Seriously is the summer really that bad? (Naples, Venice: house, live in)

[merlin337]

I currently live in upstate NY and am contemplating a full time move to Naples when I retire in a year and a half. I'd rather not be a snowbird because of the large extra cost and the hassle of maintaining 2 residences and travelling between them with dogs (we have 2). Many describe the summers as some sort of Dante hellscape with unbearable heat and humidity. To you year rounders is it really that bad? Do you get used to it? I don't mind hot weather but it doesn't get super hot up here for very long. I'm a skinny guy and get cold easily and generally heat doesn't bother me much but I've never experienced it for 4 months straight.

And thoughts?

[markjames68]

Everyone has AC so being indoors won’t be an issue.

Outdoors, you’ll learn to do many of your activities before 9am or after 6pm. It also rains often in the mid afternoon for 30-60 minutes, which helps cool things down and clears the air.

Think of a reverse season mindset to what you have now. In upstate NY summers are great but you hibernate during winter. In SWFL it’s the opposite.

[CanonGrace]

We have the same question. We have a home in the jersey shore that we would ideally sell and consolidate here..... I figured we could travel during the summer but I would like to understand if it is that bad.

[merlin337]

Exactly. I don't want to be in a situation to be "hibernating" all summer because it is too hot. I look at the weather in the summer in Naples and the highs are usually 90-92 which doesn't seem all that hot to me. Seems like you could walk on the beach or go for a bike ride or even play tennis in that. Am I missing something?

[chicagochuck23]

Originally Posted by merlin337

Exactly. I don't want to be in a situation to be "hibernating" all summer because it is too hot. I look at the weather in the summer in Naples and the highs are usually 90-92 which doesn't seem all that hot to me. Seems like you could walk on the beach or go for a bike ride or even play tennis in that. Am I missing something?

Are you also looking a humidity and the heat index?


Imagine a day where it's 90 degrees with 75% humidity ... then a storm blows through and it becomes 90 degrees with 90% humidity - lol.


It's brutal. Nothing like going outside at 9pm to a 85 heat index.

[Veniceman]

Originally Posted by merlin337

Exactly. I don't want to be in a situation to be "hibernating" all summer because it is too hot. I look at the weather in the summer in Naples and the highs are usually 90-92 which doesn't seem all that hot to me. Seems like you could walk on the beach or go for a bike ride or even play tennis in that. Am I missing something?

Humidity is what makes Florida summers very hot. Go to websites that show what the dewpoint is in Naples and learn to understand what the dew point numbers mean. Generally speaking when the dew point is over 65 it's uncomfortable. I'm a bit north of Naples but the dew point in Venice in summer is usually 75 or over by midsummer. We deal with it by going for walks at daybreak and staying inside mich of the afternoon. By midsummer the Gulf waters get very warm so you don't get much relief from that. Having access to a pool will help you too. Being thin may help you as well. I'm very thin and heat doesn't bother me as much as it bothers some of my heavier friends. Good luck to you!

[Corrie22]

Originally Posted by merlin337

Many describe the summers as some sort of Dante hellscape with unbearable heat and humidity.

Let's get a little perspective here....and way over a million that are not on CD pizzing and whining about it

merlin, I'm thin too...can't take the cold...and even 70 is too cold for me to enjoy

....love the heat

like mark said....you adjust...just like you adjusted to the cold...and the longer you're here....the less you think about it
..and unlike where you are now.....you can go out every day of the year

...now traffic....that's a whole nother ball game....LOL...but you adjust to that too

[Tripower455]

It really depends on your tolerance for heat and as importantly, humidity.

In SWFL, it's 90+ degrees with matching humidity every day from late May until well into late Oct/Nov. Mid November through the end of march are paradise, but occasionally, the heat index will hit the 90s in between the cold fronts. Late March, April and early May are the driest hot months. Lots of wildfires during those months.

It rains every afternoon between mid June and early October, afterwards, the temps will drop into the high 70's to low 80s, but the humidity will be darn near 100%. The evenings will be in the high 70s, but again, humidity in the 90s.

IMHO, Hell, with palm trees is definitely better than dealing with disgustingly cold winters up north, but you'll start dreading when the calendar is approaching May. Did I mention the humidity?

[Lillie767]

A major difference between FL summer and NY summer is that the FL summer is half the year, not just June, July and August. It starts getting hot and humid in April and stays that way through October/November.

The other major difference is that in NY, despite hot afternoons, the evenings are generally cooler and pleasant so that there is a break from the muggy hot air.

In Naples, "The muggier period of the year lasts for 7.5 months, from April 4 to November 19, during which time the comfort level is muggy, oppressive, or miserable at least 40% of the time. The muggiest day of the year is August 22, with muggy conditions 100% of the time." Look at the charts on the following website, especially the humidity chart, about halfway down the page.

https://weatherspark.com/y/17593/Ave...ve%2092%C2%B0F.

In my mind, the summer isn't the worst because we hibernate: a/c house to a/c car to a/c store and back again. The worst are the "spring" and "Fall" because the temps drop, so the a/c gets the temps down a little, but the humidity is still very high. My a/c system struggles to get the humidity below 60% during transitional seasons.

Once I retired, the snows of NY didn't bother me. I would stay home until the roads were cleared. If is was very cold and bitter, I would just stay home. You can always put on another sweater, but, in FL, once you are down to your tidy whities and you're still hot, stick a fork in it, you're done.

Unless you have family or friends you would like to join in FL, I would look at western VA or NC for retirement.

[merlin337]

My daughter lives in North Carolina (Charlotte). The summers there are as hot or hotter than Naples but the winters still get fairly cold. And it's really hot for at least 3 months. So it seems to me that the summer in Naples is only a little worse than NC but the winters are a lot better.

I've lived in the NE my whole life. It's cold or gray or both a good 8 months of the year. Last year we got almost a foot of snow on May 12. And when it rains it rains for 3 days straight sometimes longer, without stop. No way I'm staying here after I retire.

Maybe I'm different from most people but humidity doesn't bother me much. So 90 and humid isn't too bad. I've been in San Antonio when it was 115. Now with that you really couldn't go outside. Waaaay too hot.