3 Hours Venice walking tour
Description
Uncover the charm and history of Venice on this engaging 3-hour guided tour, ideal for visitors already in the city. From world-famous landmarks to quiet corners off the beaten path, this experience offers a well-balanced introduction to the beauty, culture, and secrets of the “Floating City.” Meet your guide at the meeting point in Venezia Santa Lucia train station and start your adventure! Stroll through St. Mark’s Square, the elegant open-air “salon” of Venice. Hear the fascinating stories behind the Basilica of San Marco, the Doge’s Palace, and the Campanile (bell tower), learning how Venice became one of the wealthiest cities in Europe. Cross the Rialto Bridge and walk through the bustling Rialto area, once the commercial heart of Venice, filled with stories of merchants, trade, and tradition. Discover small canals, picturesque footbridges, and peaceful squares while your guide shares insights about Venetian customs, architecture, and the city’s unique challenges.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Piazza San Marco often known in English as St Mark's Square, is the principal public square of Venice where it is generally known just as la Piazza ("the Square"). All other urban spaces in the city (except the Piazzetta and the Piazzale Roma) are called campi ("fields"). The Piazzetta ("little Piazza/Square") is an extension of the Piazza towards the lagoon in its south east corner. The two spaces together form the social, religious and political centre of Venice and are commonly considered together.
The Doge's Palace is a palace built in Venetian Gothic style, and one of the main landmarks of the city of Venice in northern Italy. The palace was the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme authority of the former Venetian Republic, opening as a museum in 1923. Today, it is one of the 11 museums run by the Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia.
The Grand Canal is the most important "street" in Venice that can be followed by ferry or gondola. The Grand Canal divides the city centre into two parts, it is older than Venice for this reason the city was built following the path of the river. One end of the canal leads into the lagoon near the Santa Lucia railway station and the other end leads into the basin at San Marco. It makes a large reverse-S shape through the central districts (sestieri) of Venice. It is 3.8 km (2.4 mi) long, and 30 to 90 m (98 to 295 ft) wide, with an average depth of 5 metres (16 feet).
In Venice we can count around 354 bridges. All these bridges were built to transportation issues but they add something special to the beauty of th city. The Rialto Bridge is the oldest of the four bridges spanning the Grand Canal in Venice. Connecting the sestieri (districts) of San Marco and San Polo, it has been rebuilt several times since at first it was built with two old ships and than in a wooden structure. The last reconstruction, dated 1591, is the one we can see today.
The Bridge of Sighs (Italian: Ponte dei Sospiri) is one of the most particular bridge in Venice. The Ponte dei Sospiri was built using white Istrian stone in 1602 to connect Palazzo Ducale to the Prigioni Nuove, the new Venetian prisons. It has the peculiarity to be entirely covered and is formed by two, wall-separated corridors, leading to and forth the prison.
The Basilica di San Marco (St Mark’s Basilica) is the cathedral church of Venice. It is located in the Piazza San Marco, which has always been the center of Venetian public and religious life. The building’s structure dates back to the latter part of the 11th century. Much work has gone toward embellishing this, and the famous main façade has an ornamented roofline that is mostly Gothic.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- A minimum of 2 travelers per booking is required
- It is recommended to wear comfortable shoes
- On certain dates, most travelers staying outside of Venice who are planning to visit for the day will be required to pay a €5 access fee. For further details (including exemptions) and to learn what days this fee is applicable, please visit: https://cda.ve.it
Reviews(3)
Mr. Wayne detailed knowledge of Venice bought the city's history to life. I highly recommend! You won't be disappointed.
Thank you for your review, we will be sure to tell your guide!
• A one star rating because of a series of unfortunate events. We were to meet our tour guide near the train station in Venice as per our Viator instructions. We were 30 minutes early and used Google Maps to locate the meeting place. After walking the entire area, inside and out we were still unable to connect with our guide. We tried to contact our guide through Viator but were still unable to connect. Finally after waiting 45 minutes beyond our start time we left and headed towards St. Marks square on our own. The most disappointing part of this tour was that by the time we reached St. Marks Square, we were unable to visit St. Mark’s Basilica in the time available even though we had prepaid for tickets. In an attempt to resolve this issue with our tour operators we contacted Viator for a refund but we were denied. Our tour guide indicated to Viator the she was at the meeting point and waited for 40 minutes before leaving. So not only did we lose out on our tour of Venice we also lost the money for tickets to St Mark’s Basilica which went unused. Lessons learned: Do not rely on coordinates to meet your guide. (It’s better to meet at a specific monument.) Always contact the tour company in advance for an exact location where you will meet. Always have your tour guides phone number so that you can make contact, if needed, before your tour starts. Do not rely on a refund just because you cannot make contact with your tour guide.
We were staying in Verona and booked the train to visit Venice on 7th June. Booked the 3 hour walking tour on line before we left the UK. We met our guide, Erica, at the main entrance to the Train station and started our walk from there. We learned a lot throughout our walk and it was a great way to see Venice without getting lost. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with Erica who took us to see all the famous sights during our walking tour as well as arranging for us to see the fantastic view from the rooftop of a shopping mall. Erica was very friendly, extremely knowledgeable and very nice to be with throughout. Would definitely recommend this tour to anyone visiting Venice.
Thank you so much for sharing you experience! It is a pleasure for us to know that you really enjoyed the tour with Erica, she is a very nice guide!
