Venice and Bologna/Modena in early November

Just getting going on planning this trip and I’m only posting a new thread to thank everyone for the enormous amount of information in recent (and somewhat recent) threads on the topic. Just to put some of them in one place as a resource:

https://www.wineberserkers.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=2088969#p2088969

Peter Moy’s comments on Autumn in Venice (not to mention his incredibly thoughtful and detailed posts) are particularly welcome given our slight concern about the weather in early November.

Our current thoughts are four nights in Venice (which seems longer than normal, but we like to settle in), maybe five nights in Bologna, with day trips to Modena etc. Looks like the best nonstop flights from NYC are going to be to Milan, so we would train from there to Bologna, and maybe add a couple of nights in Milan [edited to delete the eliminated Rome option] at the end (more threads to plumb).

One question I had is how people deal with Sundays and Mondays in Italy given the fact that lots and lots of places seem to be closed on those days.

Anyway, this is mainly to thank everyone for their substantive postings here, which are an invaluable resource given the mostly useless marketing sites that Google searches generally turn up.

Of course any new comments/thoughts/suggestions are very welcome!

Cheers.

Al

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Sunday in Venice is not a problem except for crowds.

I often go to Murano on Sunday, but it wasn’t too crowded last month in the Sunday I was there.

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For Modena/Bologna, check the specific places you want to see/visit/experience. In a big city, you may find the old traditions are less observed and I expect Venice to be even more so - the tourists don’t stop on Sundays or Mondays, so I doubt the shops, bars and restaurants do. In particular also look out for local festivals / sagre / specialist markets and the Bologna tourist office is a good starting point. They can lift a seemingly quiet Sunday into something unique.

For sunday lunchtime, see if you can find a convenient agriturismo (farmstay) that does meals. We’ve found these very popular with local Italians, be that for gatherings of family or friends, and Sunday always felt the most popular. The food is typically local, tasty and wholesome (and waaaayyy too much of it, so pace yourselves). Prices are way too cheap normally, but you have to be ok with a set menu. Don’t expect Michelin eating, but conversely do expect good food and a convivial setting where you’ll feel like you have a window into the local culture, not just a tourist in a restaurant, alongside plenty of other tourists.

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Great tips. Thanks. I’m sure you’re right. I just have memories of wandering around Montalcino on a Sunday in the 90s searching for signs of life. Very different time and place of course.

Hi Al
The big one that remains true is the lunchtime closing (though I daresay in Venice there will be places open then). c. 12:30/1pm to 3:30-4pm, where not only shops shut, but put their shutters down, so the place can look desolate.

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