Venice- appropriate length of stay
 

My flight arrives into venice around 11am. I plan on spending the rest of the day exploring followed with dinner. any restaurant suggestions for lunch & dinner?
If we plan on leaving for Florence by mid/late afternoon the next day, does that give me enough time to experience most things in Venice? I have heard Venice is a one to two day max trip.
I believe its a 2 hour and 30 min train ride to Florence. Thank you for the help!

No. If you are arriving jetlagged you should give yourself at least 2 days in Venice (3 nights) - since the first day will be over before you even get organized in your hotel.

IMHO, this is the minimum to see/do much. On our first visit we stayed 3.5 days (4 nights) and still missed a lot.

If we plan on leaving for Florence by mid/late afternoon the next day, does that give me enough time to experience most things in Venice? I have heard Venice is a one to two day max trip. >>

as someone who's been to Venice approx 5 times and would love to go again, I don't see Venice as a"1-2 day max" place. as a minimum I would give it 3 nights on a first visit, but if it's your first destination after a transatlantic flight, 4 would be better while you cope with jetlag etc.

in respect of the itinerary you posted, by the time you're checked into your hotel, had lunch, found your bearings and fought off the jetlag, you won't have much of day 1 left, leaving you less than a day to see the ancient city that has inspired artists, writers, and travellers for the last 500 years.

I wouldn't say that's long enough but without knowing about the overall length of your trip, it's difficult to judge.

Agree with annhg

"I have heard Venice is a one to two day max trip."

My first reaction: are you trying to be funny?

annhg--ditto. I've been to Venice several times. Strangely, each time I think "fabulous, but I've seen it all." Then, a few months later, it starts luring me back.

Regardless, one thing to keep in mind is that, from the airport, you have about a one hour trip to Venice--either by bus or boat (this includes wait time). So, you probably won't be into Venice until late afternoon of day one.

You also can't be sure the weather will be wonderful, allowing you to explore for a lengthy period of the day. At the very least, I hope you will dip your toes into Venice for two full days minimum.

we stayed in Venice 3 nights in May
..I wish we stayed at least five.

I don't think that's enough time. I've been twice, and stayed 5 nights the first time, and 6 the second. Hoping to go back next year!

We rather like Venice, so have visited several times. A couple of trip reports below would show you why we like Venice.

The “one to two day max trip” must have been a comment by someone who did not like Venice.



http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm

http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...st-verbose.cfm

I don't think there's an "appropriate" number of days to spend in any city. But I also think that two days in Venice (well, one really, given your plans) isn't even worth going for, especially with jetlag. I would plan a minimum of 3 full days (4 nights).

When people say "I have heard" it's usually useless, uninformed information.

You won't regret staying longer in Venice. There's nothing like it in the world.

I have been twice, 3 nights first time, 2 nights second time. It was enough for me. To each his own.
It is a very small place, and I do not enjoy popping in and out of shops( seems to be some peoples main activity in Venice) , and the food I had was generally expensive and only so so at best,, so for me, I would return if someone wanted to see it again, but 2 nights would be enough for me.

So, I am one of those people who could/would say 2-3 days max.

Postes points about jet lag are very valid, one should always take first 2 -3 nights on the ground easy till they adjust and fell normal agian.

I think the question of "enough" is irrelevant in your case. First, it is subjective--the same amount of days is more than enough for some, too short for others. Secondly, you have hardly 24hrs in Venice, so even if we postulate the lower end of the subjective range, you have little time.

So the question is best framed in terms of what you can do within your constraint. Consequently, the relevant subject is what are the things you can do and what sequence should you visit them.

While many things are close together, destinations on the other side of the canal or at the different area of the canal can take quite time to move in between. You have perhaps one cluster on the arrival day and another one the next morning. This brings up the question, where are you staying and what do you want to do in Venice?

I think asking for an open ended restaurant suggestions is not productive given your time constraints. If you state a sensible (that is what can be done within your time limit) routing, other can chime in with eating options compatible with your routing.

"If we plan on leaving for Florence by mid/late afternoon the next day, does that give me enough time to experience most things in Venice? I have heard Venice is a one to two day max trip."

We first came for a week 7 years ago, then came back for 1 or 2 weeks every year and still felt we'd barely scratched the surface. (And this involved *no* shopping - I hate shopping.) So then we moved here :-)

If OTOH by "experience most things" you just mean the top few most famous sights in areas which are always crowded, then a day is enough - and you'll most likely go away hating the place.

I've been to Venice, I guess, a half dozen times. Will be going there later this month and stay for two weeks. No place like it.

I don't understand justineparis's comment about "popping in and out of shops." Definitely not the thing to do in Venice. Except maybe the mask shops.

Venice is an amazingly beautiful place. The best introduction is the vaporetto ride down the Grand Canal. Look at Fodor's Destinations or the green Michelin quide for sights to see, the Doge's Palace, the churches, the museums. Then there's getting lost in the back "streets" of Venice; exploring the islands (Murano, Burano, Torcello); taking a gondola ride; checking out the Lido; finding the gondola workshop; etc.

You could probably see Venice in a couple of days but you could never really be in Venice in such a short time.

It all depends upon if you're checking things off your travel list or if you really want to be there.

I've been to Venice 3 times in the last 13 years and still feel like I have so much left to see for the first time, much less things I want to revisit. I agree with those who have said you need to spend longer than you have planned.

Thanks for all the advice. Due to our two week schedule, we are on time contraints per city. Based upon the recommendations, we will likely stay a full two nights. Appreciate everyone's input and my apologies if I offended anyone regarding Venice opinions I have recieved.

It took me the better half of a day to go to the Peggy Guggenheim and that's not even on most people's list :)

Appreciate everyone's input and my apologies if I offended anyone regarding Venice opinions I have received.>>

Heather - none of us are offended. We just want you to have a good time!

Our Italian travel agent advised that two nights in Venice would be plenty, so that's what we booked. That gave us the rest of our arrival day and one full day.

Honestly, I don't know how she could have made such a recommendation - it was a rush from start to finish, and the major regret of our Italy trip.

We got a very, very superficial overview and not much else. Dashing through St. Mark's, trying to see a couple of other things, forget about taking time to sit outside and take a breath.

Having said that, a day and a half in Venice was better than no days in Venice.

<i><font color=#555555>"my apologies if I offended anyone regarding Venice"</font></i>

I know plenty of people of who hate Venice, and never plan to return. They think I'm crazy for visiting as often as I do. But they didn't have boater parents like I did. I spent my childhood summers on a boat, and those memories come to life for me in Venice.

It's possible the awful floods this year will turn more people off. I was there for the 1st acqua alta of the season on Oct 15, and let me tell you, those canals really stunk. Venice is a very humid city, almost year round. And thanks to the licenses given to the Chinese, the junk-glass shops are more ubiquitous than ever.

It's getting harder and harder to find good food, prepared by Venetians. Many of the restaurants are now god-awful. If you plan on eating well, be prepared to drop $80 a person, even for lunch.

To really enjoy Venice, you have to do a lot of homework, you have to commit to more than two nights, and you have to plan a decent budget. Otherwise, you'll be lucky to experience no more substance than what a postcard can provide.

Good luck.

Our Italian travel agent advised that two nights in Venice would be plenty, so that's what we booked. That gave us the rest of our arrival day and one full day.

Honestly, I don't know how she could have made such a recommendation >>

she probably came from Naples.