Carta Venezia - any tips please?
 

We’re visiting Venice later this year (November to January for seven weeks). I’m thinking of buying Lou and I a CartaVenezia, which costs 40 Euro each, and gives one access to cheap vaporetto tickets – one Euro instead of the present six Euro for a two hour vap pass. It would pay for itself after half a dozen vaporetto rides, and is issued by ACTV, who operate the ferries and buses.

The CartaVenezia has a three year validity – Venetians can get it free, Veneto people get it for about ten Euro, and we foreigners pay 40 Euro. It’s not the same thing as the Venice card, which is good for a shorter period and is aimed at tourists.

Has anyone bought one of these passes? Was it a hassle to get? Any tips? Is it easy to use?

And don't neglect the public toilet pass, as well.

sorry, peter, can't help, but I'll be interested in the replies.

i seem to remember an earlier thread on this, which suggested that if you could take along some sort of utility bill or proof of residence, you could get the card at the cheaper rate. of course, the rules may have changed by then.

good luck,

regards, ann

Albeit a year old, here's a description by someone on Tripadvisor.

http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic...ce_Veneto.html

Pal, the public toilet pass that comes with the card will be most useful, especially now that the toilet charge is 1.50 Euro.

Ann, I'll report back later (it will be January 2011!)

Ellenem, thanks, and that link is very good. Lots of great info.

peter - we stayed for a week round the back of the public toilets in the camp san bartolomeo.

I saw quite enough of them then - no reporting back required, thank you.

seriously, another advantage besides access to the bogs is that some of the vaporetti are reserved for carta venzia holders - no 3 was one I remember from when we were there.

ann, i was not really intending a trip report titled "la Serenissima toilets" - I was more likely to offer a report on how the Carta Venezia worked out.

The No 3 line is a good tip.

Cheers

Peter

The vaporetto line for Venezia Card holders on;y was discontinued after a very short period.

Peter,

You may find this discussion helpful-

http://slowtalk.com/groupee/forums/a...372#8761035372

Hi again peter,

i had a look at that trip advisor webssite, and found someone talking about the abbonamento - which seems to be a monthly ticket costing about €26 [or €28] plus €10 for the first time to get the card to goes on. here's a link to the info [which isn't very good, to be honest]

http://www.hellovenezia.com/jsp/en/t...feareaid_4.jsp

there is also a link on that site for somwthing called an "ordinary" ticket, aimed at residents, not tourists, but not restricted to them. it's that that I was thinking of, i think.

honestly though, trying to find out what is currently available is very difficult - parts of the hellovenezia website are 2-3 years out of date.

if you keep trying, you should have cracked it by the time you go!

PS - don't discount the idea of writing a guide to the lavatories of venice - I think that it would go down a storm!

I think that you need the CartaVenezia to purchase the monthly travel pass, but as ann said it seems haed to get the real answer online. Perhaps if you called the HelloVenezia desk.

I'm holding the Carta Venezia, but must admit I'm not sure what you want to know exactly. Hassle, no, easy to use, yes, as soon as you get acquainted with the electronic validation machines. Any more specific questions, don't hesitate to ask.

Here's a link to a description of Venice transport options, including photos of the ticket machines that will be new to many.

http://livingveniceblog.com/category...aporetto-info/

How very kind of you, ellenem, to cite my blog.

If you're a frequent traveler to Venice, a CartaVenezia may very well be worth the investment. You may obtain one at the ACTV office at Piazzale Roma in one stop; I have attempted to outline the process here:

http://livingveniceblog.com/2009/03/...piazzale-roma/

Please note: Everyone else should absolutely take advantage of the significant discounts on transportation, museum passes, etc., available seven days or more in advance at VeniceConnected.com.

(Enjoy Venice, everyone...)

I've owned a Cartevenezia for more than a decade. They are much easier to get now but the Italians never make it easy for non-Italians to figure out the process. There's a lot of conflicting information floating around.

Nan, at livingveniceblog, does a good job of explaining but she should go through the process one more time (with one of her foreign customers) and update her info with exacting detail that is current. Staying committed to offering current information is the only way to stay on top and stay relevant in the tourist service business.

Durant, at http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/...rtavenezia.htm, also updated his info, but some details are missing there, too.

When I was in Venice recently, there was only one button to press on the ticket machine that dispenses tickets for your place in line (like an old-fashioned bakery on a Sunday morning). It seems all services are now available at most of the service windows.

You DO NOT need to bring a photo. If you do, the agent will take a photo of it, using one of those tiny digital cameras that most health clubs are using now. Or, they will take a photo of you at the window. They don't care much about photo quality.

Several of the agents speak excellent English.

Actv states the cards are good for 5 years.

You can renew online but Actv does not yet offer an English translation page for renewal. Here is the Italian page: http://www.actv.it/servizi_imob/abbonamenti/rinnova

If you Google the Italian url, you can click on "Translate this page" and it should come up in English. But once you click through this renewal process to another page, I don't know if you'll stay in English. When paying online, I prefer to stay directly on the Italian site.

If you are a frequent visitor to Venice or visit for weeks at a time every year like I do, it really pays to register for a Cartevenzia. I walk a lot in Venice but I also ride the boats a lot, too. And at €7 a trip these days, the Cartevenezia is worth every penny.

NYCFoodSnob, why did you find it necessary to resurrect a 2 year old question? A lot of the info listed earlier is now out of date, so likely to confuse people. (E.g., when Peter - and I - and presumably you? - got our cards, the validity was 3 years, but it's since changed to 5.)