Venice in November - Day trip or stay there?

Stay in Venice so you can see it after the thousands of daytrippers have gone; its too far for a daytrip. The train will packed for sure, many have the same idea. You can try to do too much.

Truly, one day is not a good plan for Venice anyway, even if you are sleeping there. People who try to "see" Venice in one day often dislike it because they spend the entire day marching in lockstep with thousands of other tourists through San Marco Square, across the Rialto Bridge, etc. Where's the charm in that? Venice needs more time so you can wander the back canals, away from the crowds.

I'd say if you have so little interest in Venice that you're tempted to treat it as a day-trip from Florence, you should skip it entirely and use that day elsewhere. Maybe you'll change your mind before your next trip to Italy, maybe you won't; there's no law that says you have to see Venice. We all have limited time, so we need to make choices. You should be guided by your interests, not what a guidebook says.

Folks taking November trips to northern Italy (including Florence) should be prepared for a fair amount of rain and especially for a dearth of sunshine (an average of about 3 hours per day).

Action packed itineraries usually include more time spent in trains or automobiles than spent actually seeing the sights.

Acraven is right, as usual. Seems to me like Venice is (literally) "a bridge too far" for this trip. It's worth several days and certainly overnight. While it may not be as crowded in November as in warmer months, it may also be in the throes of the acqua alta, when rain, high tide, and storm winds from the Adriatic combine to flood the streets. This is fun to watch on YouTube and, let's say, interesting to experience, but really not the best way to see the city. These floods are fairly predictable so you could choose your date(s) accordingly, but they add a complication to off-season Venice visits.

I don't know how long you have in Florence, but another day there or nearby will surely be worthwhile.

Sorry, but doing Venice on a day trip from Florence is ridiculous, if you want to take in the joys of this amazing and unique city.

You need to spend 3 nights in Venice to do it right.

If you can't squeeze in Venice on this trip, plan on taking it in on another.

Dolce far niente! IMHO an “action packed” itinerary should condemned. It’s sorta like washing your feet with your socks on. Italy is a country to be experienced, to be savored - not rushed. You must absorb Italy, not just “see” it.

Forget it - for all the reasons above. Venice for a day in possible acqua alta or rain, dodging umbrella spokes to the eye in narrow lanes - been there, done that. Not pleasant. Unless you just want to do a tick to the list - St. Mark's - tick, Venice - tick. In which case a day is way too much time in the city. Just do your tick and leave.
You can't 'do' Italy in 13 days, so leave it for another time. My suggestion for next time is to Fly to Venice and build your trip from there.

I’m in Venice now (for the 5th time) and believe me...if I was only experiencing it for one day, I’d hate it. I love this place (hence the 5th visit in 11 yrs) but I said to hubby partway thru day one yesterday...I understand why people who only visit for a short time hate the place...the crowded vaporetto, people shoving you to get off, the hordes of people in the tiny alleys either moving too slow, too fast or not moving at all while gazing in a window and blocking your way. The people with their faces in their phones oblivious to those around them. My, I’m coming off cranky. But last evening when we were out at 9pm with 80% fewer people...that’s when Venice is the best. And the mornings...oh, the next few mornings I’m heading out before 7am and hitting San Marco.

I honestly believe if you do it as a day trip, you won’t enjoy the magic of Venice. Staying a night would be better, but a few days is really needed to give it its due. But if you do stay the night, get out early for a few hours. Stay out into the evening. AND...hot tip...if you want to go up in a bell tower, don’t stand in a long line in crowded St Marks Sq...head across the lagoon to San Giorgio for just as amazing a view with probably no line at all.

Thank you for the responses! I hope I didn't offend anyone with my question... Based on friends' trips it seemed like a day would be fine, but if they were only there a day and didn't love it (for that reason) then that makes sense why their recommendations wouldn't be the best option.

So... my next question is the weather. Seems like an enchanting place and we're not afraid of a little cold or water, but don't want to go if we have a high likelihood of getting flooded out! Is this a common occurrence in late Nov?

Our first trip to Venice consisted of staying in Mestre and bussing in for the day. Terrible idea and we didn’t enjoy our Venice experience at all. The next 10 trips to Benice have all been spent on Venice island for multiple nights each time. Aqua Alta (high water) occurs when the tides bring in water into the lagoon and some of the lowest points which are also the most touristed points become flooded. Elevated platforms are constructed to walk on and you’ll find lots of people going about their visit even during the flooding.

I've been to Venice 6 times, most of those were 3 or more days in length. One year I was staying in Padua for a week and since Venice was so close decided to do a day trip (at that point I'd already done two longer trips to Venice). I remember thinking that if that had been my first (only) time I would not have loved Venice. So I don't think a day trip, especially from as far away as Florence (Padua is only half an hour away) is a good idea.

On the other hand - a couple years ago a friend who had never been to Italy decided to join me on a trip. She could only afford to take 8 days and we ended up doing the classic "Venice - Florence - Rome" in a week trip. We actually had a great time and since then I've revised my advice to people planning "action packed" trips. It's not how I think is the "best" way to travel and it certainly depends on the personality of the people involved. But it can be rewarding. It does take really good planning! You can't take an "action packed" trip and not know what you are doing. Here's the link to the report I wrote about that trip - https://andiamo.zenfolio.com/blog/2017/5/italy-through-fresh-eyes---chashing-the-sun-in-italy-in-march

So to answer your question - no to a day trip. But if you can afford two, or even one, overnight then go for it. There is no where on earth like Venice. Although the weather in November could be a problem. I'd probably look into hotels that have good cancellation policies (like 3 days or less with no penalty). Then possibly you could have a "Plan B" where once you get to Italy, if the forecast for the days you were planning Venice was horrible, you could cancel. At that time of year it's likely you could get a last minute reservation elsewhere (You don't say where else besides Florence you are going on this 'action packed' trip).

You asked whether acqua alta is common in November. It is more frequent between Autumn and Spring. It is tidal, so ebbs and flows. It also affects areas closer to the main channels more than inland...so St. Marks Square is a common recipient. They put up temporary walkways and you can buy long bootie covers for about 7Euro, I believe. It is also forecast, so you can decide beforehand whether to go or not.
Here's a thread about it including the site to check forecast.
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/acqua-alta-information

Well, why not? It isn’t an unreasonable distance in terms of travel time and your proposed schedule would provide a decent day of touring. We often have a few plan B’s on the back burner and change them according to weather or whim and it works for us. We visited Venice for a few days many years ago and more recently as a day trip from Padua. Not everyone has the time or money to linger and savor all locales on every trip. What’s wrong with just “seeing” anywhere? Good luck and safe travels.