Venice Airport

So odd to me. We arrived at the airport at 10:45 AM for a 1:15 PM flight and were at the gate within 15 minutes. Sat there twiddling our thumbs, got lunch, did last-minute shopping etc. Absolutely none of the hassles that you had to go through, certainly not three security checks. The only difference was, we were not getting off a cruise and there was no evidence of large groups of people coming through such as would have departed a cruise ship. I'm sure that must make a huge difference, so it may pay to stay over an extra day to fly out once the majority of cruise passengers have departed.

My last 2 flights out of Venice were exactly the same as GREGAHOY's experience. And I didn't fly out after a cruise! I'd heard horror stories about Marco Polo so I chose mid week flights. WRONG!

We got to the airport at 4pm for a 6pm flight to Portugal and barely made it. We RAN all the way to the gate and were the last 2 people to board. It was nerve-wracking! Especially when they told us we definitely weren't going to make it! For our noon flight to JFK on Delta, also on a Wed we got to the airport at 9:30am .....again long lines, but at least we had 10 minutes to spare before they called us to board.

For both flights there were long, long lines and only 1 or 2 people at the counter. At the last minute, they doubled the staff and then the lines moved.

I would encourage anyone to get to Marco Polo early. Better to be bored and twiddling your thumbs , than running to a gate, hoping that they're holding the plane for you. It could go either way, so why take the chance?

Just an update on my experiences above and a clarification. We actually did stay an extra day after our cruise, so the lines weren't (I don't think) cruise-related.

Also it might depend on where one is traveling to. Flights to other places in Italy obviously didn't have passport issues, and perhaps flights to other EU countries have shorter lines (I'm just guessing there). Only three gates had the final passport check.

It's interesting trying to dissect the problem. So we were on a non-cruise day, and although we were flying back to the states, we did have a change of planes in Munich, so another Schengen country. But Mapleleaves says they were going to Portugal, so. . .??? Maybe we just have Marco Polo karma!