The Real-Deal On Traveling To Venice

Is Venice actually as "magical"  as the hundreds of articles written about the city claim?  Would Venice be a decaying open-air museum, or would She be a romantic's escape to another world?  Let's explore Venice together for the first time...   

We were driving across the floating causeway into Venice with our little rental car hauling a huge suitcase full of anticipation along with a small carry-on bag of anxiety. It was the finale of our Italian Christmas holidays and my first trip ever to the City of Bridges. 

I had been told by family, friends, books and media that  Venice is "a world apart" that it is "the most unreal city on earth" and "you will fall in love with Venice."  In fact, Venice has been voted the most beautiful city in the world in 2016, 2017 and 2018 by TripAdvisor, Conde Nast, Rough Guides, Telegraph UK, and so many other travel publications.  Yet, I have been warned by many trusted family, friends (and cynical) world travellers that Venice is a "world-class tourist trap!" They told me Venice is "overcrowded, overpriced and dirty," and they were only trying to "not disappoint me."  This is what I feared the most, my dreams getting dashed by the hyper-tourism that threatens to turn Venice into a giant floating theme park.

So here's the real deal on Venice...

St. Marks From The Lagoon

How can one describe Venice without sounding like a million travel cliches?

Many people make the mistake of "DO-ing" Venice.  This kind of travel is the "tick-mark-next-to-the-bucket-list-item" travel to say you were there.  You can't DO Venice.  As a traveller, that just seems dirty.  The city of Venice plays Her cards close to her chest, and it takes time for you to get to know this noble city.   I would say I had an induction into Venice, where I slowly sank through all the layers of complexity that lies behind Her mask.

Trying to Get To The Little Red Pin

Venice is an island made up of a series of 118 small islands linked by 400 bridges.  There are no streets in Venice. Instead, Venetians use canals to navigate the city.  The city is connected to the mainland by a long causeway called the Ponte della Libertà built-in 1933 by Mussolini.  The causeway deadends once across the water, and there are two parking garages located there: Tronchetto and Piazzale Roma, where all the rental car agencies are located. 
TIP #1:  THERE IS AN EXTRA FEE FOR DROPPING OFF A RENTAL CAR IN VENICE.  Our company charged us $50 Canadian to drop off the car in Venice rather than in Mestre on the mainland.  This was fine for us since 1) it saved us at least an hour 2) we would be paying for 3 train or bus tickets into Venice from Mestre, so it worked out to be about the same cost in the end.

Leaving Breadcrumbs To Find Our Way Home

"Part of the magic of Venice is getting lost."

Sure.  When you are not trying to find something or meet someone.  Like trying to get to our Airbnb in half an hour to reach our host.  No problem, we thought.  If we were looking at a map of Venice, we were at the mouth of the fish (Piazzale Roma), and we needed to go to the dorsal fin of the fish (Fondamenta Nuove).  Venice is only 3 square miles and only takes about 45 minutes to get from one end of the city to the other, so this should be no problem.  WRONG.  Venice is a literal maze of dead ends, secret courtyards, and odd little corners.   The buildings are sometimes so close together that two people cannot pass each other.  TIP #2: YOUR PHONE GPS WILL NOT HELP YOU!  The accuracy of your GPS sucks most of the time and the twists and turns just seem to confuse most apps.   My advice is to walk in the general direction you think you need to go in and check in with your GPS at every significant open space like a piazza.  You can ask a local for guidance, but they will usually tell you to "keep going straight." Just warning you now, so you don't throw your mobile into the canal.  Even Venetians get lost outside their own neighbourhoods!

In A State Of Elegant Decay

Walking single file, we rolled our suitcases up, across and down the big Calatrava bridge that spans the Grand Canal. Past the super busy Santa Lucia train station and the main Vaporetto stop Ferrovia.  This area along the Grande Canal is glitzy and bustling with vendors in little kiosks selling cheap tourist trinkets.  Dozens of other tourists were dragging their suitcases along behind them as we were, trying to get them upstairs and over bridges and down the other side with their overpacked luggage.  TIP #3: PACK LIGHT GOING TO VENICE.  You will thank me after schlepping your bags over the 20th bridge you encounter.  I'm not kidding! Remember, there are 400 bridges in Venice, and they ALL have steps.

The View From Our Airbnb Flat

We eventually found our way to our Airbnb flat, which was right outside the boat stop that heads out to other Islands in the lagoon such as Murano, Burano and the airport.  Our Airbnb flat was a great location and cheap, considering we had our own kitchen to cook our meals in.  TIP #4: TRY TO FIND LODGINGS IN A RESIDENTIAL NEIGHBOURHOOD RATHER THAN THE TOURIST HOTSPOTS. Not only will you save money, but you will see how the actual Venetians live.  We stayed in the Cannaregio neighbourhood, but Castello and Dorsoduro are charming neighbourhoods too.

Fresh Fruit & Veg Market in Venice

"Venice is expensive, and the food is not very good."

Yes, Venice is more expensive than in other Italian cities.  Mainly because everything has to be brought into Venice by small boat and transferred by hand.  That being said, we paid about the same prices for meals in Venice as we did on the Amalfi Coast a few months earlier.  You are paying tourist prices in Venice, and most often, you are paying extra for a table with a view.  With so many foreign tourists "DO-ing" Venice in one day, restaurants don't have to have excellent quality because as a tourist, you will never be back. Restaurants in Venice know this, and they also know they can charge whatever they want.  In fact, many tourists that are in organized tours are only in Venice for 6 hours, and the Venetians call this type of tourism "bite and run."  There are MANY decently priced restaurants where the locals eat.  You just have to ask around or do a little research on the internet.



Settling into our little apartment overlooking the Venetian lagoon, we decided to run out and get some groceries.  We actually brought along some food from Riccione in a backpack so that we would have dinner supplies when we arrived in Venice. We also found this market just a few 100 meters from our flat.  There was also a Co-Op Super Market across the way that sold everything from wine to eggs.  The wine selection at the Co-Op is full of cheap yet decent local Veneto Wine-Oh, my happy liver!

 With our suitcases unpacked and our bellies now full, we stepped
out into the night to meet the real Venice.

The Quiet Back Canals of Venice

"Venetians savour the leisurely pace of life."

True. Nighttime in Venice belongs to the Venetians; their work is done, most of the tourists are gone back to the mainland, and the sidewalks become empty again.  If I could use one word to describe Venice, it would be DRAMA.  It felt like you were walking through one big opera set and that with the rhythmic clicking of your heels on the stone beneath your feet, an orchestra would begin and costumed singers would appear on the balconies hanging over the canals.  Even the locals are dramatic. Locals dress with dramatic flair and carry themselves as if they were walking down a fashion runway.  Especially the little old ladies with their bright red hair, high heels and winter coat of leopard print faux fur.  Even listening to the Venetian dialect that floated around us sounded so rich and complex. The Venitian dialect is quite unintelligible to other Italians like our friend Giulia who only lived 2 hours south.

We were sinking into a world of romance and make-believe with every bridge we crossed.

Christmas Tree in St. Marks Square

"Venice at Christmas is like a beautiful woman in a glamourous ballgown-you just can't stop staring at her"

After winding our way through alleys and crossing bridges that led to one magnificent vignette or another, we followed the yellow signs pointing "per San Marco---->" until we came to a gondola stop that seemed to be taking the last of the tourists out into the night.  We slipped under an arcaded passageway that opened up to one of Europe's most iconic squares, Piazza San Marco.  Lit up in all its glory, the centrepiece of the square is the Basilica of Saint Mark.  The Byzantine-style Basilica is punctuated by the Campanile or bell tower in front of it.   St Mark's is flanked by the  Renaissance style offices on the right (the 1500's), the Baroque style offices on the left (1600's), and behind you Napoleon's office wing (the 1800s) closing the square.  Standing in this gorgeous piazza watching the full moon rise over the gilded domes of St. Mark's was a highlight of arriving in Venice, especially since the square was almost empty!

Full Moon Over St. Mark's Basilica

After the excellent window shopping under the piazzas' arcades, which were softly illuminated by hundreds of glowing Christmas lights strung above our heads, we decided to stroll to the Rialto bridge.  The principal route between the two most famous sights in Venice is a trendy designer shopping street with Dolce and Gabbana, Prada, Versace and the rest. Tempting you with overly extravagant window displays, this lends to the dramatic atmosphere of Venice.  The Rialto Bridge at night was not as empty as Piazza San Marco. In fact, the Rialto Bridge was buzzing with tourists and locals alike enjoying shopping, restaurants and the many bars of this area.
We decided to pop into a  pub favoured by locals called the Devils Forest Pub for a drink.  Young, vibrant and FULL of Venetians; this Irish style pub seemed out of place in this elegant and aristocratic city. Classic rock blaring on the speakers, rugby on the TV and Irish beers on the taps we felt at home immediately, even though we were the only tourists in the place.  This is the real-deal Venice of today.
Back out into the soft glow of the night, we followed our "breadcrumbs," retracing our steps back to our Airbnb. I happily realize that I am truly and utterly enamoured with this floating city that really IS unlike any other in the world, and it is the beginning of a beautiful love affair with Venezia.

Did Venice live up to your imagination?  Let me know in the comments below!

Follow me on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM  and  BLOGLOVIN'  for daily photos and updates! #slowtravel🐌