Originally Posted by
wxman22
Step back from the ledge.
The city is normal, just some higher than usual areas of water.
The airport is not even near Venice, but about 20 km to the NE on the mainland.
I have been in Venice numerous times, a few with "high water". You just have to change your routes you would normally walk, wear rubber boots which are everywhere, or take advantage of the raised walkways, like in San Marco.
High water is very dependent on the storms, pushing water north in the Adriatic and even more so on the tides. So what is happening now, will not persist for many days, let alone weeks.
Here is a site your you to check out:
https://www.visit-venice-italy.com/a...nice-italy.htm
So, we have two questions or issues:
Would you skip Venice and go to Florence due to this situation...this is a 5 night romantic off-season trip to Italy...I get that it could rain or whatever anywhere you go, but this seems beyond fun if planned in advance to travel to a flooded city (still a week away and able to make alternative plans)...could turn into fun if you are stuck there and have the right attitude, but doesn't seem like something one would intentionally go into.
The second issue is BA protocol: I don't understand why BA wouldn't re-route liberally or waive change fees. Maybe we're too far out. I certainly have been re-routed liberally by BA in transport.
On the first question, I am also a SPG Platinum and was looking forward to staying at the Gritti Palace for 3 nights in Venice. I don't see spending more than 2 nights out of our 5 nights in Milan.
So, SPG has a St Regis in Florence which I am sure is beautiful and a great experience, although maybe not Gritti Palace on the Grand Canal. We've each been to Florence and Venice, but not together. I could see hopping to Florence and then maybe taking the train to Venice the day before on the 26th, getting there in midday, spending a night at the Gritti Palace and having a great dinner in Venice, and then taking our original 12:20 flight to LHR on the 27th.
The other return flight options are: Florence to LCY and then Uber to LHR (potentially with $150 in change fees, unless BA waives), or train to Milan and fly MXP to LHR at 11:55am (again with $150 in change fees, unless BA waives), in which case, I'd probably go back to Milan on the 26th and stay near the airport and save the big $$$ or SPGs for the night of the 26th in Florence?
Many of you know this landscape much better than I do...the original plan was a romantic 5 night trip into Milan for 2 nights at the Excelsior Gallia and then train to Venice for 3 nights at the Gritti Palace. The return from VCE-LHR-BOS is in CE and F is a pretty ideal schedule, leaving VCE at 12:50 to LHR and then leaving LHR to Bos at 16:45.
If we were to ditch Venice and go to Florence...then, I think it makes more sense to train back to Milan on the night of the 26th which allows us to fly into LHR vs LCY and saves nge fees and $50-75 in LCY-Uber fees, and EUR 200-250 more expensive hotel that last night (26th) in Florence vs Milan...pretty much a no brainer to go back to Milan, if that's the option.