Venice Things To Do

Although Venice is busy and crowded with tourists year-round, and the city’s high season stretches far beyond the typical borders of summer, the summer months are still when most people visit Venice. It tends to be the time when most people can travel – especially because the kids are out of school – and, of course, the weather is reliably good. But going to Venice in the summer means dealing with some of the difficulties of high season travel.

Venice is such a famous city, you probably know everything there is to know about it – right? Wrong. It’s a city of seemingly endless mysteries, many of which are just waiting to be discovered by new visitors. Here are some of the things you probably didn’t know about Venice.

Most tourist destinations have what are thought of as high and low tourist seasons, but Venice seems to be popular pretty much year-round. Still, there are a few benefits to visiting in the slower seasons – which, in Venice, includes part of the spring. The calendar generally says spring runs from March-May, but those few months vary widely in Venice. If you’re headed to Venice in Spring, here’s what you can expect.

Venice may be a very small city by relative standards, but it’s gone from being one of the most powerful and wealthy port cities in the world to one of Europe’s most popular cruise destinations. Mediterranean cruises often stop in Venice, or have the canal city as their departure or arrival point. The typical one day you’ll get to spend in this enchanted city as a cruise ship passenger will likely not be enough, but you can consider it a sample platter and then plan a return trip when you can visit for a bit longer. Here are some things to know about visiting Venice by cruise ship.

Venice is made up of hundreds of islands, but most visitors never set foot on the island called Giudecca. Giudecca sits across a large canal – much larger than the Grand Canal – south of the cluster of islands making up central Venice, and so it’s only accessible by boat. There are a few good reasons to catch a vaporetto across the Giudecca Canal to explore Giudecca, however.

Venice is simultaneously popular and polarizing. You’ll hear most first-time visitors to Italy say they have to include Venice on their itinerary, but you’ll hardly hear anyone who’s been there have anything but strong opinions about it. Venice, if you believe the hype, is the kind of city you either love or hate – no gray area in between. To a certain extent, how you feel about Venice is based on your expectations about it before you arrive and how you handle the city once you’re there. Yes, Venice sometimes requires a little more work than some other cities to fully appreciate, but it’s absolutely worth it. If you want to be in the “I love Venice” camp after your trip, then here are the first-time visitor tips for Venice that you need to know.

It’s no myth – Venice is notoriously expensive to visit. You’ll get more out of your stay if you can spend at least one night on the islands, but that may mean watching your euros more closely in other areas. The good news is that seeking out the cheap eats in Venice can often help you eat better – and more like the locals do. Here are some budget dining tips for Venice.

One of the unique things about Venice – its lack of cars – makes the question of how to get around a slightly more interesting one than it might be in another city. This labyrinthine city built on the water is best explored on foot, but Venetians make great use of their many canals, too. As you might expect, there are a few different kinds of boats in Venice, so here’s a primer on what you need to know about getting around in Venice.

It may not be surprising to learn that Venice floods on a regular basis. The city is built on the water and it’s sinking – if it didn’t flood regularly, that would be the shocking piece of news. Venetians are prepared for the periodic influx of water, and if you’re visiting Venice when it’s flooding then you’ll need to be prepared to deal with it, too. After all, life in Venice doesn’t stop because things get a little wet.

Most of our romantic ideas of a trip to Venice involve being outdoors, wandering through the narrow streets, taking a gondola ride, or sipping wine at a canal-side cafe. When you imagine these things, you probably don’t imagine it being cold and damp, right? Visiting Venice in the winter may not offer ideal weather conditions, but it more than makes up for it in terms of smaller crowds and lower prices.