Explore Venice

A guide to Venice

Venice, one of the world's most fabled and romantic cities, sprawls serenely over 118 islands in the districts known as Sestieri, comprising the six districts of Cannaregio, San Polo, Dorsoduro (including the Giudecca), Santa Croce, San Marco (including San Giorgio Maggiore), and Castello (including San Pietro di Castello and Sant'Elena). These house Venice's most beloved monuments and attractions.

Other districts and islands making up this fascinating city are Isola Della Giudecca and Lido di Venezia, the latter of which plays host to the renowned annual Venice Film Festival. Other important islands include Murano (known for its exquisite glassworks), Torcello, San Francesco del Deserto and Burano.

The Queen of the Adriatic is still one of the most fascinating places in the world. A sanctuary floating amid a lagoon, Venice has barely changed in 600 years, though the city's persistent charm and grace attracts thousands, and these days tourists outnumber residents.

Though it is known more for its palatial elegance than a vibrant clubbing scene, there is much to see and do in Venice, and a detailed guide to current events can be found in the monthly Ospite di Venezia, available in the city's finer hotels or online at www.unospitedivenezia.it.

Classic Venice

By its very nature, Venice is best explored by the district, especially where its wealth of palaces, churches, museums and galleries are concerned. If your time in this magnificent city is limited, these are must-see attractions -- though if you can, you should extend your stay to give this sumptuous city the time and attention it so richly deserves.

Without a doubt, the most gorgeous jewel in Venice's crown is the Basilica di San Marco. A study of opulence in Byzantine and Romanesque styles, this church, with its Greek-cross layout and five domes, is the cathedral of Venice. The basilica is famed for its stunning overhead mosaics, dating from the 11th century to the early 1700s, which come alive for a short time each day when the interior is fully illuminated.

Also in San Marco, rising above the Piazzetta San Marco, the Palazzo Ducale is a Gothic-Renaissance dream wrought in pink-and-white marble, and leaves visitors in no doubt as to the soaring heights of wealth and power in Venice's most glorious period. This palazzo served many purposes; the immortal lover Giacomo Casanova was imprisoned here for 15 months before escaping to France.

Ca' Rezzonico in Dorsoduro houses the fascinating Museo del Settecento Veneziano (Museum of 18th-Century Venice) which truly is a window on another world. Once owned by the poet Robert Browning's son, the palazzo is awash with sumptuous examples of the furnishings of Venetian life. It is considered one of the finest, most evocative museums in Venice.

Another unmissable museum is the Gallerie dell'Accademia, also in Dorsoduro. It houses the most extraordinary collection of Venetian art, from the Byzantine and Gothic 14th century to the artists of the Renaissance – Bellini, Carpaccio, Giorgione, Veronese, Tintoretto and Titian – to Gianbattista Tiepolo and the Vedutisti of the 18th century; Canaletto, Guardi, Bellotto, Longhi – artists who influenced the entirety of subsequent European painting.

In Cannaregio, one must visit Ca' d'Oro, probably the most magnificent gothic palace on the Grande Canal. It was once embellished with pure gold, and today, as the Galleria Franchetti, houses an exquisite art collection.

Gesuiti, the 18th century church, is extravagantly baroque, and worth visiting to view its interior walls, illustrative of masterfully in-laid marble made to resemble brocade drapery. It is home to Titian's Martyrdom of St. Lawrence.

Cannaregio is also home to the Jewish district which gave the world the word 'ghetto'. Here one can visit several synagogues, a rabbinical school and the small but beautifully curated Museo Ebraico, which preserves centuries of Venetian Jewish culture.

A palace well worth visiting (though by appointment only) is the Palazzo Labia in Cannaregio, once home to one of 18th century Venice's most extravagant families. Today the palace houses the Venetian headquarters of the Italian national radio and television network, RAI. Visit the gorgeous Tiepolo Ballroom to see Giambattista Tiepolo's frescoes of Anthony and Cleopatra.

Cool, Hip and Trendy Venice


Venice is known more for its elegant architecture and wonderfully preserved history than its night life. Nonetheless, it has a number of music bars and late night restaurants, the best of which can be found along the fondamenta Misericordia in Cannaregio.

Piccolo Mondo in Dorsoduro offers a disco night in the summer and a happy hour in the late afternoon in winter, often with live music.

Another popular dance club is Casanova in Cannaregio, where Wednesday is salsa night; Thursday offers rock, pop, alternative, and indie; Friday is dance music; and Saturday brings in house music and progressive DJs.

Serious party animals should head to the Strand at the Lido, where one can find numerous bars and late-night discos.

Curiosity seekers and gamblers alike will enjoy a visit to the Casino Municipale di Venezia, to be found on the Lido in the summer and in Cannaregio during the winter months. Its winter location in a 15th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal is by far the more interesting.

Cultural Venice

The Venice Film Festival, the oldest film festival in the world, has taken place every year in late August or early September on the Lido. Screenings take place in the historic Palazzo del Cinema. It is one of the world's most prestigious film festivals and is part of the Venice Biennale, a major biennial exhibition and festival for contemporary art.

Venice has a long and rich tradition of classical music, and you will never struggle to find a concert to attend, quite often hosted in a church. The Chiesa di Vivaldi (officially the Chiesa Santa Maria della Pietà) is the most popular venue for the music of Vivaldi and his contemporaries. San Stefano, San Stae, the Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista,and the Scuola di San Rocco are among the other churches which also regularly host classical concerts.

Venice's famous Teatro La Fenice in San Marco was built in 1836, and remains the city's principal stage for world-class opera, music, theater, and ballet. Venetians were shocked by a fire that almost destroyed it in 1996, but the city's carpenters and artisans rallied to re-create the teatro according to archival designs in time for an inaugural concert in 2003.