Venice Travel Guide
When to Visit Venice
Venice month by month — spring crowds and the access fee, summer heat and Redentore, golden autumn and the Festa della Salute, quiet winter with acqua alta and Carnival — plus the Biennale calendar and how to time your days.
There is no bad time to visit Venice, but there are very different Venices depending on when you go. The city fills up from Easter to October, gets hot and humid in high summer, turns soft and golden in autumn, and becomes quiet, misty and magical in winter, apart from the burst of Carnival. Here is how to choose your season, and how to time your days within it.
Spring (March to May). Spring brings mild weather, blossom in the hidden gardens and long evenings, and with them the first big crowds, especially at Easter and on the long weekends of late April, May and early June. In 2026 most of the access fee days for day-trippers fell in this season, from early April on Fridays, weekends and holidays; overnight visitors were exempt. The 2027 calendar had not been announced by November 2026, so check before booking a day trip. The Vogalonga, a mass non-motorised rowing event across the lagoon and through the city, usually takes place in late spring. In even years, the Art Biennale opens in May; in odd years, the Architecture Biennale does, so 2027 will bring architecture.
Summer (June to August). Summer is hot, humid and crowded, with mosquitoes in the evenings and the peak of the cruise and day-trip season, though large cruise ships are no longer allowed into the Giudecca canal past San Marco. The rewards are long, warm evenings, swimming at the Lido, and the Festa del Redentore on the third weekend of July, when Venetians crowd the waterfronts and fill boats for a huge fireworks display over the basin on the Saturday night, and a temporary bridge of boats links the Zattere to Palladio's Redentore church on the Giudecca. The Venice Film Festival takes place on the Lido from late August into early September. In August many Venetians leave on holiday, and some local businesses close. Visit museums and churches in the hot middle of the day and save walking for early and late.
Autumn (September to November). Autumn is many people's favourite season: the heat breaks, the light turns golden, and crowds thin after mid-October. The Regata Storica, a historic regatta with a pageant of costumed crews and period boats on the Grand Canal, takes place on the first Sunday of September. The Art Biennale runs until late November in even years; in 2026 it closes on 22 November. On 21 November, the Festa della Salute sees Venetians cross a temporary bridge of boats over the Grand Canal to light candles in Santa Maria della Salute. From October, the acqua alta season begins.
Winter (December to February). Winter is the quietest season and, for many, the most beautiful: fog drifting over the lagoon, empty lanes, clear cold days when the Alps appear behind the city, and low hotel rates outside the holidays. Christmas and New Year bring decorations, concerts and fireworks over the basin. Then comes Carnival, in the weeks before Lent, with masked balls, costumed crowds in Piazza San Marco and events across the city; in 2027 it builds to Shrove Tuesday on 9 February. Carnival is spectacular but crowded and expensive, so book early. Some hotels and restaurants close for a few weeks in January, and shorter museum hours apply.
High water. Acqua alta, the exceptional high tide, occurs mostly from October to January, and occasionally into spring, when strong tides coincide with southerly winds. Since 2020, the MOSE barriers at the lagoon inlets have been raised against the highest forecast tides, so flooding is much less severe than in the past, but moderate high water still floods the lowest areas, including Piazza San Marco, for a few hours around the peak. Check the tide forecast, follow the sirens, walk on the raised walkways and pack waterproof boots. Most of the time, it is an inconvenience and a spectacle rather than a danger.
The access fee calendar. In 2026 the fee applied to day-trippers on sixty days between 3 April and 26 July, from 8:30 to 16:00, at five euros if booked at least four days ahead and ten euros otherwise. Overnight guests, under-fourteens and other categories were exempt. The system is paused until the end of 2026, and the city has said 2027 dates will be announced in due course. If your trip falls in spring or early summer 2027, check the official access fee site.
Timing your days. Whatever the season, the rhythm of crowds is the same: the main sights fill from mid-morning to late afternoon, when day visitors and cruise passengers arrive, and empty in the early morning and evening. Stay overnight, start at opening times, retreat to quieter districts, museums or the islands in the middle of the day, and return to San Marco and the Rialto at night. Weekdays are calmer than weekends. And remember the weekly closures: the Accademia on Mondays, the Peggy Guggenheim on Tuesdays, the Rialto fish market on Sundays and Mondays, and Sunday mornings at St Mark's Basilica.
The verdict. For the best balance of weather and crowds, choose April or May on weekdays, or late September to early November. For the quietest, most atmospheric Venice, choose a winter week outside Carnival and the holidays. For festivals, time your trip for Carnival, Redentore, the Regata Storica or the Salute. And for art, come during the Biennale. Whatever you choose, stay at least two nights.