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Top Attractions | Worth Noting
The perfect vacation from your Venetian vacation is an escape to Murano, Burano, and sleepy Torcello, the islands of the northern lagoon. Torcello is legendary for its beauty (remember Katherine Hepburn and Rossano Brazzi filmed against the sunset in David Lean’s Summertime?), and offers ancient mosaics, greenery, breathing space, and picnic opportunities (remember to pack lunch). Burano is an island of fishing traditions and houses painted in a riot of colors—blue, yellow, pink, ocher, and dark red. Visitors still love to shop here for “Venetian” lace, even though the vast majority of it is machine-made in Taiwan; visit the island’s Museo del Merletto (Lace Museum) to discover the undeniable difference between the two.
Murano is renowned for its glass, plenty of which you can find in Venice itself. It’s also notorious for high-pressure sales on factory tours, even those organized by top hotels. Vaporetto connections to Murano aren’t difficult, and for the price of a boat ticket (included in any vaporetto pass), you’ll buy your freedom and more time to explore. The Murano “guides” herding new arrivals follow a rotation so that factories take turns giving tours, but you can avoid the hustle by just walking away. TIP Don’t take a “free” taxi to Murano: it only means that should you choose to buy (and you’ll be strongly encouraged), your taxi fare and commission will be included in the price you pay.
Timing
Hitting all the sights on all the islands takes a busy, full day. If you limit yourself to Murano and San Michele, you can easily explore for an ample half day; the same goes for Burano and Torcello. In summer the express vaporetto Line 7 will take you to Murano from San Zaccaria (the Jolanda landing) in 25 minutes; Line 3 will take you from Piazzale Roma to Murano via the Canale di Cannaregio in 21 minutes; otherwise, local Line 4.1 makes a 45-minute trip from San Zaccaria every 20 minutes, circling the east end of Venice, stopping at Fondamente Nove and San Michele island cemetery on the way. To see glassblowing, get off at Colonna; the Museo stop will put you near the Museo del Vetro.
Line 12 goes from Fondamente Nove direct to Murano and Burano every 30 minutes (Torcello is a 5-minute ferry ride—Line 9—from there); the full trip takes 45 minutes each way. To get to Burano and Torcello from Murano, pick up Line 12 at the Faro stop (Murano’s lighthouse).
Top Attractions
Burano.
Cheerfully painted houses line the canals of this quiet village where lace making rescued a faltering fishing-based economy centuries ago. As you walk the 100 yards from the dock to Piazza Galuppi, the main square, you pass stall after stall of lace vendors. These good-natured ladies won’t press you with a hard sell, but don’t expect precise product information or great bargains—authentic, handmade Burano lace costs $1,000 to $2,000 for a 10-inch doily.
Museo del Merletto. The Museo del Merletto (Lace Museum) lets you marvel at the intricacies of Burano’s lace-making. At this writing, the museum is closed for renovations, with plans to reopen in 2013. The museum will likely continue to host a “sewing circle” of sorts, where on most weekdays you can watch local women carrying on the lace-making tradition. They may have authentic pieces for sale privately. | Piazza Galuppi 187 | 30012 | 041/730034 | €4.50, Museums of San Marco Plus Pass €13 (Apr.–Oct.), Musei Civici Pass €18 | Apr.–Oct., daily 10–5; Nov.–Mar., daily 10–4 | Station: Vaporetto: Burano
Murano.
As in Venice, bridges here link a number of small islands, which are dotted with houses that once were workmen’s cottages. In the 13th century the Republic, concerned about fire hazard and anxious to maintain control of its artisans’ expertise, moved its glassworks to Murano, and today you can visit the factories and watch glass being made. Many of them line the Fondamenta dei Vetrai, the canal-side walkway leading from the Colonna vaporetto landing. | Station: Murano Colonna.
Chiesa di San Pietro Martire. Before you reach Murano’s Grand Canal (a little more than 800 feet from the landing), you’ll pass Chiesa di San Pietro Martire. Reconstructed in the 16th century, it houses Giovanni Bellini’s Madonna and Child and Veronese’s St. Jerome. | Fondamenta dei Vetrai | 30141 | 041/739704 | Weekdays 9–6, Sat. 2–6, Sun. 11:30–5 | Station: Vaporetto: Colonna
Museo del Vetro (Glass Museum). The collection at the Museo del Vetro ranges from priceless antiques to only slightly less precious modern pieces. You can see an exhibition on the history of glass, along with a chance to review authentic Venetian styles, patterns, and works by the most famous glassmakers. Don’t miss the famous Barovier wedding cup (1470–80). | Fondamenta Giustinian 8 | 30141 | 041/739586 | www.museiciviciveneziani.it | €6.50, Museums of San Marco Plus Pass €13 (Apr.–Oct.), Musei Civici Pass €18 | Apr.–Oct., Thurs.–Tues. 10–6; Nov.–Mar., Thurs.–Tues. 10–5. Last entry 1 hr before closing | Station: Vaporetto: Museo
Basilica dei Santi Maria e Donato. The Basilica dei Santi Maria e Donato, just past the glass museum, is among the first churches founded by the lagoon’s original inhabitants. The elaborate mosaic pavement includes the date 1140; its ship’s-keel roof and Veneto-Byzantine columns add to the semblance of an ancient temple. | Fondamenta Giustinian | 30141 | 041/739056 | Mon.–Sat. 8–6, Sun. 2–6 | Station: Vaporetto: Museo
Fodor’s Choice |
Torcello.
In their flight from barbarians 1,500 years ago, the first Venetians landed here, prospering even after many left to found the city of Venice. By the 10th century, Torcello had a population of 10,000 and was more powerful than Venice. From the 12th century on, the lagoon around the island began silting up, and a malarial swamp developed. As malaria took its toll, Torcello was gradually abandoned and its palaces and houses were dismantled, their stones used for building
materials in Venice. All that’s left now is the hauntingly beautiful cathedral (1008), containing exquisite, although poorly restored, Byzantine mosaics. The Virgin and the Apostles in the apse, as well as the spectacular Last Judgment, date from the 7th century, predating most of the mosaics in the Basilica di San Marco. There’s also the graceful 11th- and 12th-century church of Santa Fosca. | €5 (for the cathedral) | Apr.–Oct. 10:30–5:30; Nov.–Mar. 10–4:30 | Station: Torcello.
Santa Maria Assunta. Santa Maria Assunta was built in the 11th century, and Torcello’s wealth at the time is evident in the church’s high-quality mosaics. The mosaics show the gradually increasing cultural independence of Venice from Byzantium. The magnificent late-12th-century mosaic of the Last Judgment shows the transition from the stiffer Byzantine style on the left to the more-fluid Venetian style on the right. The Virgin in the main apse dates possibly from about 1185, and is of a distinctly Byzantine type, with her right hand pointing to the Christ Child held with her left arm. The 12 apostles below her are possibly the oldest mosaics in the church, and date from the early 12th century. The adjacent Santa Fosca church, built when the body of the saint arrived in 1011, is still used for religious services. The bell tower is undergoing renovation (completion date is unknown at this writing). It is not accessible to visitors. | 30012 | 041/2960630 | Santa Maria Assunta €5, audio guide €1 | Basilica: Mar.–Oct., daily 10:30–6; Nov.–Feb., daily 10–5. Campanile: Mar.–Oct., daily 10:30–5:30; Nov.–Feb., daily 10–4:30. Last entry ½ hr before closing | Station: Vaporetto: Torcello
Quick Bites: Locanda Cipriani. Owned by a nephew of Arrigo Cipriani—the founder of Harry’s Bar—this inn profits from its idyllic location on the island of Torcello. Hemingway, who loved the silence of the lagoon, came here often to eat, drink, and brood under the green veranda. The food is not exceptional, especially considering the high-end prices, but dining here is more about getting lost in Venetian magic. The menu features pastas, vitello tonnato (chilled poached veal in a tuna and caper sauce), baked orata (gilthead) with potatoes, and lots of other seafood. A vaporetto service runs until 11:30 pm, and then upon request; service is sporadic. | Piazza Santa Fosca 29, Torcello | 041/730150 | Reservations essential | Closed Tues. and early Jan.–early Feb. | Station: Vaporetto: Torcello.
Worth Noting
San Michele.
Tiny, cypress-lined San Michele is home to the pretty San Michele in Isola Renaissance church—and to some of Venice’s most illustrious deceased—and nothing else. The church was designed by Codussi; the graves include those of poet Ezra Pound (1885–1972), impresario and art critic Sergey Diaghilev (1872–1929), and composer Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971). Surrounded by the living sounds of Venice’s lagoon, this would seem the perfect final
resting place. However, these days newcomers are exhumed after 10 years and transferred to a less-grandiose location. | Isola di San Michele | 30141 | 041/7292811 | Apr.–Sept., daily 7:30–6; Oct.–Mar., daily 7:30–4 | Station: Vaporetto: Cimitero.
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