When in Venice, what do the Venetians do?

May 29, 2008 7:34 AM

What is a good way to spend some downtime in central Venice?

I'm a (female) student who is traveling to Venice with a group for several days in a few weeks. I will have most evenings free and am looking for an enriching or interesting way to occupy them.

Most other questions about Venice are regarding people traveling there for a day or two asking about the region and the city in general. I'm going to have more time than that to see the non-typical sites.

1) I'm already doing the touristy stuff.
2) I'm not averse to spending a little money though I would prefer to keep that spending to a minimum.
3) I don't speak Italian - English and decent French, yes.
4) I'm staying in the Castello Ovest and don't really want to be wandering all over the entire city at night.

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

posted by Solon and Thanks to travel & transportation around Venice, Italy (17 answers total)

Why don't you want to be wandering all around the city at night? That's like the coolest thing to do. One of my favorite travelling memories of all time was wandering around Venice at night.
posted by sully75 at 7:43 AM on May 29, 2008

I'm fine with wandering around and plan to, but I don't want to walk to the other side of the city to check something out and end up far away from my hotel late at night.

Unless the city is smaller and easier to navigate than I'm thinking.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 7:47 AM on May 29, 2008

Venice pretty much dies in the mid to late evenings I'm afraid. The nightlife essentially consists of student bars, and pretty much nothing else. Restaurants are another option of course (and plenty of good options to eat) - but Venetians tend to eat relatively early.

The passeggiata (always good for a gelato and some people-watching) is the obvious choice for an evening activity. Not sure what the usual location for it is in Venice actually, but should be easy to find out from guidebooks.

The city is very cool to wander about at night, but it will be extremely quiet. Taken as read probably, but as a presumably single female wandering about on your own you should definitely take care. A friend of mine was attacked in Venice at night, so as old-fashioned and quiet as the city seems at night, it is certainly a possibility.
posted by bifter at 8:01 AM on May 29, 2008

Seconding the "get some gelato option."

Also, I was there in March and it seemed like there were concerts being held almost every night in various Churches. If you're a Baroque or Classical music enthusiast or even just like to watch the guy in tails with the little stick wave his arms around frantically, then thats probably where you want to be. I'm guessing that anything playing in one of these venues is probably top notch, so worth the price of a ticket.

For me though, walking around really was the best part of the whole trip. Grab a friend if you're not comfortable doing it alone, but I guarantee you, getting lost in Venice is totally worth it.
posted by Smarson at 8:34 AM on May 29, 2008

I didn't really think about the safety issue. My guess it would not be that hard to find a fellow tourist to walk with.

From my memory, it's quite a small city. Calling it a city feels really weird. It's like nothing else. Honestly, if it were me, I'd ignore everything else and just walk around. You can be inside pretty much anywhere, but there aren't any places that are more entrancing or interesting to be outside in.
posted by sully75 at 10:11 AM on May 29, 2008

- go to something at the dance biennale
- take a night-time tour (organised by Accademia Viaggi e Turismo - give them a ring to see if they still exist: tel. [phone])
- blow some cash at the Casinò (shame it's at the Lido during summer months...)
- while you're at Lido, spook through the old Jewish cemetery there
- come dawn, watch the fishmongers set up their stalls at the Rialto market
posted by progosk at 10:27 AM on May 29, 2008 [2 favorites]

oh, and: check here for what else might be on.
posted by progosk at 10:31 AM on May 29, 2008 [2 favorites]

I'd just walk around by myself and enjoy the gelato, the unique architecture, the history, and the smell of stale and not so stale urine wafting over everything.

Venice is beautiful, but it's beautiful in a melancholy way. It's beautiful for it's evocation of history but sad because it's not a living city anymore. Not like Rome, or Florence, or Athens, or other historical cities. It's like a giant Disney city, but more odorific.

Everyone should go at least once and just walk around and take in the history. I don't feel the need to go back.
posted by Justinian at 10:58 AM on May 29, 2008

Oh, it's almost certainly already covered in your "I'm already doing touristy things", but make sure to take the time to really see St. Mark's, inside and out. Don't skimp.
posted by Justinian at 11:01 AM on May 29, 2008

Wandering the alleyways of Venice is one of life's greatest pleasures. I recommend you read The Comfort of Strangers now, and see the movie version as well.
posted by thomas144 at 12:45 PM on May 29, 2008

Venice is small. The only real trick to getting around it is that it's freakishly maze-like. After a while the canals and bridges and alleys and storefronts can look identical and you can find yourself turned around. I have a good sense of direction and it's one of the only places I get lost. That said, I have never ONCE felt unsafe wandering Venice at night. If anything, I've thoroughly enjoyed it. I just made sure to leave breadcrumbs behind me after leaving the hotel.

When you're in the Basilica be sure to check out the museum upstairs, most people miss it. Also, there's a ticket you can get to include other sights and it's a good savings. Be sure to go up the Campanile so you can get the birds eye view of the whole city, it's beautiful. Another recommendation would be to get a multi-day Vaporetti pass (scroll down for info) and just use it as much as you can to get your money's worth.

Venice is not a place you need to run around, trying to see everything. It's a place you can stroll through... popping into the shops, running away from the hideous masked street performers before they get all Eyes Wide Shut on you, it's about wandering the empty alleys, it's about people bursting into song, it's about street musicians and GELATO (!!!!), it's about pigeon attacks and orange pants and cute priests and gondoliers with cel phones. Just wander. Walk into every church you see and light a candle. Duck into every corner. Pet every dog. Smile. You're in Venice. Life is good.

Don't expect it to have the best italian food, it doesn't. Expect it to be overpriced. But you're in Venice. Just enjoy every second. Who cares what you do.
posted by miss lynnster at 12:48 PM on May 29, 2008 [3 favorites]

Seconding Justinian, btw... Venice is a bit of a Disneyland. It's a floating tourist attraction, a piece of world history that's basically sinking. The most interesting things I saw I had there were when I was just observing how the people who live there exist daily. I've never splurged on a gondola ride, but I saw more of the city than most. I spent time watching boats making deliveries to stores, the interactions of the people, the hanging of laundry, even joined a group of gondoliers sharing an after work glass of wine... all of that is Venice even more than a gondola ride. I've been there 3 times even though it's never been a place I have ever felt I needed to go back to. I went back because it was en route to somewhere else, and after a few days I was ready to go. You can really absorb the place up in a few days, and then you've done it.

And for whatever reason, the fact that you've been there makes your life seem richer. No question about that.

Also, the smell of the canals is directly proportionate to how hot the weather is. Late summer gets NASTY.
posted by miss lynnster at 1:01 PM on May 29, 2008

Catch an opera or a concert at la Fenice, it's totally worth it, even if classical music is not your thing, the atmosphere is worth it. You'll get there by vaporetto (just a few blocks) or you can simply walk there from Piazza San Marco. An after opera dinner at the nearby Taverna La Fenice is another good idea (not cheap but not insane). Have fun!
posted by Opera Chic at 2:39 PM on May 29, 2008

Aside from all of the good advice above, read Jan Morris's The Venetian Empire, a short, beautiful nonfiction book that will give you a wonderful taste of what the city has been like through history. Really, it is great.
posted by blahblahblah at 6:04 PM on May 29, 2008 [1 favorite]

Thank you for the great ideas, everyone, they were all helpful. I think I've got a good idea of the general consensus.
posted by Solon and Thanks at 10:20 PM on May 29, 2008

Oh, you can also take a quick trip to Murano too.
posted by miss lynnster at 11:07 PM on May 29, 2008

I checked out Murano, La Fenice, and some of the other places marked best answer in my freetime. Wandering around really was the best option, as were really long dinners and checking out the (incredibly small) nightlife scene. I had the majority of one day free, which I spent at the Lido (I'd recommend this if you have the time! The beach was nice and the Lido in general was a nice area.)
posted by Solon and Thanks at 8:54 AM on August 15, 2008