I will ask you a simple question. What do you expect the most when you visit a new place? Well, for this question everyone would have different answers. For me, a city that can make you completely lost in its beauty and charm is worth visiting. And Venice is one of those cities, which is eternally magical in its own way.
Venice, often lovingly known as the Floating City has many things to offer you from historical canals, winding streets to gondolas.
If you’re planning a holiday to one of the most romantic places in the world, here’s your perfect travel guide to Venice that will help you make your trip etched in your memories forever. Venice is not a very big city but has many things that you don’t want to miss out on a one-day trip, so plan to spend at least two days to cover most places.
Best Time to Visit Venice
So, let’s get started with the best time to be part of this beautiful city. Fall and spring season are the best time to pay a visit to Venice, thus you can book your tickets any time from April to October except July and August. During the seasons you’ll find mild temperatures and less crowd. Avoid visiting Venice from late June to August because these months remain quite hot and humid and the peak summers can be famously smelly.
On the other side, winters are really chilly and wet, and most importantly at risk of flooding, December and January can be considered to be there because Christmas and New Year, and also you’ll see minimum tourists out there. In addition to this, Venice remains busy at the time of Carnival (during some weeks of February or March). This was a brief about what different seasons have to proffer you with. Now, I am sure making the right decision would be a breeze.
Things to do in Venice
Well, there’s no doubt in it that Venice is present on almost every avid traveler’s wish list. And why not, this beautiful and fun place has to offer its visitors with so much. Though there are a number of things you can try out when in Venice but here are some shortlisted must-try things you should not miss experiencing.
Saint Mark’s Basilica
So, I’ll be starting with my favorite thing and I am sure when you visit this place, it will become yours too. This very popular building in Venice is a masterpiece of architecture in a true sense, be it it’s the church’s artwork, sculptures, ornate details, painted frescoes, Byzantine form of art on the ceiling inside. The place is absolutely able to leave you mesmerized.
The church is situated in the Piazza San Marco, often known as St Mark’s square in English where one can easily reach from the Grand Canal. Also, if you love and respect true art, you’re totally going to love this amazing example of Italian Byzantine architecture. You can skip the queues and get your tickets for a guided tour online.
Grand Canal
If you explore the city in-depth, you’ll realize that Venice has a number of different canals, which are connected to various islands and make up this charming city. Here, I am going to talk about the largest one i.e. Grand Canal. The most beautiful part about this canal is that it is somewhat like a river that flows from one side of the city to the other, and passes through the center that looks like a large S bend shape.
Another fantastic thing about this monumental canal is that there are more than 170 buildings are present on the banks of the canal and is considered an important waterway for long. To get the best experience, you can walk along the canal’s sections, appreciate all those wonderful buildings, and see the water traffic in Venice.
Rialto Bridge
Many people believe that Piazza San Marco may be more renowned, but Ponte di Rialto (Rialto Bridge) is the true heart of Venice. It is the oldest of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal connecting the San Polo and sestieri of San Marco. Since its first construction as a pontoon bridge in the 12th century, it has been revived several times and today it attracts a huge number of tourists every year in the city.
Doge’s Palace
Besides Basilica and Campanile, Doges Palace is yet another popular building in the city that is also located in the St. Mark’s Square. Talking about the appearance of the place, which is also the USP of this building, is its stunning front facade that is beautifully designed with white stone and a series of diamond patterns on the walls. But that doesn’t mean, it will disappoint you from the inside.
The building is equally fantastic from the inside and you’ll get to see a series of gorgeous decorated rooms that have authentic artwork, furniture, and details. If you’re the one who is a true admirer of history, spend good quality time here and learn more about the history of this Venice’s amazing gem.
Venetian Cuisine
When on a trip or on the way to explore a new city, apart from fulfilling your needs, you need to take care of your belly too. And what’s better than trying the tempting Venetian cuisine that is absolutely famous all around Italy due to the best quality seafood served in the area. The reason why you need to try its seafood, because every day fresh fishes are caught from the lagoon, and served to the customers in the maximum restaurants.
Talking about the most preferred fish dishes i.e. Baccala Mantecato is loved by a number of people out there. Some of the other tempting dishes that visitors love to try out in Venice are goose, meatballs, and lobsters.
Also, if you’re a wine-lover, head towards the Veneto region that is mainly famous for its white wine, in fact, the place is known to have some of the best vineyards in all of Italy.
Bridge of Sighs
Here is the crucial historic landmark and one of the most visited structures in the city, the Bridge of Sighs sits in the city center near the Piazza San Marco. The bridge passes over the Rio di Palazzo and it further connects the Prigioni Nuove to Doges Palace.
According to the legends, criminals were taken from the palace over the bridge, so that they could have the last view of the city, thinking about their expected imprisonment and punishment. So, make sure when you visit the St. Mark’s Square, you must this small and iconic bridge as well.
How to reach Venice?
Reaching Venice is no tough task and you can select any mode, according to your convenience to reach the city Here’s how you can reach Venice.
By Flight: You would be amazed to know that Venice’s main airport, Marco Polo Airport is considered Europe’s third-largest airport that receives heavy traffic and is amazingly connected to international and Italian cities. So, all in all, if you’re coming by flight, you won’t face any problems. Once you reach the airport, board on a bus that takes you from there to the city.
By Train: Venice’s main railway station is Santa Lucia and a number of trains are available to take you to the city. The station is also linked by train to Florence, Bologna, Milan, Rome, Padua, and Verona. Also, the station is even a famous point of departure into some of the nearby countries like Austria and Germany.
By Water: Venice provides its visitors with superb services of water buses and water taxis or gondolas that leave you to the St. Mark’s Square.
By Road: One can take this route as well but it can be quite boring and in fact, the parking charges in Venice are quite high. So, reaching the city by road is usually not recommended.
This travel guide to Venice can help you to plan your own itinerary and explore the city in your own time and pace. Don’t forget to tell us your experience in a line in our comment section below!
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About Author:
Sydney loves dancing, history, beer and exploring hidden places. Travelling is her life as it always gives her new experiences and makes her stronger. To date, she has traveled more than 25 countries and her favorite one is Paris. She along with three other partners is running the travel website Routeprints.
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So, what are you thinking? Quickly book your tickets to Venice and experience a gala time in one of the most romantic cities in the world!
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