Venice, Italy, is renowned for its numerous canals and rivers and provides visitors with everything from centuries of history to unparalleled beauty. Some of the best Venice tours take you to the least visited parts of the city where you can explore the local cuisine, wine, and culture, while others give you plenty of opportunities to see the city from the water, whether from a gondola or a kayak. The trips listed below are focused on the best Venice tours and their guidelines to help travelers.
Cost: Adults start at $40; children start at $35.
Time: 5 hours
This half-day Venice tour, which is limited to 20 individuals, will allow you to explore two of Venice's most stunning islands. A glassblowing demonstration will be the first stop on your boat trip to Murano. After that, you'll have the opportunity to shop and independently explore the island. After that, you'll take a boat to Burano, where you can see Italian ladies make lace by hand, go to a lace museum, and take a stroll around the island. The tour is educational, according to visitors who are satisfied with the knowledgeable guides.
Adult tickets start at about $40, while those for youngsters two and older are about $35. Children under 1 are admitted free of charge to the tour. The five-hour trips leave twice a day at 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m.; in some months, there are other departures at 9 a.m., 9:30 a.m., and 2 p.m. In addition to other popular Venetian attractions, City Wonders offers tours of the Doge's Palace and St. Mark's Basilica.
Cost: Free
Time: 2.5 hours
This 2-and-a-half-hour tour can be a fantastic way to begin your trip to Venice. Reviewers claim that useful information is offered during the walk, including suggestions for the best eateries and tourist attractions from the locals, which may be helpful to you for the remainder of your vacation. Although every tour has a somewhat different plan, you'll probably pass by some of the city's most popular sights, discover its vast history, and take in much of its stunning architecture. Tours leave every day at 11 a.m. from Campo Santi Apostoli in front of the well and go to the eastern and western portions of the Cannaregio and Castello districts, respectively.
Cost: Prices start at 189 euros ($189 approximately) for adults and 151 euros ($151 approximately) for children.
Time: 5 hours.
Consider this five-hour Venice tour that visits three of Venice's main sights if you're short on time. Along with a two-hour walking tour of the city, you'll get to skip the lines and visit the Doge's Palace and St. Mark's Basilica. On the last leg of your tour, you'll take a one-hour boat ride down the Grand Canal to discover Venice's renowned canals. The Rialto Bridge and the Bridge of Sighs are a couple of additional sights that can be observed on the trip. According to many who have taken the tour, this is a fantastic opportunity to see a lot of Venice in only one day. Additionally, tourists cite the excellent value.
Children under the age of six are allowed for free. Although you can divide the tour into portions and finish it over two days if you'd prefer, tours take place Monday through Saturday at 11 a.m.
Cost: beginning at 80 euros (or roughly $80) per hour (may vary based on the length of the tour and the number of participants, which is limited to five people.)
Time: two hours
This approximately two-hour tour of Doge's Palace is great for families with children from 7 to 18 years old. Families are taken into some of the obscure passageways and hidden rooms that are beyond limits to the general public by guides while they tell historical tales about the structure. The former torture chamber, the armory, and other locations are also on the itinerary. Parents who have reviewed the tour say their kids enjoy it and suggest it to other families.
Cost: $105 for adults and $100 for children.
Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes
After St. Mark's Basilica closes its doors to the general public, this unique 90-minute tour gives you access to the inside. 20 people maximum are led by tour guides inside the basilica as they share historical tales with you as you explore. You'll also go to the crypt, which isn't accessible to the public during regular visiting hours. The Pala d'Oro altarpiece, which is covered in nearly 2,000 diamonds, and St. Mark's remains are reportedly kept in the crypt. The cathedral is at its most beautiful after hours, according to tour participants, and the guides are energetic and knowledgeable.
Cost: Starting at $100
Time: 2.5 hours
During this culinary tour, which stops at locally owned restaurants so you may sample Venetian fare, you can help the society's economy. You'll eat four cicchetti dishes (think polenta, seafood, and veggies) throughout the 2.5 hours, along with one dessert and five glasses of wine. You may pass by famous landmarks like St. Mark's Square, but the Cannaregio and Rialto areas of the city are where you'll find the majority of the city's less-visited tourist attractions. A gondola trip is also included. The tour guide is lauded by visitors, and the menu and wine selection are also highly praised. The usual tour times are 11 a.m. and 5:15 p.m., Monday through Saturday.
Cost: Starting at $90
Time: Four hours
On this 4-hour trip, your guide will take you to bakeries, wine bars, restaurants, and marketplaces as you see Rialto via your palate. You can sample various foods along the trip, such as meats, cheeses, sparkling wines, polenta, olives, and more. The tour, according to tourists, is fantastic and provides enough food. They enjoy hearing the guides' stories while on a trip. Others caution, however, that if not enough reservations are made, the operator may abruptly cancel the excursion.
At 11 a.m. every day, the trip leaves. A walking tour of Venice is also offered by Raphael Tours.
Cost: Adult pay starts at 110 euros ($110), while children pay as little as 80 euros ($80).
Time: 3 Hours
This three-hour tour includes kayaking through the lagoon in Venice. As your guide takes you through a wild marsh, you will leave the city behind and get fully immersed in nature. This trip is perfect for individuals who are just starting out kayaking because the firm rates it as a "beginning" tour. A once-in-a-lifetime chance, according to tour participants, this is a superb way to observe the wildlife and islands that surround Venice.
All equipment, water, lockers, and use of the showers following your trip are included with the purchase of the tickets. Trips depart every day at nine in the morning, from Wednesday through Sunday. and 2 p.m. leaving Certosa Island behind. Daylong tours are also provided by Venice Kayak.
Cost: Prices start at 90 euros for adults and 80 euros for kids.
Time: 2 hours
With this skip-the-line trip, you may avoid the long lines of tourists waiting to enter St. Mark's Basilica and the Doge's Palace. In the Doge's Palace, you'll visit significant works of art and prisons during your two hours of sightseeing. At St. Mark's Basilica, you'll see the Pala d'Oro altarpiece and more artwork. Many reviewers found that the promise of skipping the line at these crowded sites justified the cost of the ticket. Visitors on the tours also give skilled guides high marks.
Tours are free for kids under 5 years old. Daily tours in English, French, Spanish, and German begin at 10:45 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. Additionally, Gray Line provides island tours, boat tours, and wine tours in Venice.
Cost: Starting at 120 euros ($120).
Time: 2 to 6 hours
This totally customizable tour takes visitors outside the crowded city center to lesser-known parts of Venice. Your tour guide will inform you of Venice's past as you go and respond to all of your inquiries about the place. Children are welcome on the tour, however, the company requests that you let them know in advance so they can modify the tour to match the kids' interests. Visitors cite the guides' friendliness, engagement, and knowledge.
Cost: starting at 105 euros ($105).
Time: four hours
On this four-hour trip, discover everything there is to see and taste in Venice's Jewish Ghetto. This culinary tour visits more than six restaurants for tastings of pasta, gelato, wine, baked goods, and other foods. The path also passes by old synagogues, over Venice's oldest bridge, and passes through the city for breathtaking views in the evening. Participants in the group laud the tour and comment on how delicious and abundant the food was.
At 4:00 pm, tours are offered from Saturday through Thursday. Among its other tours, Food Tours of Venice also provides a Rialto Food Tour.
The fastest way to get to know this distinctive, stunning, and frequently overwhelming city is to schedule Venice tours with a reputable tour guide or travel agency. Discovering all of the best spots in Venice and the Venetian Lagoon, which would otherwise be challenging to find one by one on your own, is like walking through a secret door.