Venice Tips

"If you manage to pack lightly, you manage to live lightly." Diane Von Furstenberg

Pack your bags and then go back and take out half of it! It's so much easier and much more european to pack light. Americans are easy to spot hauling their giant suitcases over the bridges of Venice. Casual elegance is the goal. Comfort is number one - lots of walking means you must have comfortable shoes. It's nice to have at least a couple of daytime shoes so that tired feet can switch off day to day. Hopefully you can get by with one pair dressy shoes for evening, or boots in the winter. Venice is hot in the summer and cold in the winter, luckily these days it is easy to check a weather report before you go and pack accordingly. It has rained on us many times in Venice, but it only adds to the charm. On our last visit we sat in an empty traghetto on the Grand Canal, outside of our apartment and enjoyed a lightning storm directly over Venice. It was amazing. High water (aqua alta) occurs about sixty days a year between October and early January. At this time of year it might be a good idea to pack your rain boots, or just by some when you get there. They do place wooden walkways in all the main tourist areas that keep you above the water, but check this website if your planning a trip around that time; http://www.veniceword.com/ Anyway, Venice is a water city so don't let a little more water stop you!

We recommend flying directly in Marco Polo airport. Then take a water taxi into Venice. A taxi can be arranged through your hotel, or just pick one up at the airport. Average rates are around 100 euro. Entering this mystical city by water is the only way to go, especially if it is your first time, but every time really. It allows you to acclimate to the water mode of transportation and just gives you great romantic views as you enter Venice.

Venice is an amazingly safe and friendly city. Surprisingly, most tourists come in via train just for the day, so in the evening Venice quiets down a lot. After dinner is a great time to take stroll. On our very first night ever in Venice we were jet lagged and took a late nap, waking up at 1 am. We got dressed and went to see St. Marks Square!! It was beautiful, romantic and empty . . . except for a group of young locals playing guitar and singing american songs!! We stopped to sing for awhile and enjoyed a unique and fabulous first night.

The Vaporretto, or water buses, are a great way to get around. You can by different usage passes and quickly get familiar with the routes. Check out http://www.hellovenezia.com/ for more info.
Some of the lines run very late at night, so this is a nice way to enjoy the lights of the Grand Canal after all the crowds have left. Take your ipod and get a good seat up front and just cruise the canale. Cheap entertainment at its finest.

We always enjoy limiting the number of destinations we visit on each trip in favor of staying one place longer and really soaking up the feel of the city to get a more genuine experience. Depending on how much time you have this is a great way to travel. It is amazing how quickly you begin to recognize people and feel like a local when you do local things like go to the same cafe every morning. We generally stay in apartments when we travel. It just adds to the authenticity and gives us a lot more freedom and options throughout our stays. For example, we are able to visit the markets and cook or just keep snacks in the kitchen. Cheese shops are great, of course the fish market at Rialto, but our favorite is the produce boat on a small canal in Dorsodoro. Try the rocket & tomatos, then pick up some buffalo mozzarella to go with it; perfect. There is a wide range of apartments available for most tastes and budgets. A few of our favorite websites for apartment rental are; http://www.veiwsonvenice.com/, http://www.truly-venice.com, http://www.venice-prestige.com/ and http://www.venice-rentals.com/ are our favorites, but there are many, many options out there. You'll be amazed at how many vacational rentals there are. We love a view of the water and of course location is important. But a quiet part of town is often better than being right on a main attraction. Venice is pretty small, just look for easy access to vaporetto stops or bridges. We love staying in Dorsordoro, the Saint Stefano area or the Zattere with its long waterfront promenade and expansive views of Giudecca. These places are all quiet with a very authentic feel. It really is hard to go wrong. Just pay close attention to the size of the apartment, those Italians really have a nack for taking pictures that make rooms look bigger than they are. Also, don't be surprised when you find the beds not especially soft, and often justs 2 twins pushed together to make a king.