Take a walk!

The best way to see Venice is on foot. In this way you can explore even its most hidden places and get to know the city better.

Take a boat ride!

Venice lies 4km from the mainland and 2km from the open sea.

Although you can get there by train or car, probably the best way is to approach Venice from the sea. This gives you an excellent opportunity to admire it from afar and prepare yourself for its many beauties.

What to take?

Luggage and bags: 

A rucksack

Clothing/Shoes/Weather Gear: 

Layers of clothing
Comfortable walking shoes

Photo Equipment: 

A camera
Extra batteries

Sinking

Venice has sunk in the last 100 years, a result of mainland industries pumping water out of the aquifer below the city. As a consequence, ominously high tides that used to be a minor annoyance, have become a regular winter occurrence, particularly in low-lying areas like St Mark's Square.

Souvenirs

What to buy: postcards, books about Venice, drawings...

The Venice Carnival

The Carnival celebrations officially begin on 17 January.

Venetian craftsmen developed their characteristic forms of carnival mask, and today these remain 1 of the principal symbols of the city.

People who wear masks over their faces no longer belong to the everyday world, but are symbolically shifted to a different, spiritual world, returning only when the mask is removed.

Until the mask reveals their face, they live in the underworld through a personal transformation and regeneration.

It's symbolic that the carnival's celebrated in winter, when life itself is to be found underground, renewing itself for spring.

The Historical Regatta

Nobody can say for sure when and why the 1st regatta was held, but in the 13th and 14th centuries the race had become customary.

As is still the case today (4 September), the race was preceded by a procession of all kinds of boats, all decked out and bearing symbolic images. After the parade, the races began. Originally the boats were divided into categories according to the number of rowers (once even 20 or 50), but now there are only 2 per boat.

The route to be covered in the least possible time goes from the Motta to Castello and Santa Chiara on the Grand Canal and back to the Ca' Foscari where a floating pavilion marks the finish line.

The winning team's awarded with a banner while a piglet's jokingly 'conferred' on the loser.

San Giorgio Maggiore

Both the church and monastery on the island were built between 1559 and 1580. The church's also considered to be 1 of Andrea Pallado's finest works.

In the sanctuary of the church you can see 2 splendid works by Tintoretto, Last Supper and the Gathering of the Manna.

The church's open daily from 9AM-12.30PM and from 3PM-5.30PM.

The island's also become a conference centre for international conferences and exhibitions. 

Phone: 041.528.9900

Get away from the crowds!

If you want to get away from the crowds, head for the backwaters and boatyards of the quieter districts. To the east of San Marco is Castello, hard-working, lived-in and traffic-free; to the south, bohemian-chic Dorsoduro is crammed with artistic treasures; to the north, peaceful Cannavegio's churches are a delight; and in the eye of the lagoon, Santa Croce and San Polo are full of monuments and atmosphere.

Ponte dei Sospiri

'I stood in Venice, on the Bridge of Sighs;
A palace and a prison on each hand...
the exhaustless East pour'd in her lap
all gems in sparkling showers.'

Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, Lord Byron

This is probably 1 of the most famous bridges here. It was built in about 1600 across a narrow canal to link the Doges' Palace and the so-called New Prisons (built between 1560 and 1614).

It took its name by the sighs of condemned prisoners glancing at Venice for their last time while led to the dungeons.

However, young lovers believe that if they kiss under this bridge (presumably in a gondola) their love will last forever.

Riva Degli Schiavoni

This has for a long time been 1 of the typical promenades here. So, try to elbow your way through the crowd and you'll be able to see a lot of monuments along the Riva; the Prigioni Nuove, built between the 16th and 17th centuries, the 15th-century Palazzo Dandolo, now Hotel Danieli, where even Wagner, Dickens and Balzac stayed, the former Monastery of the Santo Sepolcro, the 14th-century Palazzo Gabrieli, now a hotel...

Walking on Water

It's hard to believe that this city doesn't stand on firm ground. In fact, you get the feeling that the palaces and churches come out of water itself. But, after taking a closer look at its foundations, you realize that Venice doesn't stand on water but on solid ground.

The fabric of the city's formed by 140 sand banks, all strengthtened with countless wooden trunks driven into the bed of the lagoon. Builders sank numerous tree trunks 1 after another into the muddy sea bed. In this way Venice was able to grow like any other town built on solid ground. So, 150 churches, many palaces and around 500 stone bridges had been built.

The importance that water plays in the life of Venice is that the entire city has adopted the shape of a fish. The lines of communication flow into this fish shape.

Passing the San Marco Basilica the body of the fish narrows, and near the Arsenal expands again into a wide fish tail. This is where the Venetian navy used to lay anchor.

In a nutshell: No place like Venice!