Venice: a city guide
Venice…a city of endless canals, beautiful architecture, and romance. Venice is easily one of the most magical cities in the world, so when our trip to France over the August Bank Holiday was cancelled due to quarantine, we decided to book a last-minute getaway to the City of Canals. It was my second time in Venice, but Oliver's first, so I wanted to experience all of the famous sights with him (as well as avoiding the tourist traps). Read on below for my favourites places to eat, sleep, and visit while in Venice.
To stay:
I’ve had my eye on Il Palazzo Experimental since its opening last year, so I knew that I wanted to book this hotel as soon as we began planning our Venice trip. With its contemporary take on the traditional Venetian palazzo, the property strikes a note that is different from most other hotels in Venice, with a playful Wes Anderson-esque colour scheme, curved headboards, and soaring ceilings. The hotel is part of The Experimental Group, a hospitality group which encompasses several chic hotels and restaurants spanning Europe. Thanks to its slick interiors, efficient service, and ideal location in Dorsoduro, just a short walk from Ponte dell’Accademia, we would definitely stay here again on our next trip to Venice.
To eat:
One of my favourite restaurants in Venice, Aniche Stellato is a romantic osteria located in the quieter, less touristy district of Cannaregio. With a menu that offers an innovative twist on Italian cuisine, whilst still incorporating Venetian ingredients in its dishes (expect lots of seafood), every course will have you licking your lips. Enjoy your meal whilst dining al fresco next to the canal - it makes for a truly magical experience, and the staff are all super friendly.
Expect a delicious meal when visiting Al Covo, an unassuming, family-owned restaurant situated on a quiet backstreet, which is almost always packed to the rafters throughout the week, and famed for its tasty meat and seafood dishes. We enjoyed zingy seabass ceviche, melt-in-the-mouth paccheri stuffed with truffle and goat’s cheese, as well as delicious homemade desserts.
Adriatica is the in-house restaurant at Il Palazzo Experimental, and where we’d wind up most afternoons for cicchetti (Venetian small plates) after a day of wandering around the city. Dinner here is just as tasty: expect hearty bowls of homemade pasta and modern Italian cooking in a sleek setting.
This fine dining restaurant is well worth a visit if you’re looking to treat yourself. Choose from the seven or nine course tasting menu, and expect to be wowed by the innovative and delicate dishes - each course is as flawless as the next, and served in a smart, modern setting.
If you’re looking for delicious Italian food but are sticking to a vegetarian diet, this is just the place is for you (finding restaurants for alternative diets can be a struggle wherever you are in Italy). Famed for their pumpkin ravioli dish, La Zucca will satisfy all stomachs, even if you don’t have specific dietary requirements.
This traditional pasticceria is one of the best in the city and my favourite place to grab a sweet treat during the day - with its traditional signage and counter laden with freshly-baked Italian pastries (biscotti, crostata, you name it), it’s the kind of place where you either order coffee and sweets, and eat them whilst standing at the counter, or take them to go.
Caffè Florian is of the most famous locations in Venice, and also the oldest coffee shop in the world, graced by the likes of Proust and Lord Byron amongst other household names. Situated in the heart of Piazza San Marco, it’s naturally a tourist hotspot, and you can totally expect to be ripped off here - but on this rare occasion, it’s worth paying for the experience. Choose a seat within the gilded tearoom, and sip on hot chocolate which costs 15 euros a cup (trust me!), whilst listening to live music (they’ll whack on an extra few euros per cover for this). It will set you back about 40 euros in total, but there’s something quintessentially Venetian about the entire experience.
One of the most decadent hotels in Venice, and part of the exclusive Aman group, this is well worth a visit if you want to enjoy a coffee in one of the most beautiful locations in town. With gilded features, painted murals, and uniformed staff, pop in here for a caffè shakerato for a truly luxurious experience.
To visit:
Burano
One of Venice’s nearby islands, Burano is one of the most quaint and colourful places you’ll ever visit - featuring rainbow-coloured houses perched along its quiet canals, you’ll find locals chatting outside as their washing flaps in the breeze. You can reach Burano from Venice by water taxi (45 minutes) or for significantly cheaper by water bus (about 1 hr 15 minutes). If you’re staying for lunch, eat at Al Gatto Nero - two to three hours are sufficient time for you to explore the island and have a mooch inside the shops. Alternatively, Murano is another island much closer to Venice, and home to its famous glass factories, where you can purchase many homemade souvenirs.
Walk around the canals
Venice is a city best explored on foot (you can pay for a water taxi or gondola to take you around but expect to pay through your nose for this - alternatively water buses operate on the larger canals but won’t be able to fit on the smaller ones), and thanks to the myriad of interlinking canals and tight passageways, it makes for one of the most romantic cities to explore. If it’s your first time in Venice, make sure to hit up all the tourist sights, including the Ponte di Rialto and Ponte dell’Academia. Meanwhile Piazza San Marco is home to the famous Basilica (you can book tickets to go inside), the Doge’s Palace, and the famous Bridge of Sighs. Lastly, San Giorgio Maggiore is a little island located just opposite San Marco (take a water bus across the canal) and home to a beautiful church worth exploring.
Peggy Guggenheim Museum
Housed in art collector Peggy Guggenheim’s former palazzo, this gallery houses an impressive collection of European and American artworks. The palazzo also has incredible views over Venice’s Grand Canal - a must-visit for any art lover.
Have you ever been to Venice? I’d love to know your favourite places to visit in the city.
