Venice. The floating city. A place everyone should visit at least once in their lives in my opinion. Before hiking the Alta Via One trail, my friend Elizabeth and I decided to spend a few days exploring Venice. Keep reading if you’d like to see what we did with our 3 days!
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Getting Around Venice
Water taxi is the go-to option for getting to different parts of Venice if you don’t want to walk. The buses come from other parts of the surrounding area, but there aren’t really roads for vehicles inside Venice – even the ambulance is a boat! You can get bus tickets from the airport, or you can take a water taxi from the airport as well. Both have to be bought in advance at a kiosk or online. The costs are fairly similar – around €10.
One thing to note: when you are approaching your stop on the water taxi, make sure you are standing at the gate to get off. They stop and go really quickly, and even where we were standing close by, other people blocked the way and we missed our stop on our first day. Lesson learned!
Where to Stay in Venice
We arrived into Venice quite late and didn’t want to have to navigate the city at night. Because of this, we decided to book a less expensive place for one night just to get some rest and make it easier getting there from the airport. We stayed at Villa Erica, which was a lovely, small B’n’B. When we checked out in the morning, we were able to grab a bus to the main bus station in Venice, and then took a water taxi to our Air B’nB, where we stayed the other 3 nights.
Something to know: Venice now has a tourist tax that they are charging everyone coming to Venice in the summer months. This was a trial, but for more information and to see if it is something you need to pay, you can see their website here. It wasn’t a lot, and we just paid it in cash to our Air B’n’B hosts. But we also had to fill out the form online with details of where we were staying and for how long. This created a QR code that we would need to show anyone who asked for it. Every person in your party has to do their own form.
What to do in Venice
Explore the City by Foot
Venice is extremely walkable, but the city has tons of bridges and stairs. It was literally built and is standing on stilts in the water, so there’s no surprise that Venice is slowly sinking. Despite all of that, it makes it a very unique city with virtually no vehicular traffic. Walking is the best (and cheapest) way to get around. And it will keep you entertained while you discover different parts of the city.
Of course, taking a guided walking tour can give you more information about the city – I found one on Get Your Guide that looks great, although I haven’t personally done it. We managed to wander around and find the things we wanted to see and do. I had a few spots pinned, like Libreria Acqua Alta – a really unique bookstore right on one of the canals. If you’re a book lover, I highly recommend wandering through this little slice of heaven!
We had to go to San Marco Square, one of the most famous in Italy. We enjoyed cocktails, people watching, and the live music in one of the many restaurant cafes around the square. Try the Venetian Spritz if you’re feeling like trying something different and less bitter than the Aperol version.
We also stumbled upon The European Cultural Centre and Palazzo Mora Art Gallery. There are constantly rotating exhibits on, and it is free to enter. It was a great way to get out of the sun, but also enjoy some art around some current world events. There is also a lot of shopping in Venice if that is something you are into. Even the souvenir shops have some unique things to bring home to family and friends – mini limoncellos, interesting shaped pasta, and olives/olive oils.
Take a Boat to Burano
There are quite a few small islands around Venice, one being Burano – the island of colorful houses. We decided to go and check it out one day, and we were so happy we did! It cost €9.50 each way by water taxi and takes 45 minutes to get there. You really only need half a day to spend over there, but it is such an aesthetic vibe and great for photos – plus we found some cute shops and gelato.
As a side note, the other great option for a small island visit is Murano where the famous Murano glass comes from. We didn’t have time to do both on this trip, but would be somewhere I check out next time I’m in Venice! Same situation where you would just get a water taxi to and from the island and explore by foot. I found a tour that takes you to both islands and you get to watch a glass blowing demonstration!
Take a Cooking Class
This was such a great way to spend a few hours. Honestly if you are anywhere in Italy, I think a cooking class should be on your to-do list! We did this one, where we got to make 2 different pastas – ravioli and tagliatelle – and learned the art of making tiramisu. After all was said and done, we got to sit around the table and enjoy our hard work along with some wine. Everything was so delicious, and tickets were about $75 each.
Take a Gondola Ride
This was something we didn’t do, but it is obviously a very popular tourist attraction in Venice. Although thought to be more romantic, we did see small groups on them, so if it’s something you really want to do, you should! There are gondoliers all over Venice, so you won’t have a hard time getting one. They tend to wear the black and white stripped shirts, so they’re hard to miss!
Where to Eat in Venice
SuSo Gelato
Okay, when I said where to eat you might have thought pasta or pizza first, but gelato is my love language, and we ended up at SuSo twice during our time in Venice. The first time I tried the berry and chocolate on a cone, the second time… I got the same! Don’t change what’s already perfect right? They have tons of flavors to choose from and 2 locations in Venice! And don’t be surprised if you have to wait in the queue for a few minutes. It’s a well-known spot.
Ristorante Alla Conchiglia
This restaurant was really nearby where we stayed, and also recommended to us by our Air BnB host. I was really on a melon kick, so I had to order the melon and prosciutto (always delicious!) and had cacio e pepe for my main meal. The restaurant sits right along the canal, as many do, so sitting outside was especially nice. We considered going back here, but figured we better try some other places, but I would definitely recommend this spot.
Osteria ae Spezie
This is another cute spot, though more of the street, so you can people watch. We had some leftover pasta from the night before, so we ate that before going out. This meant, I was a bit too full to have a main dish, and I ended up ordering melon and prosciutto again! No regrets on having that 2 nights in a row. The staff here were lovely, and we even got a complementary limoncello after our food. I would have liked to go back here to try more of their food.
Friedland Take Away Pasta
For pasta, first, do the cooking class I mentioned above. It doesn’t get fresher than when you’ve literally rolled the pasta out yourself and eat it less than an hour later! Second, I recommend this takeaway pasta place that has lots of options to choose from. I got the pesto one, and it was delicious, fresh, and so quick! It’s really just a small walk-up hole in the wall, so keep an eye out or you might miss it.
On to Alta Via 1
If you’re doing what we did and plan to hike Alta Via One while you’re there, you can read my packing list blog here. Or, if you want to know more about our experience on the hikes, booking the huts, and how the stays were, you can ready the more extensive blog here. Enjoy!
