Venice....Love it or Hate it? Why?
 

On our first trip to Italy in October, we are definitely going to spend time in Venice. After doing extensive research, it seems that Venice is a topic of controversy: people either hate it or love it. Many think it is just a big tourist trap w/ overpriced (and not so great) dining/lodging. We're going anyways...it seems very mysterious and romantic.

If you feel strongly one way or the other, please tell me why. I'm looking for some great places to eat and stay (mid range 175E or less). Thx for your help!

How can anyone hate Venice???!! Venice is one of my favorite cities in the world--really--it's magical--like stepping back into another time and era. Every time the city comes up, my "Italian daughter" and I look at each other and sigh...."Ahhh...Venezia..."

Hi Adventureseeker,

We heard the same debate last year when researching our fall trip to Italy. We spent two nights in Venice and absolutely loved it. Of the 10 days we spent in Venice, Montalcino (Tuscany), Orvieto and Rome, I liked Venice the most. It was beautiful, the food was incredible and I did not find it overly commercial. In fact, we found it very serene and charming. My one complaint: the prices are very high there. But I was able to overlook that negative given everything else.
We stayed at Locanda Orseolo, which I think is above your budget on high season, but I can highly recommend it.
Hope this helps!
Best,
Kelly

We had a great experience the first time we visited Venice and it's really colored my perceptions. Two girlfriends and I took the train from Florence, and it was misting when we arrived.

We stayed in Dorsoduro on the border of Santa Croce. While of course we hit San Marco and Rialto and environs, it's the tiny piazze and bridges that are Venice to me. Getting out of the tourist hordes and exploring the Jewish Ghetto--fantastic. Hanging out and mingling with grad students at the university at a tiny bar near Piazza Santa Margherita.

Another time I mistakenly timed our visit with Carnivale. Hectic to say the least, but also incredible: the costumes, the parties we could see up in the various apartments.

Rome is my favorite destination in Italy, but Venice has its own sweetness.

Grazie!

Kelly 1212,

I just checked out Locando Orseolo's website and it may be worth a splurge. Having breakfast while viewing the gondolas skimming on the Orseolo canal sounds too enticing to pass up. Thx for the recommendation.
Question: did you visit any of the coastal towns (Cinque Terre or Amalfi Coast) or just concentrate in the places you mentioned?

Grazie!

I don't like Venice as much as other places in Italy, but I would never say the verb "hate" :) It's a wonderful place I happened to visit in August with a heat wave and high humidity. And it was absolutely crowded, you had to wait in line to cross the little bridges :) So that's why my vision of it it's not as good but I'm sure that in better conditions I would have enjoyed it because it's a charming place, like if the time has stopped there. What I know for sure it's that like it or not, it's a unique place that you cannot see anything similar round the world.

"How can anyone hate Venice???!! "

As someone who now loves Venice, I can answer that.

The first time we visited Venice, I despised it. I hated the pigeons, the crowds, the tacky post card displays, and all I wanted to do was leave. I called it "Disneyland on Speed."

But I forgot to do something on that trip, which I did on our next trip that changed my mind about Venice...we spent the night there.

On our trip in 2001, we spent a few evenings in Venice, and I started to see the charm of it. All of a sudden, circumventing the narrow alleys and passageways was magical. The city had an aura that it did not possess on that first daytrip.

Now, I can overlook the crowds and see a Venice I did not see on my first trip (well except for those damn pigeons...pigeon crap ius still not very romantic to me). I hope we return again some day.

On our last trip, it rained extremely hard our final day, but we had a blast just walking, ducking into shops, drinking grappa and coffee to warm up, and just loving the ambiance. Outside of Paris, there are not a lot of places I can enjoy on vacation when it pours. Venice is one of them.

I don't think you can describe Venice to someone, because to everyone it is different.

By the way, we loved our hotel, La Calcina, on our last visit. Price is right and so is the location on Dorsoduro.

Walk the city. Enjoy the city. Ride on the canals. Take a too-expensive gondola ride. Savor the night. Have a sgroppino after dinner. I think you'll love it (Venice and the sgroppino)!
((H))

Also loved Venice. Went 5 years ago and have been wanting to go back since I left. Finally getting back there in 2 weeks!

Stayed (and staying again) at La Calcina in Dorsoduro. Nothing beats their dock on the Guidecca Canal where you can have breakfast and then sip a Prosecco after a long day of walking.

I CAN'T WAIT!

Donna

Venice is unique; it is the place of which it is often said "there is nothing like it in the world". And it's different from the rest of Italy. So it's not surprising that some people would not like Venice.

But I think Maitaitom hit it right on the nail---people who go just for a daytrip, an afternoon or so in the summertime, often end up not liking Venice. It is hot, very crowded, and difficult to see its wonders. I think one's love in Venice is generally in direct proportion to the time spent there, as well as to how much you learn about it, particularly the history, before you go. The place is truly amazing---built on millions of tree trunks pounded into the mud of the lagoon. Before our 5-day trip there in 2003, we tried to tackle John Norwich's 650+ page tome, the History of Venice. Very well written, but it takes some time. I would suggest you choose something shorter, like the Traveler's History of Venice. Or anything---just learn. A list of the literary figures who lived or spent time there reads like a "Who's Who's"---Dante, Goether, Byron, Ruskin, Henry James, Hemingway, Mark Twain, Ezra Pound. . . .

Yes, it is expensive, and maybe great food is not as easy to find as elsewhere in Italy. But who cares? It is, as you suspect, full of romance and mystery. Magical, really. October should be a great time to go---just be sure to spend some time, more than a day. Five days were not nearly enough for us. Have a wonderful time.

I'm getting goosebumps reading all your posts....I want to go to Venice NOW!

Thank you all for your beautiful insight and for sharing your experiences.

Keep 'um coming....

The first two days of the first visit I did not care for it--chaos at the garage/drop off point, water taxi "barkers" looking for business, not being able to find our lodging "steps from San Marco" , crowded, hot, etc. etc. By the morning we left, on our soothing morning gondola ride, I'd gotten it and determined then and there to come back and experience it differently. We did, staying for a week at Locanda Orseolo (where I return in June and we return in September) and it was wonderful for all the reasons people give here--we walked, and walked, and walked, but away from the crowded areas and daytrippers; in addition I went to San Marco around 6 a.m. after our first night there and it was beautiful, and very serene.

I neglected to mention an important aspect of the charm of Venice, for us---no cars. No traffic noise, no dodging Vespas, nothing. Just inviting passageways to wander, once you get away from the crowded San Marco area. It's the perfect walking city.

Oh yeah. Be sure to buy a cat puppet. I really don't want to be the only one!
((H))

<< If you feel strongly one way or the other, please tell me why. >>

After countless visits to Europe, our nights at the Locanda Orseola stand out above all others.

Our stay in Venice was completely void of the sound of cars and mopeds.

Waking up to the sound of church bells, then walking through Piazza San Marco in the wee hours and <b><i>having the entire square to ourselves </i></b> was priceless.

I would go back in a heartbeat.

Woody

Venice was far from my favorite and at one point I did indeed hate it. I don't now, though. It is just not my cup of tea. Perhaps someday I will return under different circumstances, but for now, it is no longer on my list of places to visit and has not moved to the &quot;places to return to&quot; list. I have gone into detail in other posts, but in short the people were rude (though there were exceptions), everything seemed insanely overpriced, and I just did not enjoy much about it.

Love, love, love it!

1st visit: Years ago, teenager, summer, w/ my mom and one of my older brothers. Stayed near San Marco and did the tourist sites and ate at some tourisy places, but also explored out of the way squares, ate at out of the way places and roamed around at night. Smoked cigarettes and imagined I was so much cooler than I probably was. Bought a glass necklace I still have and a little watercolor that hangs now in my bathroom. Loved Venice.

2nd visit: About 4 years ago w/ now-ex husband, but Venice had nothing to do w/ that! Stayed in Canareggio (casamartini.it, just a lovely little place!) near the Jewish Ghetto. Explored different neighborhoods, ate at places our hosts recommended (fun local places I could never find again!)skipped the main sights but went to many churches and cafes. Listened to some good music, drank prosecco, ate well. Bought another glass necklace and a little watercolor that also hangs in my bathroom. Still loved Venice, even more.

3rd visit: Just last spring, w/ a couple great friends, part of a &quot;significant&quot; birthday trip. Stayed in Dorsoduro (Ca'Turelli B&amp;B, book it through veniceby.com) and totally enjoyed our quiet neighborhood, shopped for glass jewelry (once again!), lit candles at every Madonna in every church we could find (hey, it can't hurt!) drank tons of prosecco, flirted shamelessly and wandered endlessly. Friends bought me the watercolor this time. Still loved Venice.

By the way, one of these friends was NOT looking forward to the Venice part of the trip but decided to come anyway (after promising not to complain). Turns out she had not liked it at all on a previous trip. This time...she loved it! Once again, staying a few nights and not day-tripping made the difference.

Venice is magical in many ways. So much so that my current novel is set in Venice, in the 15th Century. It is also the place I began collecting authentic (paper mache) venetian masks. I buy from a little shop way off the beaten path.

Everytime I visit I see something new and discover more wonderful mysteries and treasures of this beautiful city.

Hi adventureseeker ~
This thread may interest you:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34604835

Additionally, you may want to peruse the Venice section of our trip report:
http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34758287

We are among the “love it” travelers, a truly unique, magical and enchanting experience for which we will always be grateful.
Enjoy, enjoy! Tiff

love, Love, LOVE Venice!

We were there for the first time last fall, and now I know what people mean when they say the've &quot;fallen in love&quot; with a certain place.

Yes, it was crowded with tourists, and yes, the pigeons in Piazza San Marco are a little freaky, but it is so worth visiting.

Of course everything is overpriced, but where else can you take a Gondola ride, or sit (or dance) in the square listening to the cafe orchestra? It's unlike any other city, and there are so many things you can only do in Venice. Oh, also try to catch a Vivaldi concert if you can -- the one we went to was pretty cheap and absolutely beautiful.

We stayed at the Hotel Novecento, which I believe is near San Maurizio (?? I may be way off). The room was teeny, but the whole place was gorgeous.

Enjoy your trip!

I will try to tie my comments to the original poster's situation:

1. The people who hate Venice only visit it once, presumably. The people who love it are often return travelers.

Once you get off the Train station-Rialto-San Marco treadmill, Venice is a different city. First time visitors want to cover the big sights and never explore the byways, I will wager.

What crowds are there at San Giorgio Maggiore...or on the fondamente of Giudecca...or down the Canareggio canal...or in the totally overlooked civic museums...

Yes it is horrible to be shuffling among crowds of tourists. But there is no reason to do so -- or at least there are plenty of means of escape.

Often, however, it takes more than one visit to discover how much more there is to Venice than what the guide-books prescribe in their top 10 list.

2. We just returned from a week there (March 8-15). Off season travel is the only way to see Venice, IMO. You will be there in October and the crowds will have abated somewhat. (Dodgy weather in October, though)

3. Restaurants are over-priced -- yes, they are. So too perhaps are hotels. We solved both by renting a great apartment (in a rather unconventional location) and had the occasional meal in.

My brother and his wife were staying on Giudecca in their usual apartment, so we asked them to dine. Shopping at the local CoOp supermarket (5 doors away) we gathered together the makings of a fine meal of local ingredients:
Prosecco and white Friuli wine; an arugula-rich salad topped with seafood and salty feta cheese; pre-assembled brochettes (spiedi, in Italian) of chicken, sausage, eggplant and peperoncini; and a rich meringue torte.

You see, the picture changes entirely when you:
Go off-season,
live like a local,
avoid the crowds,
are independent of others.

Not for everyone, I admit.

By the way, our large, modernized apartment with beamed ceilings, skylights, 2 pristine bathrooms and a view of (the funky far-end of) the Grand Canal cost us 88E per night, for a 1 week rental. So how is Venice over-priced........

Hi A,

As noted, those who don't care for Venice are usually (not always) those who see it as a daytrip in the season.

There are some who, never having smelled the ocean, think that it smells bad.

There are some, who not having done enough reserch, think that it is an overpriced tourist trap.

I think it was Truman Capote who described Venice as a box of bon-bons. If you try to eat them all at once, you'll get sick. :)

Venice should be savored slowly.

((I))

donnapq: We too are returning to Venice and La Calcina, we'll be there April 17, 18,19. And you?

I am not a person who relaxes well. I would despise spending a week at a beach resort and would get &quot;stir crazy&quot;. My idea of relaxing is not sitting around doing nothing or reading a book.

We had been to Venice twice for three nights each when two years ago we decided to rent an apartment for a week in Dosoduro. We had done all the usual museums and attractions with the exception of the Peggy Guggenheim, so that was our only real &quot;must do&quot; this trip. We passed by that museum every day.

During the week, we seemingly &quot;did nothing&quot;. Well, we did hop on lot of boats with our passes and ride the canals. And we did a couple last minute day trips out -- to Chioggia, to Padua, and to Asolo. And we walked. It seemed we poked our heads in every tiny squre in the entire city. We stopped at umpteen cafes and little bars. But basically we didn't &quot;DO&quot; anything. The day we left it suddenly hit us that we hadn't gone to the Peggy Guggenheim. There just hadn't been enough &quot;time&quot;. Huh? Guess what. I had relaxed. It was one of the most laid back and relaxing weeks I've ever spent. And now I really do love Venice.

We're renting another apartment for a week there this June. Now if we can just manage to squeeze in the Peggy Guggenheim. . .

Peggyann: We will be in Venice the 12th thru the 15th.

The 17th we'll be in ROme.

Have a wonderful time!

I, too, am one who loved Venice. On our (DH and I) only trip to Italy, we visited Rome, Florence and Venice, in that order. Many people asked us which city we liked the most, and we really couldn't pick one we liked best. They were all so different and distinctive and we loved them all; our only complaint was lack of time! Several months would have been an improvement over less than 2 weeks.

After the hectic hustle and bustle of Rome and, to a lesser degree, Florence, Venice was a gorgeous breath of fresh air! Prettified, yes, but not Disney-esque to me--more of a &quot;let's attract the tourists&quot; kind of feeling, but not in a bad way. The lack of motorized vehicles is quietly pleasant, and it was fun to notice the non-motorized way of doing ordinary city things--business deliveries, police, buses--all on boats! Such a change from everywhere else. I can hardly wait to go back and spend more time there. And if I absolutely, positively had to choose one of the three cities we visited to go back to, it would be Venice. (But maybe that's just because we spent more time in Rome and Florence.)

I do recommend visiting Venice last for Italy first-timers &quot;doing the big three.&quot; Venice really provides a relaxing conclusion to what may be an overwhelming visit.

By the way, we had a lovely canal-view (small canal) room at the Hotel Mercurio
at 110 Euro/night in June, which was half price in 2004; it's near the opera house, La Fenice, and I believe the discount was related to a drop in business experienced while La Fenice was being rebuilt. Very romantic for our anniversary trip!

I'm another who loves Venice. (Venice haters don't do well on this board ;) )

If you're the kind of traveler who must tick off &quot;to do&quot; lists on an itinerary, Venice may not be for you. Most agree what they liked best in Venice was &quot;getting lost.&quot; See the sights, but make sure to experience the city and the magic it holds.

By all accounts, a splurge at Locanda Orseolo is well worth the money (and not all that outrageous). We stayed at the Pensione Accademia in Dorsorduro not far from La Calcina. It was a great location and I thought it was &quot;nice.&quot;

One restaurant I'm sorry we missed was Avogaria. We passed it one day by accident. It looked wonderful (very modern which is unusual in Venice) and then we couldn't find it again. Others here have mentioned it since and said it was very good. The other place I'm anxious to try on my next trip is the Riviera, in Dorsoduro on the water.

I neither loved nor hated Venice on my only trip there two years ago. I had the same question before I went, having read all the many opinions.

I did have a wonderful time. I really liked the food, for instance. Wonderful risotto and seafood. And I had not expected the seacoast feel of the air and the quality of the light in the mist. We were there in March, and there were no real crowds except in the Peggy Guggenheim Museum, which was too mobbed with school groups to enjoy.

The effect of the lack of cars was very peaceful and other-worldly. The most vivid sound was the church bells.

On the other hand, it was indeed very expensive. Meals especially. A friendly shopkeeper with whom we chatted said that everything is about 30% higher in Venice than in other major Italian cities, which seemed about right to me.

And there just wasn't as much vibrancy as I like in cities such as Rome, Paris, London, New York. After dark, the streets were deserted. At least when we were there in early March, there were no dueling orchestras in the Piazza San Marco. There were the several groups giving regular concerts of Vivaldi and other chamber music, and there is the opera, which had just reopened when we visited, but other than that I didn't see much evidence of an active cultural scene. It could be there, but it didn't jump out at us as it has in the other cities I named.

This did not by any means spoil my enjoyment of Venice, but it does mean that I don't have the urge to go back continually. I don't have the feeling of endless things to do that would make repeated trips exciting. I would definitely include it on a trip such as the one the OP plans, and I am really glad I went there.

I think Venice is a place you have to at least visit once in your life because it is so unique. I was there for a few days several years ago and was not overly impressed - the water seems quite polluted and the city also somewhat dirty. And of course, toursits are swarming everywhere. I enjoyed the region of Liguria and the seaside much more. Enjoy your trip!

Another big GRAZIE to all of you for sharing! I can't even begin to express my gratitude to all of you for helping us make this the trip of a lifetime for us. Originally, it was looking like only 2 nights in Venice, but now it's up to 4....and counting!

to: Michigandra....excellent advice about saving Venice for last. I was thinking about that being the first leg to ease into the adventure after jet lag from traveling from Los Angeles. You're right, Venice seems like the perfect ending and a magical time to reflect before we get back to reality!

Just a comment on the &quot;uniqueness&quot; of Venice. Ever notice how many other places try to capitalize on the idea -- Little Venice in London, ________, the Venice of _________, etc. Are they kidding? Nothing else can even begin to compare to it.

Love it, because it *is* mysterious and romantic. check with www.lacalcina.com but contact them early it is deservedly a very popular hotel.

I've told very (too?) often on Fodor's that all my visits over the last 16 years summed up, I've spent at least six, maybe rather eight months in Venice, so you can guess that I'm loving it... And still now, I'm far from knowing the entire city with her incredible wealth of art and architecture. No other place, except for Rome and Istanbul, has so many sights (and of such a high quality).
Many brillant thoughts on Venice have already been expressed on this thread... let me add my two cents:
- Yes, it IS expensive. But if you have just once carried home a few bottles of mineral water in Venice, you can guess why! Just imagine how much shlepping is necessary for maintaining a modern city's life in that medieval shell! If you think about it, you'll not find it sooo overpriced.
- It is absolutely correct that the most important part of a visit to Venice is the night. From dusk till dawn, you can enjoy the city even more than by day: no crowds at all, Venice is yours.
- No hotel in Venice, splendid as it may be, has any chance to be booked by me. Over the years, I've discovered that much of the fun is living in an apartment, as one of the previous posters has pointed out. This is due to the fact that the restaurants of Venice are on average among the worst in Italy, and even the few happy exceptions would hardly stand out anywhere else in that country, or wouldn't at least be numbered among the best. Having your own kitchen in your own apartment, however, you can prepare some meals at home - but please, don't buy the ingredients at the Coop supermarket!!!!! The markets at Rialto are among the best markets in Italy (in fact, they are quite certainly the best of all), and you can get incredible fish and incredible vegetables there - Venice is growing her own vegetables on two islands of the laguna, and you've hardly ever or anywhere tasted vegetables as good as those. (Btw, you can easily find out WHICH apartment I'm renting whenever it's available if you click on my name and browse my posts - sorry, I simply find it embarassing to advertise that apartment on Fodor's twice a day!)
- To enjoy Venice most, it is absolutely necessary that you speak some Italian. That's kind of a paradox, as there is certainly no other place in Italy where so many locals speak so many foreign languages; it's not a necessity, thus, for communication. But it's a necessity to overcome the locals' somewhat uneasy attitude towards tourists (since of course there are too many of them for that town of merely 70.000 inhabitants). If the Venetians have been described as &quot;rude&quot; here, that's often true if you come in and speak English (or German, or French, or whatever), which will also lower the willingness to speak English (or French, or German) with you. But step into the same shop, the same bar, the same restaurant and just say a few words of Italian, and you'll be met with friendliness, and with good to excellent English (German, French). I don't say that you should be able to discuss cognitive science or string theory in Italian - it's just enough to say &quot;buon giorno&quot; instead of &quot;hello&quot;, or &quot;due caff&eacute;&quot; instead of &quot;two espressos&quot; (btw, nobody would order &quot;espresso&quot; in Italian, the proper word is &quot;caff&eacute; liscio&quot;), or &quot;grazie&quot; instead of &quot;thanks&quot; - the rest of the conversation might, and will be in English, no problem. It's merely a question of politeness, in Venice more so than anywhere else in Italy...

And don't wait any longer with your apartment (or hotel) booking! It's already LATE to secure a fine accomodation for October.

adventureseeker, we are also going to be in Venice in October. We have reservations at La Calcina, based on suggestions from the wonderful Fodorites. I was hesitant about Venice until I read several books, including &quot;Miss Garnet's Angel&quot; and &quot;The City of Falling Angels&quot;. They sparked my interest in a way I did not expect.

Hi Ad,

&gt;...I was thinking about [Venice] being the first leg to ease into the adventure after jet lag from traveling from Los Angeles.&lt;

I would stay with that plan. You not only get over jet lag, but you ease into the Italian way of doing things before getting into the more hectic cities.

((I))

I started travelling to Europe three years ago, and have visited Venice twice for five days each.

Venice is a state of mind, and I could return to her every year.

It rained a lot in the Vancouver area in March and so I indulged in a Venetian themed reading binge:

&quot;What Casanova Told Me&quot;, Susan Swan

&quot;Venice&quot;, Jan Morris

&quot;A Thousand Days in Venice&quot;, Marlina de Blasi

&quot;Venice Observed&quot;, Mary McCarthy

I enjoyed them all but Jan Morris' &quot;Venice&quot; beautifully explained what the city is all about.

On making Venice your last top in Italy...

I can't think of anything more cruel to do to yourself...Leaving Venice is hard enough on it's own but to have to also return from vacation the same day?

I am really enjoying the thoughts expressed on this thread. Thank you, adventureseeker, for starting it! It is adding to the anticipation of our first visit to Venice in October!

I'm another that has no love or no hate. I do feel it is magical beauty and not so much natural in any sense.

This book is the best I've come across so far with the feel of real 1529-1550 era Venice at its peak. It gives you another glance at this &quot;two-tiered&quot; city and the essence of its cultural and social structure.

&quot;Loredana: A Venetian Tale&quot; by Lauro Martines

I've read all of the above and this one gives me another whole level of understanding re customs, masques, balls etc.

Just one comment regarding the &quot;expense&quot; of Venice. Everything must be brought in by boat, and takes more time, and more effort, and more manual labor, than if the city was located on terra firma.

Any of you who have either taken a gondola ride, or observed the boats, have noticed the gondolas piled high with cases of bottled water, soda, crates of vegies, etc., making their way down canals to their destination. I've also seen gondolas carrying stacks of plastic wrapped freshly cleaned linens being delivered to hotels. It takes so much longer to get deliveries, as they have to do them in tiny trips all day long.

I lived in St. Thomas, in the USVI, for 5 years and everything was much higher there, especially food. It wasn't because it was a resort, or vacation destination. It was because everything was delivered either by boat or plane, and the delivery costs jacked the retail prices up accordingly.

So, knowing this, and having had numerous conversations with shopkeepers and hoteliers on the island, I understand more why the pricing is so high. I consider it the &quot;gate fee toll&quot; to paradise and pay the higher prices for the privilege.

There is one exception, however. After one Belini at Harry's, I figured I had experienced what I had gone there for, and in all the many trips back have not bellied up to that bar again to pay an exorbitant fee for champagn, peach schnapps and a splash of grenadine. :-)

Venice is not cheap, I admit, but I did not find the prices that ridiculous. Grocery store prices did not seem absurd. Restaurants on the main tourist drag around the most expensive, exclusive shops are definitely expensive, but restaurants elsewhere are not necessarily so.

In the off-season, hotel prices can be ridiculously cheap for what you get. I had a beautiful ensuite room in a nice 3* hotel for less than 48 Euros per night in December 2004. The admission prices are not out of line, considering the antiquity of the buildings and the cost to maintain them.