I'm going to be cutting and pasting soon, thanks to you.

Buon viaggio !!

adventureseeker - I was not familiar with La Fenice and followed the link to wikipedia. From there, I went to their website. It looks to me like there are some performances during your stay. I don't read Italian - but the dates look like a ballet.

http://tinyurl.com/yswwdk

Debbie

What I wouldn't give for your Venice notes (G). I do something similar. I make a Word document for each city. I also tear out appropriate sections from guidebooks and put everything together into a booklet. It's a lot easier than carting around whole guidebooks.

Debbie

2005: I believe the ballets are held at another venue, but I'll check it out again. I was ready to book an opera there and just before I hit the "submit" key I noticed that it was at Teatro Malibran which is a venue under the direction (or something like that) of La Fenice. I stopped fast. Not that the Malibran wouldn't be fabulous, but my heart was set on La Fenice.

email me at [email protected] and I'll email you my notes. If you're doing Cinque Terre, Florence or Tuscany...I've got a novel's worth on those too. Thx for your interest.

Don't you just love this board. I'm just addicted.

It sounds like you are better at looking at their site than I was. I looked for a spot to click to switch it to English, but I didn't see one. (The Florian, OTOH, did have an English option.) I read a review by someone who had a problem with tickets that they thought were for the Fenice but were really for a different location. Maybe they made the same mistake that I did.

Debbie

adventureseeker; click on my name and scroll down and find my trip report on Venice this past May. We stayed up all day and made it actually to 10 pm.
dave

hi, a/s [and debbie]

if you are serious about going to la fenice, go to their web-site home page -on the right towards the bottom of teh top shaded section you will see a union jack!

then go to the left hand column for "what's on" and if I have got my dates right, you wil find that there's some vivaldi playing whilst you are there. After that there's an opera by massenet that I've nver heard of called "thais".

we went to a concert there which was perhaps better than an opera or ballet perfomance cos it didn't really matter that you couldn't see too well.

I too liked City of Falling Angels. You may also like donna leon's books about a Venitian detective.

regards, ann

DinPa & Annhig...

I'll check them out..thx!

bookmarking many thanks

We were at La Fenice for a concert in May and it was absolutely wonderful. Sat in a box on second level up front near the stage. My wife said she felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty woman at the opera. Big bonus points for me. Bought our tickets on line and picked them up an hour early before show time and then went out and had a wine next door.
dave

The Peggy Guggenheim was one of my favorite things - go early and enjoy the sculpture garden and the views out back to the grand canal - plus a gorgeous collection of modern art set in a beautiful palazzo.

Also loved attending mass at San Giorgio Maggiore and going up into the bell tower to see some amazing views (there was no line on Sunday morning - went right up) plus Tintorettos with no crowds...

The Frari is also pretty amazing even if you aren't into churches...

We were there for 4 days and 3 nights and saw a lot and walked and got lost through many neighborhoods. We didn't venture off to Burano or Torcello though.

Also found St. Marks Basilica (the mosaics) amazing and did not expect to be so overwhelmed by it. (Per another posters comments, I am a little claustrophobic and not great with heights either and had no problems there or in SGM tower)

Sorry can't help with your restaurants - went with a picky teenager and can't even remember where we ate!

Have a great time! and congrats on 10 years.

Oh! You will love Locanda Orseolo! We stayed there in 2005. And on a recommendation from the gang there, we had a wonderful dinner at Enoteca San Marco.

Have a wonderful time in Venice. It's so special, it cannot be put into words!

We just got back from Italy the day before yesterday. Venice was more crowded than it was 2 years ago in September. The cruise boats are increasingly using this as s stop, especially for Adriatic cruises. Get away from St. Mark's and Rialto Bridge area to appreciate Venice. Stroll over towards Fondementa Nove and see St. Giovanni or the Zattere and have a gelato at Niko's.

We had a nice dinner at Vini da Gigio - service is very relaxed. We stayed at a new hotel right next to Ca'D'Oro, Ca'Sagredo; and their restaurant is superb. It's expensive; but would be a special anniversary dinner!!! It's right on the Grand Canal.

Save a great trip!

Before heading to the Guggenhiem, make sure the renovations are finished. When we went in May, the Palazzo was closed. The permanant collection was housed in the building across from the palazzo, where the restaurant is, a sterile and boring environment. We felt that without the opportunity to see the palazzo and the wonderful views out back, unless you really adore modern art, it's not worth the visit.

Sounds like a great time! Arriving that early will put you at odds with check-in time, so leave your bags with the hotel and go to the sunniest al fresco cafe and nurse antipasti, wine & coffee - we stopped at one of the cafe's near the Zattere vaporetto stop, great people-watching and the sunlight may help you adjust to the time change. The only tip I can offer, since you seem to know the attractions well, is to keep your wish-list firmly in mind - and then adjust on the fly for the little hitches... rain, restaurant not open that day (or next day LOL), overwhelming crowds at Guggenheim, etc. There are a zillion time-filling activities to pick up the slack.

again all excellent suggestions.

Does anyone know how I can find out if the original Guggenheim Palazzo is open? Nothing is on it's website. I guess I'll phone them.

Ronin, you are absolutely right about being flexible and allowing spontaneity. I don't like to be rigid, but do like to have a plan. The best memories I've had while traveling are those that have come up on the spur of the moment.

DinPa,

Now that sounds like the most romantic of dates...your wife is very lucky!

From my trip report:
"Our first night, we ate at Trattoria Alla Rivetta, recommended by the hotel for its fish menu. It’s at Ponte S. Provolo 4625. It was nice, with a lot of locals and others lining up to eat there. Our meal was 58.24EUR, for two fish entrees, and a half-liter of house wine.

The second night, we ate at Osteria Alla Botte, San Marco 5482. It was a very friendly and busy little place, with reasonable prices. Our meal was 46 EUR, also for two fish dishes and a half-liter of house wine."

Good gelato at Michelangelo's, too.

We saw the sites, and shopped for beautiful glass jewelry. I wish I'd bought more of it!
:)>-

Vini da Gigio was *excellent* when we were in Venice (if you click on my name, you can find my trip report with more info). I highly recommend it; in fact, it was easily our best meal in Venice.

La Zucca was very good too, but not outstanding. Very cute place though, especially if you eat at one of the 4-5 outdoor tables.

bookmarking