78 Best Sights in Venice, Italy

Most hotels on the Lido have access to charming beach clubs with cabanas, striped umbrellas, and chaise longues—all of which are often available for nonguests to use for a fee. On either end of the long barrier island, the public beaches offer a more rustic but still delightful setting for nature lovers to dig their toes in the sand. Amenities: food and drink; lifeguards; showers; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking.

Venice is the only major Italian city without an ancient past, yet it hosts a collection of ancient art that rivals those in Rome and Naples. The small museum housing this collection was first established in 1596, when the heirs of Cardinal Domenico Grimani—a noted humanist who had left his collection of original Greek (5th–1st centuries BC) and Roman antiquities to the Republic—inaugurated the historical artworks in Sansovino's then recently completed library in Piazza San Marco. You can see part of the collection, displayed just as Grimani (or at least his immediate heirs) had conceived it, in the vestibule of the Libreria Sansoviniana, which the museum shares with the Biblioteca Marciana. Highlights in the rest of the museum include the statue of Kore (420 BC); the 1st-century BC Ara Grimani, an elaborate Hellenistic altar stone with a bacchanalian scene; and a tiny but refined 1st-century BC crystal woman's head, which some say depicts Cleopatra. When you arrive, scan the QR code to get a handy museum guide on your phone.

Here's the place to marvel at the intricacies of Burano's lace making. The lace-making museum will likely continue to host a "sewing circle" of sorts, where on most weekdays you can watch local women carrying on the tradition. They may have authentic pieces for sale privately.

Home to the Burano Lace School from 1872 to 1970, the palace of Podestà of Torcello now houses a museum dedicated to the craft for which this island is known. Detailed explanations of the manufacturing process and Burano's distinctive history as a lace-making capital provide insight into displays that showcase everything from black Venetian Carnival capes to fingerless, elbow-length “mitten gloves” fashionable in 17th-century France. Portraits of Venice’s aristocracy as well as embroidered silk and brocade gowns with lace embellishments provide greater societal context on the historical use of lace in European fashion. You can also watch interesting lace-making demonstrations.

Although the collection leaves out some important periods, glassmakers, and styles, it is still the best way to get an overview of Venetian glassmaking through the ages. You can see an exhibition on the history of glass, along with a chance to review authentic Venetian styles, patterns, and works by some famous glassmakers. Don't miss the famous Barovier wedding cup from around 1470.

The "dispersed museum" comprises three of the Ghetto's five synagogues (the 16th-century Tedesca, Canton, and Italiana) plus a compact, well-arranged museum that highlights centuries of Venetian Jewish culture. Among the artifacts on display are splendid silver Hanukkah lamps and Torahs, beautifully decorated wedding contracts handwritten in Hebrew, and an important library. The recently created and wonderful Giardino Segreto della Scuola Spagnola, a secret garden with rich plant life and a sukkah, is also open to the public occasionally. Tours of the Ghetto and its synagogues in Italian and English leave from the museum hourly.

Easy to miss despite its vicinity to Piazza San Marco, this Renaissance-Gothic palace is accessible only through a narrow backstreet that connects Campo Manin with Calle dei Fuseri. Built around 1500 for the renowned Contarini family, its striking six-floor spiral staircase, the Scala Contarini del Bovolo (bovolo means "snail" in Venetian dialect), is the most interesting aspect of the palazzo. You can start the climb up the 133 stairs every half hour between 9:30 am and 5:30 pm from late October to late February and 10 am to 6 pm from late February to late October (online booking recommended). Though there's not much to see inside the palazzo itself, except for a limited art collection including one work by Tintoretto, the views of Venice from the top of the staircase are worth a look.

A connoisseur's delight, the art collection at this late-16th-century palace includes Giovanni Bellini's Presentation in the Temple and Sebastiano Ricci's triptych Dawn, Afternoon, and Evening. Portraits of newlyweds Francesco Querini and Paola Priuli were left unfinished on the death of Palma Vecchio (1480–1528); note the groom's hand and the bride's dress. Original 18th-century furniture and stuccowork are a fitting background for Pietro Longhi's portraits. Nearly 70 works by Gabriele Bella (1730–99) capture scenes of Venetian street life; the Collezione Intesa Sanpaolo section spans the centuries from Tintoretto canvasses to sinewy modernist Alberto Viani sculptures; there's a contemporary art collection, too, plus a downstairs café. The entrance hall and the small, charming rear garden were designed by famous Venetian architect Carlo Scarpa during the 1950s.

Officially titled San Giacomo Apostolo, but affectionately nicknamed San Giacometto ("Little Saint James"), this is one of the three oldest churches in Venice. Legend says its establishment coincides with the mythic date of Venice's founding on March 25, 421, but in fact it was first mentioned in documents in 1152. It's a tiny Romanesque jewel in Greek-cross form that miraculously survived the conflagration that leveled much of the Rialto area in 1514. The porch (15th century) is supported by five Veneto-Byzantine columns of Greek marble dating from when the church was built. The impressive clock (mid-15th century) above the entrance, marked in 24 hours, governed the market's opening and closing times. The bell gable (1792) was installed to replace the tower damaged in the disastrous fire of 1514; its economical but perfectly functional style is seen on several other churches in Venice. Concerts are often given here.

Storefronts make up the facade, and market guilds—poulterers, messengers, and fodder merchants—built the altars at this church intimately bound to the Rialto markets. The original church was completely destroyed by a fire in 1514 and rebuilt in 1531 by Scarpagnino, who had also worked on the Scuola di San Rocco. During a more recent restoration, workers stumbled upon a frescoed cupola by Pordenone (1484–1539) that had been painted over centuries earlier. Don't miss Titian's St. John the Almsgiver and Pordenone's Sts. Catherine, Sebastian, and Roch.

Officially named "San Nicola da Tolentino," Vincenzo Scamozzi's baroque building (1602; facade 1714 by Andrea Tirali) is named for St. Nicholas as venerated in the town of Tolentino in the Marche region of Italy. A black cannonball is stuck into the wall just to the right of the front door as you enter the church; this is a relic of the Austrian bombardment during the failed Venetian uprising in 1848. It didn't land here by itself, but was placed here as a memorial; an identical cannonball is on the facade of the church of San Salvador. It has a squad of doges' tombs: Giovanni I Cornaro (d. 1629), his son Francesco Cornaro (d. 1656), Giovanni II Cornaro (d. 1722), and Paolo Renier (d. 1789). The adjoining monastery now serves as a branch of IUAV, the University of Architecture.

San Nicolò is one of the oldest churches in Venice (7th century), though the present building dates from 1300, and the covered porch was added in the 15th century. It was dedicated to the patron saint of sailors and fishermen. "Mendicoli" might refer to its earliest neighbors ("mendici," or beggars), or to "mendigola," the original name of the little island on which it stands. Under the Venetian Republic, the inhabitants of this area were categorically called "Nicolotti" (those from the easternmost part of Venice were "Castellani") and granted many special privileges by the doge. They elected their own "doge" in this church, and he was allowed, among other things, to follow directly behind the doge's barge on the Feast of the Ascension.

The church interior always seems a little dark, despite an unusual amount of gold leaf, not only on the picture frames but under the arches of the stone columns. You'll notice the classic three-nave Roman basilica design, and that the walls are covered with paintings, many by artists of the school of Veronese. The round painting by Francesco Montemezzano of St. Nicholas in Glory in the center of the ceiling may well be one of the most chaotic scenes of its type ever created. The imposing gilt wooden statue of St. Nicholas in the niche above the high altar is from the mid-15th century. Parts of the classic horror film Don't Look Now (1973) were filmed here.

Built in 1738 by Giovanni Antonio Scalfarotto, this neoclassical behemoth is the first thing you see when you exit the train station. It makes a breathtaking first impression, though it's obvious that its proportions are very unbalanced. When Napoléon saw it, he famously quipped, "I've seen churches with domes before, but this is the first time I've seen a dome with a church." It is open daily but only for mass at 11 am, conducted in Latin according to the Roman ritual. It is under the care of FSSP (Fraternità Sacerdotale San Pietro), a missionary confraternity of priests.

The "little scuola" of the shoemakers—also known as the Scoletta of Sant' Aniano—conducted its affairs in its headquarters in this charming building on Campo San Tomà. It is now used for community meetings and lectures open to the public, as well as small exhibitions. Most notable is the relief carving (Pietro Lombardo, 1478) above the main door that vividly portrays San Marco miraculously healing Aniano, a poor shoemaker and the scuola's patron saint. The story goes that San Marco had arrived in Alexandria, Egypt, and was directed by the archangel Michael to go to Aniano to fix his broken sandal. He found the shoemaker in terrible pain from having injured himself with one of his tools. Marco preached the gospel to him, and then created a substance by mixing his saliva with dust from the road that healed the injury immediately. Aniano converted to Christianity and was baptized by Marco himself.

The charming rose-colored building tucked beside the church of San Stae was the headquarters of the guilds of the gold "pullers" (gold wire and thread) and gold beaters (gold leaf). Although it was a very old guild, founded in 1420, it was one of the smallest (only 48 members); this building, not their first, was constructed in 1711, and closed in 1798, a year after the fall of the Venetian Republic. After changing hands several times, in the early 20th century it became the property of a Venetian antiques dealer, whose family still owns it today. While it is not open to the public, the building is used for elegant private events.

Another of the six "great" scuole, San Giovanni Evangelista, founded in 1261, is only a few steps from the Frari and San Rocco, but undeservedly lacks the popularity of San Rocco despite its impressive Renaissance architecture by two of the greatest architects of the 15th century (Pietro Lombardo and Mauro Codussi). The wealth of paintings by Titian, Palma il Giovane, and Giandomenico Tiepolo favor depictions of St. John's visions of the Apocalypse. The famous paintings of the "Miracles of the Reliquary of the Holy Cross," created by Giovanni Bellini in 1490 for the scuola, are in the Accademia Gallery. The grand staircase was redesigned in 1498 by Mauro Codussi, who employed several visual tricks to make it seem larger than its small space would allow, and the mosaic marble pavement of the Salone (Giorgio Massari, 1752) is a masterpiece of the stoneworker's art. If you don't have time to visit the scuola itself, be sure to stop in its unique semi-enclosed medieval courtyard. The marble wall (Pietro Lombardo, 1481) is surmounted by a cross, eagle, and books, all symbols of St. John. The pavement (1759) echoes the designs seen on Piazza San Marco.

San Trovaso is one of only four squeri, or boatbuilding yards specifically dedicated to gondolas and other Venetian wooden boats, still operating in Venice. (There once were at least 45.) Dating from the 17th century, it is a registered monument where you can really observe and appreciate a unique mode of transportation that still thrives today. If the small wooden buildings seem to resemble an Alpine chalet, it's because Venice's boatbuilders historically came from the nearby mountains. Notice the wooden planks stacked outside to season (a gondola is made of eight different types of wood). Half-hour visits can be booked.

When it comes to contemporary art, Venice's Biennale may get all the ink, but this new art center on the Zattere gives it a run for its money. Set up within the Palazzo Clary, it features both permanent and temporary exhibitions of thought-provoking contemporary art. Be aware that some of its shows are dense, technical creations. When you work up an appetite, café-restaurant Sudest 1401 features classic and innovative dishes from the Piemonte and Valle d'Aosta regions, uncommon elsewhere in Venice. A bonus: it's one of the few museums open on Monday.