Venice, Italy

Recommendations to help plan your trip to Venice.

Sample Itinerary For Venice

Below is the itinerary from our trip to Italy. We flew into the Marco Polo Airport and arrived in Venice Center by mid-day. We spent one and a half days in Venice, but it could be done as a day trip. Staying in Venice is recommended to be able to the attractions in Venice as they open and when the crowds are gone at night.

Walking is the best way to get around. The water taxi was crowded, slow, and expensive.

While we didn’t find a Gondola Ride overly romantic, we recommend it because the views from the gondola give you a different look at the city. And who doesn’t have this on their bucket list?

Venice Day One - Sample Intinerary
Venice Day Two - Sample Itinerary

Venice Day One - Sample Intinerary

With today being our arrival day, it was just about getting your barrings.

Walk the streets and take in the city.
The Rialto Bridge & St Mark’s Square are worth seeing during the day and at night.
Enjoy the food and wine!
Have dinner in an alley cafe. Consider researching restaurants while still at home and saving them to a google map. Waiting until you are starving rarely works out well.
Have a drink at Caffè Florian and enjoy the music. The café was opened in San Marco Square in 1720!
Plan on taking a Gondola Ride on the Grand Canal today or tomorrow.

Venice Day Two - Sample Itinerary

Venice is small; you will be amazed how much you can see in one day.

Morning cappuccino with a croissant with a view of the Rialto Bridge.
Visit Doge’s Palace. Go as soon as they open to avoid the crowds. Buy tickets in advance online. We did it while in line. Even with tickets, expect lines.
St Mark’s Basilica and Square.
Find a place to eat Cicchettis. (think little appetizers)
Get Lost walking the streets, window shop, People watch. Exploring the maze of streets in Venice was a highlight of ours.
Take a Gondola Ride if you still need to.

Venice Recommendations – Highlights

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Ride a Gondola

Daytime Gondola Ride 40 minutes: €80
Night Time Gondola Ride 40 minutes: €100

The above is the price we paid. Because it was not busy while we visited, we did get a daytime price at sunset.

Morning is quieter during the high season and allows you to avoid the midday summer heat.
Sunset is beautiful. They call it the magic hour for a reason.

Tip: Have cash on hand. You can’t put this one on your credit card.

Consider what you want to see on your Gondola Ride. Don’t be afraid to ask the route they will take. If you start in a major tourist area like Saint Mark’s, you might have to wait in line for your turn. We found one while wandering the back streets.

St Mark's Basilica and Square

HOURS: Mondays through Saturdays from 9:30 am until 5:00 pm.
DRESS CODE: cover shoulders and knees
ADMISSION: FREE* Lines can be long. Up to 2 hours. Go when they open, before they close, or buy a ticket.

*The skip-the-line tour tickets can be expensive. But there is a way to skip the line and avoid a tour for a fraction of the cost at Ateneo San Basso. It is located on the left side of St Mark’s Basilica. Look for the “Stow Your Bag” place. Once you have a ticket, you go back to the front of St Marks and enter threw the door on the left.

Inside St Mark’s are sections of the church that you need to pay to see. We skipped the alter but paid to go upstairs and walked on the roof. Worth it.

Doge's Palace & the Bridge of Sighs

HOURS: 9.00 – 18.00
ADMISSION: Pre-buy tickets online. Buy a museum pass if you plan on going to another museum.

The Bridge of Sighs is part of the price of admission.

Doge’s Palace Tickets

The Best Things in Venice Are Free

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It is crowed but the views are worth it! The most Famous Grand Canal Bridge in Venice. It is the main bridge over the Grand Canal so expect to cross it multiple times. As always less crowds early and late in the day. In the morning the Rialto Market is fun to see.

Get Lost in Venice

Wonder the street of Venice is the best part of Venice. Get lost. Stop for a drink and cicchettis. Window shop. Eat Galeto.

Walking all over Venice was our favorite part of our time in this magical city.

A View From Above

There is a store with a popular Roof top view of the Grand Canal.

HOURS: The rooftop is open from 10:15AM to 7PM
ADMISSION: Free but you must make reservations online – you can book up to 21 days in advance. *Because we didn’t plan ahead, we missed this opportunity.

Online Reservations

For a fee you can go to the top of the bell tower in St Mark’s Square. We viewed St Mark’s Square from above on the rooftop of the Basilica. There was a small fee.