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Venice
Lord Byron called Venice (Venezia) "a fairy city of the heart." La Serenissima, "The Most Serene," is an improbable cityscape of stone palaces that seem to float on water, a place…
Venice Grand Canal Walking Tour
The domes of Santa Maria della Salute watch over the southern entrance to the Grand Canal.
Venice's Gondoliers Deliver Food to Isolated Locals Now
It can be difficult, as a visitor, to step off the tourist treadmill in Venice. Until recently, it was a city besieged by tourism, with 60,000 outsiders a day filling streets and…
Museo Ebraico di Venezia (Jewish Museum of Venice)
In the heart of the Ghetto Nuovo, the Jewish Museum contains a small but precious collection of artifacts related to the long history of the Jews in Venice, beginning with an…
Where to Escape Crowds in Overtouristed Venice, Italy
Venice may be nicknamed La Serenissima , but it’s anything except serene in summer, when the historic center’s population can triple in size. Tourist numbers to the lagoon city have…
How to Prepare to Visit Venice, Italy, During High Water Season
Here’s what to do if you want to keep the acqua alta—Venice’s high tide of November and December—from washing out your vacation.
Tourist Overload: Venice Limits Gondola Capacity Due to Heavier Visitors
The number of passengers allowed at one time aboard the iconic gondolas of Venice is being reduced from six people to five. It sounds like a social distancing thing, but, in fact,…
Rare Good News: Venice's Long-Awaited Flood Protection System Works!
Venice's answer to Watergate had involved actual water and actual gates. The city's MOSE Project (the name is an acronym of the Italian initials for "Experimental Electromechanical…
Italy's Venice Plans to Charge An Entry Fee and Cap Visitors
Of the world's premier travel destinations, Venice may be the one most transformed by this pandemic. The Italian cabinet banned cruise ships in July, sparking headlines worldwide.…
Venice Bans Cruise Ships from City Center, but the Detour Plan Has Flaws
Italy took a step this week that environmental activists, cultural preservationists, and many fed-up Venice residents have been pushing for years. The government blocked cruise ships…
Slip Slidin’ Away: Venice’s Too-Slick Glass Bridge Getting a Stone Makeover
We're not structural engineers or anything, but putting an arched footbridge made out of a notoriously slippery substance in the middle of a famously soggy city seems like a surefire…
Venice Really Is Finally Adding an Entry Fee—Here’s How It Will Work
UPDATE, May 31: Officials in Venice have reportedly decided to postpone the implementation of the city's entry fee for day-trippers described below. Though the program's trial run was…
Venice, Italy, Says the Entry Fee for Day Trippers Will Be Doubled
Update: November 8, 2024: There has been an update to this story. Click here to read it. The trial period for the controversial new entry fee for Venice Italy, is complete for 2024.For…
Atelier Segalin di Daniela Ghezzo
Founded in 1932 by master cobbler Antonio Segalin and his son Rolando, this old leather shoe store is now run by Daniela Ghezzo (the star apprentice of Rolando), maker of exuberant…
La Bottega dei Mascareri
High-quality, creative masks—some based on Tiepolo paintings—crafted by the brothers Sergio and Massimo Boldrin since 1984. Basic masks start at around 15€–20€, but you’ll pay over 75€…
Ca’ del Sol Maschere
Another treasure trove of Venetian masks, run by a group of artists since 1986 (prices range from 35€–350€). They also make elaborate 18th-century costumes and even run mask-making…
Il Canovaccio
Remember the creepy orgy scenes in Stanley Kubrick’s “Eyes Wide Shut”? The ornate masks used in the movie were made in this vaunted store, a relative newcomer founded in 1995. All…
Il Grifone
Toni Peressin’s handmade leather briefcases, satchels, bound notebooks, belts and soft-leather purses have garnered quite a following, and justly so—his craftsmanship is truly…
Marco Polo International
This vast showroom, just west of the Piazza San Marco, displays quality glass direct from Murano (although it’s more expensive than going to the island yourself), including plenty of…
Venini
Convenient, classy but incredibly expensive, Venini has been selling quality glass art since 1921, supplying the likes of Versace and many other designer brands. Their workshop on…
Il Caffè (aka Caffe Rosso)
Established in the late 19th century, Il Caffè has a history almost as colorful as its clientele, a mixture of students, aging regulars and lost tourists. This is an old-fashioned,…
Caffè Florian
Occupying prime piazza real estate since 1720, this is one of the world’s oldest coffee shops, with a florid interior of 18th-century mirrors, frescoes and statuary. If you sit outside…
Caffè dei Frari
Established in 1870, this inviting bar and cafe overlooking the Frari church has walls adorned with original murals, an antique wooden bar, and a wrought-iron balcony upstairs. The…
Caffè Lavena
Said to be Wagner’s favorite cafe (look for the plaque inside), and the hangout of fellow composer Franz Liszt, Lavena lies on the opposite side of the piazza to Cafe Florian and was…
Gran Caffè Quadri
The final member of the San Marco “big three,” Quadri opened in 1638 as “Il Rimedio” (“The Remedy”), but it was more of a retail coffee operation at first, with the restaurant upstairs…
