The big August holiday is on the 15th. We found it difficult to get a good meal in Milan around then (although a bad meal was no problem). Many small businesses and shops close, so don't plan on major shopping. However, the tourist stuff is open, and you can get better rates at city hotels.

I always go to Rome in early May and it has been HOT while we were there, especially while touring outside attractions such as the Forum. Not as hot as the 100+ days we have here in Dallas, but hot just the same. Count on it being hotter than 72-82F in August. Going in August, you may also be faced with businesses that have closed their doors for holiday for that month so just be aware of this. You might miss out on some good shopping.

August is very warm, especially in Rome. However, you can manage, especially if you don't have a choice in timelines (we didn't!).

We only hit one restaurant we wanted to visit that was closed due to the Italian holiday in Venice; we had no problems with closures in Milan, Florence, or Rome.

Suggestions for Rome: hit museums during the day (i.e. indoor activities) and outdoor sights in the evenings. We went on a historical tour in the middle of the afternoon (Collosseum, Forum, etc.) and it was unbearably hot; we were exhausted afterward and in the hotel the rest of the day.

Per the Weather Underground, (based on historical weather information for Rome) in the first half of August "the Average High Temperature is 88 F with a historical range of 69 F to 102 F. The Average Low Temperature is 68 F with a historical range of 57 F to 96 F."

The previous posting about "average temp" of 72-82 must have been averaging the lows with the highs for an overall daily average. Reminds me of that old joke about sticking your head in an oven and your feet in a bucket of ice water and saying, "Overall I feel fine."

We just got back from 15 days in Italy and it is HOT, HOT, HOT and fairly humid. Do be sure to drink lots of water and be sure the hotels you book have air conditioning (some say they do and don't really so just be on guard about that). Everyone told us that the end of July and August would be more crowded than it already was (and it was crowded!) because that's when Italians take their vacations so I would definitely think twice about that if you have options. I'm a teacher and we have kids in school so we definitely needed to go in the summer but my preference if I could choose would be April/May or late September/October.

If you have a choice, go any other month (except July).

If you don't have a choice of month, then perhaps a different destination, further north.