Venice greeted us with a torrential downpour during our visit (without the kids) in November 2010. We managed to explore Piazza San Marco and the surrounding areas in the rain — a day suited for museums, shopping and eating. Luckily, the sun was shining brightly the following day with the activities resuming in the lagoon. But, we knew that the chance of acqua alta in Venice was likely due to the previous day’s showers.
“Acqua alta” or high water is used to describe the flooding of Venice’s low lying areas caused by a combination of high tides, heavy rains, moon cycles and a strong south wind. These elements cause an overflow of the lagoon’s murky water into the ground level — most common between October and March.
We’ve seen those images of a flooded Piazza San Marco (Venice’s lowest area) on TV and were quite curious to see it. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as bad as we expected.
There was a system of raised walkways or passerelle that appeared throughout Piazza San Marco and the nearby streets. They reminded me of card tables connected together — set up for everyone to walk around the square. Not quite the Venice we expected to see but interesting nonetheless.
The walkways were pretty narrow in some areas resulting in a bit of side stepping when passing each other. Getting on and off them was a bit of a challenge too. Our kids would have surely enjoyed wading through the water. I’m not quite sure how strollers and wheelchairs navigate under these conditions.
While most sidewalks were partially open, it was particulary hard to walk on the alleys. These didn’t have the walkways. We never knew how high the water level was at the next turn. Sometimes, it wasn’t even passable and a couple of detours were necessary. It was a bit inconvenient but it didn’t stop us from exploring Venice’s hidden corners.
Many people wore rubber boots and some wore disposable, plastic slip covers over their shoes which were sold in most stores. We didn’t get either one and used the walkways and tip-toed on streets with shallow waters to get around instead. Vendors were busy sweeping the water into drainages outside their stores. Some of the stores were temporarily closed while some attractions were a bit harder to enter.
By the afternoon, the water had receded and the raised walkways turned into benches for resting and people watching. It was as if the flooding a few hours earlier never happened. We look forward to return to this magnificient city with the kids (preferably during the dry season).
Have you experienced acqua alta in Venice or similar cities with flooding issues?
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We did this trip without kids May of 2010 as well but did not experience acqua alta. That was a little bitter sweet as I’m sure it is a hassle, but it would have been nice to say I’ve experienced it. It does seem to make for some great photos though! Thanks for sharing.
Did you get any of the infamous ‘lagoon smell’ before, during, or after acqua alta? We’ve had friends complain about that and didn’t notice it at all during our trip.
Thanks! It was a bit of a hassle but totally worth it to be in Venice. I wish we had taken more pictures of the people getting on and off them and wading in the water. I didn’t really notice any “lagoon smell’ and I’m somewhat sensitive to odors. There were faint traces of that stale, damp smell in the alleys but never overpowering. I guess we both got lucky on our trips.
What a different view of the plaza! It’s pretty cool how they just deal with it with walkways and elevated parts so that people can continue whatever they normally would do. Goes to show how used they are to this. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Sabrina! Glad to share this unique experience. It was cool to see how well they have adapted to acqua alta. I believe they also have warning alarms to tell how high the water levels are but we didn’t hear it. The vendors also looked like they have a system set up to open their stores as fast as possible.
I haven’t been to Venice yet but would imagine the flooding would add and detract from your enjoyment! I think it would be very interesting. Your pictures are beautiful.
Thanks Debbie! It was definitely very interesting to experience it. It was a bit of a hassle but all the churches and museums were still open. The good thing was it only lasts for a few hours and then the water disappears.
Haven’t been to Venice yet and I hadn’t appreciated
just how high the water got. Interesting experience and love the two
lower photos showing the contrast. Did it smell when the water was high?
Thanks Leigh! It was a great experience. We were actually surprised how much fast the water receded. My husband just confirmed for me too that we both don’t remember any strong odor during acqua alta. There were some stale, damp odor in the alley ways but that was about it.
I saw those raised walkways when I was in Venice in 2001, but was lucky enough to have been visiting when the water was low and we could stroll around without getting our feet wet.
You got pretty lucky during your visit. We were glad we got to experience it during acqua alta and during a couple of sunny days but definitely would like to see Venice in all its glory basking in the sun.
Love the pics and this article. I had a similar experience on our last day in Venice, actually it started the night before as we were eating in one of the cafes behind Saint Mark’s. We watched as the water rose ever so slightly until the waiter rushed our dinner and we left. That’s where the fun started. We took extremely circuitous routes until we finally made it back to Costello, safe and relatively dry. Despite this inconvenience, it was quite fun!
Thank you Jeff! What a fun way to explore Venice. Thanks for sharing your story.
Lovely post. You make me want to go! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! I hope you get to visit Venice soon.
When I was in Venice last year, I got a brief taste of acqua alta while in the Piazza San Marco. The water was slowly filtering up through the grates. It wasn’t high enough for those planks to be put out, but it made for cool reflections shots. Beautiful photography on your blog by the way! :)
Thank you Michael! Acqua alta did make for some great shots. Much of the credit for the photos on the blog goes to my husband but he prefers to stay quietly behind the scenes.
I’ve been to Venice twice, and even though it’s overrun with tourists, I LOVE it!
We were expecting a ton of tourists too but going there during Thanksgiving week in the USA was a great time for us There weren’t that many tourists and prices were lower.
You had me with that top photo of the Venice lagoon. Can’t wait to get to this
romantic city someday. Nice post.
Thank you Cathy! Venice was so captivating and I hope you visit soon.
When we were in Venice, we saw the boards in St. Marks Square, but the streets
were dry. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to see the acqua alta just to get to have
the experience or hope for dry weather and streets. Those are great pictures, thought.
Thanks Jessica! Glad to hear you had good weather during your visit. Luckily, ‘acqua alta’ doesn’t last very long so many people get to experience it and have dry streets in the afternoon.
This is fascinating! I loved hearing how they deal with flooding! Something I have always wondered about.
Thanks for linking up this week! Have a great weekend!
~Becca
Thanks Becca! It was certainly a unique experience and glad we got to see how they deal with acqua alta. We had always wondered too. Have a great week.
I have been in Venice three times in the winter and never had the acqua alta. How fun to be there without your kids– I really want to return to Italy and go back and forth between doing a slower trip with the kids or waiting until they can stay with the grandma and we can go and see all the art and other things I want to see again.
It was a fun getaway without the kids to one of the most romantic cities. We had a theme going for this trip. It was Venice, Rome, Paris and Amsterdam. It was our first trip alone since our daughter was born 8 years earlier. Highly recommend without the kids first and then take them along on a return trip when they’re a bit older. Hope you get to return soon.
Beautiful photos! I’ve longed to go to Venice since I was a child and first read about the canals and the gondolas – I didn’t quite understand how people lived in a city with streets of water but it sounded very exciting! Some day I’ll get there but I’m not sure if I’ll hope for dry weather (because usually I hate rain when I’m traveling) or hope for rains so that I get a chance to experience the acqua alta.
Thanks Lisa! It was such a magnificient city that needs to be visited and savored. It easily jumped into one of my favorite cities in the world. We can’t wait to go back. Luckily, acqua alta doesn’t last very long so you can still have both conditions – we did. The Venice attractions do look a whole lot better with the sun shining on them though.
A lovely photo essay and nice “you were there” explanation of aqua alta. I’m sure it is very intresting, but I’ve heard that the lagoon and canal water is extremely polluted, so you wouldn’t want to get in it if you aren’t forced to. The joke is that dead bodies are disposed of in the lagoons, and live bodies that go in will be dead soon.
Thanks Vera! I had never heard of that joke but probably holds some truth to it. That water was very murky.
Hard to believe that city continues to exist and thrive in such conditions! I’ve been to Venice many times, but always in the summer.
Thanks for stopping by Sonja. The Venetians have adapted very well to these conditions. We hope to visit next time in the summer to see the contrast.
I’m going to Venice in April as part of my 70-day solo backpacking trip to Europe.
I hope by then it won’t be flooded anymore :) Glad to know the city has prepared
well for such eventualities though! (Dropping by from the Budget Travelers Sandbox Travel Photo Thursday)
Thanks for stopping by Aleah! How cool to go on such a wonderful adventure through Europe. Looking forward to reading about your adventures. I hope you enjoy magical Venice. Yes, they are quite prepared and acqua alta doesn’t last very long. Wishing you safe travels.
I adore Venice, especially this time of year. never experienced the high water there, though. But we did have flooding during a holiday at the Black Sea once. My kids adored splashing and wading through it… although it probably wasn’t too healthy there either.
I know the murky waters won’t stop my kids from wading and splashing. What fun for your kids. Venice has clearly become one of my favorite cities — acqua alta or not. Thanks for stopping by Sophie.
I haven’t visited Venice during Acqua Alta. But I think those high walkways are a simple and great idea.
In Antigua Guatemala, where I live, all the streets become little rivers when it rains. If it is a strong one and you have a small car it’s better not to take it outside, the engine will get wet and you will be stuck in the middle of the street. But just as it happened to you in Venice, a couple of hours after it stopped raining it’s almost as if nothing happened.
Thanks for sharing Antigua’s flood issue Marina. How strange to also disappear in a few hours. Fortunately, Venice is well prepared for their acqua alta. Thanks for stopping by.
How awesome to be in Venice for the Carnival. Lucky you! I’m sure it’s such a spectacular sight with all the masks walking around Venice. I hope your future Venice trips don’t include acqua alta. Thanks for stopping by.
We went on September and while we ate brunch at Florien it started to flood, saw many tourist got wet. We left to explore another area of the city, nearby the Mercato and when we returned (our hotel was behind the Correr Museum) it was dry. In less than 3 hours, quite interesting.