Our alarms buzzed bright and early - we had one day to explore Venice top to bottom! Hitting the streets with a pep in our step, the beauty and quaintness of Venice was difficult to comprehend. I was worried Venice might be too overcrowded, smelly and unbearably hot in the midsummer heat for us to appreciate it, but I couldn’t have been more wrong. It was if we were stepping right into a picture perfect postcard.
Venice was just so charming and romantic! Gondolas and Vaporetto’s gliding gracefully through the grand canal, couples strolling through alleyways hand in hand, families sitting laughing on canal side restaurants sipping on Aperol Spritzers or Prosecco while tucking into an afternoon pizza, and small children savoring their gelato whilst marveling at cultural and architectural wonders. While we needed an extra week to truly appreciate all Venice has to offer, here is how we skimmed the surface of Venice in a day.
1. Ditch the map
I wholeheartedly recommend putting the map away and getting lost in the maze of narrow streets, venturing off the beaten track where you can truly appreciate the beauty of the buildings without the crowds, the quaint bridges, and if you’re lucky, you will have the streets (and smaller canals) all to yourself making for the perfect photo ops. I also recommend starting your day early like we did to escape the crowds.
2. Gelato in Saint Mark’s Square
While wandering aimlessly through Venice, you won’t help but notice signs pointing you in the direction of Piazza San Marco, the main square and central point of Venice. It’s the perfect place to grab a gelato (pistachio is my flavor of choice), find a seat, appreciate the architecture wonder of St. Mark’s Basilica (sadly under construction when we visited), and watch the floods of people who appear to have a fascination with the pigeons!
3. Ascend the Campanile for a bird’s eye view
After exploring Venice for a few hours by foot, we opted to explore Venice from a Bird’s eye view. We joined the queue of people waiting to climb the Campanile, the bell tower which dominates the skyline of Venice. It was originally built in the 9th century but has been reconstructed several times, with only one of the original 5 bells remaining today. It was such a beautiful, sunny day and we were rewarded with stunning views of Venice and the surrounding islands. It was definitely worth the 8 Euro Elevator ride.
4. Bridge of Sighs
The iconic Bridge of Sighs, which connects the Doge palace and the new prison is a leisurely stroll away from the Campanile. Rumor/myth has it that it received its name as the prisoners sighed as they said goodbye to their freedom and the outside world. Given our short time in Venice, we only had time to appreciate it from a distance, but it certainly is one of the most beautiful bridges in Venice, with rich history behind its walls.
5. Long lunching with Pizza and Prosecco
Some more aimless wandering away from Piazza San Marco led us to a small restaurant facing the gorgeous church of San Geremia in the district of Cannaregio. Here, we had a chance to rest our feet, and refuel with one of the most delicious pizzas we had on our road trip around northern Italy, and quench our thirst with a bottle of prosecco!
6. Ride a Gondola or Vaporetto
A gondola ride is quintessential Venice and perhaps one of the most romantic things you can do while in the city of canals. HOWEVER, after much contemplating and looking at the prices of the rides (as much as 90 Euros for a 30-minute ride during the day), we opted out (a regret of mine to be honest). In retrospect, everyone should suck up the cost and do it!! However, if you end up making the same decision as us, make sure to ride the Vaparetto (water bus) like the locals do, costing you 7 euros for a ride.
7. Afternoon Aperitif
Continuing our afternoon exploring by foot, this time in search for a cute canal side restaurant to enjoy an aperitif or two. Eventually finding a place, we sat having afternoon beers and aperol spritzers in the shade, watching life pass us by on the canal. THIS PLACE IS PERFECTION!
8. Pasta & Vino
Just when we thought the day couldn’t get any better, we stumbled into a small, busy, hole in the wall, family owned restaurant where we dined like royalty with a delicious bottle of red wine, and our body weight in pasta.
In a nutshell, our day consisted of lots of walking in search of restaurants, bars, with people watching and a few cultural sights in between. It’s difficult to explain the magic that is Venice so it’s worth a visit to experience it yourself. I’ll be back to ride my gondola, and to visit the colorful island of Burano!
