Top Things to do in City of Venice
10 Free Things to do in City of Venice That You Shouldn't Miss
Discover the best top things to do in City of Venice, Italy including Centro Storico di Venezia, Isola di Burano, Piazza San Marco, Ponte dei Sospiri, Basilica di San Marco, Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute, Cannaregio, Dorsoduro, Isola di Pellestrina, libreria Acqua alta.
Restaurants in City of Venice
1. Centro Storico di Venezia
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 2,219 reviews
Reviewed By L9034OAcarlosb - Lisbon, Portugal
Find your own path through that maze of bridges, canals, alleys and monuments which makes the heart of the Centro Storico. Leave your luggage at the hotel, and hit the streets. You won`t regret a single second. Enjoy.
2. Isola di Burano
Overall Ratings
5.0 based on 217 reviews
Just 40 minutes from Venice, Burano is one of the most characteristic islands of the lagoon. Famous for its colorful houses, lace making and local fish cuisine
Reviewed By EcoBean - Kennington, United Kingdom
Burano is like the baby sister of Murano, with plenty of opportunity to buy the fantastic murano glass, but Burano, is actually more famous for it's lace making and products. There are women dotted around the shops demonstrating their lace making skills, and plenty of small lace items to buy a piece of this artwork. The buildings and architecture on this island are really colourful (purportedly the fishermen painted their houses bright colours to find their way home in the frequent fogs that cover the Islands). The maze of brightly painted homes are a delight to wander around and between the shop lined streets are plenty of restaurants, bars and bistros to enjoy a break and refreshments. I recommend the ice-cream parlours!! Can't leave Italy without trying the ice-cream. The frequency of the water buses between Burano, Murano and the main islands of Venice is good, right into the early hours of the morning, and very reasonably priced to make a complete day of island hopping cheaply and easily.
3. Piazza San Marco
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 36,943 reviews
It is said that Napoleon called San Marco "the drawing room of Europe." And it is a breathtakingly beautiful place. But the square has long been a lure for massive numbers of pigeons, drawn by the massive numbers of tourists who readily feed them. While the tourists happily post for photos amid the flock, there are concerns that the birds' presence--and what they leave behind--will damage the centuries old architecture and art work.
Reviewed By usctrojantravelgirl - Los Angeles, United States
I’ve visited St. Mark’s Square many times but truly enjoyed this visit. While the piazza was crowded and even flooded during high tide, the waters quickly diminished, the weather was beautiful and there are enough opportunities to get the perfect photos!
4. Ponte dei Sospiri
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 7,050 reviews
This historic bridge connects the Doge's Palace with its prisons and was named for the condemned prisoners who crossed it to meet their executioners.
Reviewed By Erfurt - Jupiter, United States
The Bridge of Sighs is world renown, it is packed with tourists coming and going, there is a lot of pushing and chaffing going on, everyone wants to take a photo of this scene, and the once who take " selfies " really jam up this beautiful sight best seen from the bridge where this photo was taken..The Bridge of Sighs is made from white limestone passes over the Rio di Palazzo and connects the New Prison to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace. A MUST see...
5. Basilica di San Marco
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 28,574 reviews
Blending the architectural styles of East and West, Venice's magnificent basilica was consecrated in 832 AD as an ecclesiastical building to house the remains of St. Mark.
Reviewed By 627brendand
We visited this beautiful church and were blown away by the opulent gold mosaic artwork and beautiful sculptures and architecture. It was a personal goal to visit San Marco and the square so it was for us a dream come true. The disappointing thing was the general level of dishonesty around Venice by business people. To buy anything was a complete rip off, even a coffee and croissant was extortionate. You had to always check your change as we were deliberately short changes several times and my wife was also pick pocketed in Milan the very hour we arrived in Italy. So be careful with your money and I wouldn’t eat or buy any food in tourist areas. Also when we arrived at the train station in Venice the square was under about 12 inches of water. People were everywhere selling waterproof waders to put your feet in. 20 Euro later ...These promptly leaked and we were soaked anyway after 5 minutes of use. This was dishonesty on an industrial scale. Also no one told us that if you simply waited about an hour the tide would recede and you could walk around on dry ground. This basic information was simply not available to tourists. My advice would be, go for the beauty and amazing art and be very careful, as there is unfortunately a rip off culture everywhere.
6. Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,763 reviews
Designed by Baldassare Longhena in 1631-83, the church's façade is embellished with 125 statues, which form a sharp contrast to the somber interior.
Reviewed By massimoswitz - Opfikon, Switzerland
Round basilica with huge dome with several paintings and in the sacristy you can visit Titian's masterpieces.
7. Cannaregio
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 4,481 reviews
Rival to Castello for bragging rights as the largest of Venice's six sestieri (boroughs).
Reviewed By tobiasr577 - Gothenburg, Sweden
If you Wanna see the ”real” Venice and communicate With the people of Venice you should live and walk around in this area! You Will feel the Italian warmth spread around you and also see How the Venetians live and Maybe even love!
8. Dorsoduro
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,398 reviews
This Venetian district is home to some of the city’s most renowned art collections, including Galleria dell’Accademia—which is packed with Venetian Renaissance works—and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, which houses 20th century art in a gorgeous palazzo setting.
Reviewed By Raffiella11 - Leicestershire, United Kingdom
The left hand side of Dorosoduro you have the sunny Zattere a long paved area where locals walk their dogs, children on scooters, more local life - the righthand side is the Grande Canale which is lined with some fabulous Palazzo's, my favourite is Palazzo Dario with its beautiful ornate frontage and extremely tall chimneys - it has a very chequered past. There are many squares both large and small, my favourite is Campo Santa Margherita, one of the city's liveliest , its fish stall, flower stall, numerous, outdoor cafés/ restaurants, excellent ice-cream shops and very small ones. At the far end leads into Campo San Barnaba where an unusal canal barge is moored selling fabulous fresh vegetables and fruit. The bridge at the side, Ponte dei Pugni notice the footsteps - this is were rival families used to fight. Leaving Zattere you walk at the side of the Rio di San Trovaso, Church of San Trovaso looking out over a grassy square, next door is Venice's oldest boatyards, gondolas are still made and maintained. This area is a true oasis of peace - small stone bridges, pretty canals, mansions. The crowning glory is the most beautiful and majestic San Salute church and a little further down the customs house. Jump on a waterbus at San Salute, as you slowly meander along the Grande Canale you will see the most amazing beautiful Palazzo's Take time to wander around this wonderful quarter of the city, it is fascinating - we have stayed here 6 times, and always find something new to see every time.
9. Isola di Pellestrina
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 295 reviews
Reviewed By Crystal012 - Hastings, United Kingdom
We had been told about Pellestrina by other photographers, spent a lovely day here, it was so quiet and peaceful like traveling back in time. Delightful. Having said all of this I am sure it would not suit everyone. Depends what you want, it is really a place of local fishermen. Bikes seemed a good way to get around although the bus service is good from Lido.
10. libreria Acqua alta
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 2,423 reviews
Reviewed By WaitForIttttt - Hazlet, United States
My husband and I visited Libreria Acqua Alta while visiting Venice for the first time. We're both avid readers and were excited to see a bookshop amidst the beauty of Venice. Libreria Acqua Alta captures the charm of Venice in bookstore form. The books are stacked in boats in the center of shelves of more books. There is a small door that leads to the canal and stacks of books you can climb outside to peer over into the canal. We spent a good amount of time wandering the shelves, which had books in Italian and many other languages (including English). My husband found a copy of one of his favorite books (from the Dragonlance series) in Italian and purchased it to add to our collection. If you love books, Libreria Acqua Alta is most definitely worth a visit while you're in Venice!
