Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with Venice

2 weeks driving around Europe at Christmas - what not to miss?

allkindsoftime — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 09:12:48 -0800

European road-trip for the holidays (filter). Meeting up with a friend in Paris on the evening of the 19th - both of us traveling there from different continents and wrapping up on Jan 2nd back in Paris. Here's the current plan:

Week 1 (Road Trip!):
12/19 - Arrive Paris, stay overnight.
12/20 - Drive to Munich, staying with friends.
12/21 - Explore Munich, Christmas markets, etc.
12/22 - Drive to Vienna with a stop in Steyr, Austria*.
12/23 - Explore Vienna, Christmass markets, etc.
12/24 - More Vienna, Christmas Eve Mass at St. Stephansdom*.
12/25 - Drive to Venice.
12/26 - Explore Venice.

Week 2 (based out of Geneva, where we have a free apartment):
12/27 - Drive to Geneva.
12/28 - Ski Chamonix, stay in Geneva
12/29 - More skiing, still in Geneva.
12/30 - More skiing, last night in Geneva.
12/31 - Drive to Paris for New Years.
1/1 - Explore Paris
1/2 - Friend flies out, I'm off to London for a day then flying out myself on the 3rd.

*Both of these were "local recommendations" given by friends - cool things to see and do. I am particularly interested on these around our route.

My questions:

1. Cheap / decent hotel near the airport in Paris - any suggestions?

2. Driving - we're both pretty set on it because a) we both love driving / road trips, and b) we crave the flexibility of being able to stop off in this or that place along the way, stay at a B&B outside the city rather than a hotel in it, etc.. We realize trains are good around here but would really need a strong argument against driving to sway us at this point. Any tips on tolls / etc. appreciated, as well as things along our routes not to miss.

3. Hotel in Vienna - same as above, we are looking for something more local / small, preferably on the city outskirts. From what I understand most of Europe will shut down on the 25/26th, so I figure on spending Christmas day on the road.

4. Hotel in Venice - see above.

5. Best skiing recommendations within reasonable driving distance of Geneva? I'm pretty set on Chamonix as I've been reading about skiing there my entire life, and extreme skiing is my "thing," although not my friend's, so I'm only pushing for one day there - the other 2 days we're looking for something more enjoyable to ride together.

6. New Years Eve in Paris - where to go? What to do? Where to stay?

Any input on the above or anything I'm not thinking of is appreciated in advance. I've only been to the UK and Greece before so if parts of (hopefully not all!) my plans are idiotic, please hope me. We're pretty much going off of the Lonely Planet guide and the AskMe tags (i.e. Vienna, Venice, etc.) for things to do in the cities we are at, but any other suggestions on stops along the way that are don't-miss are appreciated.

from venice to lyon

swimmingly — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:13:33 -0800

Recommend somewhere in between Venice and Lyon to spend 3-4 days this December? Winter break travels:

My sister and I (two college-age girls) were originally thinking of taking an overnight train to Geneva from Venice since Venice-Geneva-Lyon seems like a pretty straightforward route looking at the map. Also, we thought that taking the cable car up Mont Blanc would be nice.

Problem is, bahn.de's Geneva-bound night trains currently appear to transit through Innsbruck and Zurich, which seems like an unnecessarily long detour with not much time for sleep. Is there any awesome place in between Venice and Lyon that doesn't have that much of a detour by train? Or should we just suck it up and go to Geneva anyway?

The Venice and Lyon bits are fixed, unfortunately or not.

Prior to this, we will have visited Rome and Florence. We'd like to visit somewhere in Switzerland, but it seems like every train will go through Zurich. Should we just do Zurich then? Another possible option I've considered is Milan but it doesn't seem very interesting, from what others have said.

Thanks!

72 hours for Venice's secrets, aiutiamo noi per favore

avocade — Sun, 11 Oct 2009 14:04:05 -0800

I'm going with my family down to Italy from around Oct 18-30th, including a week at a farm house in Ancona (looking forward to that, for sure!). We'll also be in Venice for around three whole days in the beginning and end of the trip (we fly in/out from Venice). So, considering our short stay, what are some hidden, secret, word-of-askmetafilter stuff that we should seek out, apart from the touristy gondolas and San Marco, etc, etc?

I for one often find that I discover a new city best by just spending hours walking around (flaneur, n'est-ce pas?), and that's what I plan to do. Just give me a first goalpost and I'll do the rest.

No links to any fancy NYT Travel articles, please... :)

Need original Italian tansit maps

patrad — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 07:53:07 -0800

Where can I order or obtain paper (not PDF) mass transit maps for Milan and Venice? I was recently in Milan and Venice on my honeymoon and one of the last days I thought it would be cool to frame mass transit maps from both. In Venice, despite maps being sold everywhere, I could not find a large one of the Vaporetto system. The one sold at Varporetto stations is tiny! I had similar luck trying to get a Milanese one at the main FS.

Anyone know where/who I could contact to obtain these through mail? I'd like originals and not just printed PDFs.

For instance I emailed the MTA and then sent me one free of charge. However, I can find a similar resource for ATM or Venice.

Thoughts?

Here is an example of the Venice one

Here is an example of the Milan one.

What books should I read about historical Rome and Venice?

garlic — Mon, 24 Aug 2009 11:27:54 -0800

I'm looking for books about Italy, specifically Rome and Venice, and also books set in Rome and/or Venice. What would you recommend? When I was in Paris in 2007, I was reading The Three Musketeers by Dumas at the same time. It was pretty cool to be reading about the musketeers playing tennis 4 blocks from where my hotel was, and it made the experience much richer. So now that I'm going to Rome and Venice, I'd like to do the same while there -- reading something during downtimes set in the city I'm visiting, set in the cities heyday. Since this is a downtime sort of read, I'd like it to focus on the entertainment aspect over the educational aspect.

And when I was thinking about how to find that sort of book, I realized that I have more general french cultural knowledge through studies and Dumas and Hugo so I'd be a good idea to get a more historical educational book about the realities of Rome while the empire was there, and history after that probably up to the Rennaisance, so a book or two about Roman and Venetian history that I can finish before my trip (Sep 18) would be helpful too.

Restaurants in Venice & Rome

tangyraspberry — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 09:20:05 -0800

Can anyone recommend some great restaurants in Venice or Rome? I'm traveling to Italy soon and was wondering if anyone had some restaurant suggestions in either Venice or Rome?

get me out of here

Jason and Laszlo — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 05:10:41 -0800

Most economical way to get from USA (Chicago) to Europe (specifically Venice) in the summer. Willing to fly to an undesirable city and take a train. please share experiences

ISO old website

greta simone — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 10:15:46 -0800

I remember a website from a few years ago that showed three different still photography scenes that morphed into one another, showing that scene over the course of 24 hours. These scenes had accompanying recordings of the surroundings. If I remember correctly, the scenes were a park, outside a bus station or some kind of intersection, and a quiet canal in Venice. I would like to find this site again. Any help?

How can I get From Venice to Dubrovnik to Athens?

the duck by the oboe — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 13:58:04 -0800

How can I get from Venice to Dubrovnik to Athens on a backpacker budget? I'll be in Venice soon and want to go from there to Dubrovnik/Split and thence to Athens (if I can go via Ljubljana I'll be a happy camper too). Staring at budget airline webpages and train timetables is less illuminating than I'd hoped. Any tips?

I'd like to spend about ten days on the way from Venice to Athens.

Please evaluate my route from Italy to Spain by car

zaebiz — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 02:07:07 -0800

I plan to drive from Venice, Italy to Valenica, Spain in April or May 2009 using the following route. I will stay for a few days or weeks in little spots along the way. I should have about six weeks in total. I mostly want to see a little of Spain and Italy, the French Riviera, Montpellier, Marseilles and finish at Valencia. Apart from that anything else I should try to see? Any parts of the chosen route I should avoid? What's driving like along that route? Any rental car companies which will let me pick up in Italy and drop off in Spain?

When in Venice, what do the Venetians do?

Solon and Thanks — Thu, 29 May 2008 07:34:26 -0800

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!

"3-2-3" "2-3-2" "3-3-3"

np312 — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 12:18:47 -0800

Looking for a great dentist in Venice beach area or Santa Monica, preferably one who has all the modern technology. Please help! I had a great dentist in Colorado who had all the newest technology at his disposal for dental work. When I moved to NYC the dentist I had was so-so, and his office seemed straight out of the 50's which kind of made me yearn for the high-tech stuff (I'm thinking primarily of the gum-tracing tools where they chart on computers how much your gum-line as receded, which is what the title of this post is in reference to.) Now that I'm living in West LA, I am looking for someone as good as my Colorado dentist.

Also, big plus if you know that they accept Delta Dental insurance.

Thank you!!

What was that "vino rosso"?

Joleta — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 15:51:58 -0800

I'm looking for a red wine like the "house reds" we drank in northern Italy. I'm not a big wine drinker, but when my husband and I were in Italy (Trieste and Venice) last year, we shared a liter or half-liter of red wine with almost every meal (well, not breakfast!). We just said "vino rosso" and a bottle appeared. We never specified what kind of red wine we wanted, and it was always good. We must have drunk the house red in 20 different restaurants and never got a wine I didn't like. So why can't I find a red wine here in the U.S. that I like? It seemed to me that the wines we drank in Italy were lower in alcoholic content, had no tannin taste, were mild, and generally more "weak" than the reds my husband has been offering me here. I believe they were also served at a colder temperature, and I liked that. Do Mefites have any suggestions for wines to try. I don't want to say price is no object, but I suspect that the wines I'll like will not be terribly expensive.

Who is that masked man?

Reverend John — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 12:43:14 -0800

Where can I find / how can I make a Venice-style Carnival costume in the Chicago area by Friday evening? Ideally, something which will cover my whole face and head. $300 would be the hard maximum to spend, and far less is better. Also it doesn't have to be authentic in any sense of the word, though I do like the whole mask/three corner hat/cloak thing.

Also other advice on showing up at a party incognito would be welcome. I am invited, its in a public place, and recent events make me want to disclaim that this is not for any evil purpose. I just don't want to be known for a while, and someone showing up at this event in an outrageous costume would not be considered extremely unusual behavior, and would in fact be considered entertaining.

New girl in town

JJ Jenkins — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 01:18:01 -0800

I'm moving to Venice/Santa Monica and want to meet good, intelligent, normal people in my age group. How? What is my definition of "normal?" You aren't and don't live with a junkie or pornographer. You have a job or an ambition that you pursue. You are generally a good person with good intentions. You are in touch with what is going on in the world around you.

I want to fit in, but I don't want to change who I am. (I think I like Venice. People here seem very friendly and have a cool local vibe.) I like partying, shopping, drugs, drinking, fashion, and celeb-spotting as much as the next guy. Well, so I thought... until I moved to LA, where I feel like Martha Stewart.

I'm 28. I guess my husband and I are looking to meet couples who are dating, married or starting to have families. I own and run a small business. I want to meet like-minded, fun, smart people. I studied film directing, so maybe I can get involved in something film-related? Neither I nor my husband can meet people at work because we both have our own companies.

As for clubs, I fear Junior League will be too hoity toity. I joined Ladies Who Launch, a networking site for women who own their own businesses, and it is pretty underpopulated. I feel kind of lame doing something like meetup. But quite honestly, it might come to that.

Any ideas??

Venice ideas... go!

Kudos — Wed, 02 Jan 2008 19:12:48 -0800

How could one best enjoy the Venice carnivale? Looking for past experiences and fun ideas. The only thing i seem to imagine it as is one big pub crawl, or maybe just generally exploring the city all dressed up like. What do people actually do, besides stand around all baroquesquelike?

Your ideas for nontraditional, off the beaten path, interesting, insightful things to do or see in or close to Venice, Florence, and Rome, Italy?

Askr — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 08:13:54 -0800

What are your favorite nontraditional, nontouristy, alternative, culturally-insightful things to do in or near Venice, Florence, and Rome? I mean the deeper anthropological kind of culture, not museums, opera, etc. I'm not looking for the usual must-see tourist destinations or the things that epitomize a city. I want the fascinating little finds you accidentally stumbled on and loved, but which few or no tours would have found because they aren't "sights". If it can give me a glimpse of how contemporary Italians see the world, to appreciate a bit more what it's like to be them, that's a turbo bonus. No points off for plain old fun activities either. I've read every Italy thread on here and haven't quite found what I'm after. My parents invited me on a guided package tour of Venice, Florence, and Rome next week and the following week. Italy's not high on my list of travel destinations and I'm not a package tour kind of guy at all, but it's free, foreign, and family, so I'm going and am sure I'll have a good time. I'd like your help in reducing that touristy malaise feeling and replacing some of it with interesting insights and experiences.

There is a lot of the usual museum/monument time on the itinerary. I'm not a museum/monument kind of guy. Paintings paintings paintings, churches, aaagh! Don't care! Don't wanna take all the same obligatory pictures everyone has taken for a century or follow a guide around the whole time as they tell me about this or that set of ruins. For me, travel is about learning about how the world looks through other cultures' eyes. I know some of this can be informed by their history or past cultural products such as art or architecture, but what I want is to get glimpses of what life is like for ordinary people there right now to the degree I can in a very short time - what their big issues are, what their worldview is and how it differs from mine. Optimism, cynicism, assumptions, prejudices, filters, priorities, norms, oddities. A guided package tour of sights is not a great way to do this but it's what I have to work with.

So I want to break away from the tour group at least once per city and go do my own thing - - interesting, educational, insightful, off the beaten path kinds of things, especially any that help me understand what life is like for normal contemporary Italians. I don't want to see sights (I'll already see plenty, e.g. David, Sistine, etc.); What I want is some hint of contemporary cultural anthropology. It could be anything - some interesting local custom, some political event, some unique civic activity, some un-famous piece of history that influences the present in a fascinating way, some cultural fixture (e.g., I wish there were some soccer games during my stay). What have you found in or near these three places that was your special find that people wouldn't normally find on a tour, and which enriched your experience and understanding of Italy and Italians?

One hurdle is that I speak almost no Italian, not having planned to go there. So it would need to be something observable absent language or there would need to be English speakers or literature, a tall order. Below is the itinerary, including what I'm considering skipping. There are a fair number of free afternoons and evenings built in. What is nearby that's not on this list, that you loved, that isn't a "sight" but was a great find? Not looking for restaurant/bar recommendations unless they happen to deliver what I'm looking for. If you don't have anything in the sort of cultural anthro insight category, yeah, just list anything fun or interesting or unusual that's not a major tourist sight. For example I keep seeing recommendations to go to Siena near Florence. But why? What do people like about it?

No need to focus on these knowns in your reply:
-This is a very short time to develop any real cultural insight
-Art and architecture and ruins and history are important
-Don't discount what you can learn from quality guides
-Not speaking Italian limits your options

Grazie!

Itinerary:

Nov 12-14: Venice
-backstreets walking tour (also planning on "getting lost")
-St. Mark's Basilica & Doges' Palace
-Accademia art museum. SKIP THIS
-a free afternoon
-2 free evenings and 1 planned dinner

Nov 15-17: Florence
-Accademia Gallery w/ David
-"Renaissance walk" - Duomo, Baptistery, etc. SKIP ONE OF THESE TWO
-Oltrarno area - walk/talk re Roman, medieval and 19th century Florence. SKIP ONE OF THESE TWO
-Uffizi art museum. MAYBE POP IN FOR AN HOUR OR TWO. (I know it's huge)
-2 free afternoons
-2 free evenings and 1 planned dinner

Nov 18-20: Rome
-Vatican Museum, Sistine, St. Peter's.
-Some free time in Vatican area for crypt, dome, whatever.
-Forum, Colosseum, Pantheon
-Free afternoon near area of Palatine ruins, Mamertine prison, etc.
-A few free hours in heart of city
-Evening stroll through historic heart of city.
-2 planned dinners and 1 free evening
.

Two men in a boat, but who?

Joleta — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 14:11:57 -0800

Can anyone identify this statue, taken somewhere in the Venice (Italy) lagoon.

Where to go in Venice and Florence?

warble — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 07:51:52 -0800

The boyfriend and I are planning a trip to Italy in late October. We are still struggling with one thing, though: what to do during planned day trips to Florence and Venice. If you had to recommend one or two destinations or experiences that really epitomize the spirit of these two cities, what would they be? So here's the deal. We are going to be in Italy for a week and a half. We will be spending a couple days in Rome, and then moving to Bologna where we have rented a studio apartment for a week. From Bologna, we are planning two day trips to Florence and Venice. We have a good idea of the things we'd like to do in Rome and Bologna - we're just overwhelmed by the number of things available to do in our day trip cities, and we're not sure what to focus on.

I think we are most overwhelmed by Florence. Reading guide books and sites online about the city mention the beautiful art and museums. However, we also read about the long lines at the museums and wonder which ones are worth it, or if we should even be visiting a museum at all.

The same applies to Venice. The only thing we've settled on it taking a ride in a boat down the grand canal, but we've heard differing opinions even on that. In a city with so much history that so many people love there has to be a good way to get a feel for what a unique place Venice is.

We are obviously planning on doing some meandering/walking in both cities, and taking the time to sit and eat some good food and do some light shopping, but we both feel like we want a goal during our day - a place to walk to and visit inside, a tour to attend, a unique experience, something! - and since our time is so short it's hard to figure out what would give us a brief but true taste of these cities.

Any suggestions?

Car needed in Trieste, Italy?

Joleta — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 09:56:49 -0800

How to get from Venice, Italy to Trieste and back again, and do I need a car in Trieste? I'm accompanying my husband to Italy, where he will be attending a conference in Trieste from September 23-28. We're flying in and out of Venice, staying in Trieste through the night of 9/28, and then plan on going back to Venice for sightseeing until we fly out again on October 6. While he's attending his conference, I plan on exploring all over the Trieste area (maybe even going to Ljubljana in Slovenia). I need to figure out if I should have a car for getting around in/near Trieste. If so, we'll rent one at the Venice airport and drive to Trieste. Of course, we'd drive it back and return it before we start our week in Venice. If I can use buses and trains to get around Trieste and the general area, we won't rent a car, but instead take the train from Venice to Trieste and back. Trenitalia doesn't show any fares this far in advance, but there are quite a few trains each day from Venice to Trieste. Bonus points for best way to get from Venice Marco Polo airport to Venice S. Lucia train station.

Old Venetian Prison Film

Dub — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 13:53:42 -0800

Does anyone know the title of old Italian film - Partly set in a Venetian Jail? I'm trying to find this film for an old friend - Who described it, but was very flaky about the details.

It's an old Italian film (poss. c1950's?)
Rough plot: A man is wrongly imprisoned (by the guilty person) in a Venetian prison. At one point in the film, water rises in the cell, and the man has to struggle to remain above the water.

I believe at the end of the film, the man is vanquished.

How do I "sound proof" a bedroom window?

rocco — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 08:31:51 -0800

How do I "sound proof" a bedroom window? As my sanity decreases and my blood pressure increases, I have finally decided to do something productive about the constant sound of construction noise invading my life. I cannot afford to move, so I am going to block out two north-facing windows and just accept that the endless stream art-loft building yuppies moving in isn't going to end soon.

In my mind I'm going to Home Depot and buying 4" thick foam and wrestling it in.

But I have no idea if this will work. What's the best material for this kind of endeavor?

THANKS (And think twice if you're thinking about moving to Venice Beach, CA)

Best places to write in Venice, CA?

np312 — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 12:26:52 -0800

I'm looking for recommendations on best places to write in Venice, CA. Mostly in the realm of coffee shops or writer-friendly cafes, libraries, or anything else that comes to mind. I've just moved to Venice, CA from Brooklyn to work on a major writing project for the next few months. I don't like to write from home, and would prefer to walk to places on Abbott Kinney or Main Street to spend a few hours writing on my laptop. (So outlets are necessary.)

Free Wifi is nice, but mostly I'm looking for places with a cool vibe, other writers working there too, etc, where you can park yourself for a few hours without having people giving you the hairy eyeball. (I always buy a lot of coffee, but I don't want to feel like I'm being timed.)

Any suggestions? Thanks to all!

Hotels for a honeymoon in Rome/Venice?

PenDevil — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 02:37:34 -0800

Hotels for a honeymoon in Rome/Venice? In July 2007 me and my (by then) wife will be going to Rome/Venice on honeymoon. We're planning on 4 nights in Rome and 2 nights in Venice. I'm looking for suggestions for hotels in both that are 'honeymoon worthy' (ie not a hostel and having some class) but that won't be totally out of our price range. We've scoured tripadvisor and expedia but hopefully a MeFite out there knows a hidden gem or two. We can probably afford +- EUR 170 a night. Preferably centrally located in both cities.

Looking for fun

matthelm — Mon, 06 Nov 2006 21:27:20 -0800

I am in the search of finding free and or cheap things to do in the LA area (Santa Monica, Venice, Culver City, Marina Del Rey Etc)...any ideas? Just something you have found that you really enjoy...