Short stay in Venice - Tips

[RecoveringChocaholic]

We've got an afternoon/evening plus 1 full day in Venice in August - childfree.
I want to make sure we make the most of our time. Any tips on what we should/shouldn't do and see? We don't want to run ourselves ragged but do want to take in the sights.
Any good restaurant suggestions?
Do we need to book things in advance?
We're staying in a hotel near the train station so will be travelling into Venice so to speak.

I love Venice, its so beautiful, and a city made for mooching and seeing where your feet take you :)

If you want to do the big tourist sites such as St Mark’s and the doge’s palace, you must book- otherwise you’ll queue for hours.

How are you going to be arriving ? I always take the Alilaguna from the airport, orange line then you can go all the way down the grand canal although it will be rammed.
in your position I would skip all the main tourist bits and enjoy your time wandering the quieter streets of dorsoduoro and Canareggio, soaking in the cafe and pavement culture.
dont be tempted to go to the islands, murano/burano. They will be foully busy and the vaporetto like a tin of sardines.
highly recommend Interpreti Veneziani four seasons concert, been twice and will go again on my next trip. Also osteria fanal de codega does lovely food, great seafood. Their Bacala is to die for.
try select in your spritz, it's the local version of Aperol and much nicer. Plus you're in Prosecco country.
if you like Amarone della Valpolicella there is a wonderful wine shop called Vineria all'Amarone near San Silvestro
if you like churches on your timetable see Chiesa San Pantalon , it's stunning with a fumiani ceiling. Plus it will be empty. And it's free.
profumo Di Sicilia gelato at gelateria del doge is a venice must for me
if you really do want to see St Marks (it's gorgeous but I wouldn't waste time there on a very short trip) then go in the evening when the cruise passengers abd day trippers have thinned out a bit, the orchestras play all evening so you will hear them as you wander. Don't go into cafe Florian without being prepared to shell out at least 25e a head - to sit down for a hot chocolate is 18e then 6e each for the band. There is another cafe called chioggia opposite the ducal palace, they play jazz standards and I love just listening to them while loitering nearby.

a good cheaper st marks hack is the caffe at the museo correr, You don't have to pay to go in, you get stunning surroundings more beautiful than Florian, a wow staircase and direct view of st marks basilica. Plus the prosecco is a normal price not 20e a glass !

i love Venice. Can you tell 😂. Where are you staying ?

and Prepare yourself to return

We’ll be there for a day and a half in August too! Not without kids though… We’re just planning to see Rialto Bridge and St Mark’s Square. Other than maybe a gondola ride, we just want to wander around.

Was trying to find a picture I took of the inside of caffe correr but can't

Fondaco dei Tedeschi roof terrace is also brilliant and free with an incredible view of the city, if you can book to be there on the 11.45 slot you will hear all the church bells pealing out for midday across the city, its spine tingling. Plus looking at all th designer gear is fun ! I think booking may open 28 days before.

its definitely worth doing on your short time there cos you get an excellent panoramic view of the city

https://www.dfs.com/en/venice/service/rooftop-terrace

Just get a vaporetto pass, get on at the stop just before the railway station, get an external seat and go the length of the Grand Canal at sunset, out across the lagoon to the Lido, stay onboard and come back as it’s getting dark. I’ve never found Venetian food very good, and tend to just eat cicchetti (Venetian tapas) and a spritz (or several) and wander about between bars. My thing is art and architecture, so I prioritise art museums (or go for the Biennale) and churches — seconding the San Pantalon suggestion from a pp. In a short time I would go to the Guggenheim and Ca’Pesaro.

Some great responses and suggestions. Thanks. I'm happy to avoid the very busy touristy places and enjoy a bit more of the side streets so to speak. The rooftop terrace sounds great. Thanks for the timing tip. I'll add this to the list. San pantalon also sounds great and we're definitely checking out the gelato 😁
We're actually arriving by train from lake Garda. Our hotel is right by the venezia mestre train station , which is handy as we'll also be taking the train to leave again from there.
Am I right in thinking we can take a train right into Venice from there? Or is there a better mode of transport?

Walk.
Take a gondola ride.
Eat away from the main tourist areas - use Google reviews- there are loads of great places to eat everywhere.

If you have the time take a vaporetta around Venice.

Yes the train from Venice mestre is 10 minutes.

Have just done Venice in a day, on a train ride from Lake Garda. I was really disappointed in the place.
Lake Garda on the other hand, was amazing.
As was Verona!

St marks, the bell tower and Doges are all together. I didn't rate the bell tower too crowded to appreciate it. Bridge of sighs is near too.

We did a food tour which we really enjoyed.

I'd get a water taxi and spend at least half a day just wandering

It's more expensive to eat /drink on the large squares and canal side. But we did have a lovely meal on the canal near rialto bridge.

Personally I don't think 1 day is anywhere near enough. Venice is a city to fall in love with, not a one night stand and a day trip isn't enough for her to soak into your skin. I've spent 11 days in the city so far and barely touched the surface.
i do think that it's day trippers that are the majority that find Venice underwhelming because they just see 1 place full of tourists, at peak traffic, get ripped off in the shitey places near st marks square.

in relation to food I know another poster doesn't like Venetian cuisine but conversely I love it. I love fish, risotto and artichokes, all of which are specialities of the region. Oh my, the fish 🤤. Most menus I have difficulty narrowing down all the things I want. If you like squid then the lagoon squid, tiny little things, are exquisite. They don't really do puddings though but who needs that when you have fab gelato.

that Profumo Di sicilia is sweet lemon sauce rippled through lemon ice cream with caramelised pistachios & almonds.

some Fondaco pictures with lovely shoes.. and one from the rialto fish market

Venice is special. Kinda. August is August . I don't mean to sound criptic but the reality is you will see nothing in the time you are there. . It does not mean don't go. You must and enjoy it's a place in history that will never be replicated. And yes I've spent some time in the lagoon working..

I'm afraid I could witter on about Venice for hours. I'm totally fascinated by it to the extent I have quite an extensive library about its history abd several historical novels. Did you know it was an independent city state until Napoleon overthrew the Doge in 1797 ? One of the wealthiest republics in the medieval world, hence the phenomenal architecture. Ill stop now 😂

if you like podcasts Monica Ceserato has a great series on all things Venice.

Absolutely. The Op can consider this trip as an amuse bouche for a second, longer trip :)

I loved the Peggy Guggenheim museum but book in advance.

I loved the cicchetti when I was in Venice. Wine Bar 500 was a great place to sit and watch the gondola traffic jams. Osteria Al Squero had a great selection too. Bar All'Arco had a very long queue and slow service, but the best cicchetti.

Ooh yes al squero :) we spent a very nice afternoon watching the birds fishing for their lunch abd watching the gondola makers while stuffing ourselves elegantly and nonchalantly eating a few tasty bites

Go to Verona and get tickets for the opera in the amphitheatre - it’s 2000 years old and tickets are just 25 euros. Verona is a short bus ride away

@Okeydokedeva the op is in Venice for less than 48hrs. Why on earth would she want to waste that going to Verona when she will barely have time to see anything in Venice as it is !

My mouth is watering from the seafood pictures 🤤 this all sounds great. I like the idea of treating this as an amuse bouche 😅 I am pretty sure we'll go back to Italy and stay longer in Venice next time. For now, it's just a very short taster.
Thank you all for your tips. Loads to pick from.

I spent 2 nights in Venice with my daughter last year in April. Coffee / lunch by the grand canal, wandering the beautiful back streets by Rialto, a trip across the water to Murano takes 20 mins on the public water buses.
We did do St Marks Square because it was our first trip to Venice but we treated our time there as just the first visit hopefully of many. You can't cover all it has to offer, satisfy yourself with soaking up the atmosphere. Sitting by the canal and watching the gondolas and even the freight boats is just lovely.

You will definitely go back. I first went as a day trip from Lake Garda nearly 20 years ago. Have since been back 4 times for actual holidays of up to 2 weeks and want to go again. It is just such a special place. Just wandering around getting 'lost' (you can never get truly lost in Venice) is heaven.