Why Tourists Should Avoid The Main Streets Of Venice During Summer

Nowadays, planning a summer vacation to Europe often comes with the daunting acceptance of compromise. Your enjoyment of beautiful architecture, historical landmarks, and cultural centres will certainly be satiated, but with millions of other tourists by your side who had the same idea. Venice, known as La Serenissima, meaning "The Serene One," has had her serenity disturbed due to growing overtourism, with approximately 30 million souls flocking to visit the UNESCO World Heritage Site every year. And where there are crowds, there are pickpockets. In the summer, the thieves working the purses and pockets in Venice are masters of their craft, blending in with the steady flow of tourists in popular areas such as Piazza San Marco and the Grand Canal streets. During the summer, these hotspots are also often full of litter (think gelato cups everywhere), overwhelming crowds, and relentless boat traffic — all compounded by sweltering temperatures and inflated prices.

However, the secret to an enjoyable and relatively crowd-free stay in the Floating City is to step outside its famous main streets, because, as it turns out the underrated parts of Venice are the most intriguing. The heaviest foot traffic is naturally found in and around the district of San Marco, which is home to many of the city's world-famous landmarks, including the Doge's Palace, Saint Mark's Basilica, and the Campanile di San Marco. It is crowned on its northern edge by the Rialto Bridge, which spans the Grand Canal. Although the famous districts of Venice are its main avenues, they were not built to accommodate the masses that flock to it between May and August. For a city of only 50,000 residents, overcrowding has been an uphill battle. With limited solutions in sight, a 5 euro entrance fee for daily visitors has been one of the band-aid fixes.

Venice has a plethora of quiet beauty to unfurl for the curious visitor who is willing to swim outside the mainstream current. The district of Castello, for example, is just a 20-minute walk east from Piazza San Marco. It's an ideal escape from the crowds with quiet streets and the largest gardens in Venice, the Giardini della Biennale. Known for hosting the Venice Biennale art exhibition, its many pavilions and shaded promenades will air you out from the tourist-infested labyrinths back in San Marco. Castello is also home to Arsenale, which was the largest shipyard in Europe in the 16th century and was renowned for being capable of building a fully equipped ship in a day. The districts of Dorsoduro, Venice's university district, as well as Cannaregio to the north, will offer a rich array of museums, palazzos, and churches beloved by the locals and enjoyed at a slower pace.

Counterintuitively, by visiting Venice in the winter months that you effectively win the tourism lottery. The months of November through January unveil La Serenissima in a foggy, deserted embrace, with primarily the inhabitants around, and only the occasional traveler passing through. However, a splash of liveliness reawakens the city in February, offering you the unique opportunity of seeing Venice transformed into an extravagant masquerade. As another worthwhile alternative, going to Lido or Venice's least-visited island of Sant'Erasmo will not only broaden your appreciation for this magical place but also keep you away from the tourist masses, crowded streets, and inflated prices. If you absolutely must visit Venice and its most popular spots in the summer, be sure to keep your senses sharp for pickpockets, dodge the tourist traps, and avoid being out during peak daytime hours, as it can get dangerously hot.