My family and I are going to Venice in December, what are the main attractions that should not be missed? Any restaurants with authentic Italian food? Thanks

What do you know already about Venice? Have a guide book?

This will be a good start.

http://www.fodors.com/world/europe/italy/venice/

I found Venice to be incredibly easy to explore -- take your guidebook, figure out what you'd like to see, and hop on the vaporetto (pardon my spelling). But one thing Fodorites recommended that was fantastic is a reservation for the Secret Itineraries tour of the Doge's Palace. I reserved tickets for about 9:00 a.m. and it worked out perfectly -- we arrived before the crowds, saw the private rooms and heard a tremendous amount of fascinating history that really set the stage for visiting the entire city, and then explored the rest of the palace on our own. I would recommend doing that early in your visit.

Walk, walk, and walk some more. Get a little lost, find your way back... Stay away from the marked main drag where the bezillion busloads walk in crawling lockstep from the bridge at the train station to the bridge at Rialto to San Marco square - find your own way and, in the process, come across lots of nooks and crannies that your camera will like and no guidebook writes about.

Take the public boat-buses (vaporetti in the pural) when you absolutely have to.

Take the same to the three islands, spend a couple of hours on each, don't expect the world, it's just nice, nothing more or less, and you can watch the glassblowers or not, and you can buy or not - prices in Venice itself tend to be a bit better.

Go to the main attractions either really early or really late so you avoid the throng of daytripppers.

One morning, force yourself to get up at six and be out on your way to San Marco on foot before the sun comes up. When the pretty street lamps are still on and the sun is just coming up, you'll never forget how San Marco and the water and the buildings across the water look from there.

kappa1 I have a guide book but I was looking for special experiences. Thanks

abbydog can we reserve tickets to the Secret Itineraries tour of the Doge's Palace online?

DalaiLlama, I love the idea of 'One morning, force yourself to get up at six and be out on your way to San Marco on foot before the sun comes up.' I will definately do that.

Hi H,

>can we reserve tickets to the Secret Itineraries tour of the Doge's Palace online?<

Secret Itineraries tour of Doge’s palace Phone number from US is 011 39 41 520 9070. English-speaking operator.

You will not be charged for your tickets if you don't go on the tour.

Online bookings are at http://tinyurl.com/z3jy2


Also, get up early on another morning and go to the fish market near the Rialto at about 07:00.

Enjoy your visit.

> kappa1 I have a guide book but I was looking for special experiences. Thanks

Well you asked for "the main attranctions that should not be missed". "Main attractions" are all listed on the guide books. Don't you agree? If you are actually looking for " special experiences" that you say on your 2nd post, that's another matter, isn't it?

bookmarking

Main attractions include a vaporetto ride on the Grand Canal, San Marcos square, the Rialto bridge.

HAD - Special experiences? If you enjoy classical music you may want to spend an evening at a concert.

We had an unforgettable evening at a 'Musica a Palazzo' operatic evening. Here's my post:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/pgMessa...sica+a+Palazzo

For other musical evenings check out:

http://www.interpretiveneziani.com/i...meset_home.htm
http://www.imusiciveneziani.com

http://www.virtuosidivenezia.com/
http://www.ensembleantoniovivaldi.com/

http://www.collegiumducale.com
http://www.veniceopera.it

http://www.musicapalazzo.com
http://www.musicainmaschera.it

You may find this link useful for other events etc:

www.aguestinvenice.com

Hope this helps ...

Steve

Thanks Steve you are always so helpful. I hope I will be able to help you one day.

ira thanks

Kappa1 yes you are right I should have paid more attention to choosing the words of my question. Thanks

One more thing I like about Venice: your family can easily split up and regroup. For example, my friend wanted to check out the Jewish ghetto, and once there I wanted to stay and take a tour of three synagogues. He wanted to go shopping instead, so we just set a time to meet up at St. Mark's.

Favorite restaurant: the Riviera, much heralded by Fodorites.

I also think the vaperretto is great. Why pay for a private boat ride when you can just get a ticket for Venice's city bus?

Many people enjoy visiting where they make the Murano glass.

Maybe I'm cheesy, but I enjoyed listening to the dueling orchestras on San Marco square at night. Totally worth the $10 cup of coffee.

Lots of art galleries including the Guggenheim if you are interested in more modern works.

There are places where you can cross the Grand Canal on a traghetto, which is like a gondola but with two oarsmen. You pay a small fee and it is traditional to stand during the crossing (although nobody will complain if you sit down).

No dueling orchestras in Piazza San Marco in December . . . too cold.

bookmarking

We also enjoyed the concert at Musica Palazzo--a great chance to see the interior of an old palace. The Rezzonico Museum is not to be missed.

All three islands are great, Murano for glass, Burano for lace, Torcello for the soul.

Enjoy Venice like a Cognac, slowly.

Thanks guys, I read about Acqua Alta and wonder does it mean that we wont be able to go out during Acqua Alta? I guess the chance of it happening in December is high.

The acqua alta affects the areas of Venezia closest to San Marco, and then it usually only occurs in the mornings. You should probably avoid booking a hotel in that area in December, but even so, if the water comes, the Venetians put up temporary sidewalks (rather like long lines of folding tables) for people to walk on without getting their feet wet.


I'm unclear when in December you are going. (Sorry if I missed it.) It is is around Xmas, be aware that Dec 26 (the feast of St Stephen) is also a serious Venetian holiday when everything shuts up tight. It's still enjoyable to be there, but you'll have to ask your hotel for assistance in finding an open restaurant.

There is no such thing as "authentic Italian food." There is authentic Venetian food, which reflects the cuisines of the many different kinds of people who have colonized Venice -- Austrians, French, foreign tourists of all types -- but dishes traditional to the area include liver and eel. Very little pasta, although famously with anchovies.