dj

Does anyone know how much it is (in Euros)for a Gondola ride in Venice and how long the ride is? Also where is a good place in Venice, Florence or Rome to buy linens (sheets).

Brutforce

From memory including the calculation converting lire to euros (I was last there w/lire) I seem to recall $75-$90. I'm sure someone has been there since I but this will @ least get you to the top.

Moirahd

The gondola ride is approx 40 euros per person but do negotiate the price and how long the ride will be. As for the linen sheets you don't see much of this in Venice, more so in Florence i.e. Frette on the road leading to the bridge.

Brutforce

That seems about right, I'm thinking I talked him down from about a $100 to start. Do it once (@ sunset) & then move on.

elaine

I think the ride by law is supposed to be 45-50 minutes but as others have said the route and the price are somewhat negotiable. I haven't heard of it costing less than about 40e pp.<BR><BR>Frette has stores in all the cities you mention. Ditto Pratesi.

capo

We used a gondolier who was one of the many you'll see parked at bridges, instead of at official gondola locations. We offered him approximately 80 euros for the two of us for 45 minutes, and he accepted, but he shortchanged us by at least 10 minutes and also didn't go where we had agreed upon on the map, and there wasn't much we could do about it (besides refuse to pay him the full amount and, since it would have been our word against his, things could've gotten ugly.) <BR><BR>We still enjoyed the ride very much (especially since the vaporettos were on strike that afternoon, so the part on the Grand Canal was more peaceful than usual) and would have done it again, but I'm just passing our experience along as something to be aware of.

akhil

I am taking globus tours and one of the optional thing to do is gondola ride. They are charging $32 per person for that. Listening to all of you, looks like it is a good price. Now I just need to find out how long and the route...<BR>Thanks.

Daneille

Hi, we paid a whopping 100 euros for our gondola ride. We didn't negotiate as it was late at night and there were not many gondolas around so could not bargain between the gondoliers and quite frankly we couldn't be bothered spoiling an otherwise wonderful evening by haggling over cash. We hired our gondola near the Rialto Bridge on the Grand Canal.<BR><BR>I understand singing Gondoliers charge quite a bit more and can be difficult to find.<BR><BR>Our gondola took us down some small side canals which were amazing at night - a totally different aspect to the daytime and so very quiet. That is once we could get our gondolier to stop trying to point out places of interest to us - we wanted a romantic ride not a guided tour.<BR><BR>I don't think the entire ride took much more than 1/2 an hour but was worth it for that once in a lifetime experience (I really do not think I would do it again). <BR><BR>Just a note: many of the canals were blocked to us as it was a high tide and the gondola could not fit under the low bridges.

Andrea_expat

It also depends on your goal for a gondola ride. For me, it was less about sightseeing (which can be done more cheaply from vaporettos) than about a romantic experience. If that's what you're after, I recommend a private evening gondola ride. I assume that the tour company that is offering the $32 pp ride is offering a group gondola ride, probably in the daytime.

Melissa

120 euros for a gondola ride lasting 60 minutes around 8pm last September. Although I paid more than everyone else who has posted so far, at the time I had drank too much vino to care, and I still think it was worth every last euro.

Mariarosa

Call me a cheapskate, but I did grow up watching my dad bargain. Two years ago we did a 35 minute gondola ride for the equivalent of $50. I did have to walk away a few times until he agreed. We did it at sunset, so it was day-time when it started and night when it ended. I thought the ride was fun and worth it.<BR><BR>I asked the gondoliers about choosing where you go - They already have an &quot;itinerary&quot; that they follow where they have learned what the buildings are and can give you a 'tour'. They go through the small canals and then spend the last 5 minutes in the Grand Canal. I don't think that you can choose where you go, nor you would want to, if you want to know a bit of the history of the buildings.

kazzawary

Are there any rules about taking wine/champagne on the gondolas? Street drinking etc? I went on one about 10 years ago, and it was about $40 for a group of 6 of us. As it was an underage school group, there was no alcohol involved! In April I am going with my husband and would love a wonderfully romantic gondola ride sipping champagne this time. I assume you bring your own glasses?

aneckc

Try the American Express Ofice in Venice for a group rate. We took a Grand Circle Travel tour last summer and our Program Director Johnnie negotiated a group rate for 36 of us at $25 eac. We had an accordion player and singer for our 6:30 canl ride. It was the highlight of our trip, one not to be missed, Taking the Traghetti ride or vaporetto was neither romantic nor as enjoyable an experience. Sure it's touristy but whenever you think of Venice what else do yuo think of but the gondolas. Bite the bullet nad pay the price. It will be well worth it. Also don't miss the concerts in San Marco Square in the evenings, An enchanting city. Enjoy

mclaurie

DJ, I just did a text search for you here because I remembered seeing someone post about American Express arranging these at a good price. I typed American Express AND gondola &amp; found lots of great threads for you to read. The Amex trip is $25-30/pp but you share with others. There was one thread that talked about the best places to start. That person claimed that along the Grand Canal is most expensive. Hope this helps.

scubatv

Some of the groups gondola rides use the larger type gondola that fit up to 10 people. <BR><BR>

capo

Mariarosa, like you, I grew up watching my father bargain, not necessarily always trying to get the lowest possible price, but not accepting the first offer either. I don't think people in many cultures are offended by a counter-offer as long as it's something they would see as reasonable (trying to really low-ball them is another matter; that likely would be seen as offensive.) In fact, I've seen the opposite; I've watched vendors in Puerto Vallarta, for example, roll their eyes when people *don't* bargain for items. <BR><BR>The problem we had with our gondolier was that, once we agreed on time and price, an oral contract, he simply did not honor his part of the bargain. If he didn't think what offererd him was fair, he should have refused, or counter-offered, instead of accepting and then not honoring his part of the deal. <BR><BR>I should definitely add that, in three weeks in Italy, this was the *only* time that someone did not honor their part of a deal. Everyone else we dealt with was fine.

Mariarosa

Ah capo! I see your point! The gondolier was not truthful with you - he told you he was going to do your itinerary and he did his own. I guess we lucked out and got a truthful gondolier who did explain to me that the ride was pretty much &quot;fixed.&quot; Regardless, I think it is a fun experience, even down to the bargaining part!

capo

Yes, he not only didn't honor our financial/time agreement, but also not where we wanted to go. The one specific place I'd wanted to glide by was the beautiful little Miracoli church, northeast (I think) of the Rialto bridge. In retrospect, of course, it would have been wise to hire a gondola on that side of the Grand Canal. But, with the one we hired, even though he was stationed on the opposite side of the Grand Canal, he wasn't all that far away from the church. I had a map with me, pointed it out and said we want to go there. &quot;Si Si&quot;, he replied, &quot;no problem.&quot; But once he got to the Grand Canal, he started heading back to where we came from. &quot;The church&quot; I said, pointing in the direction of where it was and what I received in return was this shrug, as in &quot;I don't understand what you're saying.&quot; He knew very well what I was saying, and what he had agreed to. He just knew he didn't have to honor his agreement and that the odds were in his favor that we weren't likely raise a stink about it. I did consider it, briefly, but then thought the better of it so we just paid him and chalked it up to a learning experience. <BR><BR>The ride itself, where we did go, was wonderful and I think someone is really missing a great experience if they visit Venice and never take at least one gondola ride. <BR>

Mariarosa

Capo, I love the Miracoli church! The caretaker gave me a card of the Church with a prayer, just because. Surprised me because in high tourist areas I expect the locals to be a bit jaded. But you do find truly nice people. It would have been nice to take a gondola ride up to the church.

capo

Mariarosa, nice to hear you love that church as much as I do. Unfortunately, we were never able to see the inside of it but that was OK, as I fell in love with the creamy-colored marble on the outside, and that unusual rounded top.<BR><BR>Was the inside just as beautiful? <BR><BR>As you may recall, there is a rio that runs right along one side of the church, with some steps leading down to it. We sat there and watched the gondolas glide by and, as I alluded to earlier, hiring a gondola in that area would have been a wiser choice. <BR><BR>On our last day in Venice we returned to the church and sat on those steps, and my girlfriend (who has a beautiful voice) sang along to opera music coming from a nearby cafe (I forget the name...anyone) which is noted for this. Needless to say, the gondoliers who were going by loved this and the memory still brings a smile to my face.