3 Days in Venice
Summary
August 2019
Staying in Venice can be very expensive, a good alternative may consist in staying in Mestre. We stayed in a large and comfortable apartment, located near the bus stop which takes you to Venice in about twenty minutes. There is also a large and convenient shopping center nearby.
At Mestre’s railway station we buy tickets for a 3-day visit. The ticket is valid for 72 hours (€40 full price €28 reduced for young people) which allows unlimited use of the vaporettos and buses.
Day 1 | Guided tour of the Doge’s Palace, walk in Piazza San Marco and the Rialto Markets
For the morning we have a guided tour of the Secret Itineraries of the Doge’s Palace. These rooms aren’t normally accessible to the public, but this guided tour explains how the Venetian justice system used to work. Reports of the Venetian spies are kept inside the Cancelleria, tools used during questionings are displayed in the torture room, while the Piombi are the cells that provided for very harsh living conditions and maximum security. In fact, only very few managed to escape including Giacomo Casanova, imprisoned on charges of having seduced nuns. The visit lasts about two hours, it is really interesting and suitable for everyone but booking is required.
We exit in Piazza San Marco, unfortunately there is a very long queue to enter the Basilica, so we decide to continue our walk.
Along the narrow streets that branch off from Piazza San Marco, we take a break at the historic pastry shop Rosa Salva. We continue towards the Rialto Bridge, the impressive Istrian stone arch which for centuries was the only pedestrian crossing of the Grand Canal, built at its narrowest point, in the core of the city where all economic and commercial activities were concentrated. After some wooden versions, which burned down on several occasions, at the beginning of the 16th century it was decided to build it in stone. The side platforms still rest on thousands of logs from Cadore.
Day 2 | Excursion to Murano and visit of a glass blowing workshop, stop at the Bottega dei Mascareri where some of Venice’s most beautiful masks are hand made
Today we go to Murano. From Fondamente Nove we take the 4.1 vaporetto and in about ten minutes we are on the island. We follow the signs for VMA (Vetreria Murano Arte) where we can watch the glass masters at work in the furnace, and then we take a tour of the shops that sell magnificent objects in blown glass.
One of the best places for a snack in Murano, is the bar Ai Cacciatori, Fondamenta Vetrai 69, an old-fashioned spot where many glass masters go to have a sandwich or some cicheti, the typical Venetian snacks, at very affordable prices.
On the way back, we change vaporetto and get off at Rialto-Mercato. We are heading to Bottega dei Mascareri, the workshop where master craftsman Sergio Boldrin creates some of the most beautiful masks in Venice. Sergio created the masks for Stanley Kubrick‘s movie Eyes Wide Shut.
Day 3 | Guided tour of Ca’ Rezzonico palace, walk, visit to Squero San Trovaso and sunset on a Gondola
In the morning we go to Campo San Barnaba where we have an appointment for a guided tour of the Ca’ Rezzonico palace. In the MUVE EDUCATION section, families at the museum, we have booked the “How does Venice work” itinerary. Visiting Venice for the first time, one naturally wonders: how can houses and palaces stand on water? or, why do fireplaces in Venice have so bizarre shapes? With the guide, from Ca’ Rezzonico‘s water entrance on the Grand Canal, we set off in search of the answers we have set ourselves in this grandiose palace built between the 17th and 18th century. Our exploration even reaches the crawl space of the palace. Each stage is documented and then summarized in a laboratory where, at the end of the visit, the children compose a board and receive a souvenir. Defintely, one of the best family guided tours we’ve ever been on. The duration is 1 h 30 mn.
After a stop at Bone Robe, Campo Santa Margherita, Dorsoduro, where you’ll find some of the best sandwiches in Venice, we continue our journey towards Squero San Trovaso. In Dorsoduro, the most important squeri in Venice are still in operation, i.e. the small shipyards where the Gondolas are built and repaired. We can’t enter the construction site, it can only be done with a guided tour, however we were able to see a very characteristic glimpse of the city.
We cannot leave Venice without having been on the Gondola. In high season it can be very difficult to find one available at sunset and in the evening, so we bought the tickets online well in advance. We leave from the S. Maria del Giglio station and take a tour of the minor canals towards the Teatro la Fenice. The gondola ride is 30 minutes long (80 euros, prices have been regulated) and time on a gondola goes by very fast, but you’ll never forget it!
We have our last Venetian dinner in the Santa Croce area, at the Osteria della Zucca, a veggie restaurant with outdoor tables located in a delightful corner of the city. Booking is recommended.
