Venice, one of the most historical city in the world, awoke from its lethargy and began to develop quickly thanks to the opening of the Suez Canal (1869), which greatly shortened the journey by ship between Europe and Asia.
A port for transatlantic ships was built and Venice became the preferred point of embarkation for well-to- do colonial and European administrators who wanted to travel east.
The fashion for sea bathing and the patronage by high society sponsored the resurgence of this enclave.
Since then, Venice has been closely linked to the Arts – especially music and the cinema – with the Biennale as its ultimate expression of this.
And there have been a few scares, such as 4 November 1966, when it suffered the worst floods in its history. If the flood line is normally 110 centimetres, the flood that day reached 2 metres. Since then, a number of steps have been taken to protect its exceptional heritage from the tides.
Venice is in the same time zone as the rest of central Europe, in other words GMT + 1 hour, the same as Spain and France.
Any time of the year is ideal to visit the city of canals; even the winter fogs add a romanticism to the monumental urban setting. However, it is a good idea to avoid the busiest tourist times, such as Carnival (February), Easter, Christmas and the months of July and August. In other hands, if you are looking for sparkling time, to join with a lot of persons around the city, go to parties and endless nights, the above periods are strongly suggested.
The city boasts a Mediterranean climate with alpine influences.
It is characterised by cool winters – an average temperature of 2°C in January – and fairly hot and humid summers (average of 24°C in July). The sea and the mountains combine to provide Venice, and the Veneto in general, with more rainfall than is considered normal in the rest of Italy.
The driest months are February and July. If you are looking for a ski week-end not too far from Venice – about 150 km, we suggest the glamour Cortina, a very rare place in the Dolomite Mountains where you can find the Hotel Cristallo, one of the best in Europe.
Ski Resorts and Hotel Cristallo
Portofino World, a world apart.
