Venice Sightseeing and Culture
From:
Venice Links
ABOVE: Directional signs help
tourists find their bearings while exploring Venice.
General articles
Venice's Top 11 Free Sights
veniceforvisitors.com
Many of the city's greatest experiences won't cost you a euro--and by
trimming your sightseeing costs, you'll have more cash left over for room,
board, and shopping.
Sightseeing and Places of
Interest veniceforvisitors.com
From Venice for Visitors, an index of illustrated articles on everything from the Piazza
San Marco to an island cemetery where graves are recycled after 12 years.
Venice Gondola Serenade Tour
veniceforvisitors.com
It sounded like kitsch, but floating down a canal with a baritone and a
guitarist in the next gondola turned out to be fun--and maybe even a little
magical.
Amerigo Vespucci Sailing
Ship veniceforvisitors.com
From time to time, the Italian Naval Academy's three-masted training ship
comes to Venice. If you see it during your visit, ask about public tours.
City tours and land excursions
Viator Tours & Excursions: Venice
our partner
Prebook city tours, gondola rides, and regional day trips online before you leave home.
(Prices are guaranteed in euros, British pounds, and U.S. or Australian dollars.)
Ca' Foscari Tours
veniceforvisitors.com
One of Venice's top sightseeing bargains is a 60-minute tour of a former doge's
palace (now a university administration building) on the Grand Canal.
Gran Teatro La Fenice
veniceforvisitors.com
"The
Phoenix," Venice's jewel box of an opera house, has risen from the ashes
twice after catastrophic fires: once in 1837, and again in 2003. You can
tour the theatre with an audioguide.
Chioggia
veniceforvisitors.com
The largest fishing and yachting town on the Venetian Lagoon is an easy day or
overnight trip from Venice by car or--better yet--by boat. (Also see
Venice to Chioggia
by Bus and Ferry.)
Vicenza
veniceforvisitors.com
The magnificently preserved home town of Andrea Palladio, one of Italy's
greatest architects, is less than an hour from Venice by train.
Bridges
Accademia Bridge
veniceforvisitors.com
Venice's third bridge across the Grand Canal wasn't built until 1854. The
current wooden bridge (a replica of a temporary bridge from 1932) offers
great views of the canal and passing boat traffic.
Bridge of Sighs
veniceforvisitors.com
Lord Byron romanticized this elevated corridor for criminals, and you can cross
it as a paying customer rather than as a prisoner.
Ponte della Constituzione
veniceforvisitors.com
The newest bridge across the Grand Canal links
the Piazzale Roma and the Santa Lucia railroad station.
Rialto Bridge
veniceforvisitors.com
It isn't just a Brooklyn Bridge with boutiques. After 500 years, the Ponte di
Rialto is still Venice's main traffic route across the Grand Canal.
Cemetery
To Die in Venice
veniceforvisitors.com
When you gotta go, you gotta go--and dead Venetians have been going to the island
cemetery of San Michele for 200 years.
Churches
Basilica di San Marco
veniceforvisitors.com
St. Mark's Basilica is a treasurehouse of mosaics, plunder from the Crusades,
and over-the-top Byzantine architecture, but read
our tips for visitors before you wrestle with the crowds.
Santa Maria della Salute Church
veniceforvisitors.com
As you stare up at the soaring dome of this magnificent basilica, remember that
it owes its existence to plague-ridden fleas.
Madonna dell'Orto
veniceforvisitors.com
"Venice's finest Gothic church" is a great starting point for a walking
tour through one of the city's most pleasant but least touristed neighborhoods.
Other Information
A Lover of Venice
Read the article on the Venetian locations in Summertime (the David
Lean movie starring Katherine Hepburn), then browse the illustrated walking
tours. (The latter are linked from the bottom of the
Hidden Corners page.)
History and
Curiosity
Facts and trivia about history, landmarks, and traditions. From Venetia.
Jewish Community of Venice
Europe's first ghetto was in Venice, where Jewish settlers played an important role in the
Venetian Republic's economic life and daily affairs.
The Ancient
Jewish Cemetery at The Lido of Venice
Claire Turyn's photo essay is accompanied by Stefano Levi della Torre's text.
Palladio's Italian Villas
Venice's great Renaissance architect built grand country houses throughout the Veneto
region. Many are open to the public today.
Venice
Philip Greenspun serves up photos and descriptions of Venice, with personal tips
on hotels, restaurants, and shopping.
Venice: From
Museum to City
Brief descriptions of art museums and churches, including opening times and convenient
vaporetto
stops.
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