The city of Venice, totally built on the see, is the main city of the namesake Province and of the Veneto region. Venice is placed on the Venetian lagoon and it is 28 km away from Treviso and 30 km away from Padova.  In 1979 the whole city together with its lagoon has become part of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list. This city is traditionally name-called “la Serenissima”.

Venice proliferated on 118 little islands crossed by 150 canals often connected to each others by bridges as the well-known Ponte di Rialto and Ponte dei Sospiri (Bridge of Sighs). The most important canals of the city are the Canal Grande and the Canale della Giudecca.

 

Visiting Venice it is easy to understand that this is a real unique place in the world. First of all there are no cars and just this fact upsets the classical idea of a modern city.

The historical centre, the tourists most loved area, is divided in “Sestieri”: through this term local people identify the different districts of the city. Venice is characterized by six Sestieri that are the following ones: San Marco, Cannaregio, Dorsoduro, San Polo, and Santa Croce.

The sestiere of San Marco, the smaller and, at the same time, the most important one of the city, is famous for its namesake square and basilica that are the symbols of Venice worldwide.

Other than the famous basilica, in San Marco square you can also admire the magnificent Palazzo Ducale  (Ducal Palace) and the Torre dell’Orologio (Watch Tower).  This Renaissance construction is another important symbol of Venice. Its arch dominates the Merceria, an ancient commercial street of the city, and its big astronomic watch, placed at the middle of the tower, has been beating time since more than 500 years.  At the top of the tower, on its terrace, there are the “Mori” : two bronze statues representing two shepherds who beat with a club the hours on a big bell. Venetian people call them “Mori” because of their brown colour. 

Always in this sestiere there is the La Fenice Theatre and the Church of San Moisè with its baroque façade and Palazzo Grassi.

The sestiere of Cannaregio is the first one of the six sestieri that you will cross arriving by train to the Santa Lucia railway station. In this sestiere you can admire the churches of San Geremia, of Santa Maria dei Miracoli, of Santi Apotoli and of Gesuiti.

The sestiere of Castello is the widest and the most populated one in Venice. This sestiere shares its borders with the sestiere of  san Marco and with which one of Cannaregio and it is famous for its basilica of San Pietro di Castello and for the dockyard of Venice, centre of the Venetian naval industry since the XIIth century. Here you can also find many churches and the Historical Naval Museum.

The sestiere of Dorsoduro includes the Canal of the Giudecca and the namesake island that is the biggest one in the lagoon. Here every year there is the spectacular Festa del Redentore (Feast of the Saviour). Here you can visit the Gallerie dell’Accademia: the most ancient and complete collection of Venetian paintings.

Very important from an historical and cultural point of view is also Cà Rezzonico: imposing baroque construction seat of the Museum of the Venetian eighteenth century.  In this sestiere is also possible to visit the Peggy Guggenheim Museum: this collection is made up by paintings by Picasso, Duchamp, de Chirico, Gaudì, Magritte and  Dalì. Here there are also many important churches that deserve your attention like the following ones: the church of the Angelo Raffaele, of San Trovaso, of San Sebastiano and of San Nicolò.

The sestiere of San Polo, at the Venice centre, is characterized by the zone of Rialto that is very famous for its bridge and for its typical market of vegetable and fruits. Here you can also admire beautiful churches like the Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari and the Church of San Rocco.

The bridge of Rialto (Ponte di Rialto): Among all the 400 bridges that connect Venice, it is surely the most known and loved one and so it has become one of the symbols of the city. It is a 48 metres long bridge made up by an unique arch that crosses the Canal Grande. On the sides of this bridge there are some shops and all the structure is covered by a six arches porch for every ramp and by a big arch at the centre.

The sestiere of Santa Croce connects Venice to the dry land. Piazzale Roma and Tronchetto allow tourists and inhabitants to move from the dry land to Venice: Piazzale Roma is a interchange point between road and lagoon public transport and Tronchetto is an artificial island used as a car park. From this Piazzale, through the Bridge of the Constitution (Ponte della Costituzione), you can even reach by foot the Santa Croce railway station. In this sestiere there is the very important Ca’ Pesaro that is a Museum of Contemporary Art and the Museum of Natural History.

The attractions in Venice aren’t just here, in those that are its most famous urban streets, but this city, with its little paths and its lagoon, offers to its tourists many other striking and historical images connected to the Serenissima’s past. Some of the islands where you can spend unforgettable hours surrounded by nature, history and tradition are Murano (this island is famous for its unique glass workmanship), Burano (full of colours and fascinating landscapes), Pellestrina (that was used in the past to defend the city), and Sant’Erasmo (dominated by the ancient and imposing Torre Massimiliana).

Among the beautiful things in Venice, you should not forget the famous Lido di Venezia : a gild sand area divided between the Venetian lagoon and the Adriatic see. Here there is the Palace of Cinema (Palazzo del Cinema) and the Casino of Venice.

Venice is a city full of art that, other than be visible in all the urban streets, monuments and palaces, is also fostered and shown in the several exhibitions and museums displaced in the city.

However, the charm that attracts every year in Venice many international tourists, is not only connected to its past. Many popular events like the Carnival, the Festival of Cinema, the Biennial, the Festa del Redentore (Feast of the Saviour), the Festa della Sensa (Feast of the Sensa) and the Historical Regatta enliven the city every period of the year. So Venice is a versatile place, capable of attracting tourists thanks to its romantic and naturalistic soul but also thanks to its history and its culture.

How to move in Venice

The best and most striking way of visiting Venice is surely walking through its little streets by foot. This is the best solution for tourists who want to discover the most hidden parts of the city even because Venice is not big as a city and all its monuments are easily reachable by foot.

However to make your visit more attractive, you can cross all the several canals, using the following typical public transport:

GONDOLAS:

The gondola surely is the most famous and romantic means of transporting to visit the city and it is one of the most known symbols of Venice worldwide. Visiting Venice in gondola is the romantic dream of thousands of people all around the world: this original watercraft has an ancient history that is mixed with which one of the city itself. It was created to be a luxury vessel used by high rank people to move through the urban canals and to spend some private moments in particular situations. The gondola surely isn’t the most comfortable and economic solution to move through the lagoon, but considering the great quantity of tourists who use it everyday, this is an experience that many people want to live. The cost for a tour in gondola can be haggled with the gondolier even if it is difficult to pay less than 80 euro for 30 minutes.

WATER TAXIS

The water taxis service is applied through useful and rapid motorboats that are recognizable by the permission number written on a yellow band on their window. 

VAPORETTI

These ferry boats are public transport that cross the urban centre through the Canal Grande connecting it to the Lido and to Murano. Tickets are sold by tobacconists, by news kiosks, by bars, by the VE.LA. points and by the landing-stages. To help handicapped tourists in visiting the city there are some special itineraries that you can also find thanks to the InformaHandicap  that is a service of the Venice municipality.

How to arrive in Venice

By Cars and Bus:

You can arrive in Venice through the following motorways: A4 motorway leaving from Turin, Milan and Trieste; A13 from Bologna; A27 from Belluno.

Or through one of the following roads: SS 309 Romea from the Adriatic coast, SS14 from Trieste, SS 13 from Treviso, SS 11 from Padova. 

The city is only accessible from the bridge called Ponte della Libertà (it is 4 km long) that is made by up by two lanes for each direction of travel. Cars can be parked in Piazzale Roma and in the Tronchetto, even if, especially in high season, it is better to stop on the dry land or, at least, to book a park through the portal urbis limen.

Tourist buses can go through Venice only with an expensive pass issued by VESTA spa. For any information it is possible to visit the ZTL BUS website. The three accessible buses parks are the following ones: the Tronchetto (in the urban centre of Venice) and at Fusina and at San Giuliano (on the dry land). 

By Train

Venice has two railway stations: the first one is placed in Mestre on the dry land, the second one is placed in the city on the Fondamenta Santa Lucia crossing the bridge called Ponte della Libertà.  From the railway in Mestre you can reach Venice by taxi or by bus.

By Plain

The Marco Polo airport is 10 km away from Venice and it is connected to the city by several public transport. In Treviso there is also the Sant’Angelo airport that is 30 km away from Venice.

…Enjoy your stay in Venice!

Related Articles:

Festa del Redentore

The Palazzo Ducale in Venice

The Ponte Vecchio in Florence

Biennial of Venice

Historical Regatta of Venice 6 september 2009

Map: