Venezia
Map: Hotels & Restaurants near St. Mark’s Square
Map: Hotels & Restaurants near Accademia Bridge
Map: Hotels & Restaurants near the Rialto Bridge
SPLURGING ON A WATER (OR OTHERWISE GREAT) VIEW
Soak all day in this puddle of elegant decay. Venice is Europe’s best-preserved big city. This car-free urban wonderland of a hundred islands—laced together by 400 bridges and 2,000 alleys—survives on the artificial respirator of tourism.
Born in a lagoon 1,500 years ago as a refuge from barbarians, Venice is overloaded with tourists and is slowly sinking (not because of the tourists). In the Middle Ages, the Venetians became Europe’s clever middlemen for East-West trade and created a great trading empire. By smuggling in the bones of St. Mark (San Marco) in AD 828, Venice gained religious importance as well. With the discovery of America and new trading routes to the Orient, Venetian power ebbed. But as Venice fell, her appetite for decadence grew. Through the 17th and 18th centuries, Venice partied on the wealth accumulated through earlier centuries as a trading power.
Today, Venice is home to fewer than 55,000 people in its old city, down from about twice that number just three decades ago. While there are about 270,000 people in greater Venice (counting the mainland, not counting tourists), the old town has a small-town feel, and locals seem to know everyone.
Venice is expensive for residents as well as tourists because everything must be shipped in and hand-trucked to its final destination. I find that the best way to enjoy Venice is to succumb to its charms, accept that prices are higher than on the mainland, and blow through a little money. It’s a unique place that’s worth paying a premium to fully experience.
Escape the Rialto-San Marco tourist zone and savor the town early and late, without the hordes of vacationers day-tripping in from cruise ships and nearby beach resorts. A 10-minute walk from the madness puts you in an idyllic Venice that few tourists see.
Venice is worth at least a day on even the speediest tour. Sleep in the old center to experience Venice at its best: early and late. For a one-day visit, cruise the Grand Canal, do the major sights on St. Mark’s Square (the square itself, Doge’s Palace, and St. Mark’s Basilica), enjoy the action at the Rialto Bridge and Rialto Market, see the Frari Church for art, and wander the back streets of the Dorsoduro district to the Accademia Bridge and back to St. Mark’s Square. Enjoy an evening gondola ride and then a drink with the orchestras on St. Mark’s Square. Venice’s greatest sight is the city itself. While doable in a day, Venice is worth two. It’s a medieval cookie jar, and nobody’s looking. Make time to simply wander.
The island city of Venice is shaped like a fish. Its major thoroughfares are canals. The Grand Canal winds through the middle of the fish, starting at the mouth where all the people and food enter, passing under the Rialto Bridge, and ending at St. Mark’s Square (Piazza San Marco). Park your 21st-century perspective at the mouth and let Venice swallow you whole.
Venice is a carless kaleidoscope of people, bridges, and odorless canals. It’s made up of more than a hundred small islands—but for simplicity, I refer to the whole shebang as “the island.”
Venice has six districts known as sestieri: San Marco (from St. Mark’s Square to the Accademia Bridge), Castello (the area east of St. Mark’s Square—the “tail” of the fish), Dorsoduro (the “belly,” on the far side the Accademia Bridge), Cannaregio (between the train station and the Rialto Bridge), San Polo (west of the Rialto Bridge), and Santa Croce (the “eye” of the fish, across the canal from the train station).
The easiest way to navigate is by landmarks. Many street corners have a sign pointing you to (per) the nearest major landmark, such as San Marco, Accademia, Rialto, and Ferrovia (train station). Obedient visitors stick to the main thoroughfares as directed by these signs...and miss the charm of back-street Venice.
Beyond the city’s core lie several other islands, including San Giorgio (with great views of Venice), Giudecca (more views), San Michele (old cemetery), Murano (famous for glass), Burano (lacemaking), Torcello (old church), and Lido (with Venice’s beach).
With this chapter, a free city map from your hotel, and the events schedule on the TI’s website, there’s little need to make an in-person visit to a Venice TI. That’s fortunate, because though the city’s TIs try to help, they’re understaffed and have few free printed materials to hand out. To check or confirm something, try phoning the TI information line at 041-2424 or visit www.veneziaunica.it; this website can be more helpful than the actual TI office. Other useful websites are www.visitmuve.it (city-run museums in Venice), www.unospitedivenezia.it/en (sights and events), www.venicexplorer.net (detailed maps), www.veniceforvisitors.com (general travel advice), www.venicelink.com (travel agent selling public and private transportation tickets), and www.theveniceinsider.com (transportation tips and current events). If you must visit a TI, four are open daily: St. Mark’s Square (in the far-left corner with your back to the basilica), airport, bus station (inside the huge white Autorimessa Comunale parking garage), and train station (across from track 2).
Be wary of the travel agencies or special information services that masquerade as TIs but serve fancy hotels and tour companies. They’re in the business of selling things you don’t need.
Maps: Of all places, Venice demands a good map. Hotels give away freebies. TIs and vaporetto ticket booths sell decent €3 maps—but you can find a wider range at bookshops, newsstands, and postcard stands. If you spend €5, you’ll get a map that shows all the tiny alleys. It may be the best money you spend in Venice. But know you’ll still spend some time “exploring” (read: lost). Also consider a mapping app for your mobile phone. (City Maps 2Go and Google Maps cover Venice well.)
A two-mile-long causeway (with highway and train lines) connects Venice to the mainland. Mestre, the sprawling mainland section of Venice, has fewer crowds, cheaper hotels, and plenty of inexpensive parking lots, but zero charm. Don’t stop in Mestre unless you’re changing trains, parking your car, or sleeping there.
Tourist Tax: As part of an initiative to reduce overcrowding, day-trippers arriving in Venice may be charged a €3-10 visitor tax (charge depends on crowd level).
All trains to “Venice” stop at Venezia Mestre (on the mainland). Most continue on to Santa Lucia Station (a.k.a. Venezia S.L.) on the island of Venice itself. If your train happens to terminate at Mestre, you’ll need to buy a €1.25 Mestre-Santa Lucia ticket and validate it before hopping any nonexpress, regional train (with an R or RV prefix) for the ride across the causeway to Venice (6/hour, 10 minutes).
Santa Lucia train station plops you right into the old town on the Grand Canal, an easy vaporetto ride or fascinating 45-minute walk (with a number of bridges and steps) to St. Mark’s Square.
The station has a baggage check (daily 6:00-23:00, no lockers; along track 1). Pay WCs are at track 1 and in the back of the big bar/cafeteria area inside the station. You’ll find the TI across from track 2. If the station TI is crowded when you arrive, visit the TI at St. Mark’s Square instead.
Confirm your departure plan (at the station you can use the ticket machines or study the partenze/departures posters on walls). The banks of user-friendly ticket machines are handy (but cover Italian destinations only). They take euros and credit cards, display schedules, and issue tickets.
Getting from the Train Station to Central Venice: It’s best by vaporetto. Walk straight out of the station to the canal, where you’ll see five vaporetto docks (A, B, C, D, and E), each serving different boats. Electronic signboards show which boats are leaving when and from which dock (for example, boat #2 to San Marco, from dock B). Most tourists want the fast boat #2 down the Grand Canal to Rialto and San Marco (generally from dock B) or the slow boat #1 down the Grand Canal, making every stop all the way to Rialto and San Marco.
Buy a €7.50 ticket before you board. If ticket-window lines by the docks are too long, you can also buy from self-service machines nearby (English-language option, major credit cards accepted), or inside the station at the TI or a newsstand. Before buying a single-ride vaporetto ticket, consider getting a transit pass (see here). Find your dock and validate your ticket/pass by touching it to the circular pad on the dock; the gates will open to let you onto the dock. Because docks serve multiple lines, before you hop on the vaporetto, confirm with the conductor that this particular boat is going to your stop (“Rialto?”).
A water taxi from the train station to central Venice costs about €60-80 (the taxi dock is straight ahead).
Venice’s “bus station” is an open-air parking lot called Piazzale Roma. The square itself is a jumble of different operators, platforms, and crosswalks over busy lanes of traffic. But bus stops are well-signed. The ticket windows for ACTV (including #5 to Marco Polo Airport) are in a building between the bridge and vaporetto stop. The ATVO ticket office (express buses to Marco Polo and Treviso airports and to Padua) is at #497g in the big, white building, on the right side of the square as you face away from the canal (office open daily 6:45-19:30).
Piazzale Roma also has two big parking garages and the People Mover monorail (€1.50, links to the cruise port and then the parking-lot island of Tronchetto). A baggage-storage office is next to the monorail at #497m (€7/24 hours, daily 6:00-21:00).
If you arrive here, find the vaporetto docks (just left of the modern bridge) and take #1 or the faster #2 down the Grand Canal to reach the Rialto, Accademia, or San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) stops. Electronic boards direct you to the dock you want. Before buying a single-ride vaporetto ticket, consider getting a transit pass (see here). If your hotel is near here or near the train station, you can get there on foot.
The freeway (monitored by speed cameras) dead-ends after crossing the causeway to Venice. At the end of the road you have two parking-garage choices: Tronchetto or Piazzale Roma. As you drive into the city, signboards with green and red lights indicate which lots are full.
Parking at Tronchetto: This big garage is a bit farther out, but it’s a little cheaper and well-connected by vaporetto (€3-5/hour, €21/24 hours, tel. 041-520-7555, www.veniceparking.it).
From the garage, cross the street to the brick building and go right to the vaporetto dock (not well-signed, look for ACTV). At the dock, catch vaporetto #2 in one of two directions: via the Grand Canal (more scenic, stops at Rialto, 40 minutes to San Marco), or via Giudecca (around the city, faster, no Rialto stop, 30 minutes to San Marco).
Don’t be waylaid by aggressive water-taxi boatmen. They charge €100 to take you where the vaporetto will for far less. Also avoid the travel agencies masquerading as TIs; deal only with the ticket booth at the vaporetto dock or the VèneziaUnica public transport office. If you’re going to buy a local transit pass, do it now.
If you’re staying near the bus or train station, you can take the €1.50 People Mover monorail, which brings you from Tronchetto to the bus station at Piazzale Roma. From there, it’s a five-minute walk across the modern Calatrava Bridge to the train station (buy tickets with cash or credit card from machine, 3-minute trip).
Parking at Piazzale Roma: The two garages here are more convenient but a bit more expensive and likelier to be full. Both face the busy Piazzale Roma, where the road ends. The big white building on your right is the Autorimessa Comunale city garage (€26/24 hours, TI office in payment lobby open daily 7:30-19:30, tel. 041-272-7211, www.avmspa.it). In a back corner of the square is the private Garage San Marco (€32/24 hours, tel. 041-523-2213, www.garagesanmarco.it). At either, you’ll have to give up your keys. Near the Garage San Marco, avoid the Parcheggio Sant’Andrea, which charges higher rates.
For information on Venice’s airport and cruise ship terminal, see the end of this chapter.
Sightseeing Tips: Venice offers plenty of sightseeing passes, but only a few—like the Doge’s Palace and Correr Museum combo-ticket—are worth the money. For more on passes and other sightseeing advice, see here.
Theft Alert: The dark, late-night streets of Venice are generally safe. Even so, pickpockets (often elegantly dressed) work the crowded main streets, docks, and vaporetti. Your biggest risk of pickpockets is inside St. Mark’s Basilica, near the Accademia or Rialto bridges (especially if you’re preoccupied with snapping photos), or on a tightly packed vaporetto.
A handy polizia station is on the right side of St. Mark’s Square as you face the basilica (at #63, near Caffè Florian). To call the police, dial 113. The Venice TI handles complaints—which must be submitted in writing—about local crooks, including gondoliers, restaurants, and hotel rip-offs (complaint.apt@turismovenezia.it).
It’s illegal for street vendors to sell knockoff handbags, and it’s illegal for you to buy them; both you and the vendor can get big fines.
Medical Help: Venice’s Santi Giovanni e Paolo hospital (tel. 118) is a 10-minute walk from both the Rialto and San Marco neighborhoods, located behind the big church of the same name on Fondamenta dei Mendicanti (toward Fondamente Nove). You can take vaporetto #4.1 from San Zaccaria, or #5.2 from the train station or Piazzale Roma, to the Ospedale stop. Also, a first-aid station staffed by English-speaking doctors is on St. Mark’s Square, on the right-hand side as you face the basilica (at #63 next to Caffé Florian—same address as polizia station, daily 8:00-20:00, tel. 041-2960-784).
Behave in Venice: Remember that Venice is a community of about 50,000 people who welcome visitors but feel violated when tourists don’t respect the city they love. The vast majority of visitors are day-trippers stampeding in, seeing the famous stuff, and stampeding out. Venetians ask a few simple rules are followed: Dress decently, don’t swim in the canals, don’t litter, stay on the right as you walk, and treat things as if they are both historic and fragile...because they are.
Dress Modestly: When visiting St. Mark’s Basilica or other major churches, men, women, and even children must cover their shoulders and knees. Remove hats when entering a church.
Picnics: Picnicking is illegal anywhere on St. Mark’s Square, and offenders can be fined. The only place nearby for a legal picnic is in Giardinetti Reali, the small bench-filled park along the waterfront west of the Piazzetta near St. Mark’s Square. Elsewhere in Venice, picnicking is no problem.
Bookstores: In keeping with its literary heritage, Venice has classy and inviting bookstores. The small Libreria Studium, a block behind St. Mark’s Basilica, has a carefully chosen selection of new English books, including my guidebooks (Mon-Sat 9:00-19:30, shorter hours Sun, on Calle de la Canonica at #337, tel. 041-522-2382).
Used-bookstore lovers will appreciate the funky Acqua Alta (“high water”) bookstore, whose quirky owner Luigi has prepared for the next flood by displaying his wares in a selection of vessels, including bathtubs and a gondola. Look for the “book stairs” in his back garden (daily 9:00-20:00, large and classically disorganized selection includes prints of Venice, just beyond Campo Santa Maria Formosa on Lunga Santa Maria Formosa, Castello 5176, tel. 041-296-0841). For a solid selection of used books in English, visit Marco Polo, on Calle del Teatro o de l’Opera, close to the St. Mark’s side of the Rialto Bridge, behind the church (daily 9:30-19:30, Cannaregio 5886a, tel. 041-522-6343).
Public Toilets: Handy pay WCs are near major landmarks, including St. Mark’s Square (behind the Correr Museum and at the waterfront park, Giardinetti Reali), Rialto, and the Accademia Bridge. Or use free toilets at any museum you’re visiting, or any café you’re eating in.
Laundry: Across the Grand Canal from the train station is the coin-operated Orange Self-Service Lavanderia (daily 7:30-22:30, on Ramo de le Chioverete, Santa Croce 665b—see map on here, mobile 346-972-5446).
These laundry places are near St. Mark’s Square (see here for locations): Self-service Effe Erre is off Campo Santa Maria Formosa (daily 6:30-23:30, on Ruga Giuffa, Castello 4826, mobile 349-058-3881). Lavanderia Gabriella offers full-service laundry, a few streets north of St. Mark’s Square (drop off Mon-Fri 8:00-12:30, closed Sat-Sun; pick up 2 hours later or next working day, on Rio Terà de le Colonne, San Marco 985, tel. 041-522-1758, friendly Elisabetta).
Best Views: A slow vaporetto ride down the Grand Canal—ideally very early or just before sunset—is a shutterbug’s delight. On St. Mark’s Square, enjoy views from the soaring Campanile or the balcony of St. Mark’s Basilica (both require admission). The Rialto and Accademia bridges provide expansive views of the Grand Canal, along with a cooling breeze. The luxury mall Fondaco dei Tedeschi, just north of the Rialto Bridge, has even better views, especially around sunset (free but book a reservation; see details on here). Or get off the main island for a view of the Venetian skyline: Ascend San Giorgio Maggiore’s bell tower (admission fee), or venture to Giudecca Island to visit the swanky bar of the Molino Stucky Hilton Hotel (the free-to-“customers” shuttle boat leaves from near the San Zaccaria-B vaporetto dock).
Water: I carry a water bottle to refill at public fountains. Venetians pride themselves on having pure, safe, and tasty tap water piped in from the foothills of the Alps. You can actually see the mountains from Venice’s bell towers on crisp, clear winter days.
Pigeon Poop: If your head is bombed by a pigeon, resist the initial response to wipe it off immediately—it’ll just smear into your hair. Wait until it dries, and it should flake off cleanly. But if the poop splatters on your clothes, wipe it off immediately to avoid a stain.
The city’s “streets” are narrow pedestrian walkways connecting its docks, squares, bridges, and courtyards. To navigate, look for signs on street corners pointing you to (per) the nearest major landmark. The first landmarks you’ll get to know are San Marco (St. Mark’s Square), Rialto (the bridge), Accademia (another bridge), Ferrovia (“railroad,” meaning the train station), and Piazzale Roma (the bus station). Determine whether your destination is in the direction of a major, signposted landmark, then follow the signs through the maze.
As you get more comfortable with the city, dare to disobey these signs, avoid the posted routes, and make your own discoveries. While 80 percent of Venice is, in fact, not touristy, 80 percent of the tourists never notice. Escape the crowds and explore on foot. Walk and walk to the far reaches of the town.
Don’t worry about getting lost—in fact, get as lost as possible. When it comes time to find your way, just follow the arrows on building corners or simply ask a local, “Dov’è San Marco?” (“Where is St. Mark’s?”) Most Venetians speak some English. If you’re lost, refer to a map, or pop into a hotel and ask for their business card—it probably comes with a map and a prominent “You are here.”
Every building in Venice has a house number. The numbers relate to the district (each with about 6,000 address numbers), not the street. Therefore, if you need to find a specific address, it helps to know its district, street, house number, and nearby landmarks.
Some helpful street terminology: Campo means square, a campiello is a small square, calle (pronounced “KAH-lay” with an “L” sound) means “street,” and a ponte is a bridge. A fondamenta is the embankment along a canal or the lagoon. A rio terà is a street that was once a canal and has been filled in. A sotoportego is a covered passageway. Salizzada literally means a paved area (usually a wide street). The abbreviations S. and SS. mean “saint” and “saints” respectively. Don’t get hung up on the exact spelling of street and square names, which may sometimes appear in Venetian dialect (which uses de la, novo, and vechio) and other times in standard Italian (which uses della, nuovo, and vecchio).
Venice’s public transit system, run by a company called ACTV, is a fleet of motorized bus-boats called vaporetti. They work like city buses except that they never get a flat, the stops are docks, and if you jump off between stops, you might drown. For the same prices, you can purchase tickets and passes at docks and from ACTV affiliate VèneziaUnica (ACTV—tel. 041-2424, www.actv.it; VèneziaUnica—www.veneziaunica.it).
Individual Vaporetto Tickets: A single ticket costs €7.50 (kids under 6 travel free). Tickets are good for 75 minutes; you can hop on and off at stops and change boats during that time. Your ticket (a paper ticket embedded with a chip) is refillable—don’t toss it after the first use. You can put more money on it at the kiosks and avoid waiting in line at the ticket window. It’s also smart to keep your receipt (in case you’re checked and your ticket is faulty).
Several vaporetti leave from the San Zaccaria docks, located 150 yards east of St. Mark’s Square. The four docks are spaced about 70 yards apart, with six different berths, lettered A to F. Check the big electronic board (next to the C/D dock), which indicates the departure time, line number, destination, and berth letter of upcoming vaporetti. Once you’ve figured out which boat you want, go to that letter berth and hop on.
Line #1: This vaporetto goes up the Grand Canal, making all the stops, including San Marco, Rialto, Ferrovia (train station), and Piazzale Roma (but it does not go as far as Tronchetto). In the other direction, it goes from San Zaccaria to Arsenale and Giardini before ending on the Lido (dock E).
Line #2: This vaporetto zips over to San Giorgio Maggiore, the island church across from St. Mark’s Square (5 minutes, €5 ride). From there, it continues on to stops on the island of Giudecca, the parking lot at Tronchetto, and then down the Grand Canal (dock B). Note: You cannot ride the #2 up the Grand Canal (for example, to Rialto or the train station) directly from this stop—you’ll need to walk five minutes along the waterfront, past St. Mark’s Square, to the San Marco-Giardinetti dock and hop the #2 from there.
Line #4.1: This boat goes to San Michele and Murano (45 minutes, dock D).
Line #7: This is the summertime express boat to Murano (25 minutes, dock D).
Molino Stucky Shuttle Boat: This takes even non-guests to the Hilton Hotel, with its popular view bar (20-minute ride, 3/hour, from its own dock near the San Zaccaria-B dock).
Lines #5.1 and #5.2: These are the circulare (cheer-koo-LAH-ray) lines, making a loop around the perimeter of the island, with a stop at the Lido—perfect if you just like riding boats. Line #5.1 goes counterclockwise, and #5.2 goes clockwise. Both run less frequently in the evenings (#5.1 leaves from dock D, #5.2 from dock C).
Alilaguna Shuttle Boat: This runs to and from the airport (dock D).
Vaporetto Passes: You can buy a pass for unlimited use of vaporetti: €20/24 hours, €30/48 hours, €40/72 hours, €60/7-day pass (the clock starts ticking the first time you use it). Because single tickets are pricey, these passes pay for themselves in a hurry. Think through your Venice itinerary before you step up to the ticket booth to pay for your first vaporetto trip. The 48-hour pass pays for itself with five rides (for example: to your hotel on your arrival, on a Grand Canal joyride, into the lagoon and back, to the train station...and that spur-of-the-moment moonlight cruise). It’s fun to be able to hop on and off spontaneously, and avoid long ticket lines. Because some smaller and outlying stops are unstaffed, that’s another reason to buy a pass.
Travelers between ages 6-29 can get a 72-hour pass for €22 if they also buy a Rolling Venice discount card for €6 (see here).
Passes are also valid on some of ACTV’s mainland buses, including bus #2 to Mestre (but not the #5 to the airport nor the airport buses run by ATVO, a separate company). Pass holders get a discounted fare for all ACTV buses that originate or terminate at Marco Polo Airport (see here).
Buying and Validating Tickets and Passes: Purchase tickets and passes from the machines at most stops (English-language option, major credit cards accepted), from ticket windows (at larger stops), or from the VèneziaUnica offices at the train station, bus station, and Tronchetto parking lot.
Venice has battled rising water levels since the fifth century. But today, the water seems to be winning. Several factors, both natural and man-made, cause Venice to flood dozens of times a year—usually from October until late winter—a phenomenon called the acqua alta.
On my last trip I asked a Venetian how much the city is sinking. He said, “Less than the sea is rising.” Venice sits atop sediments deposited at the ancient mouth of the Po River, which are still compacting and settling. Early industrial projects, such as offshore piers and the railroad bridge to the mainland, affected the sea floor and tidal cycles in ways that made the city more vulnerable to flooding. Twentieth-century industry worsened things by pumping massive amounts of groundwater out of the aquifer beneath the lagoon for nearly 50 years before the government stopped the practice in the 1970s. In the last century, Venice has sunk by about nine inches.
Meanwhile, the waters around Venice are rising, a phenomenon that’s especially apparent in winter. The highest so far was in November of 1966, when a huge storm (the same one that famously flooded Florence) raised Venice’s water level to more than six feet above the norm. The notorious acqua alta happens when an unusually high tide combines with strong sirocco winds and a storm. Although tides are minuscule in the Mediterranean, the narrow, shallow Adriatic Sea has about a three-foot tidal range. When a storm—an area of low pressure—travels over a body of water, it pulls the surface of the water up into a dome. As strong sirocco winds from Africa blow storms north up the Adriatic, they push this high water ahead of the front, causing a surging storm tide. Add to that the worldwide sea-level rise that’s resulted from recent climate change (melting ice caps, thermal expansion of the water, more frequent and more powerful storms) and it makes a high sea that much higher.
If the acqua alta appears during your visit, you’ll see the first puddles in the center of paved squares, pooling around the limestone grates at the square’s lowest point. These grates cover cisterns that long held Venice’s only source of drinking water. That’s right: Surrounded by the lagoon and beset by constant flooding, this city had no natural source of fresh water. For centuries, residents carried water from the mainland with much effort and risk. In the ninth century, they devised a way to collect rainwater by using paved, cleverly sloped squares as catchment systems, with limestone filters covering underground clay tubs. Venice’s population grew markedly once citizens were able to access fresh water by simply dropping buckets down into these “wells.” Hundreds of cisterns provided the city with drinking water up until 1884, when an aqueduct was built (paralleling the railroad bridge) to bring in water from nearby mountains. Now the wells are capped, the clay tubs are rotted out, and rain drains from squares into the lagoon—or up from it, as the case may be.
So, what is Venice doing about the flooding? After the 1966 flood, officials knew something had to be done, but it took about four decades to come up with a solution. In 2003, a consortium of engineering firms began construction on the MOSE Project. Named for the acronym of its Italian name, Modulo Sperimentale Elettromeccanico, it’s also a nod to Moses and his (albeit temporary) mastery over the sea.
Underwater “mobile” gates are being installed on the floor of the sea at the three inlets where the open sea enters Venice’s lagoon. When the seawater rises above a certain level, air will be pumped into the gates, causing them to rise and shut out the Adriatic. The first gates are already installed and on the verge of becoming operational. But, in good Italian fashion, greedy government officials were unable to resist the opportunity for personal enrichment and a corruption scandal has stranded the entire project for the foreseeable future.
Before you board, validate your ticket or pass by touching it to the small white pad on the dock until you hear a pinging sound. With passes, you need to touch the pass each time you board a boat. The machine readout shows how long your ticket is valid—and inspectors do come by now and then to check tickets. If you’re unable to purchase a ticket before boarding, seek out the conductor immediately to buy a single ticket (or risk a €60 fine).
For most travelers, only two vaporetto lines matter: line #1 and line #2. These lines leave every 10 minutes or so and go up and down the Grand Canal, between the “mouth” of the fish at one end and St. Mark’s Square at the other. Line #1 is the slow boat, taking 45 minutes and making every stop along the way. Line #2 is the fast boat that zips down the Grand Canal in 25 minutes, stopping only at Tronchetto (parking lot), Piazzale Roma (bus station), Ferrovia (train station), Rialto Bridge, San Tomà (Frari Church), San Samuele (opposite Ca’ Rezzonico), Accademia Bridge, and San Marco (west end of St. Mark’s Square, end of the line).
Take time to study the maps at docks before you board. Some boats run on circular routes, in one direction only (for example, lines #5.1 and #5.2, plus the non-Murano sections of lines #4.1 and #4.2). Line #2 runs in both directions and is almost, but not quite, a full loop. The #2 boat leaving from the San Marco stop goes in one direction (up the Grand Canal), while from the San Zaccaria stop—just a five-minute walk away—it goes in the opposite direction (around the tail of the “fish”). Make sure you use the correct stop to avoid taking the long way around to your destination.
To clear up any confusion, ask a ticket-seller or conductor for help (sometimes they’re stationed on the dock to help confused tourists). Get a copy of the most current ACTV map and timetable (in English and Italian, download from www.actv.it, theoretically free at ticket booths but often unavailable). System maps are posted at stops, but it’s smart to print out your own copy of the map from the ACTV website before your trip.
Once you know which line you want, you need to find the right departure platform (many stops have more than one). At these larger stops, check the electronic departure board to see which boats are coming next, when, where they’re going, and from which platform they leave (for example, “Line 2 to San Marco, from platform B”). At smaller stops without electronic displays, signs on each platform show the vaporetto lines that stop there and the direction they are headed. Once you find your platform, be aware that other boats may also be leaving from the same platform. When the boat arrives, confirm the direction posted on the bow (“Line 2, San Marco”). To double-check, ask the conductor when you board (“San Marco?”).
For fun, take my self-guided Grand Canal Cruise. But be warned: Grand Canal vaporetti can be absolutely jam-packed, especially during the tourist rush hour (during mornings heading in from Piazzale Roma, and in evenings heading out to Piazzale Roma). Riding at night, with nearly empty boats and chandelier-lit palace interiors viewable from the Grand Canal, can be a highlight of your Venetian experience.
Only four bridges cross the Grand Canal, but traghetti (shuttle gondolas) ferry locals and in-the-know tourists across the Grand Canal at three additional locations (see the map on here). Just step in, hand the gondolier €2, and enjoy the ride—standing or sitting. Some traghetti are seasonal, some stop running as early as 12:30, and all stop by 18:00. Traghetti are not covered by any transit pass.
Venetian taxis, like speedboat limos, hang out at busy points along the Grand Canal. Prices are regulated: €15 for pickup, then €2 per minute; €5 per person for more than four passengers (boats can carry around 10 people); and €10 between 22:00 and 6:00. If you have more bags than passengers, the extra ones cost €5 apiece. (For information on taking the water taxi to/from the airport, see here.) Despite regulation, prices can be soft; negotiate and settle on the price or rate before stepping in. For travelers with lots of luggage or small groups who can split the cost, taxi boat rides can be a worthwhile and time-saving convenience—and skipping across the lagoon in a classic wooden motorboat is a cool indulgence. For about €120 an hour, you can have a private, unguided taxi-boat tour. You may find more competitive rates if you prebook through the Consorzio Motoscafi water taxi association (tel. 041-522-2303, www.motoscafivenezia.it).
If you’re interested in hiring a gondolier for your own private cruise, see here.
Local guides and tour companies offer plenty of walking tours that cater to a variety of interests.
To sightsee on your own, download my series of free audio tours that illuminate some of Venice’s top sights and neighborhoods (see the sidebar on here for details).
This company offers several small-group, English-only tours, including a basic two-hour St. Mark’s Square introduction called the “Original Venice Walking Tour” (€25, includes church entry, most days at 11:00, Sun at 14:00), a 65-minute boat tour of the Grand Canal (€48, daily at 16:00, 10 people maximum), a Rialto Market-area food-and-wine tour (€69, in summer 3/week at 11:15), and mainland excursions (RS%—10 percent discount, contact them before booking for a promo code; details at www.tours-italy.com, tel. 041-970-499, info@tours-italy.com).
Alessandro Schezzini is a connoisseur of Venetian bacari—classic old bars serving wine and traditional cicchetti snacks. He organizes two-hour Venetian bar tours (€40/person, most nights at 18:00) that include sampling cicchetti with wines at three bacari. (If you think of this tour as a light dinner with a local friend, it’s a particularly good value.)
Alessandro is not a licensed guide, so he can’t take you into sights. But his 1.5-hour Backstreets Tour gets you into offbeat Venice (€20/person, most nights at 16:30).
Both tours depart almost daily in season when six or more sign up. They meet 50 yards north of the Rialto Bridge under the big clock on Campo San Giacomo. (Book via email, alessandro@schezzini.it, or by phone at 335-530-9024; www.schezzini.it.)
Adam and Maya Stonecastle are expats from Los Angeles who enjoy sharing their adopted community and their love for cicchetti culture with travelers. Their two 3.5-hour food tours—usually led by both Adam and Maya—include lots of walking and fun insights. On their lunch tour, you’ll munch and drink at 7 spots from the Accademia to the Rialto Bridge (€105/person, most days at 11:00, 10 people maximum). The dinner walk loops out and back from the Rialto Bridge, stopping at 5 or 6 places (€112/person, RS%—€15 off if you book online with discount code “RICKSTEVES”; tours run most nights at 18:00, 8 people maximum, tel. 800-656-0713, www.venicebitesfoodtours.com).
Michael Broderick’s private, themed tours of Venice are intellectually demanding and engrossing for history buffs. Michael, a passionate teacher, has spent nearly 30 years living and studying in Venice. He’s an instinctive “dot connector,” so his tours intertwine history, art, politics, economics, culture, and religion (various 4- to 6-hour itineraries, 2 people—$280-320 or the euro equivalent, $60/person after that, admissions and transport extra, tel. 041-850-5742, mobile 349-479-7406, www.venicescapes.org, info@venicescapes.org).
Plenty of licensed, trained guides are available (figure on €75/hour with a 2-hour minimum). I’ve enjoyed working with the following guides and groups:
Walks Inside Venice is enthusiastic about teaching (€280/3 hours per group of up to 6, RS%; Roberta: mobile 347-253-0560; Sara: mobile 335-522-9714; www.walksinsidevenice.com, info@walksinsidevenice.com).
Elisabetta Morelli and Corine Govi, who run 2Guides4Venice, are informative and reliable (Elisabetta: mobile 328-753-5220, bettamorelli@inwind.it; Corine: mobile 347-966-8346, corine_g@libero.it; www.2guides4venice.com).
Venice with a Guide, a co-op of eight good Venetian guides, offers a range of tours (€75/hour, www.venicewithaguide.com).
BestVeniceGuides.it offers a smartly organized online catalog of about 100 local guides, with information to help you pick the right guide for you. Note that Italy allows all licensed guides to lead tours anywhere in the country, so it behooves the thoughtful traveler to book a Venetian guide for the best Venetian experience (family-friendly guides, shared group tours available, most guides about €75/hour, www.bestveniceguides.it).
Take a joyride and introduce yourself to Venice by boat, an experience worth ▲▲▲. Cruise the Canal Grande all the way to St. Mark’s Square, starting at the train station (Ferrovia) or the bus station (Piazzale Roma, where you’re more likely to find an empty seat). Consider topping it off with my self-guided tour of St. Mark’s Basilica (later, under “Sights in Venice”).
If it’s your first trip down the Grand Canal, you might want to stow this book and just take it all in—Venice is a barrage on the senses that hardly needs narration. On the other hand, these notes give the cruise meaning and help orient you to this great city.
This tour is designed to be done on the slow boat #1. The express boat #2 travels the same route, but it skips many stops, making this tour hard to follow and hop-on/hop-off sightseeing impossible.
To help you enjoy the visual parade of canal wonders, the tour is organized by boat stop. I’ll point out both what you can see from the current stop, and what to look forward to as you cruise to the next stop. Because it’s hard to see everything in one go, you may want to do this tour twice (perhaps once in either direction).
You can break up the tour by hopping on and off at various sights—but remember, a single-fare vaporetto ticket is good for just 75 minutes (passes let you hop on and off all day).
Length of This Tour: Allow 45 minutes.
Tours: Download my free Grand Canal Cruise audio tour.
Seating Strategies: As the vaporetti can be jammed, strategize about where to sit—then, when the boat pulls up, make a beeline for your preference. You’re more likely to find an empty seat if you catch the vaporetto at Piazzale Roma—the stop before Ferrovia.
A few remaining older vaporetti have seats in the bow (in front of the captain’s bridge), the perfect vantage point for spotting sights left, right, and forward. With a standard boat and normal crowds, I’d head for the open-air section in the stern and grab the middle seat. While views directly ahead are obliterated by the boat’s cabin, you’ll have a good view of my described sights on both sides of the boat. If it’s not crowded, you can hang out in the middle (loading zone) and bop from side to side (especially easy after dark). Your worst option is sitting inside and trying to look out the window.
The Grand Canal is Venice’s “Main Street.” At more than two miles long, nearly 150 feet wide, and nearly 15 feet deep, it’s the city’s largest canal, lined with its most impressive palaces. It’s the remnant of a river that once spilled from the mainland into the Adriatic. The sediment it carried formed barrier islands that cut Venice off from the sea, forming a lagoon.
Venice was built on the marshy islands of the former delta, sitting on wood pilings driven nearly 15 feet into the clay (alder was the preferred wood). About 25 miles of canals drain the city, dumping like streams into the Grand Canal. Technically, Venice has only three canals: Grand, Giudecca, and Cannaregio. The 45 small waterways that dump into the Grand Canal are referred to as rivers (e.g., Rio Novo).
Venice is a city of palaces, dating from the days when the city was the world’s richest. The most lavish palaces formed a grand architectural cancan along the Grand Canal. Once frescoed in reds and blues, with black-and-white borders and gold-leaf trim, they made Venice a city of dazzling color. This cruise is the only way to truly appreciate the palaces, approaching them at water level, where their main entrances were located. Today, strict laws prohibit any changes in these buildings, so while landowners gnash their teeth, we can enjoy Europe’s best-preserved medieval/Renaissance city—slowly rotting. Many of the grand buildings are now vacant. Others harbor chandeliered elegance above mossy, empty (often flooded) ground floors.
SELF-GUIDED CRUISEThis tour starts at the Ferrovia vaporetto stop (at Santa Lucia train station). The #1 boat to San Marco generally leaves from dock E (far to the right).
1 Ferrovia: This site has been the gateway into Venice since 1860, when the first train station was built. The Santa Lucia station, one of the few modern buildings in town, was built in 1954. The “F.S.” logo above the entry stands for “Ferrovie dello Stato,” the Italian state railway system. Consider that before the causeway was built in the mid-1800s, Venice was an island with no road or train access and no water system. With the causeway the city got a train line, an aqueduct, and a highway.
More than 20,000 people a day commute in from the mainland, making this the busiest part of Venice during rush hour. The nearby Calatrava Bridge, spanning the Grand Canal between the train station and Piazzale Roma upstream, was built in 2008 to alleviate some of the congestion.
2 Riva de Biasio: Venice’s main thoroughfare is busy with all kinds of boats: taxis, police boats, garbage boats, ambulances, construction cranes, and even brown-and-white UPS boats. Somehow they all manage to share the canal in relative peace.
About 25 yards past the Riva de Biasio stop, look left down the broad Cannaregio Canal to see what was the Jewish Ghetto. The twin, pale-pink, six-story “skyscrapers”—the tallest buildings you’ll see at this end of the canal—are reminders of how densely populated the world’s original ghetto was. Set aside as the local Jewish quarter in 1516, this area became extremely crowded. This urban island developed into one of the most closely knit business and cultural quarters of all the Jewish communities in Italy, and gave us our word “ghetto” (from geto, the copper foundry located here).
3 San Marcuola: At this stop, facing a tiny square just ahead, stands the unfinished Church of San Marcuola, one of only five churches fronting the Grand Canal. Centuries ago, this canal was a commercial drag of expensive real estate in high demand by wealthy merchants. About 20 yards ahead on the right (across the Grand Canal) stands the stately gray Turkish Exchange (Fondaco dei Turchi), one of the oldest houses in Venice. Its horseshoe arches and roofline of triangles and dingle balls are reminders of its Byzantine heritage. Turkish traders in turbans docked here, unloaded their goods into the warehouse on the bottom story, then went upstairs for a home-style meal and a place to sleep. Venice in the 1500s was very cosmopolitan, welcoming every religion and ethnicity, so long as they carried cash. (Today the building contains the city’s Museum of Natural History—and Venice’s only dinosaur skeleton.)
Just 100 yards ahead on the left (the tallest building with the red canopy), Venice’s Casinò is housed in the palace where German composer Richard (The Ring) Wagner died in 1883. See his distinct, strong-jawed profile in the white plaque on the brick wall. In the 1700s, Venice was Europe’s Vegas, with casinos and prostitutes everywhere. Casinòs (“little houses” in Venetian dialect) have long provided Italians with a handy escape from daily life. Today they’re run by the state to keep Mafia influence at bay. Notice the fancy front porch, rolling out the red carpet for high rollers arriving by taxi or hotel boat. Across the canal, the plain brick 15th-century building was a granary. Now it’s a grade school.
4 San Stae: The San Stae Church sports a delightful Baroque facade. Opposite the San Stae stop is a little canal opening—on the second building to the right of that opening, look for the peeling plaster that once made up frescoes (you can barely distinguish the scant remains of little angels on the lower floors). Imagine the facades of the Grand Canal at their finest. Most of them would have been covered in frescoes by the best artists of the day. As colorful as the city is today, it’s still only a faded, sepia-toned remnant of a long-gone era, a time of lavishly decorated, brilliantly colored palaces.
Just ahead (on the right, with blue posts) is the ornate white facade of Ca’ Pesaro (which houses the International Gallery of Modern Art). “Ca’” is short for casa (house).
In this city of masks, notice how the rich marble facades along the Grand Canal mask what are generally just simple, no-nonsense brick buildings. Most merchants enjoyed showing off. However, being smart businessmen, they only decorated the sides of the buildings that would be seen and appreciated. But look back as you pass Ca’ Pesaro. It’s the only building you’ll see with a fine side facade. Ahead (about 100 yards on the left) is Ca’ d’Oro, with its glorious triple-decker medieval arcade (just before the next stop).
5 Ca’ d’Oro: The lacy Ca’ d’Oro (House of Gold) is the best example of Venetian Gothic architecture on the canal. Although a simple brick construction, its facade is one of the city’s finest. Its three stories offer different variations on balcony design, topped with a spiny white roofline. Venetian Gothic mixes traditional Gothic (pointed arches and round medallions stamped with a four-leaf clover) with Byzantine styles (tall, narrow arches atop thin columns), filled in with Islamic frills. Like all the palaces, this was originally painted and gilded to make it even more glorious than it is now. Today the Ca’ d’Oro is an art gallery.
Look at the Venetian chorus line of palaces in front of the boat. On the right is the arcade of the covered fish market, with the open-air produce market just beyond. It bustles in the morning but is quiet the rest of the day. This is a great scene to wander through—even though European Union hygiene standards have made it cleaner and less colorful than it once was.
Find the traghetto gondola ferrying shoppers—standing like Washington crossing the Delaware—back and forth. While once much more numerable, today only three traghetto crossings survive along the Grand Canal, each one marked by a classy low-key green-and-black sign. Piloting a traghetto isn’t the normal day job of these gondoliers. As a public service, all gondoliers are obliged to row a traghetto a few days a month. Make a point to use them. At €2 a ride, traghetti offer the cheapest gondola ride in Venice (but at this price, don’t expect them to sing to you).
6 Rialto Mercato: This stop serves the busy market. The long, official-looking building at the stop is the Venice courthouse. Directly ahead (on the left), is the Fondaco dei Tedeschi—the former German Exchange (a trading center for German merchants in the 16th century). Later the central post office, it’s now a luxury shopping mall with great rooftop views. Rising above it is the tip of the Campanile (bell tower), crowned by its golden-angel weathervane at St. Mark’s Square, where this tour will end.
You’ll cruise by some trendy and beautifully situated wine bars on the right, but look ahead as you round the corner and see the impressive Rialto Bridge come into view.
A major landmark, the Rialto Bridge is lined with shops and tourists. Constructed in 1588, it’s the third bridge built on this spot. Until the 1850s, this was the only bridge crossing the Grand Canal. With a span of 160 feet and foundations stretching 650 feet on either side, the Rialto was an impressive engineering feat in its day. Earlier bridges here could open to let big ships in, but not this one. By the time it was completed in the 16th century, Venetian trading power was ebbing. After that, much of the Grand Canal was closed to shipping and became a canal of palaces.
When gondoliers pass under the fat arch of the Rialto Bridge, they take full advantage of its acoustics: “Volare, oh, oh...”
7 Rialto: A separate town in the early days of Venice, Rialto has always been the commercial district, while San Marco was the religious and governmental center. Today, a winding street called the Mercerie connects the two, providing travelers with human traffic jams and a mesmerizing gauntlet of shopping temptations. This is one of the only stretches of the historic Grand Canal with landings upon which you can walk. Boats unloaded the city’s basic necessities here: oil, wine, charcoal, iron. Today, the quay is lined with tourist-trap restaurants.
Venice’s sleek, black, graceful gondolas are a symbol of the city. With about 500 gondoliers joyriding amid the churning vaporetti, there’s a lot of congestion on the Grand Canal. Pay attention—this is where most of the gondola and vaporetto accidents take place. While the Rialto is the highlight of many gondola rides, gondoliers understandably prefer the quieter small canals. Watch your vaporetto driver curse the better-paid gondoliers.
Ahead 100 yards on the left, two gray-colored palaces stand side by side (City Hall and the mayor’s office). Their horseshoe-shaped, arched windows are similar and their stories are the same height, lining up to create the effect of one long balcony.
8 San Silvestro: We now enter a long stretch of important merchants’ palaces, each with proud and different facades. Because ships couldn’t navigate beyond the Rialto Bridge, the biggest palaces—with the major shipping needs—line this last stretch of the navigable Grand Canal.
Palaces like these were multifunctional: ground floor for the warehouse, offices and showrooms upstairs, and living quarters above, on the “noble floors” (with big windows to allow in maximum light). Servants lived and worked on the very top floors (with the smallest windows). For fire-safety reasons, kitchens were also located on the top floors. Peek into the noble floors to catch a glimpse of their still-glorious chandeliers of Murano glass.
The Palazzo Grimani (across from the San Silvestro dock) sports a heavy white Roman-style facade—a reminder that the Grimani family included a cardinal and had strong Roman connections.
The Palazzo Papadopoli, with the two obelisks on its roof (50 yards beyond the San Silvestro stop on the right, with the blue posts), is the very fancy Aman Hotel where George and Amal Clooney were married in 2014.
9 Sant’Angelo: Notice how many buildings have a foundation of waterproof white stone (pietra d’Istria) upon which the bricks sit high and dry. Many canal-level floors are abandoned as the rising water level takes its toll.
The posts—historically painted gaily with the equivalent of family coats of arms—don’t rot underwater. But the wood at the waterline, where it’s exposed to oxygen, does. On the smallest canals, little “no motorboats” signs indicate that these canals are for gondolas only (no motorized craft, 5 kph speed limit, no wake).
10 San Tomà: Fifty yards ahead, on the right side (with twin obelisks on the rooftop) stands Palazzo Balbi, the palace of an early-17th-century captain general of the sea. This palace, like so many in the city, flies three flags: Italy (green-white-red), the European Union (blue with ring of stars), and Venice (a lion on a field of red and gold). Today it houses the administrative headquarters of the regional government.
Just past the admiral’s palace, look immediately to the right, down a side canal. On the right side of that canal, before the bridge, see the traffic light and the fire station (the 1930s Mussolini-era building with four arches hiding fireboats parked and ready to go).
The impressive Ca’ Foscari, with a classic Venetian facade (on the corner, across from the fire station), dominates the bend in the canal. This is the main building of the University of Venice, which has about 25,000 students. Notice the elegant lamp on the corner—needed in the old days to light this intersection.
The grand, heavy, white Ca’ Rezzonico, just before the stop of the same name, houses the Museum of 18th-Century Venice. Across the canal is the cleaner and leaner Palazzo Grassi, the last major palace built on the canal, erected in the late 1700s. It was purchased by a French tycoon and now displays part of Punta della Dogana’s contemporary art collection.
11 Ca’ Rezzonico: Up ahead, the Accademia Bridge leads over the Grand Canal to the Accademia Gallery (right side), filled with the best Venetian paintings. There was no bridge here until 1854, when a cast-iron one was built. It was replaced with this wooden bridge in 1933. While meant to be temporary, it still stands today, nearly a century later.
12 Accademia: From here, look through the graceful bridge and way ahead to enjoy a classic view of La Salute Church, topped by a crown-shaped dome supported by scrolls. This Church of St. Mary of Good Health was built to ask God to deliver Venetians from the devastating plague of 1630 (which had killed about a third of the city’s population).
The low, white building among greenery (100 yards ahead, on the right, between the Accademia Bridge and the church) is the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. The American heiress “retired” here, sprucing up a palace that had been abandoned in mid-construction. Peggy willed the city her fine collection of modern art.
Two doors past the Guggenheim, Palazzo Dario has a great set of characteristic funnel-shaped chimneys. These forced embers through a loop-the-loop channel until they were dead—required in the days when stone palaces were surrounded by humble wooden buildings, and a live spark could make a merchant’s workforce homeless. Three doors later is the Salviati building, which once served as a glassworks. Its fine Art Nouveau mosaic, done in the early 20th century, features Venice as a queen being appreciated by the big shots of society.
13 Santa Maria del Giglio: Back on the left stands the fancy Gritti Palace hotel. Hemingway and Woody Allen both stayed here.
Take a deep whiff of Venice. What’s all this nonsense about stinky canals? All I smell is my shirt. By the way, how’s your captain? Smooth dockings?
14 Salute: The huge La Salute Church towers overhead as if squirted from a can of Catholic Reddi-wip.
As the Grand Canal opens up into the lagoon, the last building on the right with the golden ball is the 17th-century Customs House, which now houses the Punta della Dogana contemporary art museum. Its two bronze Atlases hold a statue of Fortune riding the ball. Arriving ships stopped here to pay their tolls.
15 San Marco: Up ahead on the left, the green pointed tip of the Campanile marks St. Mark’s Square, the political and religious center of Venice...and the final destination of this tour. You could get off at the San Marco stop and go straight to St. Mark’s Square. But I’m staying on the boat for one more stop, just past St. Mark’s Square (it’s a quick walk back).
Survey the lagoon. Opposite St. Mark’s Square, across the water, the ghostly white church with the pointy bell tower is San Giorgio Maggiore, with great views of Venice. Next to it is the residential island Giudecca, stretching from close to San Giorgio Maggiore past the Venice youth hostel (with a nice view, directly across) to the Hilton Hotel (good nighttime view, far right end of island).
Still on board? If you are, as we leave the San Marco stop look left and prepare for a drive-by view of St. Mark’s Square. First comes the bold white facade of the old mint (in front of the bell tower) marked by a tiny cupola yet as sturdy as Fort Knox, where Venice’s golden ducat, the “dollar” of the Venetian Republic, was made. Next door is the library, its facade just three windows wide. Then comes the city’s ceremonial front door: twin columns topped by St. Theodore standing on a crocodile and the winged lion of St. Mark, who’ve welcomed visitors since the 15th century. Between the columns, catch a glimpse of two giant figures atop the Clock Tower—they’ve been whacking their clappers every hour since 1499. The domes of St. Mark’s Basilica are soon eclipsed by the lacy facade of the Doge’s Palace. Next you’ll see many gondolas with their green breakwater buoys, the Bridge of Sighs (leading from the palace to the prison—check out the maximum-security bars), and finally the grand harborside promenade—the Riva.
Follow the Riva with your eye, past elegant hotels to the green area in the distance. This is the largest of Venice’s few parks, which hosts the annual Biennale festival. Much farther in the distance is the Lido, the island with Venice’s beach. Its sand and casinos are tempting, though given its car traffic, it lacks the medieval charm of Venice.
16 San Zaccaria: OK, you’re at your last stop. Quick—muscle your way off this boat! (If you don’t, you’ll eventually end up at the Lido.)
At San Zaccaria, you’re right in the thick of the action. A number of other vaporetti depart from here (see here). Otherwise, it’s a short walk back along the Riva to St. Mark’s Square. Ahoy!
▲▲▲St. Mark’s Square (Piazza San Marco)
▲▲▲St. Mark’s Basilica (Basilica di San Marco)
▲▲▲Doge’s Palace (Palazzo Ducale)
ACROSS THE LAGOON FROM ST. MARK’S SQUARE
Venice’s greatest sight is the city itself. As well as seeing world-class museums and buildings, make time to wander narrow lanes, linger over a meal, or enjoy evening magic on St. Mark’s Square. One of Venice’s most delightful experiences—a gondola ride, worth ▲▲▲—is covered later, under “Experiences in Venice.”
When you see a in a listing, it means the sight is covered in a free audio tour (via my Rick Steves Audio Europe app—see here).
The city is inundated with cruise-ship passengers and tours from mainland hotels daily from 10:00 to about 16:00. Major sights are busiest in the late morning, making this a smart time to explore the back lanes. Sights that have crowd problems get even more packed when it rains.
To avoid the worst of the crowds at St. Mark’s Basilica, go early or late. To bypass the ticket line, reserve a time online—or if you have a large day bag, you can usually avoid the line by checking it (see the St. Mark’s Basilica listing for details). For the Doge’s Palace, purchase your ticket at the Correr Museum across St. Mark’s Square (see next page). You can also visit later in the day, when crowds thin out. For the Campanile, ascend first thing in the morning or go late, or skip it entirely if you’re going to the similar San Giorgio Maggiore bell tower.
Venice offers a dizzying array of combo-tickets and sightseeing passes. For most people, the two best options are the combo-ticket for the Doge’s Palace and Correr Museum or the Museum Pass (which covers those two plus more). Note that many of the most visit-worthy sights in town (the Accademia, Peggy Guggenheim Collection, Scuola San Rocco, Campanile, and the three sights within St. Mark’s Basilica that charge admission) are not covered by any pass.
All the passes described here are sold at the TI (except for the combo-ticket). Most are also available at participating sights.
Doge’s Palace/Correr Museum Combo-Ticket: A €25 combo-ticket covers both of these sights. To bypass the long line at the Doge’s Palace, buy your combo-ticket at the never-crowded Correr Museum (or online—€1 surcharge). The two sights are also covered by the Museum Pass.
Museum Pass: Busy sightseers may prefer this more expensive pass, which covers these city-run museums: the Doge’s Palace; Correr Museum; Ca’ Rezzonico (Museum of 18th-Century Venice); Palazzo Mocenigo Costume Museum; Casa Goldoni (home of the Italian playwright); Ca’ Pesaro (modern art); Museum of Natural History in the Santa Croce district; the Glass Museum on the island of Murano; and the Lace Museum on the island of Burano. At €35, this pass is the best value if you plan to see the Doge’s Palace, Correr Museum, and one or two of the other covered museums. You can buy it at any participating museum or via their websites (€1 surcharge).
Rolling Venice: If you’re under 30, this youth pass offers discounts at dozens of sights and shops, but its best deal is for transit. It lets you buy a 72-hour transit pass for just €22—about half price (€6 pass for ages 6-29; sold at TIs, vaporetto ticket offices, and VèneziaUnica shops).
This grand square is surrounded by splashy, historic buildings and sights: St. Mark’s Basilica, the Doge’s Palace, the Campanile bell tower, the Clock Tower, and the Correr Museum. The square is filled with music, lovers, pigeons, and tourists by day, and is your private rendezvous with the Venetian past late at night, when Europe’s most magnificent dance floor is the romantic place to be.
For a slow and pricey evening thrill, invest €15 or so (including service and cover charge for the music) for a drink at one of the elegant cafés with the dueling orchestras (see “Cafés on St. Mark’s Square” sidebar, later). For an unmatched experience that offers the best people-watching, it’s worth the splurge.
For more on the square, the Clock Tower, the Campanile, and other sights on the square, download my free audio tour.
Visiting the Square: St. Mark’s Basilica dominates the square with its Eastern-style onion domes and glowing mosaics. Mark Twain said it looked like “a vast warty bug taking a meditative walk.” (I say it looks like tiara-wearing ladybugs copulating.) To the right of the basilica is its 325-foot-tall Campanile. Behind the Campanile, you can catch a glimpse of the pale pink Doge’s Palace. Lining the square are the former government offices (procuratie) that administered the Venetian empire’s vast network of trading outposts, which stretched all the way to Turkey.
With your back to the church, survey one of Europe’s great urban spaces, and the only square in Venice to merit the title “Piazza.” Nearly two football fields long, it’s surrounded by the offices of the republic. On the right are the “old offices” (16th-century Renaissance). At left are the “new offices” (17th-century High Renaissance). Napoleon called the piazza “the most beautiful drawing room in Europe,” and added to the intimacy by building the final wing, opposite the basilica, that encloses the square.
The arcade ringing the square provides an elegant promenade—complete with drapes to provide relief from the sun.
Imagine this square full of water. That happens every so often at very high tides (acqua alta), a reminder that Venice and the sea are intertwined. (Now, as one sinks and the other rises, they are more intertwined than ever.)
Watch out for pigeon speckle. Venetians don’t like pigeons, but they do like seagulls—because they eat pigeons. In 2008, Venice outlawed the feeding of pigeons. But tourists—eager for a pigeon-clad photo op—haven’t gotten that message.
Campanile: The original Campanile (bell tower) was an observation tower and a marvel of medieval and Renaissance architecture until 1902, when it toppled into the center of the piazza. It had groaned ominously the night before, sending people scurrying from the cafés. The next morning...crash! The golden angel on top landed right at the basilica’s front door, standing up.
The Campanile was rebuilt 10 years later complete with its golden archangel Gabriel, who always faces the breeze. You can ride an elevator to the top for the best view of Venice. It’s crowded at peak times, but well worth it.
Clock Tower: Built during the Renaissance in 1496, the Clock Tower (Torre dell’Orologio) marks the entry to the main shopping drag, called the Mercerie (or “Marzarie,” in Venetian dialect), which connects St. Mark’s Square with the Rialto Bridge. From the piazza, you can see the bronze men (Moors) swing their huge clappers at the top of each hour. In the 17th century, one of them knocked an unsuspecting worker off the top and to his death—probably the first ever killing by a robot. Notice one of the world’s first “digital” clocks on the tower facing the square (with dramatic flips every five minutes).
You can go inside the Clock Tower with a pre-booked guided tour that takes you close to the clock’s innards and out to a terrace with good views over the square and city rooftops (€12 combo-ticket includes Correr Museum—where the 45-minute tour starts—but not Doge’s Palace; reservations required; tours in English Mon-Wed at 11:00 and 12:00, Thu-Sun at 14:00 and 15:00; no kids under age 6; tel. 848-082-000, http://torreorologio.visitmuve.it).
Piazzetta and Doge’s Palace: The small square between the basilica and the water is the Piazzetta. This “Little Square” is framed by the Doge’s Palace on the left, the library on the right, and the waterfront of the lagoon. In former days, the Piazzetta was closed to the public for a few hours a day so that government officials and bigwigs could gather in the sun to strike shady deals.
The pale pink Doge’s Palace is the epitome of the style known as Venetian Gothic. Columns support traditional, pointed Gothic arches, but with a Venetian flair—they’re curved to a point, ornamented with a trefoil (three-leaf clover), and topped with a round medallion of a quatrefoil (four-leaf clover). The pattern is found on buildings all over Venice and on the formerly Venetian-controlled Croatian coast, but nowhere else in the world (except Las Vegas).
The two large 12th-century columns near the water were (like so much else) looted from Constantinople. Mark’s winged lion sits on top of one. The lion’s body (nearly 15 feet long) predates the wings and is more than 2,000 years old. The other column holds St. Theodore (battling a crocodile), the former patron saint who was replaced by Mark. I guess stabbing crocs in the back isn’t classy enough for an upwardly mobile world power. After public ridicule, criminals were executed by being hung from these columns in the hope that the public could learn its lessons vicariously.
Built in the 11th century to replace an earlier church, this basilica’s distinctly Eastern-style architecture underlines Venice’s connection with Byzantium (which protected it from the ambition of Charlemagne and his Holy Roman Empire). It’s decorated with booty from returning sea captains—a kind of architectural Venetian trophy chest. The interior glows mysteriously with gold mosaics and colored marble. Since about AD 830, the saint’s bones have been housed on this site. The San Marco Museum within holds the original bronze horses (copies of these overlook the square), and a balcony offering a remarkable view over St. Mark’s Square.
Cost and Hours: Basilica entry is free, though you can pay €3 for an online reservation that lets you skip the line (see next). Three separate exhibits within the church charge admission: Treasury-€3, Golden Altarpiece-€2, and San Marco Museum-€5. Church and all exhibits open Mon-Sat 9:30-17:00, Sun 14:00-17:00 (Sun until 16:30 Nov-Easter), interior brilliantly lit Mon-Sat 11:30-12:45. Tel. 041-270-8311, www.basilicasanmarco.it.
Avoiding Lines: There’s almost always a long line to get into St. Mark’s, but you can avoid it. The easiest way is to reserve an entry time online, even for the same day (€3, April-Oct only, book at www.venetoinside.com).
Or, if you have a large day bag (bigger than a purse), you can check it and skip the line (larger bags and backpacks are not allowed inside the church). Check above-limit bags for free for up to one hour at the nearby church called Ateneo San Basso, 30 yards to the left of the basilica, down narrow Calle San Basso (see the map; daily 9:30-17:00). Once you’ve checked your bag, take your claim tag to the basilica’s tourist entrance. Keep to the left of the railing where the line forms and show your tag to the gatekeeper.
For shorter lines and fewer crowds in general, visit early or late.
Tours: Free, hour-long English tours (heavy on the mosaics’ religious symbolism) are offered many days at 11:00 (meet in atrium, schedule varies, see schedule board just inside entrance). Audioguides are on sale as you enter.
Download my free St. Mark’s Basilica audio tour.
Self-Guided TourStart outside in the square, far enough back to take in the whole facade. It’s a riot of domes, columns, and statues, completely unlike the towering Gothic churches of northern Europe or the heavy Baroque of much of the rest of Italy. Inside is a decor of mosaics, colored marbles, and oriental treasures that’s rarely seen elsewhere. The Christian symbolism is unfamiliar to Western eyes, done in the style of Byzantine icons and even Islamic designs. Older than most of Europe’s churches, St. Mark’s feels like a remnant of a lost world.
The church is encrusted with materials looted from buildings throughout the Venetian empire. Their prize booty was the four bronze horses that adorn the balcony, stolen from Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade (these are copies); the atrium you’re about to enter was added on to the church as their pedestal. Later, it was decorated with a mishmash of plundered columns. The architectural style of St. Mark’s has been called “Early Ransack.”
Now zero in on the details.
1 Exterior—Mosaic of Mark’s Relics: The mosaic over the far left door shows two men (in the center, with crooked staffs) entering the church bearing a coffin with the body of St. Mark.
Eight centuries after Mark’s death, his holy body was in Muslim-occupied Alexandria, Egypt. In AD 829, two visiting Venetian merchants “rescued” the body from the “infidels” and spirited it away to Venice.
• Enter the atrium of the basilica and find a place to view its ceiling mosaics. Start by finding a golden arch overhead with scenes of Noah’s Ark.
2 Atrium Mosaic of Noah’s Ark and the Great Flood: Of all the famous mosaics of St. Mark’s, this Flood scene is one of the oldest (13th century) and finest. The scenes show Noah and his sons sawing logs to build the Ark. Below that are scenes of Noah putting all species of animals into the Ark, two by two. Then the Flood hits in full force, drowning the wicked. Noah sends out a dove twice to see whether there’s any dry land where he can dock. He finds it, leaves the Ark with a gorgeous rainbow overhead, and offers a sacrifice of thanks to God.
• Climb a few steps, and into church. Just inside the door, step out of the flow and survey the church.
3 The Nave—Mosaics Above and Below: These golden mosaics are in the Byzantine style, though many were designed by artists from the Italian Renaissance and later. The often-overlooked lower walls are covered with green-, yellow-, purple-, and rose-colored marble slabs, cut to expose the grain, and laid out in geometric patterns. Even the floor is mosaic, with mostly geometrical designs. It rolls like the sea. Venice is sinking and shifting, creating these cresting waves of stone.
• Find the chandelier in the nave (in the shape of a cathedral space station), and run your eyes up the support chain to the dome above. This has one of the church’s greatest mosaics.
4 Pentecost Mosaic: In a golden heaven, the dove of the Holy Spirit shoots out a pinwheel of spiritual lasers, igniting tongues of fire on the heads of the 12 apostles below, giving them the ability to speak other languages without a Rick Steves phrase book. You’d think they’d be amazed, but their expressions are as solemn as...icons. One of the oldest mosaics in the church (c. 1125), it has distinct “Byzantine” features: a gold background and apostles with halos, solemn faces, almond eyes, delicate blessing hands, and rumpled robes, all facing forward.
• Shuffle along with the crowds up to the center of the church.
5 Central Dome Ascension Mosaic: Here at the center of the church, notice the layout: the church has four equal arms, each topped with a dome, radiating out to form a Greek cross (+). The symmetrical floor plan symbolizes perfection, rather than the more common Latin cross of the Crucifixion (emphasizing man’s sinfulness).
Now gape upward into the central dome, the very heart of the church. Christ—having lived his miraculous life and having been crucified for man’s sins—ascends into the starry sky on a rainbow. In Byzantine churches, the window-lit dome represented heaven, while the dark church below represented earth—a microcosm of the hierarchical universe.
Under the Ascension Dome: Look around at the church’s furnishings and imagine a service here. The 6 rood screen (like the iconostasis in a Greek church), topped with 14 saints, separates the congregation from the high altar, heightening the “mystery” of the Mass. The 7 pulpit (the purple one on the right) was reserved for the doge, who led prayers and made important announcements.
• In the north transept (left of the altar), is an area usually reserved for prayer. The worshippers are facing a big stone canopy, which houses a small painting of the Virgin Mary.
8 Nicopeia (North Transept): Venetians then and now pray to a painted wooden icon of Mary and Baby Jesus known as Nicopeia, or Our Lady of Victory. For centuries, Nicopeia was venerated by the Byzantines, who asked Mary to protect them in battle. When Venetian Crusaders captured it, the icon came to protect Venice.
Additional Sights: The 9 Treasury (Tesoro) and 10 Golden Altarpiece (Pala d’Oro) are the easiest ways to see the glories of the Byzantine Empire outside of Istanbul or Ravenna. The treasury is a beautiful collection of chalices, reliquaries, and jewels, most of them stolen from Constantinople. As you view these treasures, remember that some are nearly 2,000 years old. Beneath the high altar lies the body of St. Mark (“Marce”) and the Golden Altarpiece, made of 250 blue-backed enamels with religious scenes, all set in a gold frame and studded with 15 hefty rubies, 300 emeralds, 1,500 pearls, and assorted sapphires, amethysts, and topaz.
Upstairs, in the 11 San Marco Museum (Museo di San Marco) you can see an up-close mosaic exhibition, more religious objects that once adorned the church, a fine view of the church interior, a view of the square from the balcony with bronze horses, and (inside, in their own room) the original horses. The staircase up to the museum is in the atrium, near the basilica’s main entrance.
The seat of the Venetian government and home of its ruling duke, or doge, this was the most powerful half-acre in Europe for 400 years. The Doge’s Palace was built to show off the power and wealth of the Republic. The doge lived with his family on the first floor up, near the halls of power. From his once-lavish (now sparse) quarters, you’ll follow the one-way tour through the public rooms of the top floor, finishing with the Bridge of Sighs and the prison. The place is wallpapered with masterpieces by Veronese and Tintoretto.
Cost and Hours: €25 combo-ticket includes Correr Museum, also covered by Museum Pass; Sun-Thu 8:30-21:00, Fri-Sat until 23:00, Nov-March daily until 19:00; café, next to St. Mark’s Basilica, just off St. Mark’s Square, vaporetto stops: San Marco or San Zaccaria, tel. 041-271-5911, http://palazzoducale.visitmuve.it.
Avoiding Lines: If the line is long at the Doge’s Palace, buy your combo-ticket at the Correr Museum across the square; then you can go directly through the Doge’s turnstile without waiting in line. Or, you can buy your ticket online. Crowds tend to diminish after 16:00.
Tours: The fine Secret Itineraries Tour follows the doge’s footsteps through rooms not included in the general admission ticket. Though the tour skips the palace’s main hall, you’re welcome to visit the hall afterward on your own. Three 75-minute English-language tours run each morning. Reserve ahead, as tours can fill up several weeks in advance—although you can try just showing up at the information desk (€28, includes Doge’s Palace admission but not Correr Museum, €15 with combo-ticket; reserve over the phone or online: tel. 041-4273-0892, http://palazzoducale.visitmuve.it, €1 online surcharge). Don’t confuse this with the Doge’s Hidden Treasures Tour, which isn’t worth its fee.
The audioguide is dry but informative (€5, 1.5 hours, need ID for deposit). Guidebooks are available in the bookshop.
Visiting the Doge’s Palace: You’ll see the restored facades from the courtyard. Notice a grand staircase (with nearly naked Moses and Paul Newman at the top). Even the most powerful visitors climbed this to meet the doge. This was the beginning of an architectural power trip.
In the Senate Hall, the 120 senators met, debated, and passed laws. Tintoretto’s large Triumph of Venice on the ceiling (central painting, best viewed from the top) is an allegory of the city in all her glory. Lady Venice is up in heaven with the Greek gods, while barbaric lesser nations swirl up to give her gifts and tribute.
The Armory—a dazzling display originally assembled to intimidate potential adversaries—shows remnants of the military might that the empire employed to keep the East-West trade lines open (and the local economy booming).
The giant Hall of the Grand Council (175 feet by 80 feet, capacity 2,600) is where the entire nobility met to elect the senate and doge. It took a room this size to contain the grandeur of the Most Serene Republic. Ringing the top of the room are portraits of the first 76 doges (in chronological order). The one at the far end that’s blacked out (in the left corner) is the notorious Doge Marin Falier, who opposed the will of the Grand Council in 1355. He was tried for treason, beheaded, and airbrushed from history.
On the wall over the doge’s throne is Tintoretto’s monsterpiece, Paradise, the largest oil painting in the world. Christ and Mary are surrounded by a heavenly host of 500 saints. The painting leaves you feeling that you get to heaven not by being a good Christian, but by being a good Venetian.
Cross the covered Bridge of Sighs over the canal to the prisons. Circle the cells. Notice the carvings made by prisoners—from olden days up until 1930—on some of the stone windowsills of the cells, especially in the far corner of the building.
Cross back over the Bridge of Sighs, pausing to look through the marble-trellised windows at all of the tourists.
This uncrowded museum gives you a good overview of Venetian history and art. The doge memorabilia, armor, banners, statues (by Canova), and paintings (by the Bellini family and others) re-create the festive days of the Venetian Republic. And it’s all accompanied—throughout the museum—by English descriptions and views of St. Mark’s Square. But the Correr Museum has one more thing to offer, and that’s a quiet refuge—an elegant Neoclassical space—in which to rise above St. Mark’s Square when the piazza is too hot, too rainy, or too overrun with tourists.
Cost and Hours: €25 combo-ticket includes Doge’s Palace, also covered by Museum Pass; daily 10:00-19:00, Nov-March 10:30-17:00; bag check free and mandatory for bags bigger than a large purse, elegant café, enter at far end of square directly opposite basilica, tel. 041-240-5211, http://correr.visitmuve.it.
This dramatic bell tower replaced a shorter tower, part of the original fortress that guarded the entry of the Grand Canal. That tower crumbled into a pile of bricks in 1902, a thousand years after it was built. Ride the elevator 325 feet to the top of the bell tower for the best view in Venice (especially at sunset). For an ear-shattering experience, be on top when the bells ring. The golden archangel Gabriel at the top always faces into the wind. Beat the crowds and enjoy the crisp morning air at 9:00 or the cool evening breeze at 18:00. Go inside to buy tickets; the kiosk in front only rents audio guides and is operated by a private company.
Cost and Hours: €8; daily 8:30-21:00, Sept-mid-Oct until sunset, mid-Oct-April 9:30-17:30, last entry 45 minutes before closing; may close during thunderstorms, audio-guide–€3, tel. 041-522-4064, www.basilicasanmarco.it.
This much-photographed bridge connects the Doge’s Palace with the prison. Travelers popularized this bridge in the Romantic 19th century. Supposedly, a condemned man would be led over this bridge on his way to the prison, take one last look at the glory of Venice, and sigh. Though overhyped, the Bridge of Sighs is undeniably tingle-worthy—especially after dark, when the crowds have dispersed and it’s just you and floodlit Venice. In the middle of the day, however, being immersed in the pandemonium of global tourism (and selfie sticks) can be a fascinating experience in itself.
In Venice’s heyday, it was said that the freedoms a gentleman could experience here went far beyond what any true gentleman would actually care to indulge in. But one extravagance all could enjoy was the ritual of publicly consuming coffee: showing off with an affordable luxury, doing something trendy, while sharing the ideas of the Enlightenment.
Exotic coffee was made to order for the fancy café scene. Traders introduced coffee, called the “wine of Islam,” from the Middle East (the plant is native to Ethiopia). The first coffeehouses opened in the 17th century, and by 1750 there were dozens of cafés lining Piazza San Marco and 200 operating in Venice.
Today, several fine old cafés survive and still line the square. Those with live music feature similar food, prices, and a three- to five-piece combo playing a selection of classical and pop hits, from Brahms to “Bésame Mucho.”
You can wander around the square listening to the different orchestras, or take a seat at a café. At any place with live music, it’s perfectly acceptable to nurse a cappuccino for an hour—you’re paying for the music with the cover charge. Or you can sip your coffee at the bar at a nearly normal price. The prices are clearly posted. If you sit outside and get just an espresso (your cheapest option), expect to pay €12.50—€6.50 for the coffee and a €6 cover charge when the orchestra is playing (which is most of the day). Service is included (no need to tip).
For locations of the following cafés, see the “St. Mark’s Square” map, earlier.
Caffè Florian (on the right as you face the church) is the most famous Venetian café and was one of the first places in Europe to serve coffee (daily 9:00-24:00, shorter hours in winter, www.caffeflorian.com). It was originally named “Triumphant Venice” (Venezia Triomfante). But under French occupation, in the early 19th century, that politically incorrect name was changed.
The Florian has been a popular spot for a discreet rendezvous in Venice since 1720. Each room has a historic or artistic theme. For example the “Room of the Illustrious Men” features portraits of great Venetians from Marco Polo to Titian. The outside tables are the main action, but do walk inside through the richly decorated old-time rooms where Casanova, Lord Byron, Charles Dickens, and Woody Allen have all paid too much for a drink. The café’s orchestra—the most serious on the square—plays daily from 10:00 to 24:00. Each hour comes with a musical theme (operetta, Latin, Romantic, jazz, Venetian, and so on—you can ask for the program).
Gran Caffè Quadri, opposite the Florian and established in 1780, has another illustrious roster of famous clientele.
Gran Caffè Lavena, near the Clock Tower, is less storied—although it dates from 1750 and counts composer Richard Wagner as a former regular—so it’s less intimidating than the more formal cafés here. It was the hangout of gondoliers and lantern bearers for local bigwigs. Drop in to check out its dazzling but politically incorrect chandelier.
Gran Caffè Chioggia, on the Piazzetta facing the Doge’s Palace, has no cover and one or two musicians playing—usually a pianist (€7 cocktails, music from 10:30 to 23:00—jazz after 21:00).
Eden Bar and Caffè Aurora are less expensive and don’t have live music.
Getting There: The Bridge of Sighs is around the corner from the Doge’s Palace. Walk toward the waterfront, turn left along the water, and look up the first canal on your left. You can walk across the bridge (from the inside) by visiting the Doge’s Palace.
This historic church is home to a sometimes-waterlogged crypt, a Bellini altarpiece, a Tintoretto painting, and the final resting place of St. Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist.
Cost and Hours: Free, €1.50 to enter crypt, €0.50 coin to light up Bellini’s altarpiece; Mon-Sat 10:00-12:00 & 16:00-18:00, Sun 16:00-18:00 only; two canals behind St. Mark’s Basilica.
This is the dreamy church-topped island you can see from the waterfront by St. Mark’s Square. The striking church, designed by Palladio, features art by Tintoretto, a bell tower, and good views of Venice.
Cost and Hours: Church—free, open daily 9:00-19:00, Nov-March 8:30-18:00; bell tower elevator—€6, runs until 20 minutes before the church closes, does not run during Sun services; tel. 041-522-7827.
Getting There: To reach the island from St. Mark’s Square, take the one-stop, five-minute ride on vaporetto #2 from San Zaccaria (€5 special vaporetto ticket, runs every 12 minutes from dock B, direction: Piazza Roma).
Venice’s top art museum, packed with highlights of the Venetian Renaissance, features paintings by the Bellini family, Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese, Tiepolo, Giorgione, Canaletto, and Testosterone. It’s just over the wooden Accademia Bridge from the San Marco action.
Cost and Hours: €15; Tue-Sun 8:15-19:15, Mon until 14:00, last entry one hour before closing; dull audioguide-€6, vaporetto: Accademia, tel. 041-522-2247, www.gallerieaccademia.it.
Avoiding Lines: Just 400 people are allowed into the gallery at one time, so you may have to wait. It’s most crowded on Tue mornings and whenever it rains; it’s least crowded Wed, Thu, and Sun mornings (before 10:00) and late afternoons (after 17:00). While it’s possible to book tickets in advance (€2/ticket surcharge; either book online or call 041-520-0345), it’s generally not necessary if you avoid the busiest times.
Renovation: The museum is nearing the end of a major multiyear expansion and renovation. As a result, rooms close, paintings come and go, and the actual locations of the pieces are hard to pin down. If you can’t find paintings in the rooms listed below, ask a museum guard to point you in the right direction.
Visiting the Accademia: The Accademia offers a good overview of painters whose works you’ll see all over town. Venetian art is underrated and, I think, misunderstood. It’s nowhere near as famous today as the work of the florescent Florentines, but—with historical slices of Venice, ravishing nudes, and very human Madonnas—it’s livelier, more colorful, and simply more fun. The Venetian love of luxury shines through in this collection, which starts in the Middle Ages and runs to the 1700s. Look for grand canvases of colorful, spacious settings, peopled with happy locals in extravagant clothes having a great time.
Medieval highlights include elaborate altarpieces and golden-haloed Madonnas, all painted at a time when realism, depth of field, and emotion were considered beside the point. Medieval Venetians, with their close ties to the East, borrowed techniques such as gold-leafing, frontal poses, and “iconic” faces from the religious icons of Byzantium (modern-day Istanbul).
Among early masterpieces of the Renaissance is Mantegna’s studly St. George (Room 4). As the Renaissance reaches its heights, so do the paintings, such as Titian’s magnificent Presentation of the Virgin (Room 24). It’s a religious scene, yes, but it’s really just an excuse to display secular splendor (Titian was the most famous painter of his day—perhaps even more famous than Michelangelo). Veronese’s sumptuous Feast in the House of Levi (Room 10), pictured below, also has an ostensibly religious theme (in the middle, find Jesus eating his final meal)—but it’s outdone by the luxury and optimism of Renaissance Venice. Life was a good thing and beauty was to be enjoyed. (Veronese was hauled before the Inquisition for painting such a bawdy Last Supper...so he fine-tuned the title.)
End your tour in the largest room in the museum, Room 23. This giant hall is the upper half of an old Gothic church. The nave was divided under Napoleon’s rule, and this became the fine arts academy—the Accademia. It’s now home to fine temporary exhibitions, and where art displaced by the gallery’s ongoing renovation often ends up.
The popular museum of far-out art, housed in the American heiress’ former retirement palazzo, offers one of Europe’s best reviews of the art of the first half of the 20th century. Stroll through styles represented by artists whom Peggy knew personally—Cubism (Picasso, Braque), Surrealism (Dalí, Ernst), Futurism (Boccioni), American Abstract Expressionism (Pollock), and a sprinkling of Klee, Calder, and Chagall.
Cost and Hours: €15; Wed-Mon 10:00-18:00, closed Tue; audioguide-€7, pricey café, 5-minute walk from the Accademia Bridge, vaporetto: Accademia or Salute, tel. 041-240-5411, www.guggenheim-venice.it.
This impressive church with a crown-shaped dome was built and dedicated to the Virgin Mary by grateful survivors of the 1630 plague.
Cost and Hours: Church-free; Sacristy-€4; both open daily 9:30-12:00 & 15:00-17:30; 10-minute walk from the Accademia Bridge, at vaporetto: Salute, tel. 041-274-3928, www.seminariovenezia.it.
Housed in the former Customs House at the end of the Grand Canal, this museum features cutting-edge 21st-century art in spacious rooms. This isn’t Picasso and Matisse, or even Pollock and Warhol—those guys are ancient history. But if you’re into the likes of Jeff Koons, Cy Twombly, Rachel Whiteread, and a host of newer artists, the museum is world class. The displays change completely about every year, drawn from the museum’s large collection—so large it also fills Palazzo Grassi, farther up the Grand Canal.
Cost and Hours: €20 (varies depending on exhibit); Wed-Mon 10:00-19:00, closed Tue, last entry one hour before closing; small café, tel. 199-112-112 within Italy, 041-200-1057 from abroad, www.palazzograssi.it.
Getting There: Punta della Dogana is near La Salute Church (vaporetto: Salute). Palazzo Grassi is a bit upstream, on the east side of the Grand Canal (vaporetto #2: San Samuele).
This Grand Canal palazzo offers the most insightful look at the life of Venice’s rich and famous in the 1700s. Wander under ceilings by Tiepolo, among furnishings from that most decadent century, enjoying views of the canal and paintings by Guardi, Canaletto, and Longhi.
Cost and Hours: €10; Wed-Mon 10:00-18:00, Nov-March until 17:00, closed Tue year-round; ticket office closes one hour before museum, audioguide—€5 or €6/2 people, café, at vaporetto: Ca’ Rezzonico, tel. 041-241-0100, http://carezzonico.visitmuve.it.
One of the world’s most famous bridges, this distinctive and dramatic stone structure crosses the Grand Canal with a single confident span. The arcades along the top of the bridge help reinforce the structure...and offer some enjoyable shopping diversions, as does the market surrounding the bridge (produce market closed Sun, fish market closed Sun-Mon).
In the Middle Ages, Venice was the world’s trading center, hosting scores of nationalities, each with its own caravanserai-like center. The most famous is the home of the Tedeschi (German) traders, just off the Rialto Bridge. It was recently purchased by the Benetton family and turned into a luxury mall. The ground floor features gourmet food shops and ritzy cafés.
The mall’s top floor terrace offers a unique perspective over the roofs of Venice and an unforgettable view of the big bend in the Grand Canal. Four times an hour, 70 people are allowed onto the roof for 15 minutes. As you ride the red-carpet elevator to the top floor, notice how the old architectural bones of the structure survive.
Cost and Hours: The terrace is free but access requires a reservation (15-minute timeslots, book online at www.dfs.com/en/info/t-fondaco-rooftop-terrace; you can attempt to show up and reserve, but no guarantees). Terrace open daily 10:15-19:30, June-Aug until 20:15; east side of Rialto Bridge, tel. 041-314-2000.
My favorite art experience in Venice is seeing art in the setting for which it was designed—as it is at the Frari Church. The Franciscan “Church of the Brothers” and the art that decorates it are warmed by the spirit of St. Francis. It features the work of three great Renaissance masters: Donatello, Giovanni Bellini, and Titian—each showing worshippers the glory of God in human terms.
Venice’s population (fewer than 55,000 in the historic city) is half what it was just 30 years ago, and people are leaving at a rate of a thousand a year. Of those who stay, 25 percent are 65 or older.
Sad, yes, but imagine raising a family here: Apartments are small, high up, and expensive. Humidity and occasional flooding make basic maintenance a pain. Home-improvement projects require navigating miles of red tape, and you must follow regulations intended to preserve the historical ambience. Everything is expensive because it has to be shipped in from the mainland. You can easily get glass and tourist trinkets, but it’s hard to find groceries or get your shoes fixed. Running basic errands involves lots of walking and stairs—imagine crossing over arched bridges while pushing a child in a stroller and carrying a day’s worth of groceries.
With millions of visitors a year (150,000 a day at peak times), on any given day Venetians are likely outnumbered by tourists. Despite government efforts to subsidize rents and build cheap housing, the city is losing its residents. The economy itself is thriving, thanks to tourist dollars and rich foreigners buying second homes. But the culture is dying.
Greedy residents could sink Venice long before the sea swallows it up. Locals happily rent apartments to tourists a few times a month rather than affordably to local families, and shopkeepers sell trinkets to tourists before pots and pans to the local population. Even the most hopeful city planners worry that in a few decades Venice will not be a city at all, but a museum, a cultural theme park, a decaying Disneyland for adults.
Cost and Hours: €3; Mon-Sat 9:00-18:00, Sun from 13:00; audioguide-€2, modest dress recommended, on Campo dei Frari, near San Tomà vaporetto and traghetto stops, tel. 041-272-8611, www.basilicadeifrari.it.
Tours: You can rent an audioguide for €2, or download my free Frari Church audio tour.
Visiting the Church: In Donatello’s wood statue of St. John the Baptist (in the first chapel to the right of the high altar), the prophet of the desert—emaciated from his breakfast of bugs ’n’ honey and dressed in animal skins—announces the coming of the Messiah. Donatello was a Florentine working at the dawn of the Renaissance.
Bellini’s Madonna and Child with Saints and Angels painting (in the sacristy farther to the right) came later, done by a Venetian in a more Venetian style—soft focus without Donatello’s harsh realism. While Renaissance humanism demanded Madonnas and saints that were accessible and human, Bellini places them in a physical setting so beautiful that it creates its own mood of serene holiness. The genius of Bellini, perhaps the greatest Venetian painter, is obvious in the pristine clarity, rich colors (notice Mary’s clothing), believable depth, and reassuring calm of this three-paneled altarpiece.
Finally, glowing red and gold like a stained-glass window over the high altar, Titian’s Assumption of the Virgin sets the tone of exuberant beauty found in the otherwise sparse church. Titian the Venetian—a student of Bellini—painted steadily for 60 years...you’ll see a lot of his art. As stunned apostles look up past the swirl of arms and legs, the complex composition of this painting draws you right to the radiant face of the once-dying, now-triumphant Mary as she joins God in heaven.
Feel comfortable to discreetly freeload off passing tours. For many, these three pieces of art make a visit to the Accademia Gallery unnecessary (or they may whet your appetite for more). Before leaving, check out the Neoclassical pyramid-shaped Canova monument flanking the nave just inside the main entrance and (opposite that) the grandiose tomb of Titian. Compare the carved marble Assumption behind Titian’s tombstone portrait with the painted original above the high altar.
Sometimes called “Tintoretto’s Sistine Chapel,” this lavish meeting hall (next to the Frari Church) has some 50 large, colorful Tintoretto paintings plastered to the walls and ceilings. The best paintings are upstairs, especially the Crucifixion in the smaller room. View the neck-breaking splendor with the mirrors available in the Grand Hall.
Cost and Hours: €10, daily 9:30-17:30, tel. 041-523-4864, www.scuolagrandesanrocco.org.
With more time, venture to some nearby islands in Venice’s lagoon. While still touristy, they offer an escape from the crowds, a chance to get out on a boat, and some enjoyable diversions for fans of glassmaking, lace, and sunbathing.
The islands of San Michele (cemetery), Murano (glass), Burano (lace), and Torcello (oldest church in Venice) make a good, varied, and long day trip that you can do on your own.
The Plan: You can travel to any of the four islands by vaporetto. Since single vaporetto tickets (€7.50) are only valid for 75 minutes, getting a vaporetto pass for a lagoon excursion makes more sense (for details on tickets and passes, see here). Confirm vaporetto times by downloading the latest schedule from www.actv.it.
Start your journey at the Fondamente Nove vaporetto stop, on Venice’s north shore (the “back” of the fish). Fondamente Nove is a pleasant 15-minute walk from Rialto or St. Mark’s. Alternatively, you could reach Fondamente Nove by vaporetto: From San Zaccaria (near St. Mark’s), take the #4.1 (35 minutes). From the train or bus station, take #4.2 (30 minutes).
From Fondamente Nove, take the #4.1 or #4.2 vaporetto for Murano (about every 10 minutes). On the way, get off at the Cimitero stop on the island of San Michele to see the cemetery (6-minute ride). Continue on to Murano, arriving at the Murano-Colonna stop (3-minute ride). Sightsee Murano as you make your way to the Murano-Faro stop, where you board vaporetto #12 for the trip to Burano (30-40 minutes). From Burano, you can side-trip to Torcello (on the #12, 5-minute trip each way). To return to Venice from Burano, take vaporetto #12 all the way back to Fondamente Nove (45 minutes). For a longer, more scenic return past even more lagoon islands, take the #14 from Burano to the San Zaccaria dock near St. Mark’s Square (70 minutes).
Note that during summer, there are (slightly faster) express vaporetti that go directly to Murano-Colonna (if you’re OK with skipping the cemetery on San Michele): From San Zaccaria, catch the #7, or from the train/bus stations catch the #3.
San Michele (a.k.a. Cimitero): This island is the final resting place of Venetians and a few foreign VIPs, from poet Ezra Pound to composer Igor Stravinsky. It’s also full of flowers, trees, scurrying lizards, and birdsong, and has an intriguing chapel (cemetery open daily 7:30-18:00, Oct-March until 16:30).
Murano: Famous for its glassmaking, this ▲ island is home to several glass factories and the Glass Museum. From the Colonna vaporetto stop, skip the glass shops in front of you, walk to the right, and wander up the street along the canal, Fondamenta dei Vetrai (Glassmakers’ Embankment). The Faro district of Murano, on the other side of the canal, is packed with factories (fabriche) and their furnaces (fornaci). You’ll pass dozens more glass shops along the canal. Early along this promenade, at #47, is the high-class Venini shop, with glass that’s a cut above much of what else is on offer here, and with an interior showing off the ultimate in modern Venetian glass design (closed Sun). Murano’s Glass Museum (Museo del Vetro) traces the history of this delicate art (€14, daily 10:30-18:30, Nov-March until 16:30, tel. 041-739-586, http://museovetro.visitmuve.it).
Burano: This ▲▲ island’s claim to fame is lacemaking, and (along with countless lace shops) it offers a delightful pastel village alternative to big, bustling Venice. The tight main drag is packed with tourists and lined with shops, some of which sell Burano’s locally produced white wine. Its Lace Museum (Museo del Merletto di Burano) shows the island’s lace heritage (€5, Tue-Sun 10:30-17:00, Nov-March until 16:30, closed Mon year-round, tel. 041-730-034, http://museomerletto.visitmuve.it).
Torcello: The birthplace of Venice, this island is where the first mainland refugees settled, escaping the barbarian hordes. Yet today, it’s the least-developed island (pop. 20) in the most natural state, marshy and shrub-covered. There’s little for tourists to see except the Santa Maria Assunta Church, the oldest in Venice, which still sports some impressive mosaics, a climbable bell tower, and a modest museum of Roman sculpture and medieval sculpture and manuscripts (10-minute walk from the dock, €12 combo-ticket covers museum, church, and bell tower; museum only-€3; church and bell tower-€5 each; church open daily 10:30-18:00, Nov-Feb 10:00-17:00, museum and bell tower close 30 minutes earlier, museum closed Mon year-round; museum tel. 041-730-761).
Venice’s nearest beach is the Lido, across the lagoon on an island connected to the mainland (which means car traffic). The sandy beach is pleasant, family-friendly, and good for swimming. You can rent an umbrella, buy beach gear at the shop, get food at the self-service café, or have a drink at the bar. Everything is affordable and in the same building (vaporetto: Lido S.M.E., walk 10 minutes on Gran Viale S. Maria Elisabetta to beach entry).
Riding a gondola is simple, expensive, and one of the great experiences in Europe. Gondoliers hanging out all over town are eager to have you hop in for a ride. While this is a rip-off for some, it’s a traditional must for romantics.
The price for a gondola starts at €80 for a 35-minute ride during the day. You can divide the cost—and the romance—among up to six people per boat, but only two get the love seat. Prices jump to €100 after 19:00—when it’s most romantic and relaxing. Adding a singer and an accordionist will cost an additional €120. If you value budget over romance, you can save money by recruiting fellow travelers to split a gondola. Prices are standard and listed on the gondoliers’ association website (go to www.gondolavenezia.it, click on “Using the Gondola,” and look under “charterage”).
Dozens of gondola stations (servizio gondole) are set up along canals all over town. Because your gondolier might offer narration or conversation during your ride, talk with several and choose one you like. You’re welcome to review the map and discuss the route. Doing so is also a good way to see if you enjoy the gondolier’s personality and language skills. Establish the price, route, and duration of the trip before boarding, enjoy your ride, and pay only when you’re finished. While prices are pretty firm, you might find them softer during the day. Most gondoliers honor the official prices, but a few might try to scam you out of some extra euros, particularly by insisting on a tip. (While not required or even expected, if your gondolier does the full 35 minutes and entertains you en route, a 5-10 percent tip is appreciated; if he’s surly or rushes through the trip, skip it.)
If you’ve hired musicians and want to hear a Venetian song (un canto Veneziano), try requesting “Venezia La Luna e Tu.” Asking to hear “O Sole Mio” (which comes from Naples) is like asking a Chicago lounge singer to sing “Swanee River.”
Glide through nighttime Venice with your head on someone’s shoulder. Follow the moon as it sails past otherwise unseen buildings. Silhouettes gaze down from bridges while window glitter spills onto the black water. You’re anonymous in the city of masks, as the rhythmic thrust of your striped-shirted gondolier turns old crows into songbirds. This is extremely relaxing (and, I think, worth the extra cost to experience at night). Suggestion: Put the camera down and make it a point for you and your partner to enjoy a threesome with Venice. Women, beware...while gondoliers can be extremely charming, locals say that anyone who falls for one of these Venetian Romeos “has slices of ham over her eyes.”
For cheap gondola thrills during the day, stick to the one-minute ferry ride on a Grand Canal traghetto. At night, vaporetti are nearly empty, and it’s a great time to cruise the Grand Canal on the slow boat #1. Or hang out on a bridge along the gondola route and wave at romantics.
Venice’s most famous festival is Carnevale, the celebration Americans call Mardi Gras (February; www.carnevale.venezia.it). In Carnevale’s heyday—the 1600s and 1700s—you could do pretty much anything with anybody from any social class if you were wearing a mask. These days, tourists and Venetians—from kids to businessmen—gather for parades, parties, and masquerade balls. In drawing such big crowds, Carnevale has nearly been a victim of its own success, driving away many Venetians (who skip out on the craziness to go skiing in the Dolomites). Unless you’re interested in joining the fun, any other day this time of year will be much less chaotic, and less expensive.
Every year, the city hosts the Venice Biennale International Art Exhibition, a world-class contemporary fair alternating between art in odd years (the main event) and architecture in even years (much smaller). The exhibition spreads over the Arsenale and Giardini park. When the Biennale focuses on visual art, representatives from 80-plus nations offer the latest in contemporary art forms: video, digital art, performance art, and photography, along with painting and sculpture (take vaporetto #1 or #2 to Giardini-Biennale; for details and an events calendar, see www.labiennale.org). The actual exhibition usually runs from June through November, but other events loosely connected with the Biennale—film, dance, theater—are held throughout the year (starting as early as February) in various venues on the island.
Popular souvenirs and gifts include Murano glass, Burano lace, Carnevale masks, prints of Venetian scenes, traditional stationery (pens and marbled paper products of all kinds), calendars with Venetian scenes (and sexy gondoliers), and plenty of goofy knickknacks (Titian mouse pads, gondolier T-shirts, and little plastic gondola condom holders).
In touristy areas, shops are typically open from 9:00 to 19:30 (sometimes with a break at midday), and some stores are open on Sunday. If you’re buying at a market, bargain—it’s accepted and almost expected. In shops, you may save by offering to pay cash.
Popular Venetian glass is available in many forms: vases, tea sets, decanters, glasses, jewelry, lamps, mod sculptures, and on and on. Shops will ship it home for you, but you’re likely to pay as much or more for the shipping as you are for the item(s), and you may have to pay duty on larger purchases. Make sure the shop insures their merchandise (assicurazione), or you’re out of luck if it breaks.
Some visitors feel that because they’re in Venice, they ought to grab the opportunity to buy glass. Remember that you can buy fine glass back home, too (Venice stopped forbidding its glassblowers from leaving the republic a few centuries ago)—and under less time pressure.
You’ll want to avoid the cheap glass you’ll see—most of it is imported from China or Mexico. Genuine, high-end Venetian glass comes with the signature of the artist etched directly into the glass, along with a number if it’s a limited edition piece (for example, 14/30—number 14 of a total of 30 pieces made).
If you’re serious about glass, visit the island of Murano, its glass museum, and its many shops—you’ll find greater variety on the island.
To learn more about glass art, consider a free glassblowing demo at the Vetri d’Arte showroom in Palazzo Rota. Tour groups come and go all day long for the entertaining little demonstration followed by a sales pitch, but individuals are welcome to sit in on the show. From Gran Caffè Quadri on St. Mark’s Square, Sottoportico dei Dai leads over a bridge and, 30 yards later, directly into a lobby (it’s unsigned, look for the ATM) where stairs lead up to the showroom (RS%–20 percent discount on glass with this book, daily 8:30-17:00, San Marco 834—see the map on here for location, tel. 041-241-2664).
You must experience Venice after dark. The city is quiet at night, as many tour groups (not mine) stay in the cheaper hotels of Mestre on the mainland, and the masses of day-trippers return to their beach resorts and cruise ships.
Venice has a busy schedule of events, church concerts, festivals, and entertainment. Check at the TI or the TI’s website (www.veneziaunica.it) for listings. The free monthly Un Ospite di Venezia lists all the latest happenings in English (free at fancy hotels, or check www.unospitedivenezia.it).
Venice is a city of the powdered-wig Baroque era. For about €25, you can take your pick of traditional Vivaldi concerts in churches throughout town. Homegrown Vivaldi is as ubiquitous here as Strauss is in Vienna and Mozart is in Salzburg. In fact, you’ll find frilly young Vivaldis hawking concert tickets on many corners. Most shows start at 20:30 and generally last 1.5 hours. You’ll see posters in hotels all over town (hotels sell tickets at face value).
Tickets for Baroque concerts in Venice can usually be bought the same day as the concert, so don’t bother with websites that sell tickets with a surcharge. The general rule of thumb: Musicians in wigs and tights offer better spectacle; musicians in black-and-white suits are better performers.
The Interpreti Veneziani orchestra, considered the best group in town, generally performs 1.5-hour concerts nightly at 21:00 inside the sumptuous San Vidal Church (€28, church ticket booth open daily 9:30-21:00, north end of Accademia Bridge, tel. 041-277-0561, www.interpretiveneziani.com).
Venice’s most famous theaters are La Fenice (grand old opera house, box office tel. 041-2424), Teatro Goldoni (mostly Italian live theater), and Teatro Fondamenta Nuove (theater, music, and dance).
Musica a Palazzo is a unique evening of opera at a Venetian palace on the Grand Canal. You’ll spend about 45 delightful minutes in each of three sumptuous rooms (about 2.25 hours total) as seven musicians (generally three instruments and four singers) perform. With these kinds of surroundings, and under Tiepolo frescoes, you’ll be glad you dressed up. As there are only 70 seats, you must book by phone or online in advance (€85, nightly at 20:30, Palazzo Barbarigo Minotto, Fondamenta Duodo o Barbarigo, vaporetto: Santa Maria del Giglio, San Marco 2504, mobile 340-971-7272, www.musicapalazzo.com [URL inactive]).
For tourists, St. Mark’s Square is the highlight, with lantern light and live music echoing from the cafés. Just being here after dark is a thrill, as dueling café orchestras entertain. The ultimate Venetian music scene is at the venerable Caffè Florian. But Gran Caffè Chioggia (facing the Doge’s Palace) doesn’t charge extra for music and has good jazz nightly (see the sidebar on here). Every night, enthusiastic musicians play the same songs, creating the same irresistible magic. Hang out for free behind the tables (allowing you to move easily on to the next orchestra when the musicians take a break), or spring for a seat and enjoy a fun and gorgeously set concert. If you sit a while, expect to pay €15 and up (for a drink and the cover charge for music)—money well spent. Dancing on the square is free—and encouraged.
Several venerable cafés and bars on the square serve expensive drinks outside but cheap drinks inside at the bar. The scene in a bar like Gran Caffè Lavena (despite its questionable chandelier) can be great. You’ll hear people talking about the famous Harry’s American Bar, which sells overpriced food and American cocktails to dressy tourists near the San Marco-Vallaresso vaporetto stop. But it’s a rip-off...and the last place Hemingway would drink today. It’s far cheaper to get a drink at any of the hole-in-the-wall bars just off St. Mark’s Square; you can get a bottle of beer or even prosecco-to-go in a plastic cup.
Wherever you end up, streetlamp halos, live music, floodlit history, and a ceiling of stars make St. Mark’s magic at midnight.
I’ve listed rooms in these areas: St. Mark’s bustle, the Rialto action, the quiet Dorsoduro area behind the Accademia art museum, and near the train station.
Hotels in Venice can be tricky to locate. The website Venicexplorer.net allows you to search using a hotel’s address number and district, which I’ve included in my listings (click “Venice Civic Number” on the website to open the search window); it’s better than Google Maps, which can choke on Venetian addresses. Remember that Venice has six districts: San Marco, Castello, Cannaregio, San Polo, Santa Croce, and Dorsoduro.
Hotel Tips: I rank accommodations from $ budget to $$$$ splurge. For the best deal, contact my family-run places directly by phone or email. When you book direct, the owner avoids a commission and may be able to offer a discount. Book well in advance for peak season or if your trip coincides with a major holiday or festival (see the appendix).
As many hotels in central Venice are in historic buildings, rooms tend to be small and stairs are often plentiful. Unless noted, these listings do not have an elevator. For some travelers, short-term, Airbnb-type rentals can be a good alternative; search for places in my recommended hotel neighborhoods.
For more details on reservations, short-term rentals, and more, see the “Sleeping” section in the Practicalities chapter.
To get here from the train station or Piazzale Roma bus station, ride the slow vaporetto #1 to San Zaccaria or the fast #2 (which also leaves from Tronchetto parking lot) to San Marco. Consider using your ride to follow my tour of the Grand Canal (earlier in this chapter); to make sure you arrive via the Grand Canal, confirm that your boat goes “via Rialto.”
Located near the Bridge of Sighs, just off the Riva degli Schiavoni waterfront promenade, these places rub drainpipes with Venice’s most palatial five-star hotels.
$$$$ Hotel Campiello, lacy and bright, was once part of a 19th-century convent. Ideally located 50 yards off the waterfront on a tiny square, its 16 rooms offer a tranquil, friendly refuge for travelers who appreciate comfort and professional service (RS%, air-con, elevator, just steps from the San Zaccaria vaporetto stop, Castello 4647; tel. 041-520-5764, www.hcampiello.it, campiello@hcampiello.it; family-run for four generations, currently by Thomas, Nicoletta, and Monica). They also rent three modern, upscale, and quiet family apartments for up to six people, under rustic timbers just steps away from the hotel.
$$$$ Hotel Fontana, two bridges behind St. Mark’s Square, is a pleasant family-run place with 15 sparse but classic-feeling rooms overlooking a lively square (RS%, several rooms with terraces, family rooms, air-con, elevator, closed Jan, on Campo San Provolo at Castello 4701, tel. 041-522-0533, www.hotelfontana.it, info@hotelfontana.it, cousins Diego and Gabriele).
$$$$ Hotel la Residenza is a grand old palace facing a peaceful square. It has 16 rooms on three levels (with no elevator) and a huge, luxurious lounge. This is a good value for romantics—you’ll feel like you’re in the Doge’s Palace after hours (air-con; from the Riva, go down Calle del Dose to Campo Bandiera e Moro at Castello 3608, tel. 041-528-5315, www.venicelaresidenza.com, info@venicelaresidenza.com, Giovanni).
$$$ Locanda al Leon, which feels a little like a medieval tower house, is conscientiously run and rents 12 rooms just off Campo Santi Filippo e Giacomo (RS%, some view rooms, family rooms, air-con, one- and two-bedroom apartments, Campo Santi Filippo e Giacomo, Castello 4270, tel. 041-277-0393, www.hotelalleon.com, leon@hotelalleon.com, Giuliano and Marcella). Their annex down the street, B&B Ca’ Marcella, has three newer, classy, and spacious rooms for the same rates (check in at main hotel).
$$ Albergo Doni, situated along a quiet canal, is dark and quiet. This time-warp—with creaky floors and 13 well-worn, once-classy rooms—is run by friendly Tessa and her two brothers, Barnaba and (now “retired”) Italian stallion Nikos (RS%, cheaper rooms with shared bath, family rooms, ceiling fans, a few rooms have air-con, Wi-Fi in common areas, on Fondamenta del Vin at Castello 4656, tel. 041-522-4267, albergodoni@hotmail.it). The hotel also has three nice overflow apartments at the same prices (but without breakfast).
$$$$ Hotel Orion rents 21 simple, welcoming, pricey rooms in the center of the action (you’re paying a premium for the location). Steep stairs (there’s no elevator) take you from the touristy street into a peaceful world high above (RS%—use code RSTEVES, air-con, 2 minutes inland from St. Mark’s Square, 10 steps toward St. Mark’s from San Zulian Church at Calle Spadaria 700a, tel. 041-522-3053, www.hotelorion.it, info@hotelorion.it).
$$$ Hotel al Piave, with 25 rooms above a bright, tight lobby and breakfast room, is comfortable and cheery, and you’ll enjoy the neighborhood (RS%, family rooms, lots of narrow stairs, air-con, on Ruga Giuffa at Castello 4838, tel. 041-528-5174, www.hotelalpiave.com, info@hotelalpiave.com; Mirella, Paolo, Ilaria, and Federico).
$$$ Locanda Casa Querini rents six bright, high-ceilinged rooms on a quiet square tucked away behind St. Mark’s. You can enjoy your breakfast or a sunny happy-hour picnic sitting at their tables right on the sleepy little square (RS%, family rooms, in-room fridges, air-con, halfway between San Zaccaria vaporetto stop and Campo Santa Maria Formosa at Castello 4388 on Campo San Zaninovo/Giovanni Novo, tel. 041-241-1294, www.locandaquerini.com, info@locandaquerini.com; Patrizia and Caterina).
$$$ Locanda Silva is a well-located hotel with a functional 1960s feel and a small terrace. It rents 23 simple rooms with small bathrooms (RS%, a few cheaper rooms with shared bathrooms, closed Dec-Jan, family rooms, air-con, lots of stairs, on Fondamenta del Remedio at Castello 4423, tel. 041-522-7643, www.locandasilva.it, info@locandasilva.it; Sandra and Katia).
$$ Corte Campana B&B, run by enthusiastic and helpful Riccardo and his Californian wife Grace, rents three quiet, spacious, characteristic rooms in a homey flat just behind St. Mark’s Square. For one room, the private bath is down the hall (cash only, 2-night minimum, family rooms, air-con, elevator, on Calle del Remedio at Castello 4410, tel. 041-523-3603, mobile 389-272-6500, www.cortecampana.com, info@cortecampana.com).
A bit farther north of the options listed above, these are in the quiet, somewhat less touristy Castello area, beyond the inviting Campo Santa Maria Formosa (for locations, see the map on here).
$$$ Locanda la Corte is perfumed with elegance without being snooty. Its 14 attractive, high-ceilinged, wood-beamed rooms—Venetian-style, done in earthy pastels—circle a small, sun-drenched courtyard and a ground-level restaurant (RS%, family rooms, air-con, on Calle Bressana at Castello 6317, tel. 041-241-1300, www.locandalacorte.it, info@locandalacorte.it).
$$ Alloggi Barbaria, a good budget choice, rents eight simple, characterless rooms on one floor around a bright but institutional-feeling common area. Beyond Campo San Zanipolo/Santi Giovanni e Paolo, it’s a fair walk from the action, but in a pleasant residential neighborhood. The Ospedale vaporetto stop is two minutes away on foot, with no steps (RS%, family rooms, limited continental breakfast, air-con in summer, Wi-Fi in common areas, on Calle de le Capucine at Castello 6573, tel. 041-522-2750, www.alloggibarbaria.it, info@alloggibarbaria.it, friendly Fausto). You can reach the Ospedale stop on vaporetto #5.2 from the train or bus stations, or via the Alilaguna blue line from the airport.
These more expensive hotels are solid choices in a more elegant neighborhood.
$$$$ Hotel Flora sits buried in a sea of fancy designer boutiques and elegant hotels almost on the Grand Canal. It’s formal, with uniformed staff and grand public spaces, yet the 40 rooms have a homey warmth and the garden oasis is a sanctuary for well-heeled, foot-weary guests (RS%, air-con, elevator, great family-size apartment, on Calle Bergamaschi at San Marco 2283a, tel. 041-520-5844, www.hotelflora.it, info@hotelflora.it).
$$$$ Hotel Bel Sito offers pleasing Old World character, 34 smallish rooms, generous public spaces, a peaceful courtyard, and a picturesque location—facing a church on a small square between St. Mark’s Square and the Accademia (RS%, some view rooms, air-con, elevator; near Santa Maria del Giglio vaporetto stop—line #1, on Campo Santa Maria Zobenigo/del Giglio at San Marco 2517, tel. 041-522-3365, www.hotelbelsitovenezia.it, info@hotelbelsitovenezia.it, graceful Rossella).
$$$$ Hotel Mercurio, a lesser value a block in front of La Fenice Opera House, offers 29 peaceful, comfortable rooms (some view rooms, family rooms, air-con, lots of stairs, on Calle del Fruttariol at San Marco 1848, tel. 041-522-0947, www.hotelmercurio.com, info@hotelmercurio.com).
These places are on opposite sides of the Grand Canal, within a short walk of the Rialto Bridge. Express vaporetto #2 brings you to the Rialto quickly from the train station, the Piazzale Roma bus station, and the parking-lot island of Tronchetto, but you’ll need to take the “local” vaporetto #1 to reach the minor stops closer to the last two listings. To locate the following hotels, see the map on here.
$$$$ Hotel al Ponte Antico is exquisite, professional, and small. With nine plush rooms, a velvety royal living/breakfast room, and its own dock for water taxi arrivals, it’s perfect for a romantic anniversary. Because its wonderful terrace overlooks the Grand Canal, Rialto Bridge, and market action, its rooms without a canal view may be a better value (air-con, 100 yards from Rialto Bridge at Cannaregio 5768, use Rialto vaporetto stop, tel. 041-241-1944, www.alponteantico.com, info@alponteantico.com, Matteo makes you feel like royalty).
$$$ Pensione Guerrato, right above the colorful Rialto produce market and just two minutes from the Rialto Bridge, is run by friendly, creative, and hardworking Roberto, Piero, Monica, and Matilde. Their 800-year-old building—with 22 spacious, charming rooms—is simple, airy, and wonderfully characteristic. It’s a great value considering the location and charm (RS%, cheaper rooms with shared bath, family rooms, air-con, on Calle drio la Scimia at San Polo 240a, take vaporetto #1 to Rialto Mercato stop to save walk over bridge, tel. 041-528-5927, www.hotelguerrato.com, info@hotelguerrato.com). My tour groups book this place for 60 nights each year. Sorry. The Guerrato also rents family apartments in the old center (great for groups of 4-8).
$$$ Hotel al Ponte Mocenigo is off the beaten path—a 10-minute walk northwest of the Rialto Bridge—but it’s a great value. This 16th-century Venetian palazzo has a garden terrace and 15 comfy, beautifully appointed, and tranquil rooms (RS%, air-con, take vaporetto #1 to San Stae stop, head inland along right side of church and find Santa Croce 1985, tel. 041-524-4797, www.alpontemocenigo.com, info@alpontemocenigo.com, Sandro and Valter).
As you step over the Accademia Bridge, the commotion of touristy Venice is replaced by a sleepy village laced with canals. This quiet area, next to the best painting gallery in town, is a 15-minute walk from the Rialto or St. Mark’s Square. The fast vaporetto #2 to the Accademia stop is the typical way to get here from the train station, Piazzale Roma bus station, Tronchetto parking lot, or St. Mark’s Square (early and late, #2 terminates at the Rialto stop, where you change to #1). For hotels near the Zattere stop, vaporetto #5.1 or the Alilaguna speedboat from the airport are good options.
$$$$ Pensione Accademia fills the 17th-century Villa Maravege like a Bellini painting. Its 27 comfortable, elegant rooms gild the lily. You’ll feel aristocratic gliding through its grand public spaces and lounging in its wistful, breezy gardens (family rooms, air-con, no elevator but most rooms on ground floor or one floor up, on Fondamenta Bollani at Dorsoduro 1058, tel. 041-521-0188, www.pensioneaccademia.it, info@pensioneaccademia.it).
$$$$ Hotel la Calcina, the home of English writer John Ruskin in 1876, maintains a 19th-century formality. It comes with three-star comforts in a professional yet intimate package. Its 25 nautical-feeling rooms are squeaky clean, with nice wood furniture, hardwood floors, and a peaceful waterside setting facing Giudecca Island (some view rooms, air-con, no elevator and lots of stairs, rooftop terrace, buffet breakfast outdoors in good weather on platform over lagoon, near Zattere vaporetto stop at south end of Rio de San Vio at Dorsoduro 780, tel. 041-520-6466, www.lacalcina.com, info@lacalcina.com).
$$$$ Casa Rezzonico, a tranquil getaway far from the crowds, rents seven inviting, nicely appointed rooms with a grassy private garden terrace. All the rooms overlook either the canal or the garden (RS%, family rooms, air-con, near Ca’ Rezzonico vaporetto stop—line #1, a few blocks past Campo San Barnaba on Fondamenta Gherardini at Dorsoduro 2813, tel. 041-277-0653, www.casarezzonico.it [URL inactive], info@casarezzonico.it, brothers Matteo and Mattia).
$$$$ Hotel Galleria has nine old-fashioned and velvety rooms, half with views of the Grand Canal. Some rooms are quite narrow, but you can open your window to watch boats pass by at any time. It’s run with a family feel by Luciano (one cheaper room with detached private bath, breakfast in room, ceiling fans, 30 yards from Accademia art museum, next to recommended Foscarini pizzeria at Dorsoduro 878a, tel. 041-523-2489, www.hotelgalleria.it, info@hotelgalleria.it).
$$$$ Hotel Belle Arti, with a stiff, serious staff, lacks personality but has a grand entry, an inviting garden terrace, and 67 heavily decorated rooms (air-con, elevator, 100 yards behind Accademia art museum on Rio Terà A. Foscarini at Dorsoduro 912a, tel. 041-522-6230, www.hotelbellearti.com, info@hotelbellearti.com).
$$$$ Don Orione Religious Guest House is a big cultural center dedicated to the work of a local man who became a saint in modern times. With 80 rooms filling an old monastery, it feels cookie-cutter-institutional (like a modern retreat center), but is also classy, clean, peaceful, and strictly run. It’s beautifully located, comfortable, and supports a fine cause: Profits go to mission work in the developing world (family rooms, groups welcome, air-con, elevator, on Rio Terà A. Foscarini, Dorsoduro 909a, tel. 041-522-4077, www.donorione-venezia.it, info@donorione-venezia.it).
$$$ Ca’ San Trovaso rents six pleasant rooms in a little three-floor, formerly residential building. The location is peaceful, on a small, out-of-the-way canal (RS%, some view rooms, breakfast in your room, tiny roof terrace, apartments available with 3-night minimum, near Zattere vaporetto stop, off Fondamenta de le Romite at Dorsoduro 1350, tel. 041-241-2215, mobile 349-125-3890, www.casantrovaso.com, info@casantrovaso.com, Anna and Alessandra).
$$$ Casa di Sara, a colorfully decorated B&B, is hidden in a leafy courtyard in a humble back-street area overlooking a canal. Their four quiet rooms and tiny roof terrace offer the maximum in privacy (air-con, along Fondamenta de le Romite at Dorsoduro 1330, mobile 342-596-3563, www.casadisara.com, info@casadisara.com, Emanuele).
These places are between the Accademia Bridge and St. Mark’s Square.
$$$$ Novecento Hotel rents nine plush rooms on three floors, complemented by a big, welcoming lounge, an elegant living room, and a small breakfast garden. This boutique hotel is nicely located and has a tasteful sense of style, mingling Art Deco with North African and Turkish decor (air-con, lots of stairs, on Calle del Dose, off Campo San Maurizio at San Marco 2684, tel. 041-241-3765, www.novecento.biz, info@novecento.biz).
$$$$ Foresteria Levi, run by a foundation that promotes research on Venetian music, offers 32 quiet, institutional yet comfortable and spacious rooms—some are loft quads, a good deal for families (RS%, air-con, elevator, on Calle Giustinian at San Marco 2893, tel. 041-277-0542, www.foresterialevi.it, info@foresterialevi.it). From the base of the Accademia Bridge, it’s just over the tiny Ponte Giustinian.
$$$ Domus Ciliota is a big, efficient, and sparkling-clean place—well-run, well-located, church-owned, and plainly furnished—with 30 dorm-like rooms and a peaceful courtyard. If you want industrial-strength comfort with no stress and little character, this is a fine value. During the school year, half the rooms are used by students (air-con, elevator; just off Campo San Stefano at San Marco 2976; tel. 041-520-4888, www.ciliota.it, info@ciliota.it).
$$$ Hotel San Samuele rents 10 tidy rooms in an old palazzo near Campo San Stefano. Antique furniture and restored original floors give this place a homey feel. It’s in a great locale, and the rooms with shared bath can be a good deal (RS%, no breakfast, fans, some stairs, on Salizada San Samuele at San Marco 3358, tel. 041-520-5165, www.hotelsansamuele.com, info@hotelsansamuele.com, Judith).
While touristy restaurants are the norm in Venice, you can still make the most of your meal by dining at one of my recommended listings and following these tips. First trick: Walk away from triple-language menus or laminated pictures of food. Second trick: For freshness, eat fish. (But remember that seafood can be sold by weight—per 100 grams or etto—rather than a set price.) Many seafood dishes are the catch-of-the-day. Third trick: Eat later. A place may feel touristy at 19:00, but if you come back at 21:00, it can be filled with locals...or, at least, Italian visitors.
I rank eateries from $ budget to $$$$ splurge. For more advice on eating, including ordering, tipping, and Italian cuisine and beverages, see the “Eating” section of the Practicalities chapter.
Venetians often eat a snack—cicchetti or panini—while standing at a bar. (You’ll usually pay more if you sit.) Unique to Venice, cicchetti bars specialize in finger foods and appetizers that combine to make a speedy and tasty meal. Cicchetti (the Venetian version of tapas) was designed as a quick meal for working people. The selection and ambience are best Monday through Saturday for lunch or early dinner (see “The Stand-Up Progressive Venetian Pub-Crawl Dinner” sidebar, later).
Sandwiches are sold fast and cheaply at bars everywhere (order a panini, piadini, or tramezzini). A great “sandwich row” of cheap cafés is near St. Mark’s Square. You can eat your sandwich at the bar or take it with you.
A favorite Italian tradition is the aperitivo (predinner drink). The dominant aperitivo among Venetians is the spritz (white wine, soda, and ice with a liquor of your choice). When you order, you’ll be asked if you’d like your spritz con Campari (bitter) or con Aperol (sweeter).
These restaurants and wine bars are located near or beyond Campo Santi Apostoli, on or near the Strada Nova, the main drag going from Rialto toward the train station.
$$$ Trattoria da Bepi, bright and alpine-paneled, feels like a classic, where Loris carries on his mother’s passion for good, traditional Venetian cuisine. Ask for the seasonal specialties: The seafood appetizer plate and crab dishes are excellent. There’s good seating inside and out. If you trust Loris, you’ll walk away with a wonderful dining memory (Fri-Wed 12:00-14:30 & 19:00-22:00, closed Thu, reservations recommended, half a block off Campo Santi Apostoli on Salizada Pistor, Cannaregio 4550, tel. 041-528-5031, www.dabepi.it).
$$$ La Cantina is a rustic yet sophisticated enoteca—you won’t find a menu here. Rather than cook (there’s no kitchen), they serve cicchetti and gourmet cold plates of meat, cheese, and fish. Though short on smiles and expensive (meat-and-cheese plates—€18/person, seafood plates—€35/person), you’ll enjoy good ingredients paired with fine wines. You can sit inside and watch the preparation scene or enjoy the parade of passersby from great seats right on the Strada Nova (Mon-Sat 11:00-22:00, closed Sun, facing Campo San Felice on Strada Nova near Ca’ d’Oro, Cannaregio 3689, tel. 041-522-8258).
$$$$ Vini da Gigio, a more expensive option, has a traditional Venetian menu and a classy but unsnooty setting that’s a pleasant mix of traditional and contemporary (Wed-Sun 12:00-14:30 & 19:00-22:30, closed Mon-Tue, 4 blocks from Ca’ d’Oro vaporetto stop on Fondamenta San Felice, behind the church on Campo San Felice, Cannaregio 3628a, tel. 041-528-5140, www.vinidagigio.com).
The next few places hide away in the twisty lanes between the Rialto Bridge and Campo Santa Maria Formosa. Osteria da Alberto is a tad farther north of the others.
$ Bacarando Bar feels youthful, with clearly marked and priced little dishes at the counter and table seating (daily 11:00-24:00, tel. 342-800-3823). It’s behind Campo San Bartolomeo (if the statue turned around, walked to the far right-hand corner, and explored the back lanes there, he’d find it in Corte dell’Orso).
$$ Osteria al Portego is a small and popular neighborhood eatery near Campo San Lio. Carlo serves good meals, bargain-priced house wine, and excellent €1-3 cicchetti—best enjoyed around 18:00 (picked over by 21:00). The cicchetti here can make a great meal, but consider sitting down for a dinner from their menu. From 12:00-14:30 & 17:30-21:30, their six tables are reserved for those ordering from the menu; reserve ahead if you want a table (daily 11:30-15:00 & 17:30-22:00, on Calle de la Malvasia, Castello 6015, tel. 041-522-9038, Federica). From Campo San Bartolomeo, continue over a bridge to Campo San Lio, turn left, and follow Calle Carminati straight 50 yards over another bridge.
$$ Osteria da Alberto, near Campo Santa Maria Novo, is one of my standbys, with locals at lunch and tourists at dinner. They offer excellent daily specials: seafood, pastas, and a good house wine in a woody and characteristic interior. It’s smart to reserve at night—I’d request a table in front (daily 12:00-15:00 & 18:30-22:00; on Calle Larga Giacinto Gallina, midway between Campo Santi Apostoli and Campo San Zanipolo/Santi Giovanni e Paolo, and next to Ponte de la Panada bridge, Cannaregio 5401; tel. 041-523-8153, www.osteriadaalberto.it [URL inactive], run by Graziano and Giovanni).
The north end of the Rialto Bridge is a great area for menu browsing, bar-hopping, drinks, and snacks; it also has fine sit-down restaurants. As with market neighborhoods anywhere, you’ll find lots of hard-working holes-in-the-wall with a line on the freshest of ingredients and catering to local shoppers needing a quick, affordable, and tasty bite. This area is very crowded by day, nearly empty early in the evening, and packed with young, trendy Venetians later.
My listings include a stretch of dark and rustic pubs serving cicchetti (Venetian tapas), a strip of trendy places fronting the Grand Canal, a few little places on the market, and a couple of “normal” restaurants serving solid pasta, pizza, and secondi.
The 100-yard-long stretch starting two blocks inland from the Rialto Market (along Sotoportego dei Do Mori and Calle de le Do Spade) is beloved among Venetian cicchetti enthusiasts for its delightful bar munchies, good wine by the glass, and fun stand-up conviviality. These $ places serve food all day, but the spread is best at around noon (unless otherwise noted, generally open daily 12:00-15:00 & 18:00-20:00 or 21:00). Each place offers a fine bar-and-stools scene, and a couple can be treated like a restaurant—order from their rustic menu and grab a table. Scout these places in advance (listed in the order you’ll reach them, if coming from the Rialto Bridge) to help decide which ambience is right for the experience you have in mind. Then pick one, dig in, and drink up.
At each place, look for the list of snacks and wine by the glass at the bar or on the wall. When you’re ready for dessert, try dipping a Burano biscuit in a glass of strawberry-flavored fragolino or another sweet dessert wine. Most bars offer glasses of house wine for €1, better wine for around €3, and cicchetti for €1.50-2.
Bar all’Arco, a bustling one-room joint, is particularly enjoyable for its cicchetti (Mon-Sat 10:00-17:00, closed Sun, San Polo 436; Francesco, Anna, Matteo).
Cantina Do Mori has been famous with locals (since 1462) and savvy travelers (since 1982) as a convivial place for wine. They serve a forest of little edibles on toothpicks and francobolli (a spicy selection of 20 tiny, mayo-soaked sandwiches nicknamed “stamps”). Go here to be abused in a fine atmosphere—the frowns are part of the shtick—and be aware that prices can add up quickly (closed Sun, can be shoulder-to-shoulder, San Polo 430).
Osteria ai Storti, with a cool photo of the market in 1909, is more of a sit-down place (tables inside and on street). It’s run by Alessandro, who speaks English and enjoys helping educate travelers (around corner from Cantina Do Mori on Calle San Matio, San Polo 819).
Cantina Do Spade is run by Francesco, who clearly lists the cicchetti (mostly deep fried) and wines of the day. It’s also good for sit-down restaurant-style meals (30 yards down Calle de le Do Spade from Osteria ai Storti at San Polo 860, tel. 041-521-0583).
Just past the Rialto Bridge, between Campo San Giacomo and the Grand Canal, this strip of popular places in a recently renovated old building has some of the best canalside seating in Venice. I call this the “Bancogiro Stretch” (the restaurants front a former banking building called Bancogiro).
Each place has a unique character and formula. Unless otherwise noted, all are open daily and serve drinks, cicchetti, and somewhat pricey sit-down meals. While you can get a drink anytime, dinner is typically served only after 19:00 or 19:30. During meals, they charge more and limit table seating to those ordering full lunches or dinners; but between mealtimes you can enjoy a drink or a snack at fine prices. After dinner hours, the Bancogiro Stretch—especially in the surrounding alleys that house low-rent bars—becomes a youthful and trendy nightspot. Before or after dinner, this strip is one of the best places in town for a spritz.
Here’s the rundown (in the order you’ll reach them from the Rialto Bridge): $$$ Bar Naranzaria serves Italian dishes with a few Japanese options. $$ Caffè Vergnano is your cheapest option—especially during mealtimes (vegetarian dishes and a busy microwave oven). $$$ Osteria al Pesador has a friendly staff and serves local specialties. $$$ Osteria Bancogiro has the best reputation for dinner, a passion for the best cheese, and good cicchetti options at the bar (nice cheese plate, closed Mon, tel. 041-523-2061, www.osteriabancogiro.it). The more modern $$ Bar Ancòra seems to be most popular with the local bar crowd, with a live piano player crooning lounge music during busy times (cicchetti at the bar).
$ Al Mercà Bar (“At the Market”), a few steps away and off the canal, is a lively little nook with a happy crowd, where law-office workers have lunch and young locals gather in the evening for drinks (quality wine by the glass) and little snacks (€2 mini-sandwiches). The price list is clear, and the youthful crowd seems to enjoy connecting with curious tourists (stand at bar or in square—there are no tables and no interior, Mon-Sat 10:00-14:30 & 18:00-21:00, closed Sun, on Campo Cesare Battisti, San Polo 213).
$$ Ristorante Vini da Pinto is a tourist-friendly eatery facing the fish market, with a large menu and relaxing outdoor seating (and easily confused with the restaurant next door to it). Owner Giorgio visits the market each morning to select the day’s best catch. Enjoy the lunch-only, fixed-price, three-course seafood meal for €18, including a pasta, seafood sampler plate, veggies, and dessert. Grander versions cost €20-25. Rick Steves readers receive a welcoming prosecco and a farewell limoncello and homemade cookie (daily 11:00-23:00, Campo de le Becarie, San Polo 367a, tel. 041-522-4599).
My favorite Venetian dinner is a pub crawl (giro d’ombra)— a tradition unique to Venice, where no cars means easy crawling. (Giro means stroll, and ombra—slang for a glass of wine—means shade, from the old days when a portable wine bar scooted with the shadow of the Campanile bell tower across St. Mark’s Square.)
Venice’s residential back streets hide plenty of characteristic bars (bacari), with countless trays of interesting toothpick munchies (cicchetti) and blackboards listing the wines that are uncorked and served by the glass. This is a great way to mingle and have fun with the Venetians. Bars don’t stay open very late, and the cicchetti selection is best early, so start your evening by 18:00. Many bars are closed on Sunday. For a stress-free pub crawl, consider taking a tour with the charming Alessandro Schezzini (see here).
Cicchetti bars have a social stand-up zone and a cozy gaggle of tables where you can generally sit down with your cicchetti or order from a simple menu. In some of the more popular places, the crowds happily spill out into the street. Food generally costs the same price whether you stand or sit. I’ve listed plenty of pubs in walking order for a quick or extended crawl.
Look for a place that’s more “bar” than “restaurant.” Make sure they have cicchetti on display. Bar-hopping Venetians enjoy an aperitivo, a before-dinner drink. You may have to pay for it up front (but probably not—it varies). Then chill. Sip your drink and make the scene while standing at the bar. Next, order a cicchetti or two by pointing. Chill some more, while munching and sipping. Then order another one or two. Find a stool or table nearby where you can sit (but don’t sit at tables with tablecloths—those are for diners). Pay when you’re ready to leave. If you’ve crawled enough, most of my recommended bars make a fine one-stop, sit-down dinner.
While you can order a plate, Venetians prefer going one-by-one...sipping their wine and trying this...then give me one of those...and so on. Try deep-fried mozzarella cheese, gorgonzola, calamari, artichoke hearts, and anything ugly on a toothpick. Crostini (small toasted bread with a topping) are popular, as are marinated seafood, olives, and prosciutto with melon. Meat and fish (pesce; PESH-ay) munchies can be expensive; veggies (verdure) are cheap, at about €3 for a meal-sized plate. In many places, there’s a set price per food item (for example, €1.50). To get a plate of assorted appetizers for €8 (or more, depending on how hungry you are), ask for “Un piatto classico di cicchetti misti da €8” (oon pee-AH-toh KLAH-see-koh dee chee-KET-tee MEE-stee dah OH-toh eh-OO-roh). Bread sticks (grissini) are free for the asking.
For drinks, start with an aperitivo: Order a Bellini, a spritz con Aperol, or a prosecco, and draw approving looks from the natives. Enjoy the house wines with the food. An ombra (“shadow”) is a small glass of wine often offered with cicchetti. An ombra rosso (red) or ombra bianco (white), or a small beer (birrino) costs about €1. The house keg wine is cheap—€1 per glass, about €4 per liter. Vin bon, Venetian for fine wine, may run you from €2 to €6 per little glass. There are usually several fine wines uncorked and available by the glass. A good last drink is fragolino, the local sweet wine—bianco or rosso. It often comes with a little cookie (biscotto) for dipping.
$$ Osteria al Ponte Storto, a little family-run place on a quiet canalside corner a block off the main drag, is worth seeking out for its good-value main dishes, daily specials, and peaceful location. Rather than a romantic place, it feels like the corner favorite of the neighborhood (Tue-Sun 12:00-15:00 & 18:00-21:45, closed Mon, down Calle Bianca from San Aponal church, San Polo 1278, tel. 041-528-2144, Nicola is the chef/owner).
$$$$ Trattoria Antiche Carampane is a dressy, family-run place with an open kitchen and a local following. They have a passion for fish (and make a point: no pizza) and serve traditional Venetian dishes with a fresh twist that change with the season. It’s small—there are just 30 seats with six tables on the street (Tue-Sat 12:45-14:30 & 19:30-22:30, closed Sun-Mon, reservations necessary, Rio Tera delle Carampane, San Polo 1911, tel. 041-524-0165, www.antichecarampane.com, Francesco).
$$ Antica Birraria la Corte is an everyday eatery on the delightful Campo San Polo. Popular for its huge array of pizza—and smaller selection of hearty salads, pasta, and secondi—it fills the far side of this cozy, family-filled square. Although the interior is sprawling and modern, it’s a joy to eat on the square, where metal tables teeter on the cobbles, the wind plays with the paper mats, and children run free (daily 12:00-15:00 & 18:00-22:30, on Campo San Polo at #2168, tel. 041-275-0570).
Other than the first place, a more serious restaurant, the other eateries listed here are cheap-and-cheery options convenient to your sightseeing. For locations, see the map on here.
$$$$ Ristorante Antica Sacrestia is a classic restaurant where the owner, Pino, takes a hands-on approach to greeting guests. His staff serves creative fixed-price meals (€35, €55, or €80), a humdrum menù del giorno, and wonderful pizzas. You can also order à la carte; their antipasto spread looks like a lagoon aquarium spread out on a plate. My readers are welcome to a free sgroppino (lemon vodka after-dinner drink) upon request (Tue-Sun 11:30-15:00 & 18:00-23:00, closed Mon, behind San Zaninovo/Giovanni Novo Church on Calle Corona, Castello 4463, tel. 041-523-0749, www.anticasacrestia.it). There’s no wine by the glass. Order carefully. Pizza is your only budget escape.
$$ Rossopomodoro Pizzeria is a big, fun, and practical pizzeria offering top quality, good prices, and a very handy location. They cook Naples-style pizzas in their wood oven and also offer a selection of hearty salads and pastas (long hours daily, Calle Larga San Marco 404, tel. 041-243-8949).
$$$ L’Ombra del Leone is a big, modern, and classy bar (with attached restaurant) featuring an outdoor terrace right on the Grand Canal. It’s in the Biennale offices and is popular with gondoliers. Its bar menu of salads and sandwiches has reasonable prices for the elegance and location (long hours daily, in Ca’ Giustinian, behind San Moisè Church at the end of Calle Ridotto, tel. 041-241-3519).
Sandwich Row: On Calle de le Rasse, just steps away from the tourist intensity at St. Mark’s Square, is a handy strip I call “Sandwich Row.” Lined with several $ sandwich bars, it’s the closest place to St. Mark’s to get a decent sandwich at an affordable price with a place to sit down (most places open long hours daily, about €1 extra per item to sit; from the Bridge of Sighs, head down the Riva and take the second lane on the left). They all sell the tramezzino local-style sandwiches. Birreria Forst serves busy local workers a selection of meaty sandwiches with tasty sauce on wheat bread, or made-to-order sandwiches (daily 9:30-23:00, air-con, rustic wood tables, Castello 4540, tel. 041-523-0557). Bar Verde is a more modern sandwich bar with fun people-watching views from its tables outside on the corner (also splittable salads, fresh pastries, at the end of Calle de le Rasse facing Campo Santi Filippo e Giacomo, Castello 4526).
Picnicking: Though you can’t picnic on St. Mark’s Square, you can legally take your snacks to the nearby Giardinetti Reali, the small park along the waterfront west of the Piazzetta.
For a (marginally) less touristy scene, walk a few blocks north to the inviting Campo Santa Maria Formosa.
$$$$ Osteria alle Testiere is my top dining splurge in Venice. Hugely respected, Luca and his staff are dedicated to quality, serving up creative, artfully presented market-fresh seafood (there’s no meat on the menu), homemade pastas, and fine wine in what the chef calls a “Venetian Nouvelle” style. With only 22 seats, it’s tight and homey, with the focus on food and service. They have daily specials, 10 wines by the glass, and one agenda: a great dining experience. This is a good spot to let loose and trust your host. They’re open for lunch (12:00-15:00), and reservations made via email only are a must for their two dinner seatings: 19:00 and 21:30 (plan on spending €60 for dinner, closed Sun-Mon, on Calle del Mondo Novo, just off Campo Santa Maria Formosa, Castello 5801, tel. 041-522-7220, www.osterialletestiere.it, info@osterialletestiere.it).
$$$ Osteria al Mascaron is a rustic little bar-turned-restaurant where I’ve gone for years to watch Gigi, Momi, and their food-loving band of ruffians dish up rustic-yet-sumptuous pastas with steamy seafood to salivating foodies. The antipasto misto fish-and-vegetable plate—have fun pointing—and two glasses of wine make a terrific light meal (Mon-Sat 12:00-15:00 & 18:00-23:00, closed Sun, reservations smart Fri-Sat; on Calle Lunga Santa Maria Formosa, a block past Campo Santa Maria Formosa, Castello 5225; tel. 041-522-5995, www.osteriamascaron.it).
Fast and Cheap Eats: The veggie stand on Campo Santa Maria Formosa is a fixture. For döner kebabs and pizza to go, head down Calle Lunga Santa Maria Formosa to $ Peter Pan at #6249 (daily 11:30-23:00, Castello).
All of these recommendations are within a 10-minute walk of the Accademia Bridge (for locations, see the map on here). This area, called Dorsoduro, is great for restaurants and well worth the walk from the more touristy Rialto and San Marco areas. The first listings, near the Accademia, are best for lunch. The places in Zattere overlook the Giudecca Canal. Best for dinner are the restaurants near Campo San Barnaba. Last are a handful of pizzerias and cicchetti bars on Campo Santa Margarita. My top Dorsoduro listing, Ristorante Lineadombra, is described later in “Splurging on a Water (or Otherwise Great) View.”
$$ Bar Foscarini, next to the Accademia Bridge and Galleria, offers decent pizzas and panini in a memorable Grand Canal-view setting. The food is forgettable and drinks are pricey. But you’re paying a premium for this premium location. On each visit to Venice, I grab a pizza lunch here while I ponder the Grand Canal bustle. They also serve breakfast (daily 8:00-23:00, Nov-April until 20:30, on Rio Terà A. Foscarini, Dorsoduro 878c, tel. 041-522-7281, Paolo and Simone).
$ Enoteca Cantine del Vino Già Schiavi, with a wonderfully characteristic cicchetti-bar ambience, is much loved for its inexpensive cicchetti, sandwiches (order from list on board), and wine. You’re welcome to enjoy your wine and finger food at the bar, in the back room surrounded by wine bottles, or out on the sidewalk (specify “fuori” to sit outside and they’ll provide plastic cups; please don’t sit on the bridge). This is primarily a wine shop with great prices for bottles to go (Mon-Sat 8:30-20:30, closed Sun, 100 yards from Accademia art museum on San Trovaso canal; facing the Accademia, take a right and then a forced left at the canal to the second bridge—it’s at Dorsoduro 992, tel. 041-523-0034; they have no WC).
$ Bar al Maraveje is handy for a sandwich, with quiet, comfy tables just minutes from the Accademia. They serve a range of fresh sandwiches, from less expensive topolini (four-bite sandwiches) and tramezzini to heartier ciabatta sandwiches (daily, 100 yards west of the Accademia, just over a bridge on Calle de la Toletta, Dorsoduro 1185, tel. 041-523-5768). $ Bar Toletta, a few doors down (#1191), has similar offerings and better tramezzini. Like other bars around town, avoid their frozen, microwaved pasta, as evidenced by the laminated pictures out front.
$$$ Al Vecio Marangon Ristorante glows like a dream come true on its corner tucked away from the frenzy of Venice, about 100 yards west of the Accademia. This stylishly rustic restaurant serves cicchetti-style dishes and pastas within its tight and picturesque interior or at a line of outdoor tables. It’s super romantic. Consider their splittable piatto di cicchetti misti, a sampler of sardines, octopus, codfish, and seafood salad. As they take no reservations, arrive early or be prepared to wait (daily 12:00-22:00, on Calle de la Toletta, Dorsoduro 1210, tel. 041-277-8554).
The far south side of Dorsoduro has a wide promenade along the canal that, on warm summer evenings, has a special charm. Next to the Zattere vaporetto stop is Pizzeria Zattere, where you can enjoy your pizza on a floating dining barge. Nearby is the popular Nico Gelateria (also with floating seating on the canal). These two places are also worth consideration:
$$$ Terrazza dei Nobili takes full advantage of the warm, romantic evening sun. They serve regional specialties and pizza at tolerable prices. The breezy and beautiful seaside seating comes with formal service and the rumble of vaporetti from the nearby stop. The interior is bright and hip (daily 12:00-24:00; at the Zattere vaporetto stop, turn left to Dorsoduro 924; tel. 041-520-6895).
$$ Pizzeria Oke is playful, with casual tables on the embankment and a sprawling pizza-parlor interior. It’s a hit with young Venetians for its fun atmosphere. While the energy and food are great, be careful to understand the bill—and be warned that dishes presented as free may end up on your check (daily 11:30-23:00, a couple hundred yards from the Zattere vaporetto stop, Dorsoduro 1414, tel. 041-520-6601).
This small square is a delight—especially in the evening. As these places are within a few steps of each other—and the energy and atmosphere can vary—I like to survey the options before choosing (although reservations may be necessary to dine later in the evening).
$$$ Ristoteca Oniga has an eclectic yet cozy interior, great tables on the square, and is run by the enthusiastic Raffaele. The menu has a few vegetarian and meat dishes but focuses on fresh fish and other sea creatures, highlighted by their specialty, bucintoro—a pan full of mussels, clams, prawns, calamari, and spaghetti (daily 12:00-14:30 & 19:00-22:30, reservations smart, Campo San Barnaba, Dorsoduro 2852, tel. 041-522-4410, www.oniga.it).
$$$ Osteria Enoteca Ai Artisti serves well-presented quality dishes, with seating within its tight little wine-snob interior or at a few petite, romantic canalside tables. They serve good wines by the glass. When reserving, make sure they know your preference—a table on the canal or inside (Mon-Sat 12:45-14:30 & 19:00-22:00, closed Sun, Fondamenta de la Toletta, Dorsoduro 1169a, tel. 041-523-8944, www.enotecaartisti.com, Vicenzo and chef Francesca).
$$ Pizzeria al Profeta is a casual place popular with tourists for great pizza. Its sprawling interior seems to stoke conviviality, as does its leafy garden out back (daily 12:00-14:30 & 19:00-23:30; from Campo San Barnaba, a long walk down Calle Lunga San Barnaba to #2671; tel. 041-523-7466).
$$$ Enoteca e Trattoria la Bitta is dark and woody, with a soft-jazz bistro feel, tight seating, and a small back patio. They serve beautifully presented, traditional Venetian food with—proudly—no fish. Their helpful wait staff and small, handwritten daily menu are focused on local ingredients (including rabbit) and a “slow food” ethic. As it has an avid following, they do two dinner seatings (19:00 and 21:00) and require reservations (dinner only, closed Sun, cash only, just off Campo San Barnaba on Calle Lunga San Barnaba, Dorsoduro 2753a, tel. 041-523-0531, Debora and Marcellino).
For a fresh, youthful neighborhood vibe away from the tourist crowds and cutesy Venice, hike out to Campo Santa Margarita, where you’ll find a multigenerational slice-of-life scene by day and a trendy college-bar scene after dark. The square is ringed by bakeries, pubs, pizzerias, and fruit stands offering options for everything from picnics to finer dining. If slumming, a picnic or takeout pizza on this square (with fine benches and trees) is great. The area gets a little sketchy late at night.
$$ Osteria alla Bifora is a former butcher shop, serving creative plates of mixed cold cuts in their candlelit woody interior and at tables on the square. For rustic cicchetti plates ranging from sardines, anchovies, and cod to platters of fine salamis and cheeses, this is a good choice (daily, #2930, tel. 041-523-6119, Franco and Mirella).
$$$ Osteria Do Torri is a family affair delightfully situated with tables overlooking the square. Loretta and Paolo offer classic Venetian dishes (daily, #3408, tel. 041-522-0686).
$$ Pier Dickens Ristorante-Pizzeria, next door, also has good tables on the square and serves a selection of pizzas as well as three-course fixed-price meals (daily, #3410, tel. 041-241-1979).
Various hole-in-the-wall cicchetti bars (on the square and just off it) serve drinks and cicchetti plates to local eaters with a contagious love of life. For the best gelato on the square, find Gelateria Il Doge.
Overlooking the Giudecca Canal: Peacefully situated on the Giudecca Canal, $$$$ Ristorante Lineadombra, immediately behind La Salute Church, has commanding lagoon views from their big floating terrace and a spacious, modern, and dressy interior. This is a gourmet treat, with gorgeously presented dishes that are local and modern at the same time. Each dish is a memory, and even though plates are pricey, you are welcome to share. The appetizers especially are big and are happily served on two smaller plates. Reserve ahead and choose seating inside or on their terrace. Service is friendly yet professional (daily 12:00-15:00 & 19:00-22:00, closed Tue off-season, a short walk behind La Salute Church, directly across the island from the Salute vaporetto stop, Dorsoduro 19, tel. 041-241-1881, www.ristorantelineadombra.com).
On Fondamente Nove, with a Lagoon View: Handy to the islands of Murano and Burano, $$$$ Ristorante Algiubagiò is a good place to eat as you look over the northern lagoon. The name joins the names of the four owners—Alberto, Giulio, Barbara, and Giovanna—who strive to impress visitors with quality, creative Venetian cuisine made with the best ingredients. Reserve a waterside table or sit in their classy cantina dining room (daily 12:00-15:00 & 19:00-22:30, between the two sets of vaporetto docks on Fondamente Nove, Cannaregio 5039—see map on here, tel. 041-523-6084, www.algiubagio.net).
On Giudecca Island: Sit canalside with a view of St. Mark’s Square at $$$ I Figli delle Stelle Ristorante, which offers a delightful dining experience and an excuse to ride the boat from St. Mark’s Square to the island of Giudecca. While they have inside seating, the reason to venture here is to enjoy fine views of Venice across the broad Giudecca Canal and all the water traffic. Reserve ahead to specify “first line” seating along the water, “second line” seating a few steps away, or a table inside (daily 12:30-14:30 & 19:00-23:00, 50 yards from Zitelle vaporetto dock—from San Marco, ride line #4.2, #4.1, or #2, Giudecca 70/71, tel. 041-523-0004).
A bit farther west on Giudecca Island (around the Palanca vaporetto dock), several $$$ eateries offer similar canal views, even if St. Mark’s Square isn’t in the panorama. These are often less touristy (take vaporetto line #2 from Zattere to Palanca). Listen to the hum of the boats with a glass of wine.
On St. Mark’s Square: For fancy dining on Venice’s famous square, $$$$ Gran Caffè Quadri (a.k.a. Bistro ABC Quadri) is the place to go. Upstairs is their Michelin-star restaurant, but this bistro, also dressy and a bit pretentious, shares the same kitchen, with a more traditional and accessible menu, and prices that won’t ruin your appetite. While its 15 tables are all inside, the orchestra is just out the window (daily 12:00-15:00 & 19:00-22:30, reservations smart, San Marco 121, tel. 041-522-2105, www.alajmo.it/grancaffe-quadri).
You’re legally forbidden from picnicking anywhere on or near St. Mark’s Square except for Giardinetti Reali, the waterfront park near the San Marco vaporetto docks. Though it’s legal to eat outdoors elsewhere around town, you may be besieged by pigeons who are, in turn, besieged by aggressive seagulls.
Venice has one main produce market and several convenient supermarkets:
Outdoor Market near the Rialto Bridge: Assemble a fun picnic at the fruit and vegetable market that sprawls for a few blocks to the north of the Rialto Bridge (best Mon-Sat 8:00-13:00, liveliest in the morning, closed Sun). The adjacent fish market is wonderfully slimy (closed Sun-Mon). Side lanes in this area are speckled with fine hole-in-the-wall munchie bars, bakeries, and cheese shops. The Rialto Mercato vaporetto stop is convenient to both.
Produce Stands: Many larger squares have a produce stand. To find the one nearest St. Mark’s Square, face St. Mark’s Basilica, then walk along its left side, heading east down Calle de la Canonica. Cross the bridge and turn left at Campo Santi Filippo e Giacomo. There are also stands on Campo Santa Maria Formosa and Campo Santa Margarita.
Supermarket near St. Mark’s Square: A handy Co-op supermarket is between St. Mark’s and Campo Santa Maria Formosa, on the corner of Salizada San Lio and Calle del Mondo Novo at Castello 5817. It has a deli counter and a great selection of picnic supplies, including packaged salads and fresh sandwiches (daily 8:30-22:00).
Other Supermarkets: The largest supermarket in town is the Co-op at Piazzale Roma, next to the vaporetto stop at Santa Croce 504. It’s an easy walk from the train station, as is a smaller Co-op on Campo San Felice (along the Strada Nova between the train station and Rialto area, Cannaregio 3660). A Conad supermarket is convenient for those staying in Dorsoduro: It’s at #1492, as far west as possible on the Zattere embankment, by the San Basilio vaporetto stop and the cruise-ship docks. And just beyond the Rialto vaporetto stop is another handy Co-op (facing the Grand Canal on Riva del Carbon). All are open long hours daily. They cater to huge Airbnb demand with ready-to-eat packaged meals.
Venice isn’t known for its quality gelato but you’ll still find good gelaterie in every neighborhood, typically offering one-scoop cones for about €2 (€1 per extra scoop). The words artigianale or produzione propria indicate that a shop makes its own gelato, although sometimes from powder or paste bases (avoid brightly colored gelato or places that have overflowing tubs). The following places are all open long hours daily.
St. Mark’s Side of the Rialto Bridge: A gourmet gelato shop, Gelatoteca Suso, serves delectable flavors in bowls you can eat (next to Campo San Bartolomeo on Calle de la Bissa, San Marco 5453a).
St. Mark’s Square: Both Gran Caffè Lavena at #134 and Todaro (on the corner of the Piazzetta at #5, near the water just under the crocodile-topped column) are cafés that have gelato counters in summer. They won’t win any awards, but they are convenient if you want something to lick while enjoying the San Marco orchestras.
On Campo Santa Margarita and Campiello San Tomà: Along with all the regular flavors, Gelateria Il Doge, with two locations, has Sicilian-style granita—slushy ice flavored with fresh fruit.
Near Campo Santa Maria Formosa: On Salizada San Lio is the popular La Boutique del Gelato (next to Hotel Bruno, run for many years by Alessandra). And nearby is a hit with chocolate lovers: Cioccolateria VizioVirtù (Vice and Virtue). Across from the recommended Osteria al Portego, it’s a modern lab of deliciousness with fine gelato as a bonus (closed Mon, Castello 5988).
From Venice by Train to: Padua (30 minutes, Trenitalia: 2/hour, Italo: hourly), Vicenza (45 minutes, Trenitalia: 2/hour, Italo: 7/day), Verona (1.5 hours, Trenitalia: 2/hour, Italo: 7/day), Ravenna (roughly hourly, 3 hours, transfer in Ferrara or Bologna), Florence (Trenitalia: hourly, 2-3 hours, may transfer in Bologna, often crowded—reserve ahead; Italo: 4/day, 2 hours, reservations required), Bolzano/Dolomites (to Bolzano about hourly, 3 hours, transfer in Verona; catch bus from Bolzano into mountains), Milan (Trenitalia: 2/hour, most direct on high-speed ES trains, 2.5 hours; Italo: 7/day, 2.5 hours), Cinque Terre/Monterosso (5/day, 6 hours, change in Milan), Rome (Trenitalia: hourly, 4 hours; direct night train, 7 hours, reserve ahead; Italo: 4/day, 3.5 hours, reservations required), Naples (Trenitalia: almost hourly, 5.5 hours, some change in Bologna or Rome, reserve ahead; Italo: 3/day, 5.5 hours, reservations required), Brindisi (5/day, 9 hours, change in Rome or Bologna).
International Destinations: Interlaken (4/day, 6 hours with 2 changes), Munich (1/day direct, 6.5 hours, more with change in Verona; reservable only at ticket windows or via www.bahn.com), Innsbruck (1/day direct, 5 hours, more with change in Verona; reservable only at ticket windows or via www.bahn.com), Salzburg (4/day, 6.5 hours with change in Villach), Paris (2/day, 11 hours, change in Turin; 1 direct night train, 14.5 hours, reserve up to 4 months in advance, no rail passes accepted, www.thello.com), Geneva (1/day direct, 2/day with change in Milan, 7-8 hours), Vienna (2/day direct, 8 hours; direct night train, 11 hours), Ljubljana (4/day, 5 hours, train to Trieste, then bus or train to Ljubljana). To Ljubljana, there’s also a direct DRD bus from Mestre (1/day, 3 hours, www.drd.si) and a private shuttle service (www.goopti.com).
Venice’s surprisingly large, modern airport is on the mainland shore of the lagoon, six miles north of the city (code: VCE, tel. 041-260-9260, www.veniceairport.it). There’s one sleek terminal, with a TI (daily 9:00-20:00), car-rental agencies, ATMs, a bank, and plenty of shops and eateries.
You can get between the airport and central Venice in any of four ways: by Alilaguna boat, water taxi, airport bus, or land taxi.
| Type | Speed | Cost | Notes |
| Alilaguna boat | Slow | Moderate | No transfer |
| Water taxi | Fast | Expensive | No transfer |
| Airport bus to Piazzale Roma | Medium | Cheap | Transfer to vaporetto |
| Land taxi to Piazzale Roma | Medium | Moderate | Transfer to vaporetto |
Alilaguna boats reach most of this chapter’s recommended hotels very simply, with no changes. Hotels near the train station, however, are better served by the bus to Piazzale Roma.
Both Alilaguna boats and water taxis leave from the airport’s boat dock, an eight-minute walk from the terminal, following signs along a sleek series of (indoor) moving sidewalks. Ticket offices are at the docks.
When flying out of Venice, allow plenty of time to get to the airport. From your hotel to the airport can take two hours. Alilaguna boats are small and can fill up. In an emergency, you can always hop in a water taxi and get to the airport in 30 minutes.
These boats make the scenic journey across the lagoon, shuttling passengers between the airport and the island of Venice (€15, €27 round-trip, €1 surcharge if bought on boat, includes 1 suitcase and 1 piece of hand luggage, additional bags—€3 each, roughly 2/hour, 1-1.5-hour trip depending on destination). Alilaguna boats are not covered by city transit passes, but they do use the same docks and ticket windows as the regular vaporetti. You can buy Alilaguna tickets online for a slight discount, but it does not ensure a reservation as you must still exchange the voucher for a ticket (www.alilaguna.it or www.venicelink.com).
There are three key Alilaguna lines for reaching St. Mark’s Square. From the airport, the orange line (linea arancio) runs down the Grand Canal, reaching Guglie (handy for Cannaregio hotels, 45 minutes), Rialto (1 hour), and San Marco (1.25 hours). The blue line (linea blu) heads first to Fondamente Nove (40 minutes), then loops around to San Zaccaria and San Marco (about 1.5 hours) before continuing to Zattere and the cruise terminal (almost 2 hours). In high season, the red line (linea rossa) runs to St. Mark’s in just over an hour. It circumnavigates Murano and then runs parallel to the blue line, ending at Giudecca Zitelle.
For a full schedule, see www.alilaguna.it, visit the TI, call 041-240-1701, ask your hotelier, or scan the schedules posted at the docks.
From the Airport to Venice: Buy Alilaguna tickets at the ticket windows at the docks. Any ticket seller can tell you which line to catch to get to your destination. Blue- and orange-line boats from the airport run roughly twice an hour and go all day (until about midnight); red goes once an hour (runs 9:40-18:40). Ask your hotelier (when you reserve your room) which stop in Venice is best.
From Venice to the Airport: Ask your hotelier which dock and which line is best. Blue-line boats start leaving Venice as early as 3:50 in the morning. Scope out the dock and buy your ticket in advance to avoid last-minute stress. Get there 10 minutes early to assure yourself a seat.
Luxury taxi speedboats zip directly between the airport and the closest dock to your hotel, getting you within steps of your destination in about 30 minutes. The official price is €110 for up to four people; add €10 for every extra person (10-passenger limit). You may get a higher quote—politely talk it down. A taxi can be a smart investment for small groups and those with an early departure.
From the airport, arrange your ride at the water-taxi desk or with the boat captains at the dock. From Venice, book your taxi trip the day before your departure, either through your hotel or directly with the Consorzio Motoscafi water taxi association (tel. 041-522-2303, www.motoscafivenezia.it).
Buses between the airport and Venice are fast, frequent, and cheap. They drop you at Venice’s bus station, at the square called Piazzale Roma. From there, you can catch a vaporetto down the Grand Canal—convenient for hotels near the Rialto Bridge and St. Mark’s Square. If you’re staying near the train station, you can walk from Piazzale Roma to your hotel.
Two bus companies serve this route: ACTV and ATVO. ATVO buses take 20 minutes and go nonstop. ACTV buses make a few stops en route and take slightly longer (30 minutes), but you get a discount if you buy a Venice vaporetto pass at the same time (see here). The service is equally good (either bus: €8 one-way, €15 round-trip; ACTV bus with transit-pass discount: €6 one-way, €12 round-trip; runs about 5:00-24:00, 2/hour, drops to 1/hour early and late, check schedules at www.atvo.it or www.actv.it).
From the Airport to Venice: Buses leave from just outside the arrivals terminal. Buy tickets from the TI, the ticket desk in the terminal, the kiosk near baggage claim, or ticket machines. ATVO tickets are not valid on ACTV buses and vice versa. Double-check the destination; you want Piazzale Roma. If taking ACTV, you want bus #5.
From Venice to the Airport: At Piazzale Roma, buy your ticket from the ACTV windows (in the building by the bridge) or the ATVO office (at #497g) before heading out to the platforms (although sometimes an attendant sells tickets near the buses). The newsstand in the center of the lot also sells tickets.
It takes about 20 minutes to drive from the airport to Piazzale Roma or the cruise port. A land taxi can do the trip for about €50. To reserve a private minivan, contact Treviso Car Service (minivan—€55, seats up to 8; car—€50, seats up to 3; mobile 338-204-4390 or 333-411-2840, www.trevisocarservice.com).
Several budget airlines use Treviso Airport, 12 miles northwest of Venice (code: TSF, tel. 042-231-5111, www.trevisoairport.it). The fastest option into Venice (Tronchetto parking lot; convenient if taking vaporetto line #2) is on the Barzi express bus, which does the trip in just 40 minutes (€12, buy tickets on board, every 1-2 hours, www.barziservice.com). From Tronchetto, hop on a vaporetto, or take the People Mover monorail to Piazzale Roma for €1.50. ATVO buses are a bit more frequent and drop you right at Piazzale Roma (saving you the People Mover ride), but take nearly twice as long (€12 one-way, €22 round-trip, about 2/hour, 70 minutes, www.atvo.it; buy tickets at the ATVO desk in the airport and stamp them on the bus). Treviso Car Service offers minivan service to Piazzale Roma (minivan—€75, seats up to 8; car—€65, seats up to 3; for contact info, see listing earlier).
Most cruise ships dock at Venice’s Stazione Marittima, at the west end of town. From the cruise port, the most direct way to reach St. Mark’s Square is to take the Alilaguna express boat (2/hour in each direction, 30 minutes, www.alilaguna.it). Another option is to take the People Mover monorail from the port to Piazzale Roma, then hop on a vaporetto. It’s about a five-minute walk to the People Mover, then a three-minute ride to Piazzale Roma, where you’ll find a stop for vaporetti to Rialto, Accademia, or San Marco (boat #1 or the faster boat #2). Or, take an expensive water taxi ride (at least €70-80).
For more details, see my Rick Steves Mediterranean Cruise Ports guidebook.
