Venice

Take the water taxi into the city.

There are a few options to get into the city from the airport, but we found the water taxi was the easiest. We purchased tickets in the airport right next to baggage claim for 15 euro a piece. It’s about a 10 minute walk to the dock from the airport. There are private water taxis but they are expensive! Save your euro! Before you leave for your trip, be sure to know what stop you need to get off at. You can find out by usually checking your hotel’s website.

Other tips: choose your museums wisely because they add up quickly! We chose to visit the Accademia. It’s packed with highlights of the Venetian Renaissance and is known as Venice’s top art museum.

Visit St. Mark’s Basilica 

Wow, what a beauty! You can’t take pictures inside the cathedral, but enjoy the gold dome, mosaic tiles and the small museum once you get inside.

For a nice view, go to the top of the Bell Tower (Campanile di San Marco)

We did this right before sunset. It was nice! The lines to get in took some time, but it wasn’t awful. Plus, it’s a great view from the top!

Tour the Grand Canal 

When we were there, it was packed with other tourists. Therefore, the gondola rides lost it’s charm because we would see six+ boats riding one after the other down the canal. Gondola rides charge about 80-100 euro. If you’re by yourself or with one other person, it’s a steep price. Team up with other people to lower the cost. Also, crowds die down later in the day/early evening so by going later in the day, you won’t feel like you’re in an assembly line riding down the canal with other tourists. We jumped on the water taxi early in the morning (8 AM) and really enjoyed the view! It was quiet and peaceful. Plus, we only had a few other people on the boat!

Enjoy some Gelato 

Of course, you have to have some gelato while in Italy! We enjoyed a scoop at IL Doge.

Wander the City 

This is such a great city to explore on foot. Enjoy the many narrow alleys, shops, different views of the canal and wander the city until you get lost. It happened to us, but we stumbled upon some great things like the Bridge of Sighs, Rialto Bridge and some cute shops!

Visit the “library” from Indiana Jones 

It was originally a medieval or Renaissance church. We weren’t able to see anything inside because it was closed off. Taber’s a big fan of Indiana Jones!