Rome August Heat Reported to be Oppressive

We were there this year during the heat wave in May that all the locals were complaining about. We had to seriously pair down our plans. :(

Oh fantastic. We're leaving next week...

That's one reason I never travel in July and August. Especially in more "southerly" areas like Rome, it's HOT and often crowded. Standing in long queues in mid-day heat is not exactly the most pleasurable travel experience.

I'm here for another week, and YES it's hot!!! BUT, the city is empty! Lines are short or nonexistent (haven't been to the Vatican Museum this trip, though). I rode the #64 bus around the city (aka "the pickpocket bus") and had no worries. There was also no traffic, and I had a seat the whole ride!

Rome has a lot of events for Romans that stayed home. There are bars, restaurants, arcades, and a outside cinema along the Tiber. They've also have opened at night Castel St. Angelo, the terrace & the Pope's passageway (discussed in"Angels and Demons.") There are many "free" events at night---heard opera in both Piazza Navona and Spagna last week.

To find out more about the summer events go to: www.estateromana.comune.roma.it.

You can also take day trips to escape the heat---Tivoli, Frascati, Castel Gandolfo & Lake Albano and the lakes near Viterbo. Yes, it's EXTREMELY hot, but there are positives to being here in August---just do as the Romans do and sleep from 3-7pm :-))

I've been watching the weather in Rome and Florence (weather gadget on my desktop). Day after day after day in the 90's. Whew! Too hot.

Day after day after day in the 90's. Whew! Too hot. (from above)

Yes, it's August in Italy.

And the temps in the 90's don't tell the whole story, of how hot Rome feels. Temps in the 90's, in places with low dew points, is not so uncomfortable. But when you see temps in the 90's combined with dew points above 65, most people feel perceive that combination as distinctly "humid" and dew points over 70 as "sweltering."

So also look at dew points if you want to get a better idea of how the heat will feel.

Here in Canada, we use the "Humidex" reading, developed by Environment Canada meteorologists, to show how hot it really feels out there. See the chart here.

I just got back from Rome today and while it is very hot, just try to walk in the shadows and drinks lots of water, and it's fine.

I found it very empty as well... many restaurants recommended in the book were closed from 8/8 to 8/31.

I went to Castel Angelo during the daytime... I didn't know the Pope's passageway was open. Maybe that was only at night?

Several recent visitors to Rome have said Rome appeared to be less busy than usual: that's always the case in August, August is the traditional time for Italians to take their long vacations. Those who live in Rome and other hot cities often try to beat the August heat by going to the beach or mountain resorts.

That's also the reason some of the restaurants are closed, their owners are taking their vacations. You'd see them if you were at the beach or mountain resorts.

I was there in May, and I thought I was going to die! Being from Dallas, we are used to the heat, but this was not what I was expecting. It had been much milder in '08. Bologna was particularly hot and steamy!

We just returned from a few days in Rome and I found it hot but not as bad as I was expecting. As long as you have a water bottle with you, no problem.

I live in Phoenix, I would like to think that I can tolerate heat a little more than most. We were in Rome from June 4th to June 9th. It was warm, but nowhere near what I would consider hot, until the last day. I think the humidity level must have skyrocketed. I had to keep going back to hotel to change clothes and wash up. It was really embarrassing. Funny, all locals here complain that summers are getting worse every year. I think we are just getting older.

Kristen: If you think June was bad in Rome, you don't want to try July or August. Typical August weather is high temps in high 80's with dew point averaging 71. That's hot! And those are averages, meaning 50% of the days can be hotter or sweatier.

A couple of years ago I was in Rome/Florence/Bologna and, when I came back, co-workers told me they'd heard reports on the US news of an Italian heat wave. The reality was it wasn't any hotter in Rome (where I thought the heat was killer) than it normally gets in Denver in the summer (although not this year!)... the difference was that I'm usually in an air conditioned office in the middle of the day in the dead of summer, not walking all over kingdom come seeing the sights!

The great thing about Italy -- Rome especially -- is all those spigots pouring cool, clear, cold water. Just dunk your head when you get too hot and refill that water bottle!

Yep, we were there Aug 6, 7, 8, and it was hot, hot, hot. Be sure to drink a lot, especially when outdoors at the Colosseum/Palatine Hill and don't expect much relief from the museums and such-- the a/c is not very strong. We really suffered, especially having to cover up at the Vatican. Having said all that, any trip to Rome is still a real experience. The evenings were more pleasant, although still warmer than we had hoped. Make sure your hotel has a/c!

Oh, and I should also add that we went, two nights in a row, to the Trastevere area right next to the Tiber river, and it was really quite nice to eat dinner alongside the river in one of the outdoor cafes. Lots of stuff going on right next to the river. I suspect there were a few mosquitoes out and about, but we didn't get bitten too badly.

We were just in Rome on Monday August 10 It was unbelievably hot and humid. The good news is the crowds weren't bad at all.We were able to tour the Collosseum,Forum, Vatican,&St. Peter's, and visit Trevi Fountain using the metro to get around.Be warned about buying bottled water off the street.We watched guys filling used bottles at the faucet outside the Collosseum and the selling them to hot thirsty tourists.We went to the Vatican at 1:30 and the line for tickets was only 10 minutes. We heard that the morning wait was long however. I guess that this has been the case all summer.