2. Venice
With its quaint streets, romantic canals, and rich architecture, Venice is an inspirational city that leaves you breathless.
However, with 58.3 million tourists visiting the neoclassical corridors of this popular water-lined city, it can be hard to experience all it has to offer.
According to Time, particularly high tourism traffic in the beginning of May required Mayor Luigi Brugnaro to block off especially crowded areas and allow only locals through.
Since peak season in Venice is June, July, and August, you’re best time to visit would be early spring and late September. The weather is cooler and the crowds aren’t annoyingly stuffy.
Pro-tip: While climbing the narrow stairs of Campanile will bring you to a breathtaking view of the city, so will a guided tour of the Torre dell’Orologio—and going up a clock tower is way cooler than climbing stairs.
And since everyone has to ride a gondola at least once when in Venice, opt to take a ride at dusk instead—when love is really in the air and you won’t have that sweaty tourist leaning over you to take pictures the whole time.
However, you’ll want to rise and shine a bit earlier than usual to make it to St. Mark’s Basilica when it opens at 0945 am.