Any experience with traveling to these areas in Italy in the spring? Crowds, weather, etc.. I'm also thinking late September of this year but availability is not as full for booking now for the fall of this year. Thank you!
Posted by
San Diego, California
6582 posts
From experience, I would advise staying away from the week before and week after Easter. It's very crowded in much of Italy at these times, and some businesses are closed Easter Sunday and Monday. Since Easter is early in 2026, mid -April should be nice. But, No one can predict the weather.
Also stay away from the May 1 holiday and weekend.
Shoulder seasons are disappearing in the popular areas. Availability for lodging for this fall may be slim.
We love Venice, and stay in the Cannaregio area, on the scenic back canals, which are full of charm, but never any crowds. Yet, it's easy to get to a vaporetto stop on the Grand Canal. We were there this past May 2025, and shall return.
This year is the Jubilee, so Rome may be attracting bigger crowds with the religious pilgrims.
Oh, how many nights are you planning?
Have a great adventure!
Posted by
California
61 posts
We just did Santa Margherita Ligure (near Cinque Terre) followed by a couple of days in Florence at the end of May (before Memorial Day weekend though). The weather is more temperamental than it is in the summer, meaning it won't be sunny every day. You'll have to deal with some rain and wind, but you won't have insane heat! Definitely less crowds than visiting during the busy time. I love traveling in April/May to Europe because there are so many less tourists. Even if the weather is hit or miss, I still think it's worth it. I also can't do the heat so that plays into it too!
Even if it rains, Rome, Florence, and Venice have plenty to do and see when the weather is wet. Visiting Cinque Terre when it is raining wouldn't be great though. There's not much to do there aside from visiting each of the towns, and that's best to do via ferry or the hiking trail.
Posted by
9067 posts
It can be chilly in Italy in April, but not bad.
Not sure how long you plan to visit, but Rome, Florence and Venice are the big three, so suggest doing:
Venice 2-3 days minimum
Florence 4 days
Rome 5-6 days
That amounts to about 12 days. I much prefer the Naples area, Sorrento, Capri, Pompeii and the Amalfi Coast to Cinque Terre.
But you need four days to do the Naples area.
Tuscany and Umbria are great for visiting smaller cities if you have more time. Siena, Lucca, Cortona, Pisa, Assisi, Perugia, Spoleto, Gubbio and Orvieto are great.
Posted by
Massachusetts, USA
2000 posts
We spent 5 weeks in Italy this past May and first week of June. We had perfect sightseeing weather and temps in the 60’s and 70’s. And plenty of sunshine except for some rainy days at lake como.
We loved Cinque Terre. Stayed in Manarola. Very crowded during the day but quiet and lovely until about 10am when the tour groups arrive. Crowds thin out around 5pm. Then it was lovely with gorgeous sunsets.
We love, love Venice! One of our favorite places. We stayed at hotel Agli Alboretti in the Dorsoduro district and love this area. Much quieter than San Marco. People live here. Saw children playing at the playgrounds. Great place to take a gondola ride. Hotel is one minute walk from accademia vaporetto stop. Be sure to have drinks and Cichettis in zattere along the Guidecca Canal.
We love Florence, too, but it was the most crowded and frenetic of all the places we visited.