Surviving Venice

Venice is one of the top tourist destinations in the world. With the number of tourists coming into the fabled city – most of them with enough money to spend – it is not much of a stretch that many criminal elements would also flock to the place as well.

Most of them are not from Venice, although there are some few locals who also take advantage on their unsuspecting visitors. Like in other places of the world, it is always a mixture of the good and not-so-good people.

Not all incidents, however, are bad. Some are funny, surprising, and some are the results of being too gullible. Here are some tips taken from actual experiences of previous tourists. As always, your common sense is your best guide.
 
Some survival tips

***Beware of fake signature handbags sold on the streets. Ignore them because they are illegal. There is a hefty fine (3,000 Euros) simply for buying from them.

***Be careful if you plan to buy those famous Venetian masks – they can be overpriced.  Worse, they might be imported fakes from abroad. There are still shops around where you can witness the actual papier-mâché process. Buy from them to be sure.

 ***Ordering food from sidewalk cafes, especially fish, can be tricky. Fish in these places are sold by weight, not by piece. 7 Euros means 7 Euros per etto (or 100 grams), so a regular fish weighing 5 etto (500 grams or half a kilo) might cost you 35 Euros, rather too steep for fish. Always ask.

***Do you want to have some coffee and sit at St. Mark? Check for hidden cover charges. They could be more expensive than your coffee, simply because you were listening to some live orchestra playing while sipping your latte. (Try Campo San Polo or Campo Santa Margherita. Their coffee is lovely even without the music and they are reasonably priced.)

Side note:  Like in most of Italy, sitting down and consuming your food and drinks costs more than doing the same (eating and drinking) standing at the “banco” (bar area).

***Original Murano glass pieces, hand-blown and designed by authentic glass masters are generally very expensive. However, items sold near Piazza San Marco are greatly discounted because of too much competition among the shops.

Sometimes, bigger discounts are also available at Burano or some other outlying areas away from the commercial centers. Of course, you still have to be wary of fakes imported from Asia and passed on as original Murano glass.

Practical tips

If you are staying in spring and summer, ask for mosquito repellents. The beautiful windows of many of La Serenissima hotels do not have screens. Hotels have small electric mosquito repellents.

Buy yourself a small pocket flashlight. It will be handy looking at your maps in the evenings. Venetian street lamps are quite dim, very romantic and mysterious, but do not help you in seeing what’s on your map.

Maps of Venice are given out FREE along with your transport ticket pass at the airport. Everywhere else seems to be selling the maps to unsuspecting tourists who don’t have theirs. (Some hotels also have free maps of the city available at their reception.)

If you took note of some of these tips, it might help you survive your stay in one of the world’s most enchanting and truly fascinating cities. These difficulties notwithstanding, Venice is still the best.

How To Make The Best Out Of Your Stay in Venice

When going on a vacation to a city like Venice, the first thing that you should do is be knowledgeable about the place. Aside from that, you should consider to ensure that your trip would be a success which is the cost of the whole trip.

Knowing and calculating your costs and possible expenditures during Venice vacation can greatly help you set a realistic budget during your stay. By estimating the possible cost of your vacation, you can set your budget in advance so you wouldn’t be spending more than you can afford to spend. Another advantage of knowing how much you will spend will also help your leave your worries behind because you have enough money to spend on something during the entire trip.

If possible, always make sure that you leave an allowance or you allot at least 10 to 20 percent of the total of your budget to spend on emergency cases. The most important expenses that you should expect from your from your Venice vacations is accommodation. This very important in planning your budget because this is where you will stay once the busy day is finished. Many people make good accommodations a priority because this is their home when out of the house while others are not so much into good accommodations because they think that they should be getting as much exposure as they can get when they are in a vacation destination.

During a Venice vacation, accommodations will matter because this is where you will spend most of your time after a long day of touring. This is also the place where you will leave your baggage for safe keeping. If you want ultimate comfort, choose accommodation that are near the central city so you can have access to almost all the things that you might need.

Enjoying your stay 

Aside from personal comfort, the best way to enjoy Venice is when you tour the city itself. If you ask people who have been to a Venice vacation, they would tell you not to miss out on its major tourist attractions because this is what will make the trip worthwhile.

During a tour, you can opt for tour services offered by various establishments. Many of them offer scheduled tours that ensure that you will se all the sites that you should when you visit Venice. You will have a local to accompany you when you choose guided tours. This might cost a much but if you want an orderly and safe touring, you can get their services.

But if you want a less formal city tour, then you could tour the city yourself. All you need you need to do is to have a list of the attractions that you want to visit and go these one day at a time. Make sure that you visit the main attraction in the place by touring the St. Mark's Square where you can also drop by at the St. Mark's Basillica and the Doges Palace.

You can also visit nearby districts to see more sites and attractions that are truly worth your brief stay.

Exploring Venice

One of the most visited places in Italy is the city of Venice. This is probably because it offers the most wonderful scenery that anybody could set eyes on. A city that it literally built on water, Venice continues to get a large patronage among people within neighboring cities and countries in Europe as well as from other parts of the world.

If you are planning to visit Venice, one of the major things that you should consider is getting there. If you are from other countries, say from the United States, the best and easiest way to get to this beautiful city is by riding a plane. Via Delta Airways—which is the only one that offers direct flight to Venice—from JFK airport in New York, you can fly straight to the city without hassles and stopovers. You can also take other connecting flights to nearby cities in Europe and just find your way to the city via land transportation.

If you are in nearby cities already such as from Padua or Florence, you can take the train since Venice is orderly serviced by regional and national train system. You can arrive at the Sta. Lucia Station and take other forms of public transport. It is a must that you get to know the right means of getting there to avoid spending too much when you can actually save some for other activities or for shopping spree.

Knowing the city 

A Venice vacation can be a great treat for anybody. Especially to those people who are often gets stressed out by the modern world. This is because this can give you a perfect break away from all the toxicities modern life has to offer. But, before going into a vacation Venice, take some time to know the place that you are planning to go to. This will really help you a lot in maximizing the time you are going to spend there.

The first thing that you need to pay attention to is you schedule during your vacation. Since you don’t have all the time in the world to explore Venice during you vacation, it is best that you plot the list of activities that you will be doing during your stay. Your schedule or itinerary might include visiting Venice's interesting sites and historical places. This is very important especially for first-time visitors because these tours can give them a primer and background about the place. For those who would want to know about the history of the place, they can visit historical sites including the Piazza San Marco or the St. Marks Square which will introduce you to the city that is Venice. Within this are other tourist attractions including the St. Marks Basilica and the Doges Palace.

You can also try water adventures and activities. A Venice vacation is nothing if you don’t get to experience water activities waiting for you. During your stay, it is a must that you take a boat and visit the lagoon’s islands called "Torcello," and take a Gondola trips through the Grand Canal.

Best Places To Eat in Venice

1. Laguna da Toni – Is a docked boat which sits 25-minute boat ride away from Portegrandi, a town near the islands of Burano and Torcello. Thanks to the abundant lagoon produce, this humble bilancia is serving fresh and tasty Venetian cuisines like pasta con granchietto di laguna, frittura misto and sarde in soar. For 35 euros per person, you can indulge a seven-course dinner which includes dessert, coffee, sparkling white wine from Conegliano, and boat transportation from Portegrandi. If you want escape from the busy streets of Venice and take some fresh air , Laguna da Toni is the right place for you. Reservations must be booked at least two weeks ahead, you can reach Mr. Toni Zottarel, the bilancia owner and cook at telephone number: 39-338-821-1229.

2. La Cusina - Dining in La Cusina gives you the chance to enjoy the view of Santa Maria della Salute - a most sought-after sight you can enjoy while devouring a sumptuous Italian cuisine like ravioli stuffed with sea bass in a light cream sauce with wild fennel. Prices of main meals ranges from 21 to 23 euros while secondary meals ranges from 23 to 34 euros.

3. Avogaria Locanda and Restaurant – Sweet, quiet and modern, this restaurant specializes in Puglian cuisine, mostly olive oil-based meals like burrata con verdure, fresh mozzarella with creamy center and vegetables, tuna fish "tagliata" with sesame, filetto di branzino in crosta di patate al forno, and sea bass fillet with potatoes. By plane, you can reach Avogaria either thru Marco Polo Venice Airport or San Giuseppe Treviso Airport. It’s located on Calle dell'Avogaria in Dorsoduro and with telephone number: 011-39-041-296-0491.

4. Fiaschetteria Toscana - This "bright, elegant, and relatively small place" wrote Mark Bittman, is tucked in the heart of Venice, 200 metres from Ponte di Rialto in Salizada s. Giovanni Grisostomo. Fiaschetteria Toscana got its name in late 1800s when the Busatto family, from Montecatini in Tuscany, opened a bar offering typical local products. Today, despite its name, this restaurant serves traditional Venetian fare like sarde in saor or marinated sardines. Their risottos are one of the best in the city – made with aged organic Carnaroli rice popularly known as Acquerello from a small Piedmontese producer. The end-product? A Venetian risotto which is perfectly soupy and loose but hardly creamy.

5. Cantinone Gia Schiavi - Located just southwest of the Accademia bridge, this place is popular for their great wine selection from Venice. They are open from 8:30 am to 8:30 pm thru Mondays to Saturdays and 10 am to 1 pm on Sundays.

6. Al Covo - This lovely restaurant located in Castello, Venice is popular not only for their fresh seafoods and excellent selection of moderately priced wines but also for their warm and welcoming atmosphere. Waiters are friendly, suggestive and English speaking. One of the owners of this lovely restaurant hails from Texas, which explains the hospitable atmosphere to Americans. Their menu includes garnished light beef tartar steak, fresh granzevola or spider-crab meat, and canocce or shrimp salad for starters; roasted lamp chops with lentils and homemade mint sauce and deep-fried fish and shellfish with crispy vegetables and matchstick fries for main courses. They also have a fresh 24 hour salad for side dishes.

What To See In Venic

Of all the world’s travel destinations, Venice rates among the top three places where people want to go. The reason is simple: it is one of the most beautiful places on earth that fills up all of one’s senses – the ageless beauty of the churches, palaces and buildings, the old-world ambience. More to the point, Venice is a total feast for the eyes.

Stretched along the Adriatic Sea, Venice is a unique group of 117 small islands joined together by 378 stone bridges over a number of canals. It has the unique mode of transportation, which is mostly on water.

The city is composed of six districts (sestiere), all with their own unique attractions: Cannaregio, San Polo, Santa Croce, San Marco, Dorsoduro and Castello.

Cannaregio

Cannaregio in the north has the Palazzo Labia, the Venetian Ghetto, and the Isola di San Michele. Palazzo Labia is a beautiful 7th century baroque palace. The Venetian Ghetto is the center of Jewish living where Jews go for religious services. The Isola di San Michele is the cemetery island where some famous writers and musicians are buried.

San Polo

San Polo is the smallest and the oldest, housing the famous Rialto Bridge, the San Giacomo di Rialto and the Campo San Polo. The Rialto Bridge is the largest of the four bridges connecting the Grand Canal in places. The San Giacomo di Rialto is the oldest church in Venice, built in 421 A.D. The Campo San Polo is the biggest field in the city and is very popular for the Carnival, concerts and screenings for the Venice Film Festival.

Santa Croce

Santa Croce is in the northwest with the Tronchetto and the main port. The main attractions are the Fondaco dei Turchi (a 13th century Byzantine palazzo) and the Church of San Giacomo dell’Orio.

San Marco

San Marco is the center of the sestiere. This is where the well-known sites of Venice are found: Saint Mark’s Basilica and the Doge’s Palace. St. Mark’s Basilica is a Byzantine cathedral, originally the chapel of the Venetian rulers. The Doge’s Palace is a Gothic structure and home of the Doge of Venice, the formal head of state. It is now a museum housing some priceless paintings of Veronese and Tintoretto.

Dorsoduro

Dorsoduro in the south is the highest sestiere, with attractions that include the Penny Guggenheim collection (a museum containing personal art collections) and San Trovaso, the church built in 1028 which houses the works of Tintoretto.

Carnivals and festivals

Redentore is a festival held every third Saturday of July celebrating the end of the Plague, and is famous for its fireworks.

Every February and March, Venice holds its famous Carnival which dates back to the year 1268. Locals and tourists gather in the streets wearing historical costumes and masks, with music played all day in most places, and some street performances.

Another famous event is the annual Venice International Film Festival founded in 1932 and is the oldest in the world. It is highlighted with international film celebrities who gather in late August or early September in the island of Lido to present their latest films.

Indeed, the whole of Venice is a visual indulgence that one can never tire of. And we have not even mentioned a word yet about the masks, the shops, the food, the gondola, the gondoliers, the impromptu singing and the music.

Guide To Venice

Photo Courtesy : askmen.com

Venice is a city for meanderers, it rewards every minute devoted to penetrating it's cat's cradle of intertwined lanes. The city is built on 117 small islands and about 150 canals and 410 bridges. The city is divides into six sestieri or districts: Cannaregio, Castello, San Marco, San Polo, Dorsoduro, and Santa Croce. To fully enjoy the city's beauty, don't just stick to the tried and tested places like Basilica di San Marco, Palazzo Ducale, Peggy Guggenheim Collection and Gallerie dell'Accademia but as well on less traveled sights like Ca'Rezzonico, Ca'Pesaro, and the Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute.

The busiest times are between May and September, Christmas and New Year, during February and at Easter. In September, a film festival is held on the Lido. The best time to visit Venice is on early spring and late autumn. Summer is also good with fine weather and long days to visit churches and museums in the afternoon, going on excursions and picnics, watching concerts and operas. Between June and September many hotels are full so if you choose to visit on these months make sure to book two months in advance.

The public transportation is by vaporetto or small passenger ferry along the canals. What anywhere in Italy would be a via or street, is in Venice, a calle. Take note that a street beside a canal is called fondamenta, smaller streets flanked by houses and shops is called ruga or rughetta, a tiny side lane connecting two bigger streets is ramo, and a quay is riva. Venice has its own style of street numbering, each district has a long series of numbers. A hotel might give its address as San Marco 4687 but its number doesn't help much, to avoid confusion rely on street names.

For up-to-date practical information, it is best to consult the current issue of Un ospite di Venezia. This can be obtained from the Azienda Promozione Turistica, Piazza San Marco 73c, and the reception desk in most hotels and pensioni. It lists the opening times of museums, scuole or shools, chiesa and cathedrals and more which vary from one season to another.

Trattorie are numerous than hotels in Venice. If you are looking for excellent international cuisine you can dine at Antico Martini near the Fenice. For local colour and good inexpensive Venetian food, go to Locanda Montin which has rooms hung with modern pictures and large shady garden. There are many Venetian dishes that do not depend on seafoods like risi e bisi or risotto made with peas and ham. Among cheeses, the rather dry Asiago is good. Most of the wines served in Venice come from Veneto like Tokai from Friuli, Soave di Verona and Pinot Nero. Soave, grappa, proseco are among the top local wines of Venice.

It is worth remembering too that in all cafes imported drinks are expensive than Italian ones. And if you sit down at a table you pay much more than if you stand up at bar. So like most Venetians, better to sip your coffee or have your glass of wine standing.