July travel...too crazy?

Good morning!

We were just in Italy from June 27 - July 7. Specifically Milan, Varenna and Venice. Went to the Leonardo da Vinci science and technology museum and it did not have AC. That said, our ticket time was 10am so it was not unbearably hot in there. I also have a very low heat tolerance and I never got uncomfortable. We also went to the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice, which had AC but it was coming from individual units in different rooms inside the museum....so some places felt a little stuffy, but not intolerable. We were also there early in the morning.

if you plan the museum visits right at opening, you may do better than in the middle of the day. :)

I was in Florence & Rome last June and also early September and both times were hot days where I would take a cooling off shower late afternoon at my hotels. I pick hotels in the historical centers, so I can go back and take a quick break for 15 minutes whenever I would like which sounds like something you will need if you don’t tolerate heat very well.

If you’re loving museums, I encourage you to look at some of the smaller cities which also have wonderful museums, and they wouldn’t be as crowded. Sometimes it’s the crowds that make me feel hotter! : ). Also, plan to stay out later at night and eat late in the evening when everything cools down a bit.

I've been to the Uffizi in July and sometimes the heat is overwhelming due to the crowds in some of the rooms. Some of the sites in Rome that are wonderful to see are outside and I remember our first family trip July 2012 in Rome and Pompeii... it was brutal out in the sun and we were living in the southern USA but it was so hot. Churches tend to be cooler (and quite cold in the winter).

Was just in Rome and parts of Lazio in late June. I would say that many museums, especially larger ones, do have air-conditioning BUT you should not expect it to be blasting at North American levels. This is a combination of pre-existing cultural differences as well as efforts to conserve energy due to the war in Ukraine.

I would echo the advice of other posters to adopt what I call a "hot weather tourism" strategy -- sightsee early or late, and take it easy in the middle of the day (long lunch, nap if that's your jam, relaxed stroll, gelato 😉).

I’ve been to Rome, Tuscany, Umbria, Venice and the Amalfi Coast many times in July and it’s been brutally hot every time. Once my son graduated from HS i knew i would never go back in July-August.

This website is helpful to see past daily temps…

https://world-weather.info/forecast/italy/rome/

I remember in June 2005 we were in Tuscany (outside of Arezzo) for a wedding and the hosts paid for all the wedding guests to get a bus and tour of Florence. My most vivid memories of that excursion were the 100 degree heat (it was said to be the hottest June in 50 years), seeing David, and a great pesto pasta lunch. But the heat certainly put a fatiguing cloud over the day.

Your user name suggests that you live in Canada? If so, I wouldn't consider Italy in July. The combination of heat and crowds sounds like it would not be enjoyable for you. I would suggest the northern part of England and Scotland and avoid the most touristed areas. If you like art museums, maybe a brief time in London or Edinburgh to see their National Galleries.

If you must go to Italy, get a hotel with AC and pool.

It's been a long time since I've been to Italy in July. I don't remember it being horribly hot, but I was a resilient teenager back then! On my trip to Florence in the fall, our guide mentioned that the town is particularly hot in the summer because it's in a basin surrounded by hills, so the air is stagnant. Other places might have nice breezes being on hilltops or bodies of water, etc., but Florence bakes in the summer.

I too would tell you to reconsider anywhere in the south. When I worked in the school system we always headed north for our summer vacations - Ireland, Scotland, Denmark, estonia, northern Germany, even Poland was cooler than Italy. It’s a big world out there. Save Italy for the fall.

Lots of great info in this thread about specific museums. And that past weather temp link is very helpful. Thanks, all!

I go to Italy in July every year (including now), and yes it’s hot (low 30 C every day in the afternoon and around 20 + C at night). But 60 million Italians live in Italy in July and I don’t see people dying in the streets. As a matter of fact it’s the most fun time of the year. Everyone is out until late at night, sidewalk cafes and restaurants are full. Some museums can be hot, since they think that the dry AC air ruins the artwork, but if you wear beach wear you’ll be fine. Just buy a pareo/scarf to put around you when you enter a church.

This just in https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/12/europe/italy-heat-wave-record-temperatures-climate-intl/index.html

Roberto, a big part of this is what you're used to. On our first visit to Rome, in 1985, our British tour guide was talking about how hot it was-it was 89 Fahrenheit. We could not restrain our mirth since 90+ is simply "summer as usual" for us.

Heat tolerance is very personal. I live in Vancouver and as its summers heat up, we opted to put in a heat pump with A/C as it is definitely hotter than years ago. Heat is a trigger for migraines for me and on my first trip to Rome in early May, 2006, it was already too hot for me. It seemed like the buildings/roads held the heat more but I am used to being close to the ocean and a lot of green space/shade so comparisons are hard. This week Rome’s temperatures may be in the upper 30s and even some locals are finding it tough as per some reports. European air conditioning is not the same as what we are used to in North America where it is often kept too cold in the summer ie malls, movie theatres etc.

It’s not just the heat, it’s also very humid. And there are no screens on windows, if you open them for real air, you get flies and mosquitoes.

We were in Venice one July, it was 37-38 (100s), and even the Venetians were beyond miserable.

Claire, heat triggers migraines for me too, it’s a classic trigger, which is something else to consider for those that suffer from them as well.

Susan, yes! I forgot about the mosquitoes. (At the risk of opening up a can of worms, excuse the partial pun, but why don’t more Europeans use screens on windows?)

I can't speak for Europeans but all the flats/houses in Munich I've lived in had/have very good roll curtains. When you close them during the day the room is dark and it keeps the heat out.

Oh, Claire, that’s a big can of worms! lol.
Not part of their culture. It's the same in France and there’s a constant debate about it on French FB groups. They don’t think they need them, they think they’re weird.

Thanks Susan! Paris based food writer David Lebovitz sometimes mentions the broad generalization that ‘the French don’t like to open windows’ or something along those lines.

Back in the 1960s, my fairly recent immigrant (Norway to Canada) architect dad put screens on all of the windows of our older house….and we didn’t need to have our windows open as much as warmer places LOL.

Yes, it will be hot. You have gotten some good tips on heat management. But if that is the time you can go, you just accept the trip will be whatever you make of it. Optimal? Maybe not. But most trips are full of some sort of compromise. So manage your heat, don’t feel like you need to go nonstop, and enjoy! (And yes, I have been to Italy in mid-July.)

Smart dad you had Claire!
I grew up in France and open windows were the norm so i don’t know where David gets that from…

People who died of excessive heat last year (and every year) belong to a segment of the population (elderlies with certain serious pathologies who, often for socio-economic reasons, have no access to air conditioning). If one belongs to that segment, s/he should consider traveling to milder climates or stay home altogether.

If one is reasonably healthy, s/he can survive the heat of Italy. Just find a hotel with A/C and avoid walking outdoors in the heat during peak heat hours. I walked in the Sassi of Matera under 38 C last Sunday, and I wouldn’t recommend it to an unhealthy person.

Regarding windows screens there are some technical issues to solve. They are great with sliding doors and windows, but they require special types of screens for French style windows that open fully like doors, which are the norm in Italian houses. For those the best are rolling screens like this one. But all in all it is a building practice. Italian houses don’t come with screens, so Italians are used to not having them. It’s like with bidets in America. Houses don’t come with a standard bidet, and Americans are used to living without them. You find it absolutely unimaginable to live without window screens, but all Italians (including myself) find it absolutely unimaginable to live without a bidet. I guess Italians don’t mind mosquito bites and Americans don’t mind a dirty tush. To each his own.

If one is reasonably healthy, s/he can survive the heat of Italy.

You continue to put this issue in terms of dying, and the unlikely event of someone who is healthy dying from the heat. My concern is comfort, and avoiding heat related illness, from exposure to heat during a vacation with activities outdoors and in buildings with limited or non-existent A/C.

I am not worried about "dying" in such heat - I live in the hot and humid American south and know how to deal with it - I just don't want to be miserably hot during an expensive vacation. It is my recommendation that if someone has a concern about the heat in Italy in the summer, a very valid concern, they should consider visiting during another time of the year.

Roberto, thank you for the perspective on window screens (and bidets). My spouse is a bit of a mosquito magnet so we go to Europe off season mosquito wise!

Two years ago Metro Vancouver had its first ever ‘heat dome’. Only about 20% of homes here have a/c as it was never needed until this century. Six hundred people died; primarily of the group Roberto references above. Unfortunately most died in their hot apartments as they were too frail to get to a/c city facilities set up as cooling centres.

If you haven’t lived in very hot or very cold climates, you may not know your tolerance level; a vacation may not be the time to find out when you are in an unfamiliar place.

Yes--the A/C issue and what we are used to, which is now changed, Europe included. In Seattle it is 44% of homes that have A/C. I remember when my father's relatives would come to visit us during the summer from Louisiana my parents would brag about how Seattle homes didn't need A/C because we had such mild summers, with little humidity. In the newspaper it would be front page news with a bold headline if the temps got into the 90s, which is now normal, at least for a number of summer days. The next house I live in will have to have A/C, which I never would have imagined. And of course the climate mega-forest fire smoke is a whole other issue.

Well, OP, hopefully now everyone has talked you out of going to Italy in July. As much as I love Italy, I agree that it is miserable in the summer and even early September. Perhaps you could change your destination? Scotland? Norway? Switzerland?

“I just don't want to be miserably hot during an expensive vacation.”

Hit the nail on the head Jojo! And sick to boot (for Claire, me and others). We’ve been in Italy and Paris several times when it was in the 100s for at least a week, not only can you not walk anywhere, do anything, you’re using up valuable vacation days and paying for a hotel room. Even if your hotel has AC (which has never worked well in Europe in my experience), no one spends money to go to Europe to stay in their room.

In 2003, one of the times we were in Paris in an extreme heat wave, 12-15K Parisians died from the heat.

My goodness. I don’t care for heat either and I’m in my 70’s, yet we spent a week in Venice late August/early September last year. Was it hot? You bet! Was it unmanageable-no. Get a good, packable sun hat, take a personal fan-either normal paper or the battery operated type. Wear dresses, skirts rather than shorts, pants. Loose fitting clothing serves me much better and I go with lightweight, breathable fabrics. Stop and take a breather whenever and wherever you can-churches are generally cooler and each one is unique in some way-and I’m not religious. Return to your room from 12-2 or find that shaded restaurant for a meal.
Museums-definitely as early as you can. Eat later in the evening-maybe a slight breeze will have come up. Stop for aperitivos in a shaded outdoor location-pay more to sit outside-maybe but not usually especially if that is the venues culture, yet entirely worth it. If you don’t drink alcohol, they have lovely refreshing fruit flavored, little to no sugar beverages.
Travel slower, take your time. It will be worth it especially if you plan on the heat. Both of us did get heat rash on our ankles and lower legs, but it isn’t permanent, just not attractive. Oh well. We saw a lot of it.
I might stay northerly and forget Rome this trip. Maybe substitute Bologna or another more northern city. It will still be hot, but not as suffocating as I understand Rome can be. Or, go to Lake Iseo or Lake Garda or trade out for that type of experience.
If Italy is where you want to go, I say give it a shot. I was uncomfortable in Venice, yet I loved it! Hoping to return this coming April.
And definitely plan on mosquitoes. Lots of good and effective wipe type applications out there, plus I have a tube like dispenser with anti itch liquid that I carried in my small purse. I used it up and had to find one at the farmacia-they have it.
Most of all-enjoy!

No one knows what the weather will be like next July, but it will be "some level" of HOT. The key question to ask yourself is: Is the draw of Italy (actually going to experience it, even"IF" it is ungodly hot when you are there worth chancing it to be able to go during your limited timeframe next year? OR, will you enjoy it more if you wait until a time when you can travel in April/May or late September/October?

Also, it MIGHT be a good idea to hop on a plane and head to Florida or Texas for even just a short weekend trip (about now) so you can get a real-world trial of how you would do in excessive heat. If you are truly uncomfortable, to the point you want to stay in a swimming pool in the shade or inside where it is air conditioned, with maybe 10-15 minutes outside during the day, then you will have your answer. A short weekend trip to the Gulf will be much less expensive than a trip to Europe. If you find out that you can deal with the heat and go about normal touring, then you will have your answer.
Weather is predicted to continue to get more extreme in the coming years (on a global level).

Italy is fabulous. One of the few countries we have "repeated" (3 times) in our travels. You do not want to miss it. You also want to be able to relish and enjoy every ounce of it -- weather can impact that enjoyment !!

You are wise to ponder this issue....giving it very, very serious consideration.

https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/10/world/deadly-europe-heatwave-2022-climate/index.html

ROME/July: https://www.accuweather.com/en/it/rome/213490/july-weather/213490

Key West, FL/July: https://www.accuweather.com/en/us/key-west/33040/july-weather/332323

In early September 2019 I was in Florence, Rome ,Naples and Lucca.
The temperatures were in the low-ish 30’s C, but the humidity was in the 80-90 % range.
It was unbearable for me coming from the PNW, and every day I couldn’t wait to get back inside with AC and a cooling shower.
I took over 40 showers in 15 days there just to feel cool.
Not really a good way to save the Earth’s water supply!
I vowed never to go to Italy again at that time of year.
Next trip, similar areas, was in late September, early October last year and was much more comfortable.
You can’t predict the weather, but if you hate the heat and humidity of high summer, perhaps stick to very Northern Italy only, near lakes , on this trip.

Good for you SJS that you can manage extreme heat!! Not everyone can. Have you read all the posts? The ones that point out extreme heat can trigger a migraine? No amount of skirts, fans, “breathers” will stop a heat triggered migraine. And a migraine incapacitates the sufferer. So no, extreme heat is not a “get out there and enjoy!” situation for everyone.

As i said SJS, even the Venetians were flattened and beyond miserable in the heat wave we experienced there.

I would like to remind all of those who can’t manage temperatures above 27 C that the original post stated that’s/he plans to go to Italy, and July is his/her only timeframe option s/he can go there.the OP also asked how to cope with the possibility some museums may not be air conditioned.

Given this premise, I find it silly to advise the OP to go to Scotland or Scandinavia or to go to Italy in November. I am sure the OP has at least a vague idea that temperatures in summer would be cooler at Cape North, or that temperatures in Italy would be cool or even cold in November. But that is not what the OP is asking.

Yes. Temperatures in southern Europe may well be in the 30s or oven high 30s Celsius during the day, but millions of Italians (and other southern Europeans) along with millions of tourists from all around the world, manage to visit Italy in summer and live to tell the story. All it takes is a few simple strategies, like getting a hotel with air conditioning, and avoiding strenuous activities outdoors during the hottest hours of the day. Some museums are air conditioned (like the Uffizi), others may not, but if July is the only time you can visit, and you can survive temperatures in the 30s outdoors, go ahead and visit Italy. The food for sure will be better than Scotland or Norway, and when you are back to the hotel after a hot exhausting day visiting sights you can always freshen up your tired feet in your hotel room bidet (it works for your feet too!).

Roberto, i think we’ve all tried to be helpful. I can survive extreme heat at home, but it’s different when you’re on vacation. No amount of “strategies” helped us in the 3 extreme heat waves we’ve experience. Like everything on this forum, if you ask for feedback you can take it or leave it.

Since retiring, I have been fortunate to be able to travel when I want to do so. Many, like the OP, are not so lucky. I feel for them because traveling during the summer would be my last choice. Having said that, however, it also means missing the opportunity to see operas performed at the Verona Arena or Rome's Baths of Caracalla, something I would love to do someday.

Hopefully the OP has garnered some good suggestions here on visiting Italy in summer. It obviously can be done in a healthy way with the proper preparation, including expectations. Buon viaggio!

To Susan-I didn’t say EXTREME heat- I said hot. Very different. And as I read current reports about the heat in Italy, I am completely on the side of not traveling when it is extremely hot. But, next year could be different and just be hot, not have the extreme temperatures. When we had the heat dome in the PNW a couple of years ago-no, I didn’t do well. Temperatures in the 100’s here are actually more uncomfortable than 100’s in the SW for example due to the humidity we have along with high temperatures. Even different than the eastern side of the state.
And, I don’t believe the OP said anything about migraines. If I missed that, I apologize. My post was to encourage traveling when it works for them rather than all the very negative posts about not going because it will be hot. I hope the OP will make a decision based on their own personal tolerance of heat and enjoy wherever they may decide to go that is best for them.

Heat could be a major factor. In fact it is right now. And especially in Europe. Last year over 61,000 people died from heat in Europe, while in the US the number is less than 1000. This is due to AC, which is less frequent in Europe than the US. So you should definitely book places with AC.
You might want to know that some European places mechanically impose limits of how low you can set a temperature in their rooms. Also, when your room card is not in the slot, your AC will not be working when you are gone. Or, the management may enter your room and turn off your AC if you are not there. Both of these will mean when you come back to your room, it may be suffocating hot until such time as the AC can drop the temp.

When your room key card is not in the slot, everything shuts off within minutes, including air conditioning. However our AARP card (or any card) works just as well. When you leave your room, insert any card in the slot, and everything stays on.

I noticed that most hotels thermostats are set not to go lower than 23 Celsius (73.4 F), but that is not too bad. It’s very hot this week in Italy and next week it is forecast to exceed 40 Celsius (104 F) in some locations, but nobody says that is going to be the case next year. It was not hot at all at the end of June and the very beginning of July. I remember that in 2005 at the end of May it was miserably hot in Florence, almost as hot as now. So we don’t know how the weather will be next year. For sure it won’t snow in Florence or Rome in July, but some years are hotter than others.

I usually (nearly always) come to Italy every July, not because I am a masochist but due to work needs. I cool off by selecting only accommodations with air conditioning and a swimming pool. A hotel with a swimming pool might be an expensive proposition in the city centers of Rome or Florence, but I generally stay outside of the city center, so it’s not too difficult to find at a reasonable price. Most restaurants and bars are air conditioned as well. Take a break there during midday hours. Buy a portable handheld fan like these. Some are so small you can carry in your purse (my wife and I have one each). You can use them while you rest at a sidewalk cafe or on a public bench. Go inside a cathedral and sit on their benches. Large cathedrals are cool. Nobody will kick you out if you pretend to be preying.

Oooh, Roberto, I used to use that trick in unusual circumstances; but on my last trip in 2 hotels (having trouble remembering but probably Poland) the magic room key slot only recognized the actual room key - not another card. That slot got smarter!

I stayed in several hotels while traveling in Italy this month (Florence and Puglia) and since I chose only hotels with swimming pools (given the heat) they were all upscale 4 stars. Only one hotel had a slot smart enough to recognize the fake card. So the trick still works in most places, but I’m sure hotels are figuring it out. But they all control the temperatures centrally. They also give you only one key per room (couldn’t have one for me and one for my wife). Obviously some guests were using the second key card to keep the electricity in the room going, so they stopped the practice. They also let you choose a range from 23 to 26 degrees C, but you can’t go lower than the set minimum they have. In one it was off and couldn’t turn it on until I called the front desk who turned it on for me remotely. In that same hotel the AC went off automatically if you opened the door to the balcony. So for sure you won’t be able to have a blasting AC with the cold temperatures you can have in the hotels in the US. They are really making sure you don’t waste electricity. I can understand why. I pay €0.60 per kWh in my house, a rate that is more than twice the already high rate we pay in California.

I thought of your post when I spotted this on CNN this morning. Maybe the "visual" will help you to decide re: July. Many tourists are continuing on.......but, only you can decide what is right for you.

It is my GUESS that any air conditioned museum or other site, is pretty crowded during the day (for all the obvious reasons).

https://www.cnn.com/videos/world/2023/07/14/exp-red-alert-heat-warning-italy-barbie-nadeau-live-071403aseg2-cnni-world.cnn