Daytrip to Venice from Garda, anyone done it / is it worth it? Things to do see?

[sweetheart]

We are contemplating a day trip from Lake Garda to Venice. I believe it's only about a 1.5 hour drive but is it too much to do Venice in 1 day? Any hints / tips etc?

I would have thought it was a bit longer than that - we stayed in Verona for a couple nights, then Garda (45 min bus ride away), then back to Verona and it was a couple hours on the train to Venice (actually a bit longer thanks to engineering work).

Also you'd need somewhere to park as most of Venice you can't get a car into.

You could easily fill 5-6 days, but in a day you could have a boat trip down the Grand Canal, see glassmaking on Murano, have a tour round the Doges Palace, and see the Fra Mauro map in the bonkers museum opposite, plus wander side streets to soak up the atmosphere, see animal masks, and have icecream. If you're not going to go back to Italy next year, give it a go.

I did that on honeymoon but it was an organised coach trip. I hated that we couldn't do what we wanted as we were restricted by timings. We could have spent much longer in St Marks basilica and we didn't see anything mentioned above! Although we did have a nice boat trip around the lagoon and a gondola ride.

We stayed Lake Garda and took train from Desenzano. You can park near the station in Desenzano. It was about 2 hours on the train. I can't pretend we did Venice justice in a day (!) but I'm glad we made the effort. I would not drive. If you can get an organised coach tour that might give you slightly more time in Venice.

We bought a day ticket each for the vaporetti, walked, walked thn walked some more, with stops for ice cream & coffee Do not eat in/near St Mark's - pricey. We didn't join any queues to get inside any buildings. Stared at the huge 'yachts' visiting. Took loads of photos.

Bars, cafes and restaurants charge tourists the menu price, locals get reductions, so if you can speak Italian with a Venetian accent, you'll save money

Worth it even if you don't go in anywhere cos of queues. Just walk the streets and soak in the beauty of the place.

I second the train idea. Went in the train and it was really easy. Plenty of room to park the car and then just jumped on the train. There is a tourist info just outside the train station and they have free maps and information.
We really enjoyed wandering round the city. Take plenty of water it was really not when we went 35 degrees, public toilets are not so great. Water buses are really fun.
The queue for the Basilica was massive and you cannot take bags in so be sure to get in the queue and then send your OH to the office round the corner where it's possible to leave your bags.
Then we just wandered around the back streets and got a couple of slices of pizza from a takeaway far from the main square.
I must admit it my kids didn't love it but I enjoyed it a lot

We went to Garda last year and opted to do Verona rather than Venice, as we've been to Venice before. We drove. It was nice but absolutely boiling.

Verona is doable in a day, and worth seeing if you haven't - the amphitheatre in particular. And an easy bus ride or drive from Garda (Bardolino for example)

We did it on the train from Desenzano and yes, it was worth it, it was a fabulous day.

Don't try to do too much, just wander around, perhaps a gondola or water taxi ride, have a nice lunch, drink at Harry's Bar, look at lovely scenery.

We've since been back for a few days to do it justice but one day was great too.

I went to Venice from near Garda. We left really early to get there at about 6am and wandered round enjoying the beauty and peace and quiet. We left at lunchtime by which time everything was jam packed and we were glad to be out.

I preferred Verona tbh. But I hate crowds.

"perhaps a gondola or water taxi ride"

They are horrifically expensive. Take the circulaire vaporetto. It will take you all the way round Venice for a fraction of the price of a gondola or water taxi.