Muskoka Magic; Ontario's Cottage Country

"Muskoka," "Algonquin," and "Kawartha" are beautiful regions in central Ontario that conjure up images of Adirondack chairs lined up on a lakeside dock with a canoe tied to it. We envision night skies full of bright stars and the smell of campfire smoke.  Of misty mornings and loon calls.  This is Ontario's Cottage Country...

Rolling Hills of Bracebridge

Being a transplant from Vancouver to South West Ontario, I heard so much about Muskoka.  This is the famous Ontario "Cottage Country" where rich folks from Toronto and Ottawa have their summer "cottages,"; similar to Whistler in the West Coast where rich Vancouverites had their mountain "cabins."   The cottages and cabins I speak of are, in many cases, luxury houses (I wish there were a way of indicating quotation marks used in a sarcastic tone).
My imagination was filled with images of fancy cottages lining pristine, glittering lakes strewn with private docks and No Trespassing & Private Property signs posted on every fence and driveway.  So what's the real deal with Muskoka?

We finally got to visit this region on our way to Ontario's famous Algonquin Park.  Luckily we have some family in Muskoka that invited us to stop by for a visit.  We drove from our farm near Kitchener, Ontario, along Highway 401 towards Toronto and then headed North towards Barrie on Highway 400.  Once past Barrie, you take Highway 11, and the landscape noticeably changes. The cottage vibes begin, and you find yourself looking out over endless rolling hills covered in lush maple forests and dotted with thousands of shining lakes.

Our first stop in Muskoka was Bracebridge, where we stayed with our family.  Downtown Bracebridge is built on the Muskoka River and has a beautiful waterfall in the dead centre of town.  There is an excellent park at Bracebridge Falls with a playground and lots of shady walking trails.  Many fantastic restaurants specialize in "Farm to Table" fresh cuisine (check out SAVOUR MUSKOKA) and cute little cottage lifestyle shops like Simply Cottage selling had made furniture, antiques and clever knick-knacks.  Bracebridge is also the home of the award-winning craft beer Muskoka Brewery which you should definitely check out.  The Muskoka River flows into Muskoka Lake, where you will find many public swimming beaches and parks with picnic areas and boat launches.

I must admit, I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb here-like a complete "tourista" in my own county.  I was calling the area "The Muskokas," thinking I must be referring to a mountain range or a lake system like "The Rockies" or  "The Finger Lakes."  This was my first mistake as an outsider.  TIP: The correct term is just Muskoka like "Aspen" or "Whistler."  Muskoka is named after a district of six municipalities, not a town, hence my confusion.

Lake of Bays Brewery Biergarten

The next day we left Bracebridge and continued on our little beer pilgrimage...a brewgrimage if you will.  Instead of heading further along highway 11 to Algonquin Provincial Park, we took Highway 117 to Baysville, which is a charming village in Lake Of Bays.  Not THE Lake Of  Bays; I was trying to get the lingo right!  Lake of Bays is a township within the district of Muskoka, Baysville being the southernmost of the towns.  The village of Baysville is situated on a lake called...wait for it...Lake Of Bays.  There were lots of steamships on the lakes of Muskoka in the 1800s, and Baysville was connected via steamer to Dwight, Dorset and several other communities on Lake Of Bays.  Looking at the map, I realized this area is way too big to explore in one or two weekends.

Lake Of Bays Brewery is located on Highway117 that goes through the centre of Baysville. Here is where you can go to the store and get a little taste of the craft beers Lake Of Bays Brewery has on offer and purchase beer to take home.  They also have a warm and welcoming Biergarten full of picnic tables and brightly painted Muskoka deck chairs to enjoy a sunny spot and a cold beer.  TIP: The deck chairs out here are called MUSKOKA chairs, not ADIRONDACK chairs!  Canadian lingo vs. American, but they are the same thing.  TIP: Lake of Bays Brewery just opened a second Brewhouse in Huntsville just North of Bracebridge- with a restaurant to open this summer of 2018!

Miss Nelle's Cafe, Baysville

Just down the street from Lake of Bays Brewery is a Baysville institution.   Stroll down Bay Street towards "The Narrows" as the locals call the lake at this point, and you come across Miss Nelle's Cafe and Antique Market.  Miss Nell Connelly was a resident of Baysville and owned a store here at #2 Bay street since 1966.  The house itself was built in 1872 and was used as a supply store to outfit the steamships that used to go up and down Lake Of Bays at the turn of the century.  Miss Nell got a job here in 1918, and in 1966 she bought the property and ran it as a general store.  In 2000, at the age of 100, Miss Nell decided to sell the store and retire. Miss Nelle's Antique Cafe was created, and Miss Nell got to enjoy sitting on the porch and taking in the gorgeous view of the lake she loved so very much.

Muskoka❤Love

Today the cafe bustles with locals and tourists alike enjoying delicious home baking, full breakfasts, lunch sandwiches & paninis, soups and chilli.  Miss Nelle's is also licenced so you can enjoy a nice glass of wine or a cold beer with your lunch.  In the summer, there is an ice cream shack selling local Kawartha Dairy ice cream and a new outdoor BBQ area!  The cafe also sells local handcrafted goods and gifts, including delicious Muskoka Roastery Coffee from Huntsville.  Muskoka Coffee is our absolute favourite coffee in Ontario (maybe even all of Canada).  The coffee is 100% organic, and this company is super environmentally friendly, folks.  I can't say enough good stuff about this roastery, and their Wood-Roasted Espresso is the most delicious coffee I've had in Canada.  

Butter Tarts With A View Of The Lake

We sat on the porch of Miss Nelle's savouring the most delicious homemade butter tarts I think have ever consumed, washed down with dark Muskoka coffee and enjoyed the view of the boats gliding along on the lake.  You could just imagine the place in its heyday, alive and busy with all steamships docked here letting off passengers, picking up supplies and unloading goods.  Now it's a tourist's paradise of butter tarts, beer and sparkling lake water!

If you want to get out on that crystal blue water, you can arrange a Boat Tour with Lake of Bays Boat Tours.  They pick you upright on the dock off of Baysville Terrance located just behind Miss Nelle's.  Three hour guided tours depart daily from the Riverfront Dock Park on Baysville Terrace.  These tours fill up fast at only $45, and you must book ahead.  They also arrange private charters for up to 12 guests and service all points on Lake Of Bays.
To discover more up to date tourist information, I found the Muskoka Tourism website very helpful.  The website breaks down the tourism into the six Muskoka districts for you so you can search by region.

I can't think of a better way to spend an afternoon in Baysville then getting out on The Lake Of Bays and maybe have a swim in that crystal clear water.   But we had a campsite waiting for us in Algonquin Park, and we wanted to arrive before evening to set up our camp.  Now that we were stocked up with beer, coffee and butter tarts from Baysville, we felt genuinely prepared for our camping trip with our Muskoka luxury items.  This area of Ontario has impressed this little BC hippie "Nature Biscuit" from out west! Muskoka is a blend of history, beautiful landscapes and a unique vacation vibe of cottage-goers that have been returning to the same little houses on these lakes for many, many generations.
I look forward to exploring the rest of Muskoka over the years, one weekend at a time...❤

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First Timers Survival Guide To Venice

Venice is intense.  In the summer Venice can be hot, overcrowded and expensive.  In the winter, it can be bone-chillingly cold and flooded.  But Venice is also achingly beautiful, mysterious and dramatic; one of the most iconic cities of Italy.  Here are some tips I learned from my recent visit to Venice to hopefully make your first trip to Venice smooth & enjoyable.  

Venice has been a premier tourist destination because of its celebrated art and architecture. In recent years the onset of mass tourism, mainly due to cruise ships means that an estimated 60,000 people a day visit the city.  That is more than the population of Venice...in ONE day!  In 2017 an estimated 22-30 million people visited Venice.  With the average visit to Venice being about 6 hours that is a vast daily surge of people flooding in and out of the city; much like the tides.  In 2017 UNESCO was considering putting Venice on its endangered city list because of the irreversible environmental damage and overcrowding the number of tourists is creating for the city.  Venice is currently putting in a strategy to help create more sustainable tourism. As you can imagine, this mass tourism has caused inflated prices in Venice.  Yet there are still deals to be found, but you have to do your research well ahead of time.  The least crowded time to visit Venice is November through March with the exception of Carnival. Christmas is a beautiful time to visit with all the lights, and the end of March is milder weather yet relatively crowd-free.

Arrival in Venice  

The small Marco Polo Airport is on the mainland about 40 minutes-2 hours by boat to downtown Venice, depending on your stop.  It's fun to take the Alilaguna boats for €15 one way (or save money by buying round-trip €27) into downtown Venice.  In busy months the boats fill up quickly, so get to the dock early!  Select the boat stop in Venice to get you relatively close to your accommodations, which is important and I'll tell you why in a second.  Check the schedule at  www.alilaguna.it/en 

Alilaguna Boat Stop

The cheapest way from the airport into Venice is by the shuttle bus that drops you off at Piazzale Roma.  Now you will have to buy a water bus ticket or walk to your hotel or accommodations.  Both options are not easy when you have your luggage with you.  The water buses are PACKED with people and walking is slow and tedious over the cobbled streets and the bridges (which all have steps going UP AND DOWN).  There are 400 bridges in Venice, and walking anywhere you will be crossing at least 50 of them.  Now imagine that with your luggage!  Pack light, my friends.

If you arrive by car, note there is a rental car drop off for most major car rental companies at the large Piazzale Roma parking lot BUT you are charged an extra fee for dropping off on the island instead of the mainland.  The price was $50 Canadian for us.  This was fine for us since there were 3 of us in the car and it saved us time, money and hassle not having to take a train or bus across the causeway from Mestre on the mainland into Venice.  But we still had to schlepp our luggage through the streets to get to our apartment on the other side of Venice.  This is difficult if you have mobility challenges.

Accommodations:  

Mornings Outside Our Airbnb 

This is your most significant expense in Venice.  Budget hotels average about €150/night!  These prices may cause people to stay on the mainland where the big chain hotels are much cheaper.  DON'T do it.  You will miss the essence of Venice.  The most magical times in Venice are at night when the day trippers have gone, and the canals are lit by lamplight. Also, first thing in the mornings when the sun hits the brick buildings in Venice and no one in sight. 
I recommend Airbnb. We rented a 1 bedroom Airbnb flat with a sofa-bed that had a kitchen for less than a hotel room! We made our own meals, which saved us SO MUCH cash.  We also got to shop at the local CoOp grocery store with the Venetians.  Renting an Airbnb flat in residential neighbourhoods like Dorsoduro, Castello or in our neighbourhood of Cannaregio also gives you that feeling of being a temporary local rather than a tourist-which is why we travel, right?

Another option to consider is hostels and even convents.  They took the word youth out of hostel a loooong time ago, and it's not just a bunch of partying kids anymore.  Venice has some beautiful and unique hostels with private rooms to rent.  Check out www.hostelworld.com.  Convents and monasteries in Italy are another option for cheap accommodations.  You will be amazed at the beautiful former palazzos offering rooms to let. Check out the website: Bed and Blessings

Aqua Alta Sidewalks

Getting Around Venice 

You will be walking A LOT!  Bring great walking shoes and if you plan on visiting Venice in the winter plan on packing some rubber boots.  The "Aqua Alta" or high water in Venice strikes each winter and spring flooding the streets.  I have a pair of travel rubber boots called "TOUR" made by Hunter that roll up into next to nothing that packs into my carry on luggage.  Otherwise, there are raised platform sidewalks that the city erects for people to walk on, but this makes navigating the sidewalks so painfully slow!

Using your Phone GPS

Learn the phrase "Dov'è...?"  meaning "where is...?" in Italian.  You are going to get lost A LOT.  You think you can use your phone's GPS to help you?  Wrong!  The buildings are far too dense for your 21st-century witchcraft phone to give you an accurate reading.   Your phone battery will be dead by the time you have successfully navigated the streets.  My advice: walk in the direction you think you need to go in, and then check your phone GPS at every significant piazza where you can pick up a good signal.  If your phone dies, go into a bar (a cafe) and order a coffee and often there is a free phone charging port for us poor lost tourists to use.  Always carry your phone's charger with you in your purse or pocket.

Cruising The Grand Canal By Vaporetto

Ride the Vaporetto!  This is Venice's version of a city bus.   A single ride ticket is €7 for 1 hour in one direction.  Instead, get the €20 one day pass valid for 24 hours, you can cruise up and down the grand canal and out to all the islands in the lagoon for one price.  Don't forget to cruise up and down the Grand Canal at night when the architecture is lit up so beautifully!

Venice  Gondolas At Your Service!

Of course, you need a gondola ride when you are in Venice!  It's straightforward to arrange, and the prices are posted at all the gondola stations in Venice.  See my Gondola Tour Do's and Don't for fast facts or A Gondola Ride In Venice for more history on this traditional Venetian mode of transport.

If you skip the Gondola ride, a quicker and cheaper (yet authentic) version of the gondola is the"traghetto."  This is a long empty gondola with 2 oarsmen that take you across the Grand Canal where there is no bridge.  There used to be 7 Traghetti crossings along the Grand Canal until 2017 when the city of Venice reduced the number to 3.  It costs €2 Euros to ride a traghetto and crossing the Grand canal standing up like the Venetians is a memorable experience.

Eating in Venice  

Eating out in Venice is quite expensive.  We bought most of our food at the local market in our neighbourhood and avoided the crowded markets at the Rialto Bridge.  We also went to a local bakery to pick up our bread and treats.  Now if you want a one-stop shop look for a local CoOp, which is the grocery store chain in Venice.  There are seven of them, and they have everything you need from simple pharmacy items to cheese & wine.

Marzipan Heaven

Neighbourhood Market 

Neighbourhood Bakery

Cichetalda Of Cicchetti

If you want a traditional meal out at lunch or early evening try Cicchetti!  Cicchetti (Chee-KET-tee) are like Venetian tapas or finger foods.  Cicchetti are usually eaten during the lunch hour or the aperitivo hour (from 5-8 pm) in "bacari" which are cicchetti bars.  The secret about eating Cicchetti properly is that they must accompany a drink, like a small glass of wine which is called "un ombra" or a Spritz which is a cocktail made with sparkling white wine and Aperol.  Cicchetti can come in the form of crostini with select toppings, fried foods on toothpicks or simple olives and cheese.  A mixed platter is called a "cichetalda," and Venetians usually consume their cicchetti & ombra standing up at the bar or hanging around outside. It's a very social scene.
There is a group of traditional cicchetti bars on the West side of the Rialto bridge about 2 blocks inland from the Fish Market on Sotoportgo dei Do Mori.  Remember, in Italy, you pay about 20-40% more if you sit at a table rather than stand at the bar to eat or drink.  For more budget tips on eating in Venice check out my blog post.




If you want a dinner out on the town, then you have so many restaurants to choose from.  I always look for a traditional Trattoria full of locals when selecting a place to eat.  This is kind of hard in Venice though, as restaurants can't survive on locals alone anymore.  You may want to do a bit of research here to find an authentic place to dine. Ca D'Oro alla Vedova in the Cannereggio district was our choice for a nice dinner out.   Alla Vedova is a very traditional bacari and restaurant that has been serving up its famous "polpette" (which are Venetian meatballs) since 1855.  They also serve up a great selection of Venetian specific dishes like baccala Montecato; which is the most delicious creamed dried cod.

TIP: THE TAP WATER IN VENICE IS REALLY GOOD! BRING YOUR WATER BOTTLE AND FILL IT AT THE PUBLIC FOUNTAINS AROUND THE CITY.

Sightseeing

Off-Season Line-Up For The Doge's Palace

The city of Venice itself is the main sight, with every turn of a corner being an Instagram worthy photo op.  Venice does have many Palaces, Galleries and Churches that are not to be missed. Unlike Florence or Rome, you can not purchase tickets in advance to the top sights. Here are my top suggestions: The Doges Palace, Saint Mark's Basilica, Academia Gallery, Correr Museum, Frari Church and The Peggy Guggenheim Collection if you like modern art.  There are money-saving museum passes like VENICE MUSEUM PASS that not only saves you $$, but saves you time in lineups, but none that covers the Accademia, Guggenheim or the museums in San Marco Basilica.  See my blog post on budget tricks for Venice on this subject, including how to skip the line to get into the Doge's Palace.  Just remember; the earlier you go to an attraction the fewer crowds there are, and the less time you spend in a line.

Most of the Churches are free to enter; just remember there is a NO bare shoulders and NO bare knees dress code that is enforced-even with children.
TIP: ALWAYS CARRY A LARGE LIGHTWEIGHT SCARF IN YOUR PURSE OR BACKPACK SO YOU CAN COVER YOURSELF UP TO ENTER A CHURCH.

There are so many famous sights in Venice that are free; that even on a  super tight budget you can enjoy ample sightseeing even if you don't step foot into one museum.  Here are some favourites: Rialto Bridge, The Bridge of Sighs, Piazza San Marco, Basilica of San Marco, The Fish Market and The Produce Market.  Some really cool neighbourhoods to explore are The Jewish Ghetto near the Ferrovia Train Station and the Sant' Elena neighbourhood at the very end of the Castello District.
The Venetian lagoon also offers many day trips from the city: Murano, Burano, Torcello, Lido Beach, San Michele cemetery, San Giorgio and Giudecca-all serviced by your Vaporetto pass, so make sure you grab a 24 or even 48-hour ticket. Don't forget to put that Vaporetto pass to good use by taking a cruise up & down the Grand Canal.

Souvenirs

There are those who love to shop and those who despise it.  I think it is nice to bring back a few mementos from your journey, either for yourself or as gifts for loved ones back home; but I am really picky about what I take home.  Most of the tourist shops and street vendor stalls in Venice sell items that are made in China (sometimes not even at low prices).  I really don't like supporting this, I want to pay an artist for their hard work and talent.  I research what the traditional crafts are in the region I will be visiting, and where to purchase them from a reputable shop.   Usually, I  buy only one quality item to bring home, rather than 20 cheap tourist trinkets.

• Venice is known for some particular artistic traditions such as glass, lace and masks.  You can get some nice small Venetian glass beads or wine stoppers directly from the artist in small shops like the one pictured here on the island of Burano.  
• Another craft that is disappearing, is handmade lace.  Venetian lace is beautiful, but Burano lace is exquisite.  Burano lace is costly, and there are many tourist rip-off shops on Burano selling cheap lace knockoffs.  See my Venice side trip to Burano post for recommendations on where to buy authentic handmade lace. 



Metal Masks With Bling

• Masks are synonymous with Venice.  There are a lot of cheap plastic masks for sale along the tourist corridors, but there are some serious shops selling traditional style paper-mȃché masks for Venice Carnevale. Try Ca' Del Sol or Tragicomica as two examples.  Paper-mȃché masks are rather difficult to transport home, but we found some beautiful masks made of leather or metal that were very beautiful and less delicate.

• Venetian Coffee is also a nice treat to bring home as gifts.  We brought 2 pounds of Cafe Del Doge coffee home with us from Venice. Every day we were transported back to Venice when we took a sip of our morning joe.

I hope these tips have been helpful for planning your first trip to the magical city of Venice.  If you have any tips for folks visiting Venice for the first time, please leave them in the comments below.

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12 Budget Tricks For Venice!

Venice has been one of Europe's top 10 most expensive destinations for over a decade now.  That doesn't mean you should not visit Venice because it is overpriced or out of your budget; it just says you have to be SMARTER when visiting Venice and learn some of these little tricks and tips that will save you $!

Venice On A January Morning

WHEN TO VISIT

This is more of advice rather than a tip. Summer in Venice can be sweltering, and with all that water surrounding the city, you can imagine how humid it gets.  Add the cruise ships hoards to the mix, and you have one hot and crowded mess!  I would try to avoid Venice in the summer if at all possible.  I know some of you are at the mercy of school schedules or the type of work that you do, but consider taking a Christmas break or Spring break in Venice-not that cold and NO crowds!  The tourist season is usually April-October, with the exception of Carnivale in Feb.  But even during Carnivale, Venice is not as crazy busy as the peak of summer cruise ship season.  We were in Venice at the beginning of January, and it was magical with all the Christmas lights on.  The Christmas season in Italy is usually December 6th- January 6th.  Yes, the hours for the tourist sites may be reduced somewhat, but everything is open. The exception is churches that hold special religious celebrations at certain holiday times and closed to tourists.

 ACCOMMODATION: 

Of course, building space in Venice is limited which makes hotel prices higher than other cities.  The average stay in Venice for North Americans is 2.1 nights, which is a high turn over to a town with so much to offer tourists.  So with limited hotel rooms, why is Venice so overcrowded?  Cruise ships. Cruise ships which are giant floating hotels injecting 60,000 people per day (more than the population of Venice itself) that do not need accommodations.  They stay in Venice for about 6 hours then get back on their ship.   TIP: DO NOT MAKE THE MISTAKE OF STAYING ON THE MAINLAND TO SAVE MONEY.  You will spend your time and money on the commute into Venice, and miss the best time to see Venice...when all the day trippers have gone home!

TIP: EITHER PACK LIGHT OR  GET A PLACE NEAR A VAPORETTO STOP; SCHLEPPING YOUR LUGGAGE ACROSS VENICE'S 400 BRIDGES IS A REAL...DRAG! 😉 

1. Hostels - They removed the word "youth" from hostels years ago.  There are hostels with private rooms, luxury hostels, and hostels usually include free breakfast.  You will be shocked at what you find at hostelworld.com

2. Monastery/Convents So in Italy a great alternative to hostels are convents & monasteries.  They open their doors to tourists to help pay for the maintenance of the historic buildings they occupy (because the Vatican won't pick up the bill).  There are some really gorgeous convents in Venice, and some provide breakfast.  Just be mindful some convents & monasteries have curfews so read the fine print.  Check out monasterystays.com -but shhhhh...silencio...don't tell anyone...this is my secret weapon!

Our Little AirBnB flat With A Kitchen 

3. Airbnb/ VBRO this is a bit controversial in Venice right now, as well as other cities across Italy and the word.  Airbnb takes up many apartments that could be rented out to locals, but landlords make more money with Airbnb (and don't necessarily report the income to the government).  Affordable housing is a real problem for Venetians.  Until the city government sorts it out-DO IT!  Get a place with a kitchen so you can save money by cooking at home.  This is our preferred method of accommodation because we can live like locals, save some $ and be more environmentally friendly than staying at a hotel.



4. Stay In Residential Neighbourhoods this is a budget tip in any city, but especially Venice since it is so compact.  There are seven districts in Venice, find out which ones are the touristy ones and avoid them. Try staying in the Dorsoduro, Castello or our favourite the Cannaregio district.  Just make sure you find a place near a boat stop, so you don't have to haul your luggage long ways; especially if you have any mobility challenges.

TRANSPORTATION:

5. Cars in Venice? Obviously, a car in Venice would be useless. If you are driving around Italy and want to stay in Venice for a few days, you can cross the causeway and park your rental car in one of the two public parkades.  The Tronchetto parking lot, it is a bit cheaper than the Piazzale Roma lot.  It costs about €21/24 hours.  It would be much less expensive to park your car on the mainland at the Mestre train station and take the train or bus into downtown Venice.
If you are trying to get around Italy on a budget and you would like to have cheaper options to trains and busses try Bla Bla Car.  This is a vast ridesharing community in Europe that is catching on fast all over the world.  You just need to have a mobile phone that works in Europe.  I can't wait for Bla Bla Car to arrive in Canada.  Check out https://www.blablacar.com

Vaporetto Station Fondemente Nova

6. Vaporetto The Vaporetto is basically like a city bus that cruises up & down the Grand Canal, around the outside of Venice and to the various surrounding islands.  This is how the locals commute around Venice.  One pass is €7 and is valid for one hour in one direction.  You are much better off getting a one day pass for  €20 which last 24 hours unlimited riding.  If you plan carefully, you can do all your cruising over a two day period.  No need for a Grand Canal tour! Vaporetto line #1 cruises slowly up and down the Grand Canal all day hitting all the stops along the way. Line # 2 is the Grand Canal express route and does not stop at all Vaporetto stations.   No need to pay for a lagoon tour! You can take a cruise yourself on Vaporetto line 12 and visit the Islands of Burano, Murano and Torcello in one day!  Check out my blog on taking the Vaporetto to Burano for more information.

Traghetto Station

7. Traghetto A gondola tour is a costly tourist activity.  To me, the €80 splurge was worth it; check out my blog post "Gondola 101" for all you need to know about hiring a gondola.  If you are limited on time or money, then I would opt for a  €2 "traghetto" ride.  A tragetto is a really big gondola you ride standing up.  Two oarsmen take you across the Grand Canal in busy locations where there is no bridge for pedestrians. TIP: I would just forget about a water taxi to get around Venice; it's way too expensive! €15 for a pick-up and then €2/ min plus luggage fees Etc.  


FOOD

Many people have said to me the food in Venice is not very good and it is expensive.  Unfortunately, this is the case for many restaurants that cater to the tourist masses from the cruise ships.  Restaurants can't survive on locals alone anymore, and they know that tourists spend only about 4-24 hours in Venice and will pay the high prices listed on the menu.  With all produce having to be shipped in and rent incredibly high, going out for a meal is costly. Here are a few tips to help ease the pain.

Cicchetti 101

8. Cicchetti  (pronounced chick-ket-ti) are traditional Venetian finger foods that are served along with a drink like a Spritz or a glass of wine.  This can be anything from crostini to cheese & olives to seafood appetizers.  You can usually get a mixed assortment for €8-€10, and they are displayed behind glass at the bar.  It's a great build a meal option. Just remember, if you sit at a table rather than stand at the bar you will be paying 20-40% more.  This applies to espresso at a (coffee) bar as well.  Speaking of bars, many coffee bars have hot panini sandwiches or cold tramenzzini sandwiches for snacks.  Pizza by the slice is a good option too, and it is sold by the weight-100grams is roughly a small slice of pizza.

CoOp Olives!

9. Picnic  The CoOp is a grocery store chain in Venice, and there are seven stores throughout Venice.  This is where the locals shop for food and where you should pick up your staples for your self-catering accommodations.  This is also a great place to pick up picnic supplies. Now I don't recommend sitting on the steps of a bridge or in a piazza and spread out a blanket!  Picnics are technically prohibited in Venice.  I am saying get some fruit, sandwiches and crackers and sit somewhere discrete out of the tourist zone.  

Water Fountain On Burano

The drinking water in Venice is excellent!
TIP:  USE A REFILLABLE WATER BOTTLE AND FILL UP AT A PUBLIC WATER TAP.    The water for Venice is piped in from the Italian Alps 200km or so away.  We filled up our water bottles at our Airbnb in the morning and then refilled at every piazza we found a fountain tap at.

SIGHTSEEING

Venice's most magnificent sight is the city itself, and your sightseeing can just be walking around Piazza San Marco, the Rialto Bridge or the back streets of Venice's neighbourhoods and discovering hidden gems and Insta-worthy photo ops.  But there are some world-class sights that you should try not to miss no matter how tight a budget you are on.  My top 4 sites (in order) are the Doge's Palace, St. Mark's Basilica, Accademia and the Correr Museum.

Doge's Palace

10. Combo PASS When you buy a ticket to the Doge's Palace it also includes entry to the Correr Museum in Piazza San Marco.  I would recommend you purchase your ticket at the Correr Museum where the ticket line is shorter, and then head straight over to the Doges' Palace and skip the ticket queue there. Here's a blog post on touring the Doge's Palace.  There are other combo-passes available for museums that you can buy to save you a bit of money but, not one that covers all museums or churches.  If you have the time/interest to see many of Venice's museums, I would recommend the MUSEUM PASS €24 that covers the two museums mentioned above plus Ca' Rezzonico (museum of 18th century Venice)  a handful of other smaller museums.


11. Concession Discounts  Student and seniors discounts are available at some museums including the Doge's Palace and the Correr Museum.  It never hurts to ask if there is a concession price, and always bring your ID.

Copies Of The Bronze Horses On St, Marks

12. St. Marks Basilica is FREE!  The lines here are always long so you can pay €2 to reserve a ticket and skip the line www.venetoinside.com. The time to visit is between 11:30-12:30 when the mosaics on the ceiling are all brilliantly floodlit.  There are a few museums inside San Marco that cost extra to enter.  I would go to the San Marco Museum (€5 entry fee) where you can go upstairs and have the most fantastic view of the domed ceiling mosaics.  You can also go outside to the balcony overlooking Piazza San Marco and see the original Bronze Horses that graced the top of the Basilica for centuries.  Remember: THERE IS A STRICTLY ENFORCED DRESS CODE OF NO BARE KNEES OR SHOULDERS IN THE BASILICA. THIS INCLUDES YOUR KIDS!  

BONUS TIP (or tip 13): THE ACCADEMIA (OR ANY OTHER STATE RUN MUSEUM IN ITALY) IS FREE ON THE LAST SUNDAY OF EACH MONTH.  This also means long line-ups the last Sunday of each month; so go first thing in the morning before the museum opens to beat the queue.  This museum is Venice's top art museum showcasing Venetian masters and worth the €9 entry fee.



Friends, I know Venice is a pricey city.  But visiting Venice is entirely worth the extra cost to travel here and become immersed in this unusual and historic city.  I hope you find the tips👆 above useful!

If you have some money-saving tips for other readers, please let them know in the comments section below.

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Venice At Christmas Holidays

Venice.  You take a piece of heart from many an unsuspecting traveller's chests and then drop it into the lagoon as an offering.  Just like the Dodges of Venice's past used to drop a wedding ring into the lagoon to show Venice's devotion to the Sea. I too will forever return to you now, "La Serenissima" to recover that piece of my heart that lies at the bottom of your lagoon.  

Quiet Venice Mornings All To Yourself!

Venice is dramatic, over-the-top Italy at its finest.  Many travellers are disappointed by their trip to Venice because it is too crowded, too touristy and too cliched.  To them I say, you have not done your due diligence as a traveller to get behind the veil of the most serene city of Venice; to find the intimate moments and a Venice that reveals herself to you.  Sure you get whiffs of sewage every now and then as you cross a bridge, or have to dodge some dog poop on the sidewalk, but that's no more offensive then what I experience back home in Canada.  I can't understand the tourists who say they were disappointed after seeing Venice, I don't think they got to know the REAL Venice.

Santa Maria Della Salute

If you want to know the real Venice stay overnight in a residential neighbourhood away from the main tourist attractions.  Get up early and explore hidden alleys or stay up late to see midnight in Venice all beautifully lit up without all the tourists!  Venice at night is like looking at your lover by candlelight, she seems softer. More mysterious. More romantic that you can ever imagine!

Gondolas In The Mist

It was the day we must leave Venice and return to our farmstead in Canada.  I don't know what was harder; saying goodbye to my Italian dance sister Giulia who had been travelling with us or leaving Venice.  Luckily I had a few hours in between the two events to compose myself!
It was one of those foggy winter mornings in Venice where the mist was so thick you couldn't see beyond the next bridge.  We said goodbye to our dear friend and watched her disappear into the fog the, sound of her roller bag echoing against the stone buildings.  The fog was so inviting we decided that we should also venture out and explore this dream-like state of Venice since we didn't have to check out of our Airbnb flat until 1pm.


Heading to Piazza San Marco was like walking through an eerie Victorian horror novel, dark and narrow alleys with mysterious figures moving towards you.  All of our usual landmarks looked so different in the cloudy grey mist, so we were once again struggling to not get lost.

Famous Bronze Horses Of St. Marks

The plan was to explore St. Marks Basilica, but today was the last day of the Christmas celebration season in Italy; The Epiphany.  This was when the Three Kings arrived in Bethlehem, and Jesus was baptized.  So the Basilica was actually closed to tourists for a celebration mass until 2pm.  Oh, such poor timing on our part!  Plan B was to climb the bell tower in front of St. Marks to get a stunning view of all of Venice... but it was too foggy to see anything so we figured we would save our €8 to climb to the top.
We really didn't have a Plan C, since we only had a few hours before we needed to go to the airport.  We DID have our Vaporetto boat passes in our pocket from yesterday.  TIP: Vaporetto passes are good for 24 hours from the time they were purchased.  So we decided to hop the next boat and cross the Grand Canal to explore a bit of the Dorsoduro neighbourhood.  Just as we crossed the Grand Canal,  the sun began to come out over Venice and burn through the fog of the lagoon.  The view of the Doge's Palace and Piazza San Marco from across the canal was outstanding from the viewpoint at La Salute church, where the Vaporetto lets you off.  "Santa Maria Della Salute" or Our Lady of Health is a large white domed church that was built in gratitude to the Virgin Mary by Venetians after the 1630 plague swept through the lagoon.  The plague devastated Venice, killing one out of 4 Venetians  There are some beautiful Titian and Tintoretto paintings inside, but this church too was closed to tourists for religious services during Epiphany.  Check out the view:

There was just so many places to see in Venice that we never had a chance to explore, such as the Academia Museum, the Correr Museum and the Frari Church that has some in-situ masterpieces by Titian.  There are also the many small Islands in the lagoon that beckon to be explored.  Venice, in my opinion, is like Rome, Paris or London where one week would be perfect to cover the essential sights without being in a rush.

View Of The Doges Palace From La Salute

Walking back towards out AirBnB we wandered past the Guggenheim museum of modern art and then on past the Accademia.  I was so envious of all the tourists lining up to go inside these palaces of art worship; my mantra became "I will be back to see this."  Crossing the Grand Canal at the Accademia Bridge this time we wandered through the "calle" or streets getting happily lost.  We stopped in at a wine store and bought some fancy bottles of wine like a good Venetian Valpolicella and a hard to find Bianco di Custoza and then to the CoOp grocery store to buy some cheaper but delicious Venetian wines we had been drinking while in Venice.  Back at our AirBnB we went online to British Airways website and paid for a checked bag to bring our "liquid treasures" home-SO WORTH IT!

Luckily the Alilaguana boat to the airport was right outside our apartment.  I say luckily because we didn't have to carry our bottle laden suitcases through Venice, and more importantly because I didn't have time to cook up an escape plan.  Do you ever get those impulsive thoughts?  Ones that tell you to QUIT your job, NOT get on your plane home and stay in Venice.  I rarely feel sad when a journey ends and am content to go home and see my family and friends and settle back into Canadian life on a farm.  I CRIED as the boat pushed off Fondemente Nova. Tears streamed down my face as we zipped across the waters and the sun sank into the Venetian lagoon.


Thinking back on our first European Christmas, I felt so lucky.  Spending our holidays celebrating Italian Christmas traditions with old friends and learning Venetian culture from new ones.  From the capital of Rome to the snow-topped rustic mountain villages of Umbria to the unforgettable floating city of Venice.  Along the way, we travelled the ancient Roman Road called the Via Flaminia soaking in food, wine, history and culture like sponges.  We wandered underground through ancient Christian catacombs far beneath Rome and climbed up to the top of Mount Titano the highest point in the country of San Marino.  We visited incredible places of culture in the museums in Rome and palaces in Venice and became a temporary local in the New Year street party of Riccione.  We discovered a new Umbrian legend, found a hidden treasure in Marchè's Urbino and fulfilled a bucket list item taking a gondola tour in Venice.

This is called "slow travel" a recent travel trend that is gaining in popularity.  Slow travel is about making the time to absorb all the culture, food & experiences along your journey.  Not running from one tourist attraction to the next without understanding anything about its history or significance to the culture.  In other words: quality over quantity, my friends.  Slow Travel is also gentler on the Earth by taking fewer flights, walking, biking or public transit and staying in vacation rentals rather than hotels.  I encourage you to join the #slowtravel🐌 movement!



From the airport boat, I watched a lone gondolier glide gracefully across the calm lagoon like a water strider.  My sadness disappeared, and knowledge that I will return to this beautiful part of Italy washed over me. After all, I must come back to visit that piece of my heart that is at the bottom of the Venetian Lagoon with all the other hopeless romantics.

 The Venice Lagoon At Sunset

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