Venice—a city so steeped in romance and beauty, scandals and tradition, eastern and western influence. Opulent palaces sitting on centuries of elegant decay, gondoliers serenading through picturesque canals, golden hour rays shining down on breathtaking bell towers. It’s easy to see why Venezia is one of the world’s most iconic travel destinations.
Though many people consider Venice a “tourist trap,” the city lives up to its reputation as both a gorgeous and unforgettable place to visit. Where else can you ride in gondolas as the preferred form of transportation? I don’t care what anyone says—Venice is worth the hype.
There’s no shortage of scenic sights and hidden gems to explore in Venice. As always, I highlighted my hidden travel tips throughout this post under “Venice Travel Guide Tips.” I hope this Venice travel guide helps you enjoy the magic of everything that this ethereal city has to offer.
Venice Travel Guide Tips
Weather
No matter what time of year you choose to visit, Venice is meant to be enjoyed in all types of weather. Spring brings rain and cool temperatures but is worth the unforgettable experience of attending Venice’s own Carnivale. Summer in Venice is significantly milder than in other regions because of the sea breeze from the Adriatic and its northern location. There was even a time or two where I felt chilly in August since it gets down to the 60s at night.
Fall has distinct advantages: cool weather and lower crowds. But a huge disadvantage at visiting during this time of year that not a lot of travelers realize is this is when “acqua alta” (or “high water”) occurs: Venice floods! Although winter can be frigid in Venice, it’s an excellent time to visit if you want to have the city all to yourself with much lower accommodation prices. (Look up photos of Venice in the snow, you won’t regret it!)
What to Wear
Venice deserves to have it’s own mini-style guide because the rules of “what to wear” seem to be a lot different here than in the rest of Italy. Since Venice is a city of tourists, you don’t have to be as conscious of conforming to Italian style as you might in say Rome or Milan. Don’t shy away from brighter colors and on-trend styles—they’ll definitely pop in your gondola photos!
Venice Style Essentials
- Feminine
- Supportive sandals
- Envelope skorts
- Sweater dresses
- Cozy pullovers
- Trench coats
- Scarves
- OTK boots/ankle booties
Browse my Venice looks for every season below:
Spring Style
Summer Style
Fall Style
Winter Style
Practical Venice Travel Guide Advice
- If arriving by plane, you’ll need a bus ticket to Piazzale Roma and a
vaporetto ticket to your hotel’s neighborhood. - If you’re arriving by train, you’ll only need a
vaporetto ticket. Venice Travel Guide Tip: Make sure you book a ticket into Venezia Santa Lucia. It’s the only train station located directly on the island. Venezia Mestre Station is actually on the mainland in Mestre. So you would have to spend a lot more travel time taking a separatevaporetto to Venice itself. - Venice is one giant maze—it’s inevitable that you’re going to get lost. Venice Travel Guide Tip: Download Maps
.Me and use a paper map from your hotel to navigate through canals and alleyways. I also don’t recommend going out at night unless you stay close to your hotel. In other words, Venice is extremely difficult to navigate in the dark. Take it from someone who got lost for 3 hours trying to find her hotel at night! - Visit high-traffic areas like the Rialto Bridge and St. Mark’s Square early in the morning or late at night for a more serene experience.
- Book your gondola ride in advance to save money.
- Pack light—it’s a real pain to carry luggage up and down all the staircase bridges over the canals.
- Don’t eat in the touristy areas—the food is notoriously bad and overpriced. Venice Travel Guide Tip: Eat where the locals go instead, like in the San Polo neighborhood.
- Be mindful of pickpockets outside the train station, on
vaporettos and also in all of the touristy areas.
Where to Stay
Hotel San Cassiano
The unique thing about staying in Venice is that pretty much every hotel was a palace in a past life. What
Things to do in Venice
Grand Canal
As your train arrives into Santa Lucia, the Grand Canal is likely the first glimpse you’ll get of Venice. It’s absolutely breathtaking, and there’s a good reason why so many people dream of riding a gondola down Venice’s most famous canal. Seeing the Grand Canal is a must for any Venice vacation. Like most places in Venice, the canal is best viewed by boat. Although it can get a bit crowded at times, there’s nothing like seeing this part of Venice from a gondola. Read on for more gondola tips later in this post!
Rialto Bridge
The Rialto is one of those places you’ve seen pictures of your entire life, and it’s also probably the largest tourist magnet in Venice. This area gets *extremely* crowded—during the middle of the day, you can hardly even walk on the bridge because of all the crowds of selfie-stick wielding tourists.
However, early in the morning, the Rialto is stunningly beautiful. It’s so peaceful to see the sunrise over the canal and to have the cool sea breeze blow through your hair with that faint smell of salt from the Adriatic Sea. Some places in life are worth waking up at an ungodly hour for—the Rialto is definitely one of them. The photos below were taken around
St. Mark’s Square
Piazza San Marco is one of the most famous squares in the world, and its reputation is well-deserved. This is my favorite place in Venice! Venice Travel Guide Tip: This square is best experienced at midnight or sunrise to see its tranquil beauty without the crowds (and pigeons.) I kid you not, the first time I wandered through the square at night, every corner was illuminated so beautifully that it made me cry. Hard to believe that a place this beautiful is actually real!
Piazza San Marco Highlights
St. Mark’s Square is home to the Campanile, Doge’s Palace, the Bridge of Sighs and St. Mark’s Basilica, all major sights worth visiting in Venice. Venice Travel Guide Tip: You can actually visit the top of the Campanile (the tower in the square) for one of the best views in all of Venice! Doge’s Palace was a Venetian palace and the former seat of the Venetian government. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to see the inside of the building during my visit, but this gilded palace is one of the highlights of a trip to Venice. You can book tickets to see Doge’s Palace at the official ticket office website here.
Venice Travel Guide Tip: One of the coolest perks of admission to the museum is that you get to walk through the Bridge of Sighs. Legend has it that this is where Venetian prisoners would sigh as they took their last look at Venice before being executed. The view is gorgeous, and one that people don’t normally get to see, so I highly recommend visiting even for the bridge alone.
St. Mark’s Basilica is also definitely worth seeing. The inside of the church is stunning, and its Venetian Gothic architecture is very unique compared to other Italian churches. Many buildings in Venice were constructed in a similar style to Islamic buildings since the Venetians were influenced by their trade networks with the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. You won’t see this “Europe meets the Middle East” style anywhere else!
A Little Slice of Epcot in Italy
For all you Disney fans out there, St. Mark’s is the square that Imagineers modeled the Italy Pavilion off of for Epcot at Walt Disney World. As I turned the corner to see the Adriatic Sea and Doge’s Palace with the Campanile looming overhead, I got this subtly gnawing sense of deja vu that I had been here before. It gave me chills that the real version of St. Mark’s
Gondola Ride
I’ve seen a lot of travel writers say that a gondola ride in Venice is “overrated” and to spend your money elsewhere. I think these people are missing what Venice is truly all about. A gondola ride through the canals in Venice is an experience that plenty of people dream about their whole lives. You can’t recreate that magic of gliding through sunlit canals and gazing up at Venetian palaces anywhere else in the world. Venice is truly meant to be seen by gondola. Is it expensive? Yes. Is it also worth every penny to invest in a bucket list experience that you’ll have for the rest of your life? Also yes.
Most gondola rides cost 80 euros/gondola during the day and 100 euros/gondola at sunset. Venice Travel Guide Tip: I was actually able to find a tour company offering shared gondola rides to save some money (which came out to only about $35/person!). Even though I didn’t get a gondola ride all to myself, I really didn’t mind sharing with five other people since I was traveling solo.
I definitely recommend splurging on a private gondola for a couple’s vacation, but otherwise, I think this shared option works great for solo travelers! A lot of people do book these shared rides, so you’ll likely have to wait a good while before your gondola ride. So just something to keep in mind if time is of the essence to you! You can find the company I booked
Scala Contarini del Bovolo
Ever wondered what it would be like to visit Rapunzel’s tower in real life?
Campo Santa Maria Formosa
When I first stumbled across this square, I thought to myself “This place is so beautiful—like something straight out of a movie.” Sure enough, as I was snapping these photos, I heard a passing gondolier say “And this is where they filmed the latest Spiderman movie!” So no surprises here. Campo Santa Maria is the perfect spot to enjoy a gelato and just watch the gondolas float by.
Where to Eat
Antica Birraria la Corte ($$)
This gem of a pizzeria is located on the charming Campo San Polo and gives you a true slice of “locals only” Venice. It has all the charms of an authentic Italian pizzeria—a storybook square setting, delicious buffalo mozzarella and waiters who hardly speak a word of English. Antica Birraria la Corte gives you a chance to mingle with locals and see what Venice is really like from the perspective of the people who actually call it home. There’s a surreal and magnetic feeling to eating pizza while an Italian James Bond film plays in the square. Come for the pizza, stay for the atmosphere.
Gritti Terrace ($$$)
When I was researching Venice, I fell in love with a photo of a restaurant on the Grand Canal with a breathtaking view of Basilica di Santa Maria
Gritti Terrace is only open for lunch and is located at the famous Gritti Palace hotel nor far from St. Mark’s Square. The food is definitely a splurge, but Venice is notable for having expensive meals compared to the rest of Italy. Above all, the views definitely make up for the cost! You can see the Gritti Terrace menu here.
Venchi ($)
Make sure you stop into Venchi for a little dessert! Their gelato is to die for. Venice Travel Guide Tip:
Venice is truly a place you have to see to believe. So, I hope you found some helpful tips in my guide to make your trip a little more magical! Do you have any other questions about Venice that you’d like answered? Comment down below!
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For more Italy travel tips, visit my other European summer blog posts:
