All prices shown are indicative.
I started my trip to Italy from Venice and arrived at Marco Polo airport
The entry into Venice
To get to the island of Venice, there are 4 options.
Option 1: alilaguna boats
Option 2: water taxis
Option 3: buses.
Option 4: taxis.
Option 1: The alilaguna boats
There are 3 different lines and they are differentiated by the speed of the boats.
Personally I think it’s the best option, a little slower but you can enjoy the lagoon of Venice and its islands during the trip.
To take the alilaguna boats from the airport, you have to go out of the arrival hall, turn left and follow the signal, it’s about 8 minutes from walking.
The price of the trip is 15€ and this includes a suitcase and a hand luggage, if you have more luggage you will have to pay an extra 3€ Per luggage.
You can buy tickets at the kiosk, but you can also buy them directly on the boat with a supplement of 1€ or online.
The trip takes about 1h30 to 2h depending on the line you take.
The blue line
The blue line goes around Fondamente Nove and the journey takes about 40 minutes, then San Zaccaria and ST Marc around 1h30, ending in Zattere and the cruise terminals about 2h.
The orange line
The orange line uses the grand canal route and takes about 45 min, the Rialto bridge 1h and ST Marc 1h25,
The red line
In high season it reaches Piazza ST Marc in 1 hour and continues parallel to the blue line towards the island of Murano, ending at Giudecca Zitelle.
Water-taxi
The advantage of water taxis is that they drop you off as close to your hotel as possible, as they are dependent on the docks, most hotels have their own docks, it takes about 30 mins depending on your hotel location, of course everything this has a price of 110€ for a maximum of 4 people and a supplement of 10€ per person with a maximum of 10 people.
Orienting in Venice
It is very easy to orient yourself in Venice, when you look at the map of the city, you can see that the island of Venice takes the shape of a fish, as a landmark, the railway station which is in the head of the fish and St. Mark’s Square in the belly of the fish.
Pour se rendre sur l’île de Venise, il y a 4 options.
Option 1 : the boats alilaguna
Option 2 : the taxis boats
Option 3 : the bus.
Options 4 : the taxis.
getting-around-venice
For getting around Venice is very easy, there are 2 means of transport.
There are vaporettos and there is walking, for me walking remains the best way to visit Venice, in this case you must bring good walking shoes.
The best way to discover interesting things is to get “lost” in the streets of Venice, you can discover fabulous treasures.
The Vaporettos
The vaporettos travel along the Grand Canal, the two most used lines are lines 1 and 2, with a frequency of about 10 min, these two lines go up and down the Grand Canal, line 2 is more faster than line 1 which puts about 45 min to navigate along the canal, while line 2 about 25 min. Other useful lines are lines 4.1 to go to San Michele Island and Murano Island about 45 min.
In summer take the express line 7, take the boat at quay D to the island of Murano, journey of about 25 min, the other 2 lines are 5.1 and 5. 2 which go around the island.
Line 5.1 goes counter-clockwise, it can be taken from platform D and line 5.2 goes clockwise which can be taken from platform C.
The vaporettos are very practical if you don’t have much time to visit Venice, and if you have to go to the surrounding islands, such as the island of Murano or others.
Hotels in Venice
There is no shortage of hotels in Venice, I stayed at the Violino d’oro hotel, a very good hotel, very well located a few hundred meters from Saint Mark’s Square and the Doge’s Palace .
Very comfortable, very clean and affordable. With an excellent and very generous breakfast, which is not a luxury if you decide to visit Venice on foot.
The only small inconvenience for some people, to have breakfast you have to go to the hotel next door (10 meters away), for me it was not really important, the quality of the breakfast worth the very small detour.
what to see in venice
I organized my visit plan in the following way, I started my visits starting from the head of the fish, that is to say from the north, starting from point 0 which is the railway station and down to the belly of the fish.
If you have time, I recommend stopping between each point and walking through the alleys, remember that it is an island so it is practically impossible to get lost, if in case you are get lost, the streets are indicated by a hand pointing a finger in the direction of the attractions, so look for this sign and you’re saved.
LE CA’ D’ORO
THE CA’ D’ORO is the best example of Venetian Gothic art, its facade is one of the finest in Venice, Venetian Gothic art is a mixture of Traditional Gothic art with pointed arches and medallions filled with 4-leaf clover, Byzantine art with tall narrow arches and columns, now CA’ D’ORO, is an art gallery.
On the other side of the canal there is a super fish market and a vegetable market, open in the open air and very interesting because there are many varieties of products, the best time to visit the markets , it’s morning.
To get there from CA ‘D’ORO you have to take a gondola ferry the TRAGHETTO. At current time there are only 33 boats crossing, to find the pier you have to look for the green and black sign.
For the gondoliers who pilot these boats it is not a full-time job, since it is a public service count 2€ for each trip, each gondolier is obliged to render this service to the city of Venice for a few days per month there are no less than 500 gondoliers in Venice.
There is another stop to get to the market with the vaporettos you have to stop at Rialto Mercato, but in this case you will have to walk a little more.
The fish market
The Rialto Bridge
The Rialto Bridge was built in 1588, until the 1850s it was the only bridge that crossed the canal. Since the construction of the Rialto Bridge, the canal has become the canal of the palaces, the Rialto district has always been a commercial district of Venice.
The Rialto Bridge is now a must-see place in Venice for tourists with its restaurants, tourist shops and traffic jams, it is the place in Venice where there are the most accidents between vaporettos and gondoliers.
Attention it is also the place of tourist traps in terms of restaurants and of course in souvenir shops.
St Marks Square
St. patient, personally I went there in August and it was not too crowded.
In the Saint Marc district there are therefore the following 5 sites:
- Saint Mark’s Square
- The Basilica
- The Campanile
- The Doge’s Palace
- The Bridge of Sighs
Saint Mark’s Square is perhaps the most famous and visited square in the world.
During the day it is full of tourists and pigeons, which moreover it is strictly forbidden to feed them under penalty of heavy fines.
saint Mark’s square is surrounded by archway where you can find shops and different restaurants and coffee places.
One of the most interesting is the Florian café which was one of the first to serve coffee in Europe.
Le Florian is a very popular place for very discreet small meetings but also for the historical and artistic decoration of these different rooms, the decoration of each room is unique, so it’s to be seen.
What is nice when you walk around Saint Mark’s Square is that you have a permanent show (free) with the different orchestras playing on the terrace of certain cafes, if you want to sit on a terrace to enjoy the show while enjoying a good coffee, expect to pay a supplement, you can pay the coffee up to 12.50€ (6.50€ for the coffee and 6.00€ supplement for the show).
You can also eat and it can range from a sandwich to a Michelin-type restaurant.
It is hard to imagine that during high tides the Place ST Marc is flooded.
SAINT MARK’S BASILICA.
The basilica was built in the 11th century on the foundations of another church.
The entrance to the basilica is free, expect at least 1 hour or more of waiting, for 2€ you can make a reservation on the internet and avoid a long queue, but there is still a waiting time.
Inside the basilica there are mosaics, for the opening and closing hours of the church Monday to Saturday 9:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
There is also the possibility of seeing 3 exhibitions.
The treasure exhibition costs €3 this includes an audio guide and €2 for the Golden Altarpiece, Monday to Saturday from 9:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.
The San Marco Museum €5, open from 9:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Monday to Sunday.
Attention the schedules can change, to check the schedules here the address of the site.
Attention to the dress for the visit of the basilica, you will not be able to enter if you have bare shoulders and you must wear trousers or shorts whose length must be below the knees, even for children, moreover in all Italy it is the same when you visit churches or other holy places, make sure so be sure to dress properly.
Same for bags, small handbags are generally allowed, but not backpacks and large bags, you have to drop them off at the Ateneo San Basso church not far away, about 30 M to the left of the basilica, opening hours are from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
A little advice to get back faster, drop off a backpack at the church because when you drop off your bags at the church your receipt will give you the right to use a different queue which is generally faster, the bag deposit is free for 1 hour only.
In the museum you can see original sculptures of bronze horses, copies of which are in St. Mark’s Square, there is a balcony with a view of the interior of the Basilica and also of St. Mark’s Square.
Beware of pickpockets in the queues and in the basilica.
The CAMPANILE.
The tower that we visit is not the original tower which was built 1000 years ago, indeed this tower fell into ruin in 1902.
There is now an elevator to take you up to the top of the 99 M where you have the best view of Venice.
The best time of the day to visit the campanile and very early in the morning from 9am and in the evening from 6pm to avoid the crowds but you also have a magnificent sunset.
Opening hours are 8:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., September to mid-October until sunset, and mid-October to April 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., they no longer let you in 45 minutes before closing time.
The entrance fee is 8€. The view is really worth the 8€.
THE DOGES PALACE.
The Doge’s Palace was the seat of Venetian government, it was also the place where the dukes voted the laws, it was the most powerful place in Europe for 400 years.
The Doge’s Palace was built to show the power and wealth of the Republic of Venice, the dukes lived with their families on the first floor.
The price of the ticket can go up to 20€ but there are several combinations, for the visit I therefore advise you to refer to the website, I put you the address below, the hours of opening hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. and from November to March until 5:30 p.m. the last entry is 1 hour before closing.
Here is the internet address www.palazzoducale.visitmuve.it
I cannot detail the visit because it can last between 1h15 to 1h30.
THE BRIDGE OF SIGHS.
The Bridge of Sighs is perhaps the most photographed place in Venice, it was named the Bridge of Sighs after the legend of the prisoners who, when condemned, crossed the bridge from the Doge’s Palace to go to prison in the building in front of the palace, heaved a sigh, for it was the last time they would see the light of the sun.
