In today's lesson you'll learn to talk about the weather in Italian. If you're planning on visiting Italy it's probably best to learn some key words so you can understand basic discussions about the weather to help you decide what you should wear or if it makes more sense to take a stroll or stay inside. Knowing how to speak about the weather is especially important in Italy because it can vary so much for region to region and depending on the time of year. So while you may find dry and sunny days in Catania in July the same time of year in Padova is muggy and humid.
Italy is one of the biggest tourist draws in the world, which unfortunately means big crowds and high prices. The increasing popularity of Italy's cities also means that the "shoulder seasons"--when prices are lower, but theweather is still mild--are getting shorter. Travelling in typical "shoulder season" months like September and April no longer guarantees great deals. What are the alternatives? To try to keep travel costs down and beat the rush why not try Italy in March?
Italy is made up of three distinct geographical areas--its north, south and central regions. Anyone visiting Italy should be aware that each of these has their own unique climates and weather conditions, which may affect your vacation. The weather in Souther Italy varies from the inland towns to the coasts, where one finds much sun, sizzling hot summers, and usually mild winters.
Italy is made up of three distinct geographical areas--its north, south and central regions. Anyone visiting Italy should be aware that each of these has their own unique climates and weather conditions, which may affect your vacation. Northern Italy is generally colder and wetter than the areas further south and visitors should always pack and plan accordingly.
August is the month when the Italians take their holidays. During the month, the temperature in most parts of the country is quite hot, even more so in the cities due to the level of pollution and the number of people residing there. Because of this reason, most locals take their vacations in August and head to the beaches or to the cooler mountain towns. Although the crowd in most of these places would be Italian, they are crowded nonetheless. However, visitors who plan to visit the larger tourist attraction cities like Florence, Venice or Milan will find most of the locals have left for the hill and beach resorts.
People who have travelled to Italy during the off season months of January, February or March would be absolutely stunned by the number of tourists that they would find in the month of June. The tourist season kicks off in Italy in April, with May and June the two of the busiest months in the country. The main reason for these many people travelling to the country in June is because of the excellent weather. It is a good time to visit, but for those who don't mind the crowds or the high prices of hotel rooms and airfares.
April in Italy can be quite an experience. In April spring is already in full swing throughout the country, or at least in most parts and the landscapes in many parts of the country is a beautiful riot of colors. In Italy, the tourist season picks up in April. However, it is just the start of the main tourist season so visitors would not have to face the full heat of the high prices of airline tickets and hotel rates in April. April in Italy is a feast for all the senses because of the number of events that place in the country during the month.
Italy is known to be one of the most famous tourist destinations in the world. However, this also means that thousands of tourists travel to the country to visit its many well known tourist locations, its beautiful ancient churches, cathedrals and museums. Because of this, during the peak tourist seasons the rates of the hotels and all the other tourist facilities shoot up. Visitors would end up paying almost double for the same hotel rooms in peak season in comparison to the off-season.
There are few tourists who would want to visit Italy in December; most of them prefer visiting during summers. It is obvious that some of the tourists come to Italy for Christmas and other tourists who visit Italy in December do not have a specific reason to visit, they just come for amusement, however during December you will find out people putting on their ceremonial dresses. The airfares for Italy are inexpensive due to the dull winter. See our Holidays in Italy Section
Every place has its significance irrespective of the time that you visit that place; similarly Italy is one of them. As a matter of fact Italy has got the maximum museums and churchs to visit. Dreary winters can be just a reason for you to move fast from one museum / church to other. While November in Italy is definitely getting cold, it is also a good time to visit the country if you are travelling on a low budget. Visitors can make up for the cold and damp winters by planning more indoor activities rather than outdoors.
During the earlier times it was considered that the month of October in Italy is the beginning of slow season, since the prices use to fall and a large number of tourists used to fly back. Those days have become history in the superior tourist towns. Both April and October are considered as one of busiest ones in Italy and one should not assume that these two months there will be quiet; on arriving you will be surprised to know that tourists are still present during that time.
September is still a part of the tourist season in Italy, actually it is high season in Tuscany for example. In September the locals come back from the annual August holiday season so traffic in large towns is back to the usual levels. The weather gets a little cooler but the climate is still warm. There are still some food festivals and small art and music festivals all over the country during the month but not as frequent as in the summer. Visitors would generally find the rates a little lower than the preceding months so it would be a better month to travel for the budget conscious.
In summer Italy can be a wonderful place to visit. The only drawback is that in summer, some places are also overrun with tourists. Summer months are the peak tourist season for sea resorts in Italy, which means that thousands of tourists from all over the world visit the country to enjoy its hot climate and to visit its many beaches.
With May starts the peak tourist season in Italy, and for good reason. There are many reasons why so many people prefer to visit the country in this month, the first reason is the weather. The climate is quite reliable and pleasant in May and it is not yet uncomfortably hot. Secondly, there are dozens of festivals, feasts and events that take place in Italy during the month of May.
February is among one of the best months to visit Italy for those who are travelling on a tight budget. Usually, the peak tourist seasons in Italy are during the summer and the spring months and most visitors avoid traveling to the country in the winter months. For this reasons airfares and hotels are available at very low rates in comparison to the peak seasons. However, because of the famous festivals and carnivals that are celebrated through Italy in February, some parts of the country (Venezia, Viareggio) would again be expensive in comparison to the rest of the places.
January is not really the best month to enjoy Italy, days are cold and short but budget travelers might find the savings in airfare and accommodations attractive. January is a month in Italy marked by cold winters but it is also a month when not many tourists travel to the country. This would mean that everything in the country is less expensive than in the other seasons. The hotels, airfares and even some local transportation costs are be lower in January. There are also be plenty of discounts and coupons available for use in January which would make for a good budget-oriented Italian holiday.
Weather in Italy: Italy is not a huge country - nothing compared to the US, and there are no huge differences in climate like those that exist when you compare Michigan to, say, Florida so you can take the following notes that I am writing about Rome and consider that Milano in the north is on average probably 10-20 degrees F colder and Palermo in Sicily is 10-20 degrees warmer.
Weather in Rome
I lived in Rome approximately 20 years and I still go to Rome from Washington D.C. about 5 times a year.
I have heard many times that people were discouraged from traveling to Italy in August. If you are looking for a place on a beach that might be good advice since they tend to be overcrowded, and most hotels will have no occupancy. This is particularly the case for the weeks immediately before and after the 15th of August as that is the peak of the holiday season for Italians. However, if you are visiting cities like Rome, Florence, Milan - or any city for that matter - July or August are excellent months I would say.
