Making the Most of Your Time

The hoards of tourists visiting Venice are legendary, especially in spring and fall, but during other seasons, too—there is really no "off-season" in Venice. Unfortunately, tales of impassible, tourist-packed streets and endless queues to get into the Basilica di San Marco are not exaggerated. A little bit of planning, however, will help you avoid the worst of the crowds.

The majority of tourists do little more than take the vaporetto (water bus) down the Grand Canal to Piazza San Marco, see the piazza and the basilica, and walk up to the Rialto and back to the station. You will want to visit these areas, too, but do so in the early morning, before most tourists have finished their breakfast cappuccinos. You can further decrease your competition with other tourists for Venice's pleasures by choosing weekdays, instead of weekends, to visit the city.

Away from San Marco and the Rialto, the streets and quays of Venice's beautiful medieval and Renaissance residential districts receive only a moderate amount of traffic. Besides the Grand Canal and the Piazza San Marco, and perhaps Torcello, the other historically and artistically important sites are seldom overcrowded. Even on weekends you probably won't have to queue up to get into the Accademia museum.

Venice proper is quite compact, and you should be able to walk across it in a couple of hours, counting even a few minutes for getting lost. The water buses will save wear and tear on tired feet, but won't always save you much time.