Venice Cruise 2018 Important Information

Rationale of the Cruise

It is forbidden for charter boats to go up and down the Grand Canal but there are plenty of waterbuses that do the trip if you want to see the Grand Canal from the water. There are marinas that will let you moor up on the main island (at a price) from where you can walk in to the and the surrounding attractions.

However, there are other marinas a little further out in the lagoon which offer reasonable prices and there are free moorings (reserved for Le Boat) on islands nearby which are on the waterbus network thus giving ready access to the main island.

Charter boats can otherwise explore the entire lagoon unrestricted and the outer islands in particular have both their own atmospheric attraction and individual places of interest such as the Basilica on .

Smaller boats are preferred over larger simply for ease of finding moorings. The boats offered are generally spacious and comfortable.

Moorings on the outer islands are quiet and are set within nature reserves.

Attractions (Places not to miss)

Basilica San Marco – famous mosaics

Palazzo Ducale : the Doge’s Administration Centre : splendid paintings, enormous rooms, excellent museum, the Bridge of Sighs and the jail. Impressive and intended to be.

Santi Giovanni e Paolo : the Doges’ Mausoleum

Scuola di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni : splendid Carpaccios

Near the “Frari” Santa Maria del Frari : Titians

The Miracoli : Marble fronted church in central Cannaregio.

Scuola Grande di San Rocco : Tintoretto.

The Rialto Bridge and market (lively local market early in the morning). Punta della Dogana : Contemporary art right on the tip of the Dorso Duro.

Basilica di (the Salute) : Splendid recently restored Tintoretto : The feast at Cana. (In the sacristy museum)

San Giorgio Maggiore plus Campanile – access from the lagoon.

Accademia : top museum of art. V. interesting exhibitions

The Redentore

The Arsenale gates : the lions in front of the main gate, one of which dates from 300 BC.

Detractions

Venice is not for the faint hearted, navigation amongst the traffic can be tricky and the flat bottomed charter boats have a tendency to go sideways just when you want them to go straight. The traffic in the lagoon moves at high speed (the charter boats are governed down to max 7 knots but some of the boats in the lagoon are moving in excess of 15 knots) and it takes time to relax and realise that the other boats will in general move to avoid you.

Access to water and power is very limited except in the marinas but the batteries charge up quickly off the engine and the boats carry large amounts of fresh water (400 litres plus).

What we have discovered is that although it is essential to get into the centre of Venice and see at least some of the main items, one needs to limit the amount of time given to visiting “points of interest” as much of the paintings and statuary become repetitive (despite the magnificence of the art and its settings) and eventually one starts to look around for other attractions. The major exception is the Palazzo Ducale which is stunning and very impressive and needs to time to absorb it.

It is essential to have some scepticism about some of the “attractions” offered by the charter companies. So, for instance, the canal leading to can be scenic but it is not easy to navigate and has few decent moorings and takes a long time to get up and down. It is better to moor up in a quiet spot near the entrance to the Brenta or in and get a bus to Padua (which is worth seeing) and the same goes for the Sile river and getting up to Treviso. Chioggia however, is worth a look and the beaches (on the Adriatic) of or are extensive, shallow and clean. We were advised however not to swim in the Lagoon.

Mosquitos can be a nuisance (not everywhere) but the boats in general have screens and by arming oneself in advance with sprays and repellents, one can avoid the worst and eat either on the boat or (indoors) in local ristorante from dusk to mid-evening. Moorings have to be chosen carefully as some are susceptible to wash from passing craft and can result in a bumpy night.

Navigation

Navigation in the lagoon is by means of following lines of wooden piles standing up out of the water and spaced along channels between the sand banks.

Food

Food is generally excellent and an amazing amount of fish is caught every day and brought to markets in the islands. However, restaurant prices tend to be high everywhere.

Many of the bars serve little snacks (cicceti) with a glass of Italian wine which makes a reasonable snack.