cim

I'm getting more confused with each web site I visit.
I will be in Venice for 3 days at the end of May 2011. I would like to know what "Passes" I should purchase. The Museum Pass, San Marco Plus, Secret Itineraries to name a few. Also transport, should I purchase a 72 vaporette pass or do I take the Alilaguna from my hotel which is in Piazzale Roma to the various sites. This is my first visit and probably the only one, I don't want to get back home and realise I had missed something wonderful.

ellenem

The Alilaguna is for connecting to the airport or cruise port. To get around Venice during you stay, you will walk or take a vaporetto--local water bus. The 72-hour pass might be appropriate for you.

The museum passes all depend on what you plan to do and see. The Secret Itineraries Tour is not a pass, but an additional tour at the Doge's Palace that you might opt to take--it requires an additional fee on top of the palace ticket or pass.

You can purchase passes at a discount rate at www.veniceconnected.com.

birder50

Cim, I contacted the B&B we're staying at regarding this question and she thought it was unnecessary to get a transportation pass. She recommended waiting to get the ticket for the airport to Venice (Alilaguna) until we got there and only getting a vaporetto (water bus) for 12 hours if we decide to go out the islands once we get there as well. "The city is very small and most people like to walk so they can see everything." Hope that's helpful to you.

qwovadis

www.eurocheapo.com Venezia

best budget city guide explaining all options.

Church pass good value if you like art 80 churches 8 euro

Most of the rest bad value better for me to walk a lot

and go a la carte unless you want to get ripped off.

You can book free glass blowing tours to visit Murano

cool private boat ride best way to get out to other islands.

Vaporetto pass generally poor value unless using relentlessly.

Go to tourist areas very early in the morning like 8AM

for best experience amazing uncrowded then go off the

beaten path when buses/crowds arrive.

I love Venice it is magical if you do careful research.

Easy to get tourist trapped though if you do not

why many on short touristy stays are not impressed.

Have fun,

missyb

qwovadis, you say you may book free glass blowing tours to visit Murano; do you have any recommendations as how and where to book these?

ellenem

Most hotels have a connection with a company that does these tours.Typical is a trip by private boat to the Murano factory, a demonstration followed by a sales pitch, and then you're on your own to get back to the main island via vaporetto.

annhig

i would respectfully disagree with the above re the vaporetto pass. currently, each ticket costs €6.50. you have only to do 2-3 trips a day to get back the cost of the cards which are presently as follows:

16,00 € - 12-HOUR TRAVELCARD
18,00 € - 24-HOUR TRAVELCARD
23,00 € - 36-HOUR TRAVELCARD
28,00 € - 48-HOUR TRAVELCARD
33,00 € - 72-HOUR TRAVELCARD
50,00 € - 7 DAYS TRAVELCARD

[taken from the ACTV website].

and yes, Venice is an eminently walkable city, but you can walk further for longer if you know that you can get the vaporetto back without its costing a fortune.

it may help if I explain a couple of days we spent there on our last trip:

day 1 - from the rialto [where we were staying] we walked up to the fondamente nuove if you have time, pop into the near-by jesuiti church and see the marble curtains!] and got the boat to Burano. then we hopped over to Torcello on the ferry for lunch. when we came back to burano, we got the ferry back to Murano, walked round and went to the glass museum, and then got the boat back to Venice, but went all the way round to the giardino stop, where we got off and walked back to San marco. the rough costs would be about €30 pp.

Day 2 - we got the vaporetto down the grand canal to san marco, then got the boat to santa maria della salute. From there, we walked along the zattere, and got a boat to the guidecca, then another to the isolo di san giorgio, where there is a campanile as good as that in the piazza san marco, but with far fewer people. from there, we went back to the zattere, and then via san marco, got a boat back up the grand canal. again if we had used individual tickets, it would have cost us about €30 each.

ok, you might not do all that on a first visit. but using the boats does allow you to explore more without worrying about getting a ticket each time.

PS - in a 72 hour 1st trip, you probably won't have time to see enough churches to warrant getting a "chorus" pass.

CarrieAnn40

I'd like to get a return ticket from Marco Polo airport to Rialto on the Alilaguna but I'm getting confused as to how - the information on which boat I need isn't as clear as it could be. Please could someone clarify the route.

At some point I will probably get a vaporetto pass which I understand I can get from the Rialto vaporetto stop? If there is a bit of a wait for the Alilaguna at the airport can I pick up my vaporetto ticket there.

I presume both tickets can be either cash or plastic?

Thanks.

cathies

We had three days in Venice and bought the 24 hour vaporetto pass. We used it to visit Burano which we loved and then to go up and down the Grand Canal a few times as well as other shorter trips. I think the 12 hour one would be a waste of money especially if it's only a 2 euro difference in price.

You can also catch a traghetto which is like a gondola and travels from one side of the Grand Canal to the other. It was 50 euro cents in 2008 and great fun. The locals stand but the men working the boat made us sit down. I guess they aren't keen on tourists pitching head first into the canal.

gwan

I'm usually quite suspicious of passes working out as value for money, but I was glad to have a vaporetto pass in Venice. Even though I am a big walker, it was great, as someone said, to have the option to hop on a vaporetto without thinking twice when I got tired (and it did get exhausting trying to pack a lot in to a short trip) plus I also wanted to take several trips up and down the Grand Canal to take photos in the daytime and at night. I got the Rolling Venice pass, I can't remember the exact costs sorry, but from memory I think it was about 24 euros for a 72-hour transport pass (which covered the bus to and from the airport as well as the vaporetto) and it gave some discounts which I didn't use very much. This is the discounted price for being under ?? 30 I think.

annhig

yes, you can buy the alilaguna ticket from the ticket office at the airport, and the vaporetto pass too.

or you can order it on-line to pick up from the information office [straight ahead as you come out of the customs hall] at a discount i think.

zoecat

You should buy a vaporetto pass to cover 3 days. The pass will also cover the cost of the bus from the airport to P. Roma, where your hotel is located.

As ellenem mentioned, use the veniceconnected.com website to purchase your pass ahead of time for a nice discount. Before you purchase, be sure to notify your credit card company that you will be making a purchase in Italy (call the 800# on the back of the card). You will pick up the pass at the airport desk (easy to find). The bus leaves the airport just outside the airport terminal doors. The ride takes 20 minutes to reach P. Roma.

This is a great site for up to date information on Venice (and passes)-

http://livingveniceblog.com/2010/11/...ced-four-days/

cim

Fantastic information, thanks to everyone. I have decided to purchase the 72 hour transport pass but still not sure if I should purchase the museum pass. Just one other question; if this pass covers the ride from the airport how will I know which bus goes to P Roma?

zoecat

The ACTV bus #5 is the bus covered by the pass that will get you to P Roma. The route number and destination are shown on an LED display on the front of the bus. If you forget, just ask at the desk when you pick up your passes. The bus is easy to find- just walk out the airport doors and you will see where buses stop along the curb.

annhig

CIM - how keen are you on museums? if you like them, then the pass, even if it doesn't save you much money, is great because it gets you in without the queues.

and on a short trip, that's worth its weight in gold, IMHO.

believe me - when you get to the P/Roma, you'll know. it's a huge bus station, surrounded by modern buildings on 3 sides and on the 4th? - Venice!

gwan

Even though I knew which bus to take from the airport, I personally found all the different buses confusing and had to ask someone where to go (didn't help that it was night and raining). Turn left out of the doors for the #5 bus and then after that, yeah, you should be able to see pretty easily where the stop is.

annhig

yes gwan, the ACTV bus stop is to the left; the ATVO one is straight ahead.

At P'Roma, the ACTV bus stop is towards the front of the buses, on the left with the grand canal behind you; the ATVO stop is right at the back of the bus station, past all the other buses.

kismetchimera

I will be in Venice only for two days traveling by train from Rome and will arrive in Venice around 1PM.

My Pensione is near the Rialto Bridge.

My question is what type of transportation pass I need to buy for only two days, also I need the Aliguna pass to get to the airport for my flight to Dubrovnik.

I was in Venice many years ago but I am not familiar with that city.

Thanks..
AnnaMaria