Murano Island - Worth the trip

Old Jan 4th, 2003, 04:57 PM
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Dan
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Murano Island - Worth the trip

Visiting Venice for 3 days. Is it worth the time to take a trip to Murano? What is the best way to get there? How long is the ride?
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 05:18 PM
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Don
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It is a short boat ride, but when we went there all we saw was the glass factorys and the glass stores.
Go only if you want to buy glass.
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 05:31 PM
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Kay
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If you only have 3 days, I'd say forget it. We had 6 days and visited Burano and Murano with Torcello as an option if we had wanted to. It made a leisurely day trip, if you have a vaporetto pass you can use this so it doesn't cost any extra. Murano is roughly 30 mins ride from Venice. I wouldn't recommend a tour, they tend to show you the glass factories and expensive showrooms and nothing else. There's no shortage of glass in Venice itself.
Kay
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 05:32 PM
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Patrick
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It costs nothing if you have a vaparetto pass, which is cheap to begin with. So by all means go. I didn't buy glass and didn't want to, but it was a fun trip, and we just walked in the back of a number of places and watched them doing the glass blowing.
On the same day we went on to Burano for lunch, a fascinating place with the colorful houses and restaurants along the canals. Then went to Lido for a walk along the beach and a drink at one of the larger beach resorts.
Worth it? Since this full day basically cost us nothing -- of course.
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 05:41 PM
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xxx
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Skip it. Most of the glass looked tacky and was expensive. Nothing but glass shops and factories all selling bascially the same items.
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 06:09 PM
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cathy
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At our hotel we were offered a free water taxi ride if we would take a tour at a factory. We were hesitant to do that, but went anyway. We had a private taxi, a very brief----and very interesting------tour, then absolutely no pressure to buy or continue looking. So we left there, and walked all over. We ended up off the beaten track, in the middle of the island, and sat in a little square just watching the locals and resting a while. I kept seeing men going into an osteria across the square, so went to investigate. It was full of local workmen from the factories, and no tourists. We decided to have lunch there. When we asked the owner for a menu, he said in Italian, "Only voice". He said he would bring us things, and if we didn't like them, we "no pay". Well, we loved everything he brought, "You try", along with a carafe of wine, and ending with limoncello and cookies. We had a great time, and thoroughly enjoyed the local color. The whole meal was under $20, and one of the best we had. It was a really fun day, and we had a mindset before we went that we would not get roped into any tour or sales pressure that we didn't want. We took the vaporetto back, and got to see all the local commuters going home, going to visit at the hospital, etc. Very interesting to see how they live in this fascinating city on the water.
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 10:18 PM
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jt
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Switch that M with a B - Burano is a MUST, Murano is a bust! Quick vaporetto ride from fondemonte nova.
 
Old Jan 4th, 2003, 10:43 PM
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Denise
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I enjoyed walking in and out of the shops in Murano...probably more of a girly thing to do. So if you're bringing a female with you then she might enjoy it.

Yes, some of the glass is expensive but there are also smaller items that are less expensive that you could bring back for souveniers. Things such as stoppers for your winebottles with a glass piece on top. Also glasses for cordials etc...that were relatively inexpensive.

I ate at a really good restaurant. It was filled to the brim with folks so you'll want to get there earlier rather than later as some folks were turned away. The name of the restaurant was Busa alla Torre.
 
Old Jan 5th, 2003, 03:04 AM
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Martha
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I would skip Murano and Burano. We did that this summer -- we took the vaporetto (using our three day pass) it was not a "short" trip to make all the connections and ended up taking up most of one day in a two night stay. As a result we had the opportunity of see little of Venice itself. Both villages are cute and colorful, but just not worth missing the fun of walking about Venice for a few days. Unless you need to buy expensive gaudy glass (Murano) or lace made in China (Burano) stay in Venice and enjoy life there instead.
 
Old Jan 5th, 2003, 09:48 AM
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John G
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Go to Burano instead of Murano. Have lunch at Gato Nero and wander around to look at the coloured houses, tilting campanile, and lace shops.
 
Old Jan 5th, 2003, 10:44 AM
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Anne
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I wouldn't have missed our time in Murano, but I went specifically to buy some glass jewelry. Found a great shop with good prices, and went nuts. Even my Dad enjoyed it, since I was there to help him pick out Mom's Christmas present! We were short on time, so didn't take any of the tours to see how they made the glass, but I plan to do that next trip. Just really depends what you are interested in!

Anne
 
Old Jan 26th, 2003, 02:53 PM
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Dan
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ttt
 
Old Jan 26th, 2003, 08:36 PM
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PamSF
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If you only have 3 days in Venice I suggest you skip Murano. There is so much to see in the city itself. Wander through some of the neighborhoods beyond Piazza San Marco like San Polo or the ghetto. If you want an island trip follow folks advice about taking the vaporetto and go to Burano. We tried to get to Gato Nero when we were there but the flooding prevented us. We ended up having a great meal a Da Romana ..try the grilled shrimp.
 
Old Jan 26th, 2003, 08:55 PM
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robert
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On three trips to venice have always gone to burano,it is very colorful and quiet if you go early.We never buy much if anything.
We even went to san Erasmo island to run with someone we hooked up with on the internet.Very rural I don't thing we have ever heard of any other tourists going there.
 
Old Jan 27th, 2003, 01:45 PM
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With only 3 days, I don't think you'll have time. But if you are like me and interested in glassblowing, then it might well be worth the trip. Murano is known for its glass, so if you go there you will see glass factories and glass stores. But it is also just a nice little island to explore. Cathy had the right idea. Sometimes you have to look beyond the obvious.
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Old Jan 28th, 2003, 04:47 AM
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We did the same thing that Cathy talked about and found to be an interesting visit. After the factory visit (with no pressure to buy) we just wandered around the island and found some really unique shops selling really neat masks, glass items, etc. We had lunch in a local place, and then found our way back on the vaporetto. It was an enjoyable morning and we thought it was worth our time. Of course, we had misgivings about the "free" transportation and visit, thinking that we were in for a lot of high pressure to buy, but never happened. I forget the factory we visited, but it was not in any way a collection of cheap items - in fact we found few pieces that we could afford even if we were inclined to but. It was all top flight in both craftmanship and cost.
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Old Jan 28th, 2003, 04:48 AM
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We did the same thing that Cathy talked about and found to be an interesting visit. After the factory visit (with no pressure to buy) we just wandered around the island and found some really unique shops selling really neat masks, glass items, etc. We had lunch in a local place, and then found our way back on the vaporetto. It was an enjoyable morning and we thought it was worth our time. Of course, we had misgivings about the "free" transportation and visit, thinking that we were in for a lot of high pressure to buy, but never happened. I forget the factory we visited, but it was not in any way a collection of cheap items - in fact we found few pieces that we could afford even if we were inclined to buy. It was all top flight in both craftmanship and cost.
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