Venice

Venice is funny.  People either LOVE it or HATE it.  In planning our trip, we never found someone in the “middle” nor found many in the reviews online.  However, after having visited, I will say we fall into the “love it” category – especially if you plan it right to be in the remote areas during the day and then stay overnight to experience it all to yourself.

After our last breakfast overlooking the rolling hills of Tuscany, olive trees and vineyards, we headed out to make the drive to Venice.  Of course, you cannot drive into Venice itself, so the easiest option is to park in the Tronchetto Parking Garage.  The signs are easy to follow and if you are worried about your luggage you may want to leave in the car, they offer a more expensive VIP parking with video cameras.  We were not worried and just parked in the normal garage.

After parking, you can either take one of the many public water ferries to your hotel or pre-arrange one of the private wooden taxis.  We chose Venizia Taxi which not only includes a private boat (which makes you feel a bit like James Bond) but for an added charge they will take the slower route down the Grand Canal.  A pretty amazing way to see Venice for the first time.

For lodging, we chose the Hotel Londra Palace for its location on the Grand Canal and views.  They were also able to accommodate a connecting room for us and our kids on the top floor (something very hard to find in much of Italy).  And did we mention the view?  We spent a lot of time simply sitting on the balcony enjoying the morning or evening.

After checking in, we had made reservations at Trattoria Al Gazzetino which is bit hard to find but offers generous portions which was perfect after a three-hour drive.  The other advantage is this restaurant was on the way to our meeting place for our “Evening Row of the Grand Canal” with Row Venice.

I will stop here and admit we are biased – that this was one of the best things we planned during our entire trip.  You can take a gondola ride in Venice as they are everywhere.  However, only Row Venice offers you the opportunity to actually row a boat yourself down the Grand Canal in the evening.  Founded by Jane Caporal, the fees for these rowing lessons go to benefit the rowing community of Venice.  And even though all of the guides at Row Venice are female, the proceeds benefit both boys and girls rowing and racing events.

In addition, these are not gondolas but rather batelas which are slightly wider – and trust us, wider is better when you are the one standing up and rowing.  You can also choose to learn to row and/or steer but if you want to steer, you are going to have to stay in the much emptier canals.  We opted to row while Jane steered us down the Grand Canal – and I am not sure we have seen our girls so excited to take turns rowing and taking pictures; all while Jane shared stories with us about Venice, rowing, the canals, racing and more.  Plus, you can choose to stand on crowded Railto Bridge or you can row yourself right under it.  And when the sun sets, it is truly amazing to be rowing down the canal watching the sun go down and the lights turn on – all reflecting on the water.

Even after returning to our meeting point (on the farther side of Venice after sunset), everyone should walk from one side of the city to the other at night – crossing bridges, getting lost, taking side streets, climbing and descending stairs.  And then finally arriving at St. Marks Square to the sounds of music and lights.  Venice is truly most beautiful at night.

The secret to loving Venice during the day is avoiding the crowds which arrive in droves by train, ship, cruise ship, boat and car by the thousands.  However, this is not as hard as it might seem as it only requires booking some “behind the scenes” activities or tours in less populated areas of Venice.  Or, if you just want to sight see, go to St. Mark’s Square and walk fifteen minutes or more in any direction.  Pretty much any place but on the Grand Canal or St. Mark’s Square during the day.

For us, the next morning, we met our guide, Luisella Romeo of See Venice to see the “Doge’s Palace and the Secret Itinerary” including Casanova’s cell, torture chambers, hidden rooms and more.  Luisella like our other guides was a multi-generational native to Venice and started by taking us through several of the open areas of the Palace.  However, only a few groups per day are allowed to sneak back behind the walls themselves.

Entering through a small side door at our allotted time, we were able to see where prisoners were held and tortured; learn about the history of Venice with no one else around; peak through hidden doors and overhangs at the other visitors walking through the palace; see and learn about Casanova’s escape; view the artwork from both below and how it was hung from above; and finally coming out and to exit through the Bridge of Sighs and down the stairs of Casanova’s escape.  It really is worth booking this tour well in advance to be able to explore this landmark from both inside the rooms and inside the walls – all while learning the interesting, conflicting and humorous history of how Venice came to be.

After our tour, we grabbed a quick bit of pizza and made our way away from the crowds to the Dorsoduro neighborhood (or sestiere) to Ca Macana.  We recommend booking this online in advance as you can reserve spots for their mask painting class – especially if you are traveling with children.  There are both one-hour and two-hour options but we found the one-hour class to be more than enough.  Each participant gets to select a mask and then is trained on the various styles of mask painting techniques.  It is not only a fun activity but a welcome break from the heat and crowds.

And if you have not seen it by now (passing underneath it with Row Venice) you can make your way back over the Rialto Bridge (warning – it is always busy) and/or then to VizioVirtu, which is a hidden chocolatier where we each picked out a selection of chocolates and then had (to our surprise) the absolute best gelato of our trip.

We then made our way (again, around the backside of most of the crowds) to Acqua Alta which is a bookstore for photo ops of their books lying in canoes; cats climbing the cases; and a staircase entirely made of books (but doesn’t really lead anywhere).  Frankly, it was fine but not really worth the trip unless you happen to be right there.

If you are still looking for other options away from the crowds, here are a few others.  One is booking a tour of Berta Battiloro – one of the last masters of gold leaf production (decorations, food, make up, etc.)  Or another is visiting The Tramontin Gondola to see one of that last traditional gondola makers.

By the time we had finished our Doge Palace tour, mask painting and chocolatier, we had time to rest a bit in the hotel and then freshen up for dinner on our last night in Venice at Club Del Doge at the Gritti Palace.  The restaurant patio sits directly on the Grand Canal and makes for an amazing view of the sun setting over the Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute directly across the water.  And if you like fine dining, all we can say is any place that has an appetizer named “Celebration of Tomatoes” (which was amazing) along with perfectly cooked steak and risotto topped off with a great wine is worth a last night in Venice.

After dinner, we relaxed in St. Mark’s Square listening to the music at the various restaurants and enjoying the classic Venetian drink of an Aperol Spritz (white wine, Aperol and Sparkling mineral water) – an orange and hydrating drink – perfect for the evening in the square when the crowds have all departed.

The next morning, we had pre-arranged for another water taxi to pick us up and head back to the parking garage and then on to Lake Como.

For notes on our entire trip to Italy, here is our two-week Itinerary.  And, if you are just starting to plan your trip, we have created four “how to” guides – Planning, Preparing and Packing, Getting Around and Driving and finally Once You Arrive.

We also have detailed notes for each individual destination for Positano, the Amalfi Coast and Capri; Rome and Pompeii; Tuscany, Siena and Florence; the Palio di Siena; Venice and Lake Como.  We would love to hear if you found any of these pages and notes helpful – or if you have any feedback you would recommend for other travelers.

LINKS – venice

• Tronchetto Parking Garage
• Venizia Taxi
• Hotel Londra Palace
• Trattoria Al Gazzetino
• Row Venice
• See Venice
• Ca Macana
• VizioVirtu
• Berta Battiloro
• Tramontin Gondola
• Club Del Doge
• Doge’s Palace