We are used to traveling on our own, so before going to Venice it is traditional started collecting information, reading reviews about the place where we are going.

The results were not very optimistic: most of the travelers who visited this city were not struck by the architectural beauties and temperamental gondoliers . And much more banal things, such as the high cost of living, the density of the tourist flow on the streets, as well as frogs under hotel beds and mold in the shower rooms.

Our impressions were somewhat different: something turned out to be completely wrong, but something, on the contrary, was confirmed.

Myth one. Venice is very expensive

Of course, the key points in planning for any trip are two points: where to live and what to eat.

Accommodation

Stay in Venice itself, even in the low season, really expensive. The minimum cost of living in a modest guesthouse near the historical center was 100 euros for a small room, adapted only for spending the night. We went in the spring in mid-March - that is, when there should be fewer travelers than in summer.

But, even considering this cost, it was not easy to find something suitable, the rooms “left” the booking system at a catastrophic rate.

Therefore, we do not hesitate decided to save as follows: settled in the suburbs of Venice, the city of Mestre, from where it is easy to get to Venice by bus, spending 20 minutes on the road.

The Aaron Hotel, which sheltered us in Mestre, turned out to be very good, especially since a good breakfast was included in the price of the stay, and for Italy with its pair of morning croissants, this is a rarity. Total 4 days and 3 nights cost us 215 euros for two, which turned out to be certainly cheaper than accommodation options directly in the center of Venice.

Food

Restaurants in Venice - satisfaction is really expensive, and what's even more offensive, the quality of the ordered dishes is not much different from the food that you can buy in fast food.

Two plates of completely ordinary pasta with one finely grated scallop, one salad and a jug of dry white cost us almost 40 euros for two! The main part of the cost, apparently, was the opportunity, while eating pasta, to enjoy the views of the Venetian lagoon and Piazza San Marco.

Alternative

Takeaway food is a great way to eat at more affordable prices. Almost everything is sold for takeaway in Venice: sandwiches, pizza, pasta, salads, pastries, seafood, coffee and any drinks, including alcoholic ones, like prosecco (dry sparkling wine). This is how most locals eat, for whom Venetian restaurants are as expensive as they are for us tourists on a small budget.

A very hearty sandwich and cappuccino will cost 5-7 euros (the farther from the Doge's Palace, the cheaper). Fast foods of international cuisine (Asian, Japanese) are widespread, offering a menu of the day worth 10-12 euros. This menu includes meat or fish, a side dish (fries), vegetable slices, dessert and a soft drink.

Myth two. In Venice, everyone travels only on gondolas.

Exploring Venice on foot is no problem. The pedestrian part of this city is very extensive and there are practically no such historical sites where you cannot walk. However, if you want to explore the islands of the lagoon (Giudecca, Murano), then you need to sail there on a water tram - vaporetto.

Myth three. Gondolier is very romantic

A gondola ride along the canals of Venice has long been part of the tourist attraction and is very expensive.

A panoramic rafting on a gondola costs around 70-80 euros, and will give you the opportunity for 30 minutes to contemplate the velvet boat cushions and the walls of the houses of various levels of moldiness, past which the boat will move. To learn something really interesting about the walls, you need to take a guide with you, because an English-speaking gondolier, not to mention a Russian-speaking one, is a unique phenomenon.

Gondoliers are representatives of a very special caste in Venice, the opportunity to own a boat and work as a gondolier is inherited, like a land plot. It is absolutely impossible to get a job as a Venetian boatman from the street, a special boating union is vigilantly watching this.

That is why gondoliers are pragmatic and slightly arrogant, do not like to bargain and look down on the tourist "plankton". Whether you want to part with 80 euros in order to rock in a boat for 30 minutes, which from afar looks like a varnished coffin, through gloomy and damp canals, of course, it's up to you to decide.

Myth four. Guided tour of Venice - only with a guide

If you are planning to write a dissertation on the history of Venetian architecture, then, of course, you should take care of finding a professional guide who has a special license. A walk for 3-4 hours in the company of such a guide will cost 100-150 euros.

But if you want to look behind the beautiful scenery called "Venice", and understand how the ordinary inhabitants of this amazing city live, then it is better to wander around it with one of the former compatriots who have already settled in Venice.

We did just that, found the coordinates of a girl who had been living there for several years, and spent four hours in her company. During this time, we saw: a gondola workshop, walked through the Venetian gardens, drank a glass of prosecco, met a man of the rarest profession - the artichoke cleaner Giacomo and learned from him interesting details of the processing of this mysterious vegetable. Needless to say, we absolutely did not regret the 50 euros spent on such a pastime (for two people).

Myth five. Souvenir.

Many people associate Venice primarily with the carnival theme, and as a result, tourists who have been there try to bring a carnival mask as a souvenir. Meanwhile Chinese consumer goods have long and confidently conquered the market of European souvenirs, and did not bypass Venice.

Masks, sold in assortment in souvenir shops, declare a democratic price - from 25-30 euros. However, a cursory examination is enough to understand that in the hands - the usual stamping, the manufacture of which had nothing to do with the province of Veneto.

A carnival mask made almost in your presence by a real maestro will cost at least 100 euros, and possibly more. Do not be lazy to go down to the dark and cool semi-basements of art workshops and antique shops - this is where you can buy truly original Venetian souvenirs: masks, glassware, watercolor paintings.

Summary

You should definitely visit Venice if you:

• inquisitive and romantic;
• interested in the history and art of Italy;
• love unusual angles and color schemes;
• since childhood dreamed of riding a gondola
• treat a large number of tourist counterparts with humor.

Elena, 38 years old, Kyiv,
travel date: March 2014

Is it possible to travel to Venice on a budget? Let's calculate how much a trip to Venice can cost and how you can minimize costs. Let's go through all the items of expenditure.

Let's start with transportation costs.

We took tickets from Moscow with a change in Rome airline Alitalia. Booked about a month and a half on Aviasales. A round-trip ticket cost 13,500 rubles per person (slightly less than 200 euros). Slightly cheaper were tickets with transfers in Amsterdam airline KLM.

A direct ticket Moscow-Venice cost 24,000.

There are two airports in Venice: the nearest one is Marco Polo, and the far one is Treviso (20 km from Venice), where such low-cost airlines as WizzAir, Ryanair arrive. We flew in the Marco Polo. You may find a budget option to fly through Treviso.

Travel insurance

Travel insurance was issued through, which is the official representative of the largest insurance companies. When registering, you must enter the dates of the planned trip, the country, the number of people and their age. You will be offered options from various insurance companies.

We chose the company Alfastrakhovanie. Insurance for two for 12 days cost us 1400 rubles.

Transfer. How to get to Venice from the airport

The first necessary expenses for transport upon arrival in Venice is a transfer to the city center.

The most budget option is the buses of ATVO and ACTV transport companies. There are express trains (shuttles) and regular buses number 5, which make stops along the way. We thought that they had different prices, but in both cases we paid 8 euros for a ticket (we went there by ATVO express, back - by number 5 ACTV).

How to find the bus upon arrival? Almost at the very exit from the airport building, almost reaching the doors, “Public transport” will be written on the left. There are ticket offices where you can buy tickets for the bus that goes to Piazzale Roma (Piazzale Roma is the final station for vehicles, then moving around Venice is only on foot or by water transport). You can also buy a ticket from the machine.

From Venice to the airport, the first shuttle leaves at 4-20, the last - at 23-10.

Shuttles from Marco Polo Airport run every 20 minutes, the first at 5-20, the last at 00-20 (we went at 23-20).

The bus stop is located right outside the airport. A little further, on the right, there is a stop for express trains that go only to Mestre. Between these two stops, an uncle-controller walks around, who makes sure that you get on the right bus, and checks tickets when boarding.

The bus ride to Venice takes about 20 minutes.

From Treviso Airport there are buses of the same company ATVO. Shuttles are on the way for 40 minutes, regular ones - about an hour.

However, you can order in advance.

Piazzale Roma is a lively place. We arrived there almost at midnight, still life was buzzing there. Buses arrived and departed, people with and without suitcases moved around the square. There is also such a type of transport as a monorail, - he also rolled up. The monorail runs from Tronchetto to Piazzale Roma.

Budget hotels in Venice

Before the trip, I was a little worried about how we would arrive in Venice at night and look for our hotel in the dark (I imagined a November windy night, a dark, deserted city with narrow corridors). It turns out that life in Venice is always in full swing! November, night - it doesn't matter. The streets are light. The hotel was found with incredible ease.

In Venice, I booked two different hotels. We stayed in one for one night before a cruise. In another lived after returning from a cruise.
I booked both hotels not far from Piazzale Roma, so that I could easily walk there with my suitcases. Booked through Hotellook service is a search engine that selects hotels based on offers from such booking services as Booking, Agoda, Ostrovok, etc.

The first hotel Hotel dalla Mora, Address: Salizada San Pantalon, 42. Santa Croce area.

Before that, I read that some hotels are not at all easy to find in the intricacies of Venetian nooks and crannies.

About Hotel dalla Mora I had doubts - I looked at its location on the map, and it seemed to me that it was decent to go to it and that it was located at the end of the alley. But bribed reviews about the hotel. In the end, I did not regret my choice at all and I wholeheartedly recommend it.

We arrived at Piazzale Roma at midnight. We got our bearings, crossed the first bridge, then the second, and then along the well-lit Minotto embankment, literally in 5 minutes we reached San Pantalon (or Saint Panteleimon) street, where we saw a sign with the name of our hotel.

They rang the doorbell. After a while, a sleepy woman who turned out to be Russian-speaking (Maria from Western Ukraine) opened the door for us, quickly issued us, took us to our room, gave the keys to the hotel and our room, and we said goodbye until morning.

The room was spacious, quite comfortable, warm (which was an important advantage for mid-November). The windows overlooked the canal. On the floor - 4 rooms. Shower and toilet are shared.

The cost per night is 60 euros for a double room. Breakfast included. Wifi is free. There are rooms with a private toilet.

Despite the deep night and a busy day, we, having settled in, nevertheless went for a walk. The area is quiet and very picturesque. We walked about 7 minutes to Scuol San Rocco and turned back.

Breakfast was declared as “sweet Italian”, and I already imagined cookies or shortbreads, but there were boiled eggs, melted cheese, croissants, muesli, in addition to coffee and tea, hot chocolate was offered. Pretty good by Italian standards.

Having vacated the room, we left our suitcases at the reception without any problems and walked until one in the afternoon, since our liner departed at five o'clock. In general, the impression was very good, and we even thought about rebooking a second hotel for this one, but for research purposes we decided to look at another option for budget accommodation in Venice.

A week later we returned from the cruise and went to check into our second hotel: Hotel Adua, address: Lista di Spagna 233/a, Cannaregio area.

From Piazzale Roma, we crossed the Grand Canal on the Calatrava Bridge, passed the Santa Lucia railway station, and entered the busy street where our hotel stood. To be honest, I was surprised by the crowds on Lista di Spagna: I read that the Cannaregio area is quiet and little visited. However, after carefully looking at the map, I realized that this street is part of the overland route to the Rialto Bridge and Piazza San Marco.

The building in which the Adua Hotel occupies the 2nd and 3rd floors is historical, from the 17th century, it is a typical Venetian palazzo, there is even a small garden there. The rear façade overlooks the Grand Canal.

The stairs to the 2nd floor (reception is located there) are steep and high, no ramps or elevators are provided. The hotel has a total of 13 rooms, some of them with a private bathroom (their cost is 50 euros), some are with a shared bathroom (their cost is 40 euros per room). Breakfast is paid separately - 5 euros. In addition, in Italy, a tax for accommodation is paid everywhere. In the first hotel we paid one and a half euros per person per night. In the second - two.

The rooms are small, clean, painted light green, and the furnishings (furniture, decor) reminded me of a kindergarten. Everything is very modest.

You can try to find not a hotel, but a room or an apartment directly from the owners of apartments in Venice on the website Airbnb. By registering with my invitation link, you get a 30 euro discount on your first booking.

Read about the features of living in a rented apartment in Venice

We did not order breakfast as there were many shops and cafes on the street, and here we smoothly move on to the next section.

Where to eat cheap in Venice

As experience shows, the first meal in a new city is not very successful and expensive, and with each new day you eat tastier and cheaper. So for the first time we had a completely ordinary lunch, not very tasty, paid 12 euros for a hot dish and 5 for a glass of wine, and this is the usual average price in city trattorias. However, later we got our bearings on the terrain, and the costs were optimized.

Almost opposite our hotel was a pizzeria where we had breakfast. A cup of cappuccino and a good slice of pizza cost 4 euros per person. It was open from early morning until late evening.

A little further (exact address Lista di Spagna, 124) was Brek self-service cafe. In northern Italy, cafes of this network are found in several cities (Milan, Verona, Padua, etc.). Addresses and menus can be found on their website brek.com.

These cafes offer set lunches for 6-90 euros and dinners for 10-90.

The proximity of this cafe to our hotel added value to the hotel because the food was delicious and cheap. Although at first we ignored this cafe, because it looked like a diner. I had to go through the hall with a buffet, and there was already a self-service hall. The place is visited, many locals. A small bottle of wine (as an addition to dinner) - 2-90. Delicious desserts.

After 6 pm in many places in Venice, the so-called "Happy hour", "happy hour" begins, when you pay only for a drink, and snacks are included for free.

Brek also had Happy hour, it took place just in the first part of the cafe (which is like a diner) and cost 4 euros. The set of snacks is modest: chips, sausage, something else, but the people sat tight, sipped cocktails, ate sausage with cheese, and carried on conversations.

On the streets in the fruit shops we bought fruit. Prices for grapes, citrus fruits are comparable to ours. Grapes are very tasty. Hot chestnuts are also sold throughout the city.

The girl in the souvenir shop advised us to try the local fish. When we sailed through the Venetian lagoon, we discovered a nice fish cafe on the island of Burano - it occupies a strategic position near the pier, and the people, waiting for their vaporetto, inevitably become their client.

There we ordered fried squid and fish. Food is placed on a plate made of dense dough, wrapped in foil, so that at any moment, as soon as the desired boat appears, you can tuck in the foil and go to your vaparetto, and already there, sitting on a bench and admiring the sea views, gobble up hot food, And in the end, eat a bread plate. A plate with squid (very tasty!) cost 10 euros, with fish (three large pieces) - 7.

Summing up: it is quite realistic to lay on food 20-30 euros per day.

Public transport

I already wrote about the transfer from the airport (16 euros by bus round trip). In principle, this can be limited, since in the future it is quite possible to get by with your own feet: Venice is a compact city, and you can walk to any of its six parts.

However, I would strongly recommend taking at least a day ticket for the vaporetto. There is such a ticket: for 24 hours - 20 euros, for 48 - 30 euros, 72 - 40, for 7 days - 60. And you can ride it on all city routes. A single ticket for the vaporetto costs 7.50 and is valid for 70 minutes.

First of all, you must definitely swim through Grand Canal(vaparetto no. 1 and 2). We took number 1, it stops at almost every pillar, moves very slowly, but if you want to shoot the facades of the palaces overlooking the Grand Canal from all angles, then this option is perfect for you.

Vaparetto No. 2 from Piazzale Roma moves along the canal Judecca, and on the island Giudecca makes three stops. Definitely worth going to the second one - near the Redintore Cathedral, one of the masterpieces of Antonio Palladio. All his life, this architect sought to work in Venice, but Vicenza was given to his full disposal, and in Venice Palladio managed to build only two grandiose churches: Redintore on Giudecca and San Giorgio Maggiore on a nearby small island. Accordingly, having examined the first one, we move to the second one on the same vaporetto No. 2 (the interval of movement of vaporetto No. 2 is 12 minutes).

After seeing the southern islands, we go to the northern ones: San Michele, Murano, Burano, Torcello. All vaporettos heading to these islands stop at Fondamento Nuove.

The closest island San Michele, which houses the city cemetery (Cimitero). There, in particular, Brodsky, Stravinsky, Diaghilev, Pyotr Vail are buried. Only vaporetto nos. 4.1 and 4.2 stop on this island. Their route is the same, only 4.1 goes counterclockwise, and 4.2 goes along. The interval of movement is 20 minutes. From San Michele they continue on to Murano.

On the Murano these vaporettos (4.1 and 4.2, as well as night vaporetto N) have 7 stops. It is better to get off at the 5th, Da Mula (near the Palazzo Vivarini, now there is a historical museum) or 6th - Museo (there is the Museum of Glass and the main cathedral of Murano with a golden mosaic in the apse - the church of Santa Maria and Donato).

After seeing the museum and mosaics, head to the Faro (lighthouse) stop. This is the main stop of the island of Murano, where all the vaporettos passing by the island stop. The lighthouse is visible from afar, the path to it runs first along the canal, then along a wide street. On the way there are numerous shops with virtuoso glassware, you want to look into each of them and admire.

Near the lighthouse, in particular, vaporetto No. 12 stops, on which you can get to the island Burano. These vaparettos are large, roomy (don't let the crowds on the pier scare you, everyone will fit in), they go every half hour. It takes quite a long time to get to Burano, about half an hour. There will be small islands along the way.

If Murano specialized in glassware, then Burano is famous for its lace. You will immediately see it - sewing is everywhere here, like on Murano - glass. There is a Lace Museum. The islet is very picturesque, it is customary to brightly paint the facades here.

There is an island near Burano Torcello, touching in its desolation, with a magnificent church of Santa Maria Assunta, a bell tower and a stone throne of Attila (supposedly) on the main square. Vaparetto No. 9 runs between Burano and Torcello.

From Torcello we return to Venice. A trip to all these islands can be made in a day and fit into a daily ticket for 20 euros.

In summer, routes to the islands are in demand (there are hotels with beaches) and Punta Sabbioni(there are also beaches and camping). These islands close the Venetian lagoon.

Vaparetto tickets are purchased at the box office on piazzale Roma, at newsstands, at major stops such as Ferrovia (opposite the train station) or Piazza San Marco.

Here is one of these ticket kiosks - to the left of Calatrava bridge:

Before use, the ticket must be validated - attach to the validator before boarding. It doesn't print anything, it just squeaks. From this time (beep) will be counted 24 hours (if you bought a ticket for a day).

The vaparetto route scheme at first causes rejection and unwillingness to understand all these intricacies. However, you will quickly figure it out if necessary. At each stop it is written which numbers pass through it, which stops. Vaparettos are frequent, the traffic is well organized.

Vaparetto movement scheme. Left - validator

There are no ticket offices at most stops; a single ticket can be bought on the boat. Tickets were never checked when boarding the ship. The ticket was taken out of the pocket only once - at the San Marco stop, the passage was carried out through the turnstiles.

There is another form of transport traghetto. This is a large gondola that carries passengers from one side of the Grand Canal to the other. The crossing costs half a euro. In total, there are 7 such crossings along the Grand Canal.

Traghetto stops look like this:

Museum cards

In many tourist cities, there are museum cards that allow you to visit certain city museums. But if, say, in Paris, cards differ only in the period of use (for 3 days, for 5, etc.), then in Venice, the abundance of different types of museum cards is somewhat confusing.

Let's say there is a so-called map of Horus(Chorus Pass), through which you can visit 16 churches that are members of the Horus Association. The Horus pass costs 12 euros and is valid for a year. It is unnamed, it can be transferred to another person.

A regular ticket in the church costs 3 euros. Churches are open to the public from Monday to Saturday, from 10 am to 5 pm. Visiting four churches from this list pays off with the Chorus Pass museum card.

However, many churches in Venice are free, offhand: San Jeremiah, Santa Maria di Nazareth, San Pantalon, the same Cathedral of San Marco. And, say, the Church of San Donato on Murano is paid, but is not included in the Horus Pass (details about the churches of Venice -).

The next type of museum maps of Venice - museum pass. This card opens the entrance to all city museums in Venice, costs 24 euros and is valid for six months.

You can take a card San Marco City Pass, which includes only 4 museums in St. Mark's Square (including the Doge's Palace) and three churches from the Horus list. Valid for a week, costs 27 euros.

40 euros worth All Venice City Pass- the most complete of the museum maps: all the museums and churches of Venice are at your disposal for a week. Read about museums and museum cards.

In addition to museum cards, before visiting Venice, you can get yourself a single card. The card is bought on the official tourist website of Venice https://www.veneziaunica.it/, while you yourself determine what set of services you need.

Let's say you want a three-day travel pass, visits to the museums in San Marco + three churches, parking in Piazzale Roma, a discount at a restaurant. Collect, look at the amount, pay. The range of services even includes visiting public paid toilets, connecting to the Internet via Wi-Fi in certain places. Schemes of public toilets and Wi-Fi points are attached. In general, the site is very intelligible and user-friendly.

Regarding toilets, public toilets in Venice are paid. The way out is a place of spiritual and physical food, i.e. cafes and museums. Moreover, it is not always necessary to go to the museum to get into the institution: toilet rooms are sometimes located in the entrance lobby, in the same place as the ticket office. Let's say the Palazzo Ca Rezzonico. Behind the entrance gate to the right there is a passage to the pier (through the courtyard). On the left along the way - the museum ticket office, on the right - free toilets (similarly - in Ca Pesaro, Ca Mocenigo, in the Museum of Natural History).

You can walk around the pretty garden at the Rezzonico Palace, it's also free (from the entrance - to the left).

We met a free toilet on the island of San Michele - right next to the pier to the right. And on the island of San Giorgio, amenities can be found in the Cheney Foundation Gallery, the gallery is located behind the church.

In general, there were no problems.

Returning to the topic of museum maps, I can advise the following. If you are in Venice for the first time and arrived for a day or two, then just walk around the city. The main attraction of Venice is the city itself, the interweaving of its streets and canals, narrow passages and wide squares, the luxury of church facades and interspersed parks. Go to the Church of San Marco, find the Bovolo stairs - even a simple walk through the Venetian nooks and crannies with a guidebook turns into an exciting quest, and beauty lies in wait for you at every step.

If you are here for a week or more, take the All Venice City Pass. Or intermediate options, depending on your tastes and intentions.

If you are traveling with a family or a company, you can order. Tours are conducted for a small group in Russian.

Tickets for La Fenice and Malibran theaters

La Fenice is the main opera house in Venice. The story of this "Phoenix" serves as a vivid illustration of the saying "whatever you call a ship, so it will fly." Named after the bird Phoenix, and in accordance with this name, La Fenice burned out several times, and then rose from the ashes.

After a fire in 1996, the theater was closed for 8 years, and its productions were staged at the Malibran Theatre. Now it has been restored in its original form, with the former luxury. And you need to go there not only for the sake of the opera performance, but also to get an idea in what interiors the Venetian public listened to art.
However, you can go on an excursion to the theater separately. A ticket for such an excursion costs 10 euros. The theater is open for visits from 9:30 to 18:00 (the time may vary depending on the calendar of artistic events, so it is better to go in the morning).

Theater tickets start at 30 euros. It is better to buy tickets in advance.

Souvenirs

The general rule is not to buy anything in crowded places. It is worth stepping aside, and the stole, which was sold for 8 euros on the Schiavoni embankment near San Marco, is already being sold for 5, and a T-shirt for 12 already costs 8 euros.

There are nice souvenir shops in Venice with "1 euro" signs. Indeed, they sell souvenirs for 1 euro. For the most part, these are Venetian glass pendants (some are very pretty), sets of glass beads for homemade beads, magnets in the form of masks (although they are made rather carelessly, you need to look for a good copy), fans, jewelry boxes, pictures. So you can look at small things there.

The most popular souvenirs in this city are Venetian masks and they are sold on every street corner.

Of course, a large selection of Murano glass products. Here are decorations, and original vases, figurines, and watches. I can’t guarantee that everything is definitely cheaper on the island of Murano than in Venice, but there is more choice. Moreover, in neighboring shops, products can differ strikingly - in style, in spirit, in color. You can walk around Murano like one endless museum: at every step you will find countless works of art, original and unexpected. If you do not buy, then at least please the eye.

For lace we go to Burano. To be honest, I was more attracted to Burano by the colorful houses lined up along the canals, and I casually looked at the exposed lace. There are not as many lace shops there as glass shops in Murano, but still enough.

When is the best time to visit Venice

The least I liked in Venice in the summer. Crowded, bustling, hot.

In the spring, in April, it was very pleasant, but still there were too many people.

The most wondrous memories remained from the February Venice. It is dank, cloudy, but the fogs are simply magical. Gondolas sway in the mist. I walked around the city as if mesmerized.

Winter suits Venice very well. Winter and night.

Be sure to spend the night in Venice.

Brodsky from year to year came to Venice in the winter, around Christmas. He wrote a magical thing - "The Embankment of the Incurable", as mesmerizing as Venice in winter.

Summary

What do we end up with?

So, offhand: 200 euros for an air ticket, transfer and insurance - another 20, 20 euros - a daily ticket for a vaporetto, 12 euros - a Horus-pass card. Already 252 euros.

Total minimum - 550-600 euros for 5 nights (6 days).

Cheap airfare calendar

Useful websites to prepare for your trip BikesBooking

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Venice is a masterpiece city, a delightful pearl of European culture. A unique city on the water that captivates with its beauty, exudes romance and captivates with its unique atmosphere. True, in order to see and feel just such Venice - magical and romantic - you need to plan your trip correctly. Many tourists who come to this wonderful city with noisy, always hurrying and noisy groups and hurried guides remain hopelessly disappointed. We are convinced that Venice is best explored on your own. This is how you can see not only noisy "postcard" places crowded with people and pigeons, but also a real, lively, diverse, cozy, charming Venice.

Venice is a special city, and when planning an independent trip, it is worth considering some of the nuances. So, how to organize a trip to Venice on your own, what you should know and consider: useful tips for tourists.

When is the best time to go to Venice?

Perhaps the best time to visit Venice is end of March, April or September. At this time, the weather is pleasant - there is neither sweltering heat nor cold. However, there are not many tourists. A great opportunity to walk quietly around the city, discovering the unique charm of Venice step by step, turn by turn.

Winter in Venice quite cold and dank due to high humidity. In addition, the city is often shrouded in fog and seems to be painted in gray tones. This season, Venice appears to travelers not as bright, sunny and festive, but rather melancholy and sadly poetic. However, this is what attracts some people. For example, Joseph Brodsky liked to come here in the winter - and in no other season.

The period of winter holidays (Christmas) and the Venetian carnival the city "wakes up" and is again filled with tourists. During these periods, Venice can be seen elegant, festive, noisy and crowded. As a rule, the carnival is held in late February or early March, before the beginning of the Catholic Lent. You can check the dates of the carnival and get detailed information about it on the official website: http://www.carnevale.venezia.it.

Autumn and early spring It often rains in Venice. After them, the water level can rise greatly and even flood streets and squares.

If you are planning an independent trip to Venice in winter, early spring or autumn, keep in mind that floods occur here during these seasons (the Venetians call it acqua alta, that is, “high water”). During floods, the streets and squares of the city can be flooded. Then you can see a colorful picture of people in high rubber boots walking around San Marco Square.

Summer in Venice very hot. True, the shady labyrinths of stone streets and canals allow you to periodically hide from the scorching sun during your walks. But the main feature of the Venetian summer is the abundance of tourists. The small town is crowded with people. However, even in this crowded season, Venice can reveal its magical side to you. But for this you need to know where to “escape” from the tourist crowds and where to see a calmer and “real” Venice.

What to pack Venice

Don't take too many things

If you are staying in the center, you will have to take a boat to the hotel and then probably walk along the narrow paved roads. A huge suitcase will interfere with you.

What to bring to Venice in winter

In winter, Venice is very dank due to high humidity. Therefore, even if the forecast promises you a temperature of “only” around 0 degrees, take down jacket- in a city on the water, the temperature will feel very different than in a dry climate.

If you are going to Venice during the "high water" (acqua alta) season, you should also take high rubber boots.

What to bring with you in summer

Summer in Venice is hot and sometimes even stuffy (due to high humidity). Although the narrow shady alleys and passages between the houses save you from the heat when walking around the city, it is still worth taking care of sunscreen, hats, summer wardrobe, sunglasses and other accessories needed for hot sunny weather. Well, if you decide to swim in the Adriatic Sea and have planned a beach holiday on the island of Lido, do not forget your swimwear!

Comfortable shoes

In any season, take care of comfortable shoes. Most likely, you will walk a lot along the old streets, and possibly swim in boats and boats. For all these cases, high studs are not suitable.

Clothing for visiting basilicas

Among the sights of Venice are many ancient churches, which store both masterpieces of art and Christian shrines. When visiting basilicas, remember that, as a rule, these are not just tourist sites, but also functioning churches, and therefore follow a certain dress code. It is advisable to cover your shoulders and legs to the knees (you can bring a tippet or a wide scarf with you).

Technique

As in any other trip, when traveling to Venice, consider the availability of the equipment you need: check if the hotel has a hairdryer and an iron. And don't forget chargers for mobile devices and cameras.

How to get to Venice?

By plane

The easiest and cheapest way to get to Venice is to fly there by plane. Convenient direct flights are offered by Aeroflot from Moscow. Flights from Alitalia will be a little more expensive.

With one transfer in Riga, you can fly from Moscow to Venice on an AirBaltica plane.

Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air flies to Venice from Prague. You can get to Prague from Moscow with Czech Airlines or Smart Wings. So you will have a chance to add some Prague charm to your Venetian holiday.

A very convenient way to find a cheap ticket to Venice is to use online services that look for tickets from all airlines and offer a wide range of flight options. For example, Aviasales .

Check which flight options to Venice are available on the dates you need:

By train

If you are planning to visit not only Venice, but also other cities in Italy, you should take a ride on local trains - you will get an exciting trip around the country. From Rome to Venice can be reached in an average of 4 hours. From Milan, the train takes about 2.5-3 hours (depending on the train). You can check the schedule and buy train tickets yourself on the official website of Trenitalia (Italian railways). The Italians take care of us so much that the website even has a Russian version.

By car

If you are planning a trip to Italy by car, then it is convenient to make Venice the first or last point of the route. Just keep in mind that you cannot use a car in the city itself - it is not intended for motor vehicles. By car, you can only get to the last point of the "land" Venice - to Piazzale Roma (Piazzale Roma). And then - or rent a car and immerse yourself in the magic of pedestrian streets and canals, forgetting about vehicles for a while. Or (if Venice is an intermediate point) park your car in the same square of Rome while you explore the historical part of the city. By the way, car parking may be included in the set of services available with the Venezia Unica tourist card (read more about it below).

Read also:

Where to stay in Venice?

Of course, you should take care of a hotel in Venice in advance. For example, by choosing the option that suits you on the Booking.com service. But where is the best place to stay? What should you pay attention to?

Venice is a very expensive city. This applies to everything, including hotels. Especially if you stay in the historical part of Venice.

If the budget of the trip is very limited, you can choose a hotel in the mainland of the city, called Mestre. From here, tourist attractions can be reached by bus or tram traveling over the Liberty Bridge (Ponte della Libertà). The trip takes about 10-15 minutes. However, this method, although it will allow you to save a little, will not allow you to fully enjoy that unique atmosphere, for which they go to Venice.

Although Venice is a very compact and small city, tourists should understand the division into districts, how they differ from each other, and where it is better to settle. The city is divided into 6 districts called sestieres: San Marco, Castello, Cannaregio, San Polo, Dorsoduro, Santa Croce.

To learn about the features of each of the sisters and make the right choice, also read the article:

Hotels in the historic "sestieres" (the so-called 6 districts of Venice) have many features. Often the rooms are quite small. In addition, hotels in Venice are often located in old houses, so they may seem somewhat dilapidated. But this is a unique experience, and many tourists are willing to pay a lot of money for this colorful "dilapidation".

When choosing where to stay in Venice, as in any other city, study the reviews of tourists. Pay attention to factors such as sound, the availability of an elevator, Wi-Fi and the equipment you need, the quality of breakfast (Italian breakfasts are usually quite poor). In addition, tourists often mention location features in reviews: what sights, shops, interesting places are nearby.

Find out what special offers of Venice hotels are available right now:

Transport in Venice

How to get from the airport to Venice and back

Marco Polo airport

This is the main one in Venice, most planes fly here. The airport is located just 8 km north of the city, and you can get to Venice from it quite quickly. True, there is one important nuance. When choosing any of the wheeled vehicles, keep in mind that they will only take you to a certain part of Venice accessible to cars - Piazzale Roma (Piazzale Roma). If your hotel is located in one of the historical areas (Castello, San Marco, Dorsoduro, Cannaregio, San Polo, most of Santa Croce), then a car will not be able to drive directly to your hotel! For the simple reason that the main part of the city is simply not intended for vehicles. This often comes as a surprise to tourists, although everyone knows that Venice is a city on the water. Even if you take a taxi, the taxi driver will be forced to drop you off at Piazzale Roma, and then you will have to transfer to a truly Venetian - water transport.

Specify the address in advance and check on the map exactly where your hotel is located. Specify the nearest landmarks, vaporetto stop. Perhaps on the hotel website there will be tips on how to get to it more conveniently.

So, the options for getting to Venice from Marco Polo Airport:

• You can use ATVO shuttle buses stopping near the entrance to the airport. They leave often, are inexpensive and very convenient. The price is 8 euros one way and 15 euros for a round trip ticket. In addition, transfers on ATVO shuttles can be included in the package of services when purchasing a Venezia Unica guest card (more on it below). These shuttles will take you to Piazzale Roma bus station.

• There are also ACTV buses - this is a regular urban transport that runs with many stops. Cheaper and more colorful. .

• With more comfort, but much more expensive, you can go by taxi. Taxi drivers will be looking forward to waiting for you next to the airport building.

• If you are afraid of organizational difficulties and are not ready to book tickets on Italian sites or negotiate with taxi drivers, you can use the service. The transfer can be booked in advance, and all information is available in Russian.

• You can feel the essence of Venice right after leaving the airport - get to the city by water bus or water taxi. To do this, you need to walk a couple of hundred meters to the Alilaguna pier. you can choose and purchase a ticket for such a trip (information in English).

Treviso airport

Located 20 km from Venice. As a rule, planes of low-cost airlines fly here. How to get to Venice:

• On Terravision buses. They run during the day and will take you to Tronchetto, one of the Venetian islands at the entrance to the central part of the city.

• Also from Treviso Airport to Venice there are ATVO buses running to Piazzalle Roma.

• Taxi drivers will be happy to take you to the city. Naturally, it is more expensive than buses.

• You can take the train from Treviso. The municipal bus number 6 runs to the station. And from Treviso Centrale to Santa Lucia di Venezia, trains run very often. The trip will take about 35 minutes.

• If you do not want to deal with public transport, you can pre-order (booking is available in Russian).

All the mentioned methods of transportation also work in the opposite direction - from Venice to airports.

How to move around the city

A unique feature of the island part of the city is the complete absence of vehicles. Just a dream of the inhabitants of the metropolis! How to move around the city? Venice is a very compact and small city, and therefore it is quite possible to reach most of the interesting places on foot (if you live in one of the historical sestieres). Moreover, walking here is exceptionally pleasant! This is a great way to get to know the city and feel its unique atmosphere.

But if you have planned intensive movements around the city in a short time, then, of course, you will have to use transport. And he is here - only water! It will not only help you quickly move to different parts of the city, but also allow you to see Venice from the water - and this is also an unforgettable experience. Magnificent Venetian palazzos were even built in such a way that all of their facades were turned towards the water, and therefore it is best to view them while floating on the waters of the Grand Canal.

The main public transport in Venice is boats. vaporetto (vaporetto). These are a kind of water buses - an inexpensive and convenient option. They ply along established routes and stop at piers with yellow and white booths. You can buy both a single one-way ticket and a travel card for one or more days.

Detailed information about the types of tickets and prices can be found (although information is in English)

In addition, a vaporetto pass and even a transfer to Marco Polo Airport can be included in the Venezia Unica Guest Card (read more about it below).

Tickets can also be purchased through a dedicated smartphone app (available in Italian and English only).

small boats motoscafo (motoscafo), playing the role of water taxis may be more convenient with their individual approach, but they are naturally more expensive. Motoskafo can drive through narrow canals, under low bridges and get to almost any part of the city.

There are also large motonave (motonave), which run only on the largest channels.

Of course, we must not forget about the Venetian gondolas (gondola). You can't even call them transport! They do not take passengers from point A to point B, but give a special experience of leisurely walks along the canals. But the magnificent romance of gondolas comes at a price! If you are on a tight budget but can't deprive yourself of a gondola ride, you can try to find a suitable company - the cost of the ride can be divided among everyone.

If you have no desire to pay a gondolier, but want to feel the flavor of a truly Venetian transport, use tragetto. They are used to cross from one side of the canal to the other (where there are no bridges). And such transportation costs quite inexpensively - only 2-3 euros. One of the most scenic routes is the ferry from the Customs Arrow (Punta della Dogana) to Piazza San Marco. Pavda, you will not have time to admire the views, as the crossing is carried out very quickly. And one more important feature: passengers in the traghetto are transported while standing.

Venice: how to navigate the city

Navigating Venice by house number is a puzzle. After all, the address is the name of the district and a four-digit number. For example, Castello 4693. At the same time, the numbering is end-to-end, it is not at all in order, and there is no division into odd and even sides of the street that we are used to. And the area is rather big, and the whole is dotted with small streets and alleys. Another feature - in Venice, not even buildings are often numbered, but entrances to them, and sometimes windows.

How to navigate in Venice on your own and find the addresses you need? Knowing the nearest landmarks will help you out: they can be the nearest church, palace, square. Find a place on the map in advance and, if possible, specify and remember or write down the name of the nearest bridge, canal, alley, square, as well as larger landmarks. And already from these landmarks, remember the path to the desired building.

And you can see your location, as well as the nearest sights from you, on the map in. It includes a free GPS guide to Venice.

How and where to eat in Venice?

Italian cuisine is famous for its delicious culinary delights, so in Venice you can not only enjoy great views, but also explore a variety of goodies. You can do this in different ways:

• The most expensive and, perhaps, the most unfortunate option is to visit restaurants in the tourist center. Often they work exclusively for tourists (who are in abundance in Venice) and have nothing to do with a real Italian restaurant. Prices here will be "on top", which can often not be said about the service.
• Cheaper, tastier and more interesting to find restaurants for locals away from tourist spots. These have become a rarity in the tourist areas of Venice. But they can be found in the areas of Cannaregio, Castello, Dorsoduro, on the island of Giudecca. There are also plenty of authentic local restaurants on the mainland of Venice, in Mestre.
• Buying products in the market and in stores. There are plenty of outlets in Venice - both small "home" shops and large supermarkets. A visit to the Venetian market (for example, the legendary Rialto Fish Market, the oldest in the city) is also a special, unforgettable experience. Even while living in a hotel, you can buy fruits, vegetables, delicious bread, Italian cheese, ham…

Eat traditional Venice food

Venice has its own "signature" dishes, which are an important part of the local flavor. The most famous - risotto nero (RisottoNero, "black risotto") and spaghetti al nero (Spaghetti al nero di seppia). Both of these dishes have one thing in common: the unusual black color of the sauce, which is made from cuttlefish ink. Also the Venetians love polenta (Polenta), similar to cornmeal.

Of course, in the city on the water you can try excellent seafood and fish dishes. For example, baccala montecato ( Baccala montecato) - dried cod puree, sarde in saor ( Sarde in Saor) – marinated sardines, sardine frit ( Sarde Fritto) - fried sardines, baccala fritto ( baccala fritto) - fried cod.

Also very popular in Venice chiketti (Chiketti). These are small snacks that are consumed with wine, and just like that.

The most popular Venetian drink - syringe, or syringe (Spritz). This is a cocktail of dry white or sparkling wine, Aperol or Campari liqueur and sparkling water. The Austrian name reminds that the history of this "signature" Venetian drink is connected with the era of the Austrian occupation of Venice, and the "syringe" was actually invented by the Austrian military. True, they did not “bother” with liqueurs, but simply mixed wine with sparkling water.

In Venice, you should also try wonderful Italian ice cream ( Gelato), recalling that it was the Venetian Marco Polo who once brought to Europe a recipe for ice cream from China.

Restaurants and cafes in Venice: things to consider

• • Tips for waiters are far from being left everywhere - most often they are already included in the check called "coperto" (fee for serving and service). If not, it is customary to give 10%.
  • Venice is spoiled by a huge flow of tourists. Unfortunately, this affects both the service and the prices. Also, be prepared for the peculiarities of "tourist" marketing. For example, menus displayed near restaurant entrances may not include prices for drinks, which can then turn out to be extremely high. In addition, the waiters in the center can recommend not the most delicious, but the most expensive dishes. True, not everywhere and not everything is so bad, but such trends are, perhaps, in any tourist place.

• If you decide to indulge in the luxury of having a cup of coffee at the legendary Café Florian while sitting in Piazza San Marco and listening to live music, be prepared to have music included in your bill. However, many tourists do not mind even overpaying for this unforgettable experience!

Venice attractions on your own: with discounts and without queues

Venezia Unica - Tourist Guest Card of Venice

One way to save money in Venice is to buy a special "City Pass" type card, called here VeniceUnica. The peculiarity of the Venice card is that you can choose the set of services that suits your trip. It may include not only visits to the sights of Venice (museums and basilicas), but also travel by public transport, and, if desired, a transfer to Marco Polo airport, as well as sports events, parking and discounts in some restaurants.

Everything is organized very conveniently. Visit the site www.veneziaunica.it/ru to get acquainted with the benefits of the card, choose the services you need, and, in fact, buy Venezia Unica online. After making a purchase, an e-voucher will be sent to your e-mail, which can be exchanged for a card when you arrive in Venice. You can do this in one of the many points, the list of which is presented on the site.

The tourist card of Venice helps not only to save money, but also to avoid queues at the ticket office, and this is a significant advantage.

Choose the right time to visit tourist places

One of the features of this city has become a huge flow of visitors - about 30 million people a year visit Venice. In practice, this means crowds roaming everywhere. This is not always convenient. To take a beautiful photo or just to be in peace and quiet, you should wake up early and get to the central (St. Mark) and the main attractions by 7 am.

Don't be afraid to get away from banal tourist routes

It is not necessary to crowd along with all the tourists who attack all day Piazza San Marco, the Rialto Bridge and other popular places. There are so many amazing places in Venice!

Venice guide and audio guide for iPhone

If you are traveling with an iPhone, you have the opportunity to explore the city not with a heavy guide, but with one that is installed on your smartphone and turns trips into exciting journeys! Thanks to GPS navigation, the guide will always tell you where you are and what interesting places are near you. Offline map, useful information about the city and city, convenient search for places in the catalog and on the map, and even an audio phrasebook - all this is available completely free of charge. A tour of places that cannot be missed!

Our audio walks are full of interesting stories, curious facts and amazing stories. Join now!

Venice on your own: what else tourists should know

Consider the working hours and do not forget about the siesta

From about 2 to 4 pm, activity in Venice fades (with the exception of the tourist center). Many shops, restaurants, basilicas and museums are closed. Siesta! Keep this in mind when planning your day.

And Mondays are days off in many Venetian (and all Italian) sights.

Make sure prices are right

The “side effects” of the tourist center are inflated prices. Souvenirs in the center are unreasonably expensive, and for a fantastic price, you are likely to get low-quality Chinese-made goods. Moving a little further from San Marco, you can find small shops with less expensive and better quality gifts and souvenirs.

Do not feed pigeons anything

There are a lot of pigeons in Venice, and they ... leave traces everywhere. Therefore, the city does not welcome their feeding, and they are even fined for unauthorized sale of food. In the area of ​​Piazza San Marco, you can buy special pigeon food - special sterilizing preparations are added to it.

Drinking water in Venice available free of charge in special drinking fountains. It comes from the wells of the town of Scorce, located on the continent.

Prohibited in Venice sit on sidewalks around attractions. And men in the city are not allowed to take off their T-shirts and shirts.

Careful, thoughtful preparation will help make your independent trip to Venice flawless, just perfect! However, do not be afraid to add a pinch of adventurism and more inspiration to your plans! Buon viaggio, amici!

Venice is such a place where it is not so easy to go on a budget.

Hotels here can easily cost 200 and 400 euros, one trip on a regular vaporetto boat (something like a minibus) - 7 euros per trip, half an hour on a gondola - 80 euros, etc. And restaurants, sights, souvenirs…

Is it possible to see Venice without being a millionaire? And in general, what can be the minimum travel budget? What can you save on here, and on what - in no case is it worth it?

When is the best time to go in order to catch good weather and so that prices are not high?

Is it worth it to go here with a child? How is food, walking, entertainment here? All the same, the city is special, without the usual transport, it stands on the water ...

How much time to lay down to have time to look, feel the spirit, but also not linger too long in this objectively expensive place?

We visited here in February 2015, got just in time for the carnival.

Naturally, Sophia went with us, now she is a year and eight months old.

You can fly to Venice, arrive by train, bus or your own car.

The airports through which you can get here are not in Venice itself, but on the mainland. The next two are Marco Polo, regular airlines like Lufthansa fly here, and Treviso, low-cost airlines like Ryanair fly here. Then you can get from the airport by bus for 6 euros.

But if you fly from Russia, it will be much cheaper to fly to some major airport, for example, Milan. And to get to Venice by train, it's only 2.5 hours, and trains come directly to the island.

It’s hard to say exactly how much tickets cost and how much they should cost, the easiest way is to check the current cost of tickets on some decent air ticket search engine, for example, Aviasales. And try experimenting with the arrival airport and dates.

We arrived in Venice by car. It must be left immediately at the entrance to the island, in one of the huge multi-storey car parks. In February 2015, a day of parking in such a parking lot cost 30 euros.

Another important point that surprises: the car in the parking lot is open, the keys are in the cabin, next to the windshield. Such rules.

Is it worth staying in Mestre

Since Venice is notorious for being a very low-budget place, there is often a recommendation to stay not in Venice itself, but in Mestre - this is a small town with a population of about 100 thousand inhabitants, it is literally separated from island Venice by a long bridge across the lagoon.

The distance in a straight line between them is about 11 km, and along the highway, about twice as much.

I literally took the high prices in Venice hotels as an axiom, and therefore almost immediately began to look for something in Mestre, although I was very embarrassed by the road from Mestre.

Still, whatever one may say, you still need to get to the bus or railway station, get on the schedule, buy a ticket, then you arrive in Venice at Piazza Venezia Santa Lucia, and from there you also need to get to the center of Venice. True, this walk is already pleasant, on a boat, but a one-time trip costs 7 euros. If you drive back and forth and not alone, then a decent amount will already run up.

With the baby still sleeping during the day, the hotel in Mestre was a heap of doubt. Then I compared the prices for hotels in Mestre and in Venice and realized that, in combination with this additional road, living in Mestre is not cheaper than in Venice, but it is more stressful in terms of nerves - you always need to think about how you will return in the evening and get on the schedule.

Just in Mestre for the same money as in Venice, you will get more comfortable conditions in the hotel. But in my opinion, I would take this argument into account last. Yes, there are few hotels in Venice that have an elevator, many of them are located in buildings of the 15th century, in some places it smells of dampness - this is Venice, there is water all around.

But under comparable conditions for money, even for a slightly simpler hotel in Venice, I would definitely choose Venice.

In the hotel you will be, most likely, still very little. And this atmosphere of a medieval city, with its boats, canals, buildings with lancet windows, is wrong to interrupt with trips on trains and buses.

I would leave Mestre only in case the prices in Venice itself are, for some reason, really prohibitive or everything is packed. Well, that is, in case you can objectively settle only in Mestre.

Hotels in Venice, which ones, how much do they cost

The price for the same room in the same hotel in Venice can vary by almost 10 times. It all depends on when you are traveling: in winter or summer, that is, in high or low season, on what days of the week (more expensive on weekends), during the carnival or not. Current prices for hotels in Venice can be checked at Booking.com.

By the way, room prices differ even during the carnival. Weekends can be more expensive, much more expensive than on weekday carnival days.

It is also more expensive during the opening and closing of the carnival, when the maximum number of people come. So even during an event like a carnival, when hotel prices are a priori higher, you can experiment with dates and find an offer that is not at all ruinous.

Carnival in Venice, 2015

As in other cities, here you can also find apartments. But as a rule, they are located quite far from Piazza San Marco, to which tourists gravitate.

For example, the nearest relatively inexpensive apartments (100 euros per night) for February 2015, during the carnival, I found a 20-minute walk from San Marco. There seemed to be 2 bedrooms, so for 4-6 people it's just a great offer.

We could do without such large apartments, it was more important for us that all this was closer to the center, so that we had to go back and forth less. Therefore, it quickly became clear that in our case, some hotel near San Marco was ideal.

I deliberately looked for a room for weekdays. And it was right. On weekdays, Booking showed a discount of as much as 75% on some rooms, while prices increased several times on weekends.

We ended up paying for our room at the Hotel Casa Dolce (a luxurious restored building built in 1500) 60 euros per night, with a simply gigantic excellent breakfast. The hotel is located 150 meters from San Marco, right on the canal, 30 meters from the supermarket Coop ... For the weekend you had to pay so much
for a bed in the common room of the dormitory, so that.

When preparing this trip, we finally decided where to book - on Booking.com or on AirBNB.com in favor of Booking.

The fact is that Booking sets prices very flexibly, depending on the day of the week, hotel occupancy, etc. As a result, you can find such a huge discount. AirBNB does not yet have such a flexible policy, and apartments are priced the same on all days. By the way, for lovers of apartments: they are also on Booking, although the choice is smaller.

Of course, the hotel is closer, there is no kitchen, but you can always find an option in the center, with breakfast, at a huge discount, and for us now it is preferable to apartments somewhere closer to the outskirts, albeit more spacious, but which you need to get to.

Transport in Venice

Transport in Venice is on your own feet; vaporetto boats - something like minibuses that run along the main canals; and gondolas.

In fact, gondolas for tourists are no longer transport, but a short and very expensive entertainment. A gondola ride will cost 80 euros for half an hour.

What do gondoliers look like?

If you want the gondolier to sing as expected, you have to pay extra. As for us, we left this entertainment for the future. Maybe one day…

Rates for godols: 80 euros for half an hour, maximum 6 people per boat, 100 euros for an evening walk

In fact, here's a good tip: buy a vaporetto ticket, but not for one trip, but multiple, according to the number of days you spend here.

Vaporetto

See for yourself: a single ticket for a vaporetto costs 7 euros. And you will need at least two of these - when you arrive on the island, and when you leave. You can, of course, walk on foot, but far and with a suitcase is not easy.

So you will spend at least 14 euros on a vaporetto. And for 50 euros you can buy a ticket on which you will travel for as long as you want for a week. So instead of half an hour on the gondola, I would choose a vaporetto ticket.

Of course, this is public transport here. And the boats are filled with people. And some of the places are inside the boat, which is not so interesting. Despite the wind, we always settled on the open part of the deck.

By the way, I would not say that there were too many people. And then you can always pick up less busy routes, since 95% of tourists travel only from Piazza Roma to San Marco and the Rialto Bridge, or off-peak times.

Turnstiles on the vaporetto

Eating out in Venice

Breakfast is included in the room rate in many hotels. Our breakfast was simply sumptuous, very varied and delicious.

You can have lunch and dinner at the cafe. Also, if possible, you can buy something in the supermarket, heat it up in the microwave, etc., if it is in the hotel.

The menu in the cafe is not particularly varied - mostly pasta and pizza, there is seafood.

If you want to feed your child in a cafe, try to move away from the main tourist trails. Now you will understand why.

There are always crowds of tourists between Piazza San Marco and the Rialto Bridge, the cafes are packed, tourists are in the city for a day or two, so they work on a stream here. There is no need to try too hard here. And, probably, in overloaded tourist cafes, you should be more careful with seafood.

You can pick up some cafe on Tripadviser in advance. The main thing then to be able to find it in the labyrinths of the streets.

A couple of minutes walk from San Marco towards the Rialto Bridge on Salizado San Lio there is just an excellent Coop supermarket (its coordinates are 45.4368795,12.339412), where you can find ready-made food (pizza, panini, couscous with vegetables, etc., which is sold by weight ). At prices, a pizza portion (quite large) is about 2 euros, 100 gr of couscous with vegetables - 1.4 euros.

This supermarket has a lot of very tasty, inexpensive fast food of excellent quality - from the category only to warm up, so it's great if there is a microwave in the room.

If you live in an apartment, then you can cook an excellent lunch / dinner yourself, in just 5 minutes, by buying a pack of ravioli (1.5 euros) and sauce (3 euros) - enough for two. Fresh cheese, excellent vegetables, wine, bread - hunger in all this splendor does not threaten, everything is very beautiful and tasty.

Fruits and vegetables in a small shop

What and how to see in Venice

About the sights of Venice in the network of mountains of information. I won't dwell on it.

Let me just say that Venice is best viewed from the water, at different times of the day. And also go deep into the alleys, where there are almost no tourists.

Narrow medieval streets, the width of the narrowest ones is only 85 cm, canals, bridges, boats - such Venice is both mysterious and romantic.

Just don't forget the card! This is a very serious warning. It is very easy to get lost in the labyrinths of these streets.

If you want everything to seethe around, go to San Marco or the Rialto bridges, there are a lot of people, restaurants and shops.

And it's beautiful there too.

When and for how long is it better to go to Venice

From February to early summer is just a great time. Already in February, the sun often shines, it is warm, but not hot. With the exception of carnival days, there are fewer people than in summer.

From early November to mid-January there is a period of high water. There may be floods, windy and rainy. There are a lot of people in June and July.

But spring and September are just a great time. Despite the fact that we were at the very beginning of February, the weather was already spring - warm and sunny.

Narrow cracked streets

As for the number of days of the trip itself, we stayed here for 3 nights, that is, 2 full days and 2 more days for check-in / check-out. During this time, you can’t see everything here, but you can feel the spirit of this place well.

In my opinion, spending so much time here is optimal.

What to consider when traveling with a child

Venice has many bridges and narrow streets. And here it is quite inconvenient with a stroller. Even though we used it. Just as inconvenient with a suitcase on wheels.

Usually travelers with children have a lot of things. Please note that there are usually no elevators in Venice hotels, only the most expensive ones have them. Try to take less with you.

In general, do not be afraid to travel to Venice with children. Even though there are no playgrounds, slides, etc., there are boats everywhere. And such an unusual holiday atmosphere, characteristic of this place in general.

The kids love it here.

Sophia willingly planned to walk twice a day - in the morning and in the afternoon. Boats, boats - she still raves about them.

Inexpensive to Venice - conclusions

1. We settle in Venice to shorten the road to Mestre, including the cost of it.

2. In sparring, hotels/apartments often win hotels if you are not traveling with a large group. You can find a discounted hotel on Booking.com.

3. It's better to travel opportunities not on the weekend, so there are more chances to take advantage of some big discount on the hotel. It is better to choose a hotel with breakfast.

4. Instead of a short gondola ride, it is better to choose a multi-entry vaporetto ticket. So you can drive around Venice a lot and see it from the water for as long as you want, and not some miserable half an hour.

5. As for food, check out the simply excellent Coop supermarket. At a minimum, lunch or dinner can be easily imagined here.

6. Masks… this is a traditional souvenir. But everything that is sold for 3 euros is Chinese handicrafts. Real masks made in Venice are very expensive. But if you're going to take it, then the real ones are better. However, you can just take a couple of good photos.

7. If you need to come here economically, it is better not to drive. By plane, train, etc. – cheaper, plus you won’t have to spend money on quite expensive parking here. For example, it cost us 90 euros.

And in more detail about our impressions of Venice and a trip to the carnival.

Venice is a unique city in Northern Italy. Everyone needs to visit at least once. After all, this city is slowly sinking under water. Of course, in order for it to completely disappear under water, centuries must pass, but nevertheless, every year less of this city remains on the surface of the earth, and the sooner you manage to visit here, the more you will be able to see. What other reasons are there to choose Venice for your trip?

Reason 1. To visit the famous Piazza San Marco

This area is known throughout the world for the number of pigeons that gather here. To visit Venice and not take a picture surrounded by the Palace of Rains, the Bell Tower, the Grand Canal and, of course, numerous birds, means not to leave one of the most important memories of this city as a keepsake.

Tourists are lucky if they choose Venice hotels in the center to stay. Then it will be a stone's throw to St. Mark's Square, there will be time to get acquainted with all its sights.

Reason 2. To ride the gondola

This is a unique entertainment that you can only try after visiting Venice. This is used by local entrepreneurs who carry out skiing. A trip for 40 minutes will cost 80 euros, that is, 2 euros per minute. But what would you not give up for a unique pleasure that you will never experience again in your life?

Reason 3. To stay in a luxury hotel

In Venice, there are truly luxurious hotels, where stay is surrounded by comfort, attentive service, Italian hospitality. These are undoubtedly 5 star and 4 star hotels in Venice. To settle down in them, while staying in this city, means to give yourself a magnificent rest in a rich environment.

Reason 4. To visit the Lido beach

Venice is not only cultural and entertainment programs and excursions, but also a beach holiday. Lido is a resort with sandy beaches that attract both the local population and many visitors. Recall that Lido is also an island where a film festival is held every year in September.

Reason 5. To get to know the churches of Venice

Only in the center of the city will it be possible to get around more than ten ancient churches built in ancient times and decorated with gold, jewelry, and the greatest icons. We advise you to definitely look into the Frari Church, the Dome without a church, the Church of St. Moses and the Church with the relics of St. Lucia.