{"id":1721,"date":"2023-12-19T10:07:44","date_gmt":"2023-12-19T10:07:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/?p=1721"},"modified":"2023-12-19T16:21:09","modified_gmt":"2023-12-19T16:21:09","slug":"a-guide-to-having-the-best-weekend-in-venice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/a-guide-to-having-the-best-weekend-in-venice\/","title":{"rendered":"A guide to having the best weekend in Venice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nowhere on earth is as still as Venice at night. No street vendors, no tourists, no sound\u00a0\u2013 only the occasional\u00a0splashing of oars in a\u00a0canal. Some nights, the\u00a0acqua alta<\/a>\u00a0siren breaks the stillness. Slow and melodic, it warns of an incoming high tide. A few hours later and the city is submerged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Ethereal, brooding and lonely, the streets of Venice echo a history that spans a millennium. It is the story of how a\u00a0swampy lagoon \u2013 inhabited first by a group of refugees turned fishermen \u2013 was transformed into one of\u00a0the\u00a0richest trading powers in the world. Yet, for all her history, Venice is not a museum (or a mausoleum, as some commentators might see it). Within this labyrinth of narrow bridges, cramped courtyards, twisting canals and shuttered squares, is a\u00a0living, breathing city, ideal for a short break.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Best of the Beaten Track<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

First off, don\u2019t expect to see the whole of Venice in a weekend. This is a city made up of 450 bridges, 120 islands and a maze of narrow, twisting streets (according to Jan Morris, mere decades ago you could find Venetians who\u2019d lived in the same ward their whole life and never travelled to St Mark\u2019s square<\/a>). Speaking of which, make this grand piazza your first stop. Bordered on the East by the fa\u00e7ade of St Mark\u2019s, it\u2019s changed little during the 1000 years of its existence, and whether crowded with people in the height of summer, flooded in high tide, or silent in the moonlight, it is always magic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you\u2019ve had your fill of the orchestras and pigeons battling it out in the square, climb up the\u00a0Campanile<\/a>. Rebuilt in 1912 after it collapsed unexpectedly (amazingly, killing nobody bar the caretaker\u2019s cat), the bell tower offers a breathtaking view of the clustered roofs of Venice. If there\u2019s not too much of a queue, visit the\u00a0Basilica<\/a>, if only for the glittering mosaics that line the inside of her five grandiose domes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Next, follow the yellow signs to Rialto<\/a>. While the bridge is impressive, the fish and vegetable market tucked away to its side is far more interesting. Bustling with chefs and old Venetian housewives, it\u2019s awash with colour, noise and the smell of the sea. From here you can hop on the tragetto<\/a> \u2013 a gondola that will ferry you across the Grand Canal for the princely sum of 50 cents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a city like Venice, where almost every home is rendered fascinating by the remains of ancient arches and windows juxtaposed with flowery window boxes and strings of washing, there\u2019s little scope for galleries and museums. However, the\u00a0Peggy Guggenheim Collection<\/a>\u00a0is an exception. Regarded as the best place in Italy to see twentieth century art, the bright and modern museum offers a welcome respite from Venice\u2019s tangled streets and is must for any long weekend itinerary.\u00a0Book a ticket in advance<\/a>\u00a0and you can skip the line.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dusk in Venice is best seen from the\u00a0Lagoon<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 the perfect excuse for an afternoon trip to some of the city\u2019s closest islands. The glass-making mecca of\u00a0Murano<\/a>\u00a0is the most popular, but\u00a0Burano\u00a0<\/a>is also well worth a visit. Known for its lace production, this colourful isle is the perfect spot to watch the sun set over\u00a0La Serenissima<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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If you do want to get out to the islands then Get Your Guide offer\u00a0a best-selling boat trip<\/a>\u00a0that takes you to both Murano and Burano islands for a reasonable price. Or else check out\u00a0their complete list of things to do<\/a>, including tours of Doge\u2019s Palace and St. Mark\u2019s Basilica, for some more inspiration.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hipster\u2019s Guide<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Thomas Mann once described Venice as \u2018part fairy-tale, part tourist trap\u2019. Yet, for all the crowds and souvenir shops, Venice is still a living and working city. From the laundry-lined streets of Castello to the bustling markets at Rialto, you can glean a picture of real Venice if you look hard enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A good place to start is the\u00a0Ghetto<\/a>. Break away\u00a0from the bustling Strada Nuova and within five minutes you\u2019ll find yourself inside Europe\u2019s oldest Jewish ghetto. With its distinctive tall buildings, quiet courtyards and fantastic\u00a0Jewish museum,<\/a>it offers a fascinating slice of Venetian history, while being\u00a0mercifully free of tourists. Before venturing back towards the city\u2019s clogged streets, cross\u00a0Ponte delle Guglie<\/a>\u00a0and head towards\u00a0Parco Savorgnan<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 a shady park that\u2019s frequented only by Venetians, their children, and the city\u2019s cats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Experience & Events<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Tucked away\u00a0from Venice\u2019s narrow streets lies dozens of lush green gardens. Gardener and author Tudy Sammartini offers\u00a0tours of these secret gardens<\/a>, painting the city\u2019s history through stories of lilac and lavender. For a different view of the city, book yourself onto a\u00a0kayak tour.\u00a0Venice Kayak<\/a>\u00a0offer evening tours, giving visitors the chance to paddle through the unlit canals of the city \u2013 an unforgettable, if slightly eery, experience. And if you can\u2019t leave The Floating City without a ride in a gondola, you can\u00a0book one in advance here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This content comes from: https:\/\/www.urbantravelblog.com\/guide\/venice\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Nowhere on earth is as still as Venice at night. No street vendors, no tourists, no sound\u00a0\u2013 only the occasional\u00a0splashing of oars in a\u00a0canal. Some nights, the\u00a0acqua alta\u00a0siren breaks the stillness. Slow and melodic, it warns of an incoming high tide. A few hours later and the city is submerged. Ethereal, brooding and lonely, the …<\/p>\n

A guide to having the best weekend in Venice<\/span> Read More »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1723,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"set","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-travel-guides"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1721"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1721\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1724,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1721\/revisions\/1724"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1723"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/me21tg.leedsnewmedia.net\/wordpress2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}