European countries "shut down" in August?
I am mainly interested in hearing about France (Paris, in particular) and Italy (Venice, in particular), though this may hold for other European countries as well, hence the broad title.
I have heard from a few sources that because many locals go on vacation, much of Paris and Italy closes down during August, but many tourist attractions remain open. My question is: to what extent is this true, and to what extent would this affect a tourist's ability to function, e.g., go out to restaurants, museums, plays, shops, etc.?
EDIT: In your answers, can you also comment on the extent that this exodus affects public transportation?
Best Answer
My first hand experience with France is that on 1st of August it's absolutely impossible to get through, because of absolutely infernal traffic on all the highways. Seems like everyone is going to the beach at same time. I haven't visited cities at that time, so can't say how bad is it.
I do have first hand experience living in Madrid, which does indeed shut down in August. Main tourist attraction stay open, but most clubs, discos and many bars and restaurants are completely shut down. Many other establishments and services have reduced opening hours.
Note, that such things do not happen in central and northern Europe, so I wouldn't generalize to say that Europeans countries shut down. More like capitals and major cities of some south European countries shut down.
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Does Europe close in August?
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Answer 2
I've already accepted an answer, but having recently come back from the trip that inspired this question, I thought I'd share my experiences.
Paris seemed very empty. Even in the morning on weekdays, there were very, very few people in the streets (excluding the area immediately surrounding popular tourist spots). There were also shops and restaurants closed down for some chunk of August on about every street. However, it didn't really impact our trip at all. Since we never had specific restaurants or shops in mind, only types of restaurants and shops, we were always able to find something easily. Grocery stores were also open and so were all the tourist spots.
Lausanne, Switzerland contained less people than usual, but less shops were closed. I actually can't remember a single time we wanted to go somewhere or do something and we couldn't because of this issue. Even the Saturday morning market was still big and lively.
Venice was packed. I've never been, so I don't know if this is due to people flocking there during their August vacations or if this is normal but it was incredibly crowded. Although, since we didn't really go to any tourist hotspots other than the city itself, we didn't really feel the crowds unless we were walking around. That is, restaurants weren't overly crowded, nor were shops and cafes.
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