Italy in August

[TheNinthLock]

Hello, I wonder if you can help.

DH has to go to Italy for work in August. He will be based 40km inland from Venice (roughly)
I’d like to fly out once the job has finished and we’d take a 5 day (roughly) holiday together. Can’t stay much longer due to other work commitments.
We want to avoid Venice as think Venice at the height of summer and in peak tourist season is not ideal?

Where would you go?

Just beware it will be boiling boiling hot.

We did our honeymoon in Venice, Bologna etc in August. DH has nice pictures of me passing out on the vaporetto, we tried going to the sea in Ravenna - no different, still baking.

Bologna was the best of a bad bunch as it is built for the heat with colonnades. However even there loads was shut as the Italians rightly had all taken their holidays. When we googled 'Bologna August' the first hits all said 'Don't go in August'. They were right.

Honestly, if you are not great with heat just don't bother. It smacks you in the face as you get off the plane and doesn't get any better.

Any Italian city will be very hot in August. There are loads of town dotted around lake Garda and each town has its own market day. The markets are really worth visiting.

@AnnaMagnani
Personally I would just let DH come home but the OP wants to go in August. Everywhere will be hot! It’s inevitable.

The lakes. We lived in modena for 4 years. It will be hot and humid. I hated Venice as it was rammed and we went during the winter and still busy. You'll want to be somewhere cooler and breezy. All the lakes are beautiful.

Also loved Verona. Bologna not massively worth it. We lived in formigine next to maranello for our last year. But not keen on Ferrari!

Everything in big cities like Milan shuts after 15 August until beginning of September (I worked there for a few years).
We’ve done Venice in August (with kids) but stayed on the Venice Lido, and took vaporetti to get around. Actually it was fine. I’ve been there at other times of the year as well for work, and it wasn’t that much busier. Staying on the Lido is quite peaceful. You can cycle around and go to the beach, then hop on the boat to the sights.

As others have mentioned the Lakes are beautiful, but if I were you I would definitely make the trip to Venice as it is so special and beautiful.

Cinque Terre. Not far from Venice. Five villages to visit and all sounds so lovely. I haven't been there yet but really want to go.
l was in ltaly last Summer and while l love the heat it was extremely hot and uncomfortable So definitely need to be near the sea at least.

If you're not good with heat, I'm not sure I would be visiting Italy in August. Hopefully Venice is a chunk cooler but when we went to Sicily in June last year it was 36 degrees by 9am. When we checked the average high before we booked it said 29 which we figured would be okay. I am coming to the conclusion now that average monthly temperatures in the summer may be too inaccurate due to the ever increasing likelihood of heatwaves Vs the historical data.

Bologna 10 years ago it was 39-40 degrees every day.

One day I just refused to move out of the aircon.

Bologna is certainly worth a couple of days. Anyone who cannot find anything interesting there is a bit jaded. The university is the oldest in Europe. The great thing about Bologna is access to other fantastic places. However August wouldn’t be ok for me. Lake Como is pretty hot too if you want to sightsee!

I’d save my money and actually enjoy Italy at another time!

If you haven't seen Venice and aren't likely to be in the area again, I would definitely spend at least one day there as you are so close. I've been in August in the middle of the school holidays and it wasn't so busy that you couldn't enjoy it. It was actually busier when I went in late September. It's a 'must-see' (IMO) if you are in the region. You could still do a few nights in Lale Garda (we visited Venice on a day trip from Lake Garda).

Bologna has loads to see as well as being a great base to travel around to Mantua, Padua, Venice, Verona, Modena, Ravenna, Ferrara etc etc.

Just not in August.

Thank you all. Lots to think about.
I’d rather not go in the middle of august, but the opportunity is there and I wonder if I’d regret not taking it.
Thanks again for all your advice 😊

Bear this in mind: there is a holiday in Italy on 15th august and it can last a week or two with many, many places including restaurants, attractions etc being closed.

Ferraugsto

I was in Tuscany over the holiday one year and it was very frustrating.

Bum, that could put a minor spanner in the works…. Although I’d not be flying out until the 24th, so may miss most of it?

Personally I think you'd be fine. The only thing to avoid is the 15th which is hell on earth on the roads. We've been in Italy in the last two weeks of August plenty of times and never struggled to find somewhere to eat. If you have must sees, check ahead of travelling for opening times.

Steer well clear of Bologna in August. It will be 40 degrees plus. It's known as the worst place to be in Italy in summer.
I'd head, as many others, to the Lakes. It's August so everywhere touristy will have tourists, but at least you'll have air and it will be a bit fresher.

PS most tourist places have everything open on the 15th. Everyone is off work so eating out etc. Likewise in general, lots of Italians are off work for much of August but that's when restaurants, nightlife and tourist attractions come to life. By the 24th people will be heading home ready to go back to work.

You might like the Sudtirol or the Julian Alps, OP.

The Pragser Wildsee area is lovely. Spectacular Dolomite scenery.

Also the Isarco Valley, with quite an Austrian Alps feel.

Lake Orta in Piedmont is also nice - a mini Como/Garda.

Bagni di Bormeo is a hot springs in Lombardy, right up near the Switzerland and Liechtenstein borders.

We were in lake Garda over ferraugosta- everything was open so don’t worry about that. It was very busy though so we are going end of august this year. By 24th you will be fine.