Transportation from
the Venice Cruise Port

From San Basilio

ABOVE: Silversea's Silver Whisper at the San Basilio pier.

To Venice's historic center:

Seven Seas Mariner and Silver Wind at San Basilio Venice On foot. From the San Basilio terminal, cross the small footbridge. You'll then be standing at the foot of the Zattere, a broad promenade that runs all the way from San Basilio to the historic Dogana customs house, which offers views of the Grand Canal, St. Mark's Basin, and the Doge's Palace on the San Marco waterfront.

If you turn left and walk inland, you'll soon reach the Campo Santa Margherita (one of Venice's larger and livelier neighborhood squares). Follow the signs for Accademia and San Marco.

Inside a Venice water taxi Water taxi. A taxi acqueo is worth considering if you're staying at a hotel near the Piazza San Marco or another location far from the San Basilio pier. Expect to pay at least €40, and possibly more, for the trip. Read our Venice Water Taxis article and the warning about water taxis in our Venice Travel Blog before phoning for an aquatic cab.

Note: Viator, our booking partner, offers an arrival transfer service from either the San Basilio or the Marittima terminal. A hostess will meet you when you've collected your baggage, escort you to the water taxi, and--if you desire--travel with you to your hotel. (The service isn't cheap, but it ensures that a water taxi will waiting for you when you arrive.)

ACTV No 2 vaporetto Water bus. The No. 2 vaporetto arrives and departs from a platform just across a small footbridge from the San Basilio terminal. Buy a ticket and validate it with the electronic card reader before you board the boat. (You'll find maps and timetables at the vaporetto station or at www.actv.it.)

Note: If you're staying in Mestre, on the mainland, you can hire a land taxi for €40 or possibly a bit less, depending on traffic and your hotel's location. See our Venice Travel Blog post on Mestre for cruise passengers.

To the airport:

Cruise transfers. Chances are, your cruise line will sell transfers by chartered coach from the pier to Marco Polo Airport. We recommend splurging on the cruise line's transfer unless you have at least five hours between the ship's arrival and your flight.

Alilaguna airport boat Alilaguna boat. The "Blue Line" airport boat stops at the Molino Stucky Hilton on its way to Marco Polo Airport. (The hotel is directly across the Giudecca Canal from the San Basilio vaporetto stop.) Boats leave at 30-minute intervals, travel time is 1 hour 38 minutes, and tickets are fairly reasonable in price. Click here for an English version of the Alilaguna Web site.

Tip: If you don't mind walking about halfway up the Zattere from the San Basilio pier, you can catch a free shuttle boat to the Molino Stucky Hilton from the ACTV's Zattere boat landing (shown in the inset photo). This will save you a hefty vaporetto fare.

Land taxi. You can catch a taxi from behind the San Basilio terminal, although you'll be competing with other passengers for the few available cabs. Travel time to the airport is 20 to 30 minutes, and the fare shouldn't exceed €50. If no cabs are available, telephone the Artisan Cooperative Radiotaxi.

Private car. A number of limousine services will arrange to have a car and driver meet you at the pier and transport you to Venice Marco Polo Airport or Treviso Airport for a flat fee. We can't recommend any vendors ourselves, since we haven't used such services, but you can search Google for "venice airport transfers" or try a booking site like Shuttledirect or Airport Transfers Direct.

Venice water taxi Water taxi. A private water taxi is expensive (€110 or more), but it's a fun way to get from the cruise terminal to the airport. See our Venice Water Taxis article for more details, and read our warning about water taxis if you aren't physically fit or able to lift your luggage into a boat.

To the railroad station:

Venice Railroad Station Venice has two railroad stations: Venezia Santa Lucia, in the centro storico, and Venezia Mestre on the mainland or terrafirma. Many long-distance express trains between other Italian cities stop only at Mestre. (Trains to or from Santa Lucia also pause for a few minutes in Mestre.)

To reach the Venezia Santa Lucia station, hire a taxi or take the No. 2 vaporetto (see above).
To reach the Venezia Mestre station, hire a taxi or take the No. 2 vaporetto to Santa Lucia Station and buy an inexpensive commuter ticket to Mestre from one of the regional ticket machines. Remember to validate your ticket in a yellow stamping machine before boarding the train.