A_Guy_80

Dear All,

Thanks for your inputs on my preliminary itinerary for Rome & Venice a couple of days back. Based on your inputs and some more research I have developed my itinerary further and will appreciate any comments that you may have. I have also got a few queries (starts with Q#) and will be thankful if you could clarify them.

July 23, Monday:

- Arrive from Rome at St. Lucia Train Station at 12pm. Take Vaporetto no. 1 to Santa Maria del Giglio stop and walk up to Hotel Ala. (Q1: How long do you think it may take us to reach our hotel from the train station?)
- Explore Dorsoduro incl. a visit to Ca’ Rezzonico, Squero di San Trovaso, Campo Santa Margherita. (Q2. Could some one suggest some route that covers key attractions in this area)
- Take a Gondola Ride ending at Piazza San Marco and spend some time at Piazza (Q3. Is their a gondola stand near campo Santa margherita)

July 24, Tuesday:

- Visit (i) Basilica di San Marco, (ii) Palazo Ducale, (iii) Campnile, (iv) Museo Correr. Advance tickets for Basilica and Doge’s palace (Q4: Any preferred time to visit any of these places?)
- Visit Rialto Bridge & Rialto markets

July 25: Wednesday:

- Checkout by 9am and leave the baggage at hotel as our train from Venice to Switzerland is at quarter past 3. We will have 3-4 hours on this day before we sit down for a lunch and then head back to hotel to pick our luggage and make way for train station.
- Now I have 3 options for this morning: (i) Visit Accademia but am not sure if we are better off being outside museum on our final day, (ii) Catch a water taxi to visit San Maggiore church and go up its campanile or (iii) Take a walk in San Polo or Castello but not sure how to route the walk or what attractions to cover. Could you help me decide among these options to best spend our final day in Venice.

Thanks in advance.

Andrew

Keep in mind that Rialto and San Marco will be MOBBED during the day - you literally may have to sort your way through crowds. It can be miserable. These places - especially San Marco - are much nicer in the evenings and in the mornings, when the tour groups have gone home. San Marco is magical at night. The Rialto fish market goes in the morning, anyway, I believe.

Don't forget time to "get lost" - wander a little off the beaten path to get away from the crowds. (though having a good walking map is helpful as well.) Venice can be magical but it can also feel like Disneyland. Try to get up early and take a relaxing stroll at least one morning.

Delaine

As far as I know, a gondola ride begins and ends at the same location. So I don't think you could get a gondola near Campo Santa Margherita (assuming there is even a gondola station nearby) and have it drop you off at San Marco. Maybe you could, but I think you would have to pay more.

Here is a link with a list of gondola stations in Venice and a map:

http://www.gondolieritravel.com/gond...gondola-rides/

As for suggesting routes that cover key attractions, I think you might be better off looking at a map and planning where you want to be and when (considering opening times, etc.). That's what I would do.

ellenem

Do you plan to catch a water BUS (vaporetto) to San Giorgio Maggiore or a water TAXI (expensive private boat)? Just checking.

Every Venice guidebook I've ever seen suggests walks in each neighborhood that you are requesting, and considering your limited time I'm sure those walks would offer you the key sights. If you told us your interests, we could offer suggestions that might be more suited to your interests.

If you plan to visit the Basilica of San Marco on your own, 11:30 pm-12:30 pm is when the interior is illuminated. You might purchase tickets ahead for this time so you don't have to wait in a long line and miss the lights.

Lexma90

All of your last-day options are good. Wait and see what you're in the mood for - another fine museum, walking around, or San Giorgio. You could probably do some walking around various sestiere AND visit San Giorgio on that last day. Between those two, I would vote for just walking around. The Accademia, I would put higher on my to-do list, as I'm big into art.

Take your gondola ride from any of the smaller campos. Riding through the smaller canals is, IMHO, more interesting than riding on the Grand Canal.

A_Guy_80

Thanks all of you for your very helpful comments. Has brought me back to drawing board. Let me rework this a bit based on your comments and will seek your help again. Doesn't help that we are 10 days away from landing there

A_Guy_80

Thanks everyone for your valuable suggestions. I could understand that Venice probably is one of those cities where you will throw your plans out of window moment you set your foot there but with limited time that we have there, I still prefer to have a plan to atleast know what to ditch

So, based on your comments and some more devouring of my various guidebooks (LP & Insight) , I have now reworked my itinerary as follows:

Monday: Mostly same as before. Arrive at 12pm, take vaporetto to hotel. I have worked out a route for Dorsoduro Walk up to Ca’ Rezzonico so that will will be our first tryst with Venice. Will head back to rest a bit and later a post-dinner stroll to piazza san marco when it is relatively empty.

Tuesday: Have limited our San Marco time to early morning visit to Palazo Ducale and then a pre-booked visit to Basilica di San Marco (11:45am). We will then head post-lunch to San Polo and San Croce for exploring those areas in afternoon. Again a post-dinner or for-dinner stroll to Rialto Bridge hoping for a less crowded experience after sunset.

Wednesday: Check-out and then take a vaporetto to San Maggiore Church & go up its campanile. Vaporetto back to S. Zaccaria, followed by a stroll along the shore in Castello district to Arsenale, Gabrialdi and, if time permits, Biennale garden. Catch Line 1 back to San Del Giglio, have a quick bite, pick our luggage and head to railway station for our 3:15pm train.

Look forward to your opinions on this tweaked plan. Many thanks in advance.

Lexma90

Sounds lovely, whether or not you stick to it!

Re a quick bite, I've always found "quick" meals to be rather difficult in Italy. Another option, one we've done in Italy and elsewhere, is to pick up various goodies (bread, cheese, salumi, etc.) at the Rialto market, or elsewhere, and have a late-lunch picnic on the train.

A_Guy_80

Thanks Lexma for the tip. Will check when am in Venice if there are shops/eateries near train station, in which case depending on the time we could have a lunch near station or a picni-lunch on train

Sassafrass

There are lots of shops, restaurants, etc. near the train station. For your quick bites, there are great sandwich shops (nice to take on the train) and a decent cafeteria near the train station. Can't rmember the name off the top of my head, but it is a block or so to the right when you are facing the station with your back to the GC. As you walk right from the station, the cafeteria will then be on your left. There is also a little food market on the right hand side a little ways further down.

Andrew

Sassafrass: <i>For your quick bites, there are great sandwich shops (nice to take on the train) and a decent cafeteria near the train station. Can't rmember the name off the top of my head, but it is a block or so to the right when you are facing the station with your back to the GC. As you walk right from the station, the cafeteria will then be on your left.</i>

You're thinking of Brek Ristorante. I agree with your recommendation: decent food, decent prices, very convenient.

flirtinfilly

If you are buying the vaporetto pass, I highly recommend a ride around the Grand Canal at night. I did this accientialy, as in my wanderings I got wicked (but happily) lost. However, since my hotel was only a short walk from a vaporetto stop, it was rather easy to get home. It was during Carnevale and it turned out to be a rather magical ride with some great photos, that I would have otherwise missed!

Pepper_von_snoot

a mobbed venice is an understatement/

to get a better idea think of scarlett o'hara fleeing the burning of atlanta/

glad you are seeing ca' rezzonica/

it is a shame you aren't visiting the frari church, campo san giacomo dell'orio--the most beautiful campo in venice/

since you are staying near campo san stefano--a good place to dine is a beccafico/ expensive but very good fish dishes/


the performance artist known as razr//

A_Guy_80

Thanks Sassafras and Andrew for the lunch tips. Makes our last day schedule much more smooth.

Thanks flirtinfilly, a ride on grand canal in night sounds like a great idea. So far I am not planning to buy the vaporetto pass because we just intend to take 1 ride on each day but would you know whether our return trip from San Marco to San G Maggiore would count as two 7 Euro rides, if so then I may pick a pass.

Thanks Pepper for your dining suggestion. Btw we are visiting both frari church and campo san giacomo dell'orio as part of our self guided walk through San Polo and San Croce on Tuesday afternoon

Andrew

If you are in good walking shape, you can get by without a vaporetto pass. I bought one in 2007 but not on a return visit in 2009. They are expensive. However, compare the cost of a multi-day pass to a single ride once a day and you may find it doesn't cost that much more for a pass.

Expect to do a lot more walking than you imagine in Venice. And something about it kills your feet - it always does mine. If you have that vaporetto pass at the end of the day and you're dead tired, it may be nice to know you can just hop on a boat and save 3/4 of the walking you'd otherwise do.

abbydog

Just a few thoughts, based on our visit in Venice last April: If you care about food, ask for recommendations at every opportunity and reserve at restaurants that interest you, even for lunch. Have you made a reservation for the Secret Itineraries tour at the Doge's Palace? If not, and if it's still possible to get an early morning booking, you will probably save lots of time waiting in line if you do (well worth the cost!). And on your final morning, the Accademia would be a great backup plan if it's raining.

Also, a happy compromise between mapping your every step and "getting lost" in Venice (which can mean going around in frustrating circles), I highly recommend using a compass! My husband and I began every walk by checking out the map but freeing ourselves of the distraction of trying to follow it and read cryptic signs (and navigate passageways that are not depicted on the map at all) by noting the general direction we wanted to follow and using a compass to get there. Worked wonderfully!

A_Guy_80

Thanks Andrew. I do see the benefits of getting a tourist travel card from flexibility point of view. It would have made a lot of sense if we could have covered all our trips but am just realizing that while we arrive at 12pm on day 1 but we head back around 2pm on day 3 so 48 hour card won't cover us and we will have to at least get a 72 hour card. Now, if S. Zaccaria to San Giorgio Maggiore return trip will cost us Euro 14p.p. then a travel card works better but if it's only going to cost us Euro 8 or less ( guess only 1 stop travel on vaporetto is Euro 4) then its not making much economic sense but I guess I will make up mind on this by the time we reach venice.

Thanks abbydog for your suggestions. We are giving secret itineraries a view but have pre-bought the museum pass for regular admission. And though hoping for no rains but yeah Accademia remains a great rainy day or a very hot day option

Delaine

S. Zaccaria to San Giorgio Maggiore counts as one trip/ticket per person. Returning from SGM to SZ would also count as one/trip ticket per person, so it would cost 14 euros total per person if you did not have a pass.

Also, for a "quick bite," you can try gelaterie. We would go there for a quick snack since we would have a big breakfast and dinner. They often have various sandwiches and other items in addition to gelato. For example, I had delcious sandwiches from Gelateria Da Nico and Rosa Salva, www.rosasalva.it. Bar/Gelateria Paoin also has sandwiches; it is located on Campo Santo Stefano, which might be a decent location for you.

Delaine

Sorry, it should be Bar/Gelateria Paolin.

betsy3

We are using www.italy.artviva.com for the day.
Artviva tours. Group tour for 6 hours.

I decided that Venice was too complicated after reading and hearing from friends.
Then we will have a second day on our own.