15+ Cool Things To Do in Venice, Italy
One of the best things to do in Venice is to wander through the city without a plan, taking in all the picturesque views. Every corner you turn is a new, painting-worthy building, bridge, or canal!
Aside from exploring, there are tons of cool things to do in Venice. Some are more well-known sights and activities that couldn’t not be included on my list, while others are a bit more unique and off the beaten path.
Whether you have one day in Venice or a full week, you can either pack your days full of planned activities or spend them exploring, eating gelato, and admiring the gorgeous city.
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Visit Libreria Acqua Alta [Free]
Tucked back in a quiet area of Venice is the small bookstore known as Libreria Acqua Alta. This bookstore has become a hot spot for tourists to walk through and take photos.
When you first walk into the tiny store, you’ll see stacks of books, journals, and other stationery available for sale. If you look down, a cat or two is likely running around between the people and shelves of books!
Standing out in the middle of the bookstore is a large gondola, now used as a surface for displaying books. It’s quite the site!
Before you get to the end of the bookstore, turn right into the second room and walk to the back. During the earlier hours, the back door is open to the canal, where a gondola is docked. You can actually get in this gondola to take photos!
It’s free to take photos in the gondola, but there is a tip dish if you want to give a coin or two.
After you’ve taken photos in the gondola, go back into the main room and head straight to the back outdoor area. Here, you can climb the stacks of water-damaged books and peek over the wall for a lovely canal view.
If you aren’t buying anything, continue around the book display gondola and exit out the side door. There are even more stacks of water-damaged books on the exit walls!
If you are buying something, you purchase it at the counter at the front and exit through the door you entered.
I wore my favorite Reformation dress for a morning of photos in Venice and it was perfect! It doesn’t come in this exact print, but there is a very similar one and a few others too.
Explore via Vaporetto
The Vaporetto is the water bus in Venice. It’s the cheapest and easiest way to get around the city, which is filled with canals.
When you arrive in Venice, you can buy a multi-day tourist Vaporetto pass to get unlimited rides for whichever duration you choose at the time of purchase.
The Vaporetto is reliable, fast, and also a great way to see Venice!
Hop on a Vaporetto and stay outside to take in the sights as you cruise down the canals. They don’t go down some of the smaller canals, but you can still see quite a bit of Venice on the canals they do travel.
You can take the Vaporetto down the Grand Canal, all the way around Venice, and through many of the canals throughout the city.
It also is how you get from Venice to the other nearby islands, like Murano, Burano, and Torcello.
Take a Day Trip to Burano Island
Speaking of the other nearby islands, Burano is a 45-minute Vaporetto ride from the main island and is worth the trip!
Burano is a vibrant island made up of mostly houses and some shops and restaurants. The houses are all painted in bright, beautiful colors that make them incredibly photographable.
There isn’t a ton to do, but you could easily spend a few hours wandering around and admiring all the houses. Pop into the local shops, walk across the bridges, and grab lunch to complete your day trip to Burano Island.
Have lots of time? Stop at Murano first to check out the glass-blowing studios and shops, then head to Burano to see the colorful houses. From Burano, you can even go to Torcello to visit the basilica and lovely mosaics before heading back to Venice mainland.
Wander the Streets
The absolute best thing to do in Venice is to wander the streets without a destination. This is how you will discover the peaceful streets with historical buildings, zero tourists, and quiet canals.
My favorite times in Venice were when I took my camera and just wandered the streets I knew I hadn’t already explored.
I walked over gorgeous bridges, saw neighborhoods that felt steeped in history, and stopped to relax and just take in the views without anyone else around.
Get out of the main squares and find those quiet, less-visited streets. I believe doing this makes the difference between feeling like Venice is “overrated” and falling in love with the beauty and history of the city.
Outfit: Anti-theft backpack | Flowy pants | Button-up shirt | Reef sandals
Watch Sunset at San Giorgio Maggiore
While Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) is packed with people, a 5-minute Vaporetto ride to San Giorgio Maggiore will give you the best views without the crowds.
You can see all the same landmarks, like Santa Maria Della Salute, but it will just be you and a handful of other people in the evenings for sunset.
We got the most vibrant sunset on our first night in Venice from San Giorgio Maggiore! After the colors started to fade, we walked around the island a bit to check out the docked boats, lighthouses, and the church (which isn’t open in the evenings).
Get Gelato at Gelo
We tried a few gelato places in Venice and weren’t impressed until we tried Gelo - Artigiani del Gelato. They have incredible, freshly made gelato that isn’t piled high like some other places nearby.
While I’m sure every single flavor is amazing, the cremino and hazelnut were my favorite. They also put the cute, flat cookie in it if you want to take a typical gelato picture with it. Plus, the cookie is delicious too!
Stroll Through the Royal Gardens [Free]
From Piazza San Marco, walk along the canal away from Doge’s Palace towards all the tourist trinket booths. In between these booths is the entrance to the Royal Gardens.
The Royal Gardens are a small, free park that’s mostly fenced off aside from the entrance. It’s a tranquil place to take a stroll or sit on a bench away from the hustle and bustle.
They’re quiet in the mornings and still pretty calm in the otherwise busy afternoons.
If you need a spot to get away from the crowds or just a free place to sit and plan your next activity, the Royal Gardens is a great spot! They’re also a nice pop of greenery and nature amidst the manmade city.
Admire the Bridge of Sighs [Free]
Get out early in the morning to have the Bridge of Sighs all to yourself. The bridges on either side of it become filled with people by early afternoon but are mostly empty in the early mornings.
The Bridge of Sighs is well-known because of its somewhat dark history. The bridge serves as a connector between the interrogation rooms at Doge’s Palace and the prison.
Its name came from the deep sigh prisoners took as they savored their last views of Venice through the bridge’s window before being imprisoned.
Outfit: Dress | Reef shoes
Take Photos From Ponte Accademia [Free]
Ponte Accademia is a bridge that spans over the Grand Canal, connecting the Galerie dell’Accademia to the San Marco neighborhood.
It’s a grand bridge with some of the best views in Venice. A nearby palace is where many painters, including Claude Monet, stood to paint the Grand Canal.
You can take some great photos here of the canal, buildings, and water taxis as they speed under the bridge. There were some students drawing sketches of the view when I visited!
Walk Through Piazza San Marco [Free]
One of the most popular things to do in Venice is to visit the Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square in English).
This square is where you will find Doge’s Palace, St. Mark’s Basilica, and the campanile. It is surrounded by jaw-dropping architecture and is right next to the Grand Canal.
Piazza San Marco can get packed since it’s such a popular attraction. I find it is best to visit in the morning when there are fewer people — especially if you want to take photos.
Tour the Churches, Museums, and Art Galleries
Venice is filled with so much beauty and history both outside and inside! The churches, museums, and art galleries have just as much to see inside and are worth visiting if you have time.
Most of them have entry fees, which can be paid at the door or booked online ahead of time (for most). The ones that let you book online often let you skip the line when you arrive as well!
Churches, museums, and art galleries to visit:
Doge’s Palace - Skip the line ticket
Saint Mark’s Basilica - Skip the line ticket
Gallerie dell’Accademia - Book tickets
Peggy Guggenheim - Book tickets
Santa Maria Della Salute [Free]
Outfit: Reformation dress
Ride a Gondola
By far the most popular thing to do in Venice is ride a gondola through the canals. Because it is so popular and often the top recommended thing to do in Venice, I’ve included it on this list despite not riding a gondola myself.
We did not ride a gondola because the price was not worth it for us. The cost is around $150 for one gondola ride and we enjoyed seeing Venice via walking or Vaporetto instead.
If this is high on your list, definitely do it! It’s a classic activity for people visiting Venice and you can get some cool photos in the gondola with the gondolier in the background.
There are gondola stations all over Venice, so pick whichever one is in an area that is most interesting to you. You can take one on the small side canals or the Grand Canal, and some (maybe most) will do both!
See Venice from Fondaco Dei Tedeschi [Free]
Fondaco Dei Tedeschi is a shopping mall near the Rialto Bridge. It has a rooftop terrace that offers stunning views of Venice for free!
The only catch is that you must book a time slot online in advance and they often “sell out” quickly. You can book a maximum of 21 days in advance, so determine which day you want to visit and book 21 days before that when time slots are released.
The time slots are only 15 minutes, so you must show up on time or they will cancel your booking.
If you can book a time slot, do it! Otherwise, don’t worry too much about missing out.
Walk Across the Rialto Bridge [Free]
Another top thing to do in Venice is check out the Rialto Bridge. The unique architecture of the bridge has made it a popular spot for visitors to walk across and photograph.
It stands out from other bridges with its dark, arched doorways that contrast against the white bridge. While unique, I think there are tons of other bridges in Venice that are just as (if not more) beautiful than the Rialto Bridge.
It’s free to walk across this grand bridge, which sprawls across the Grand Canal. At the peak of the bridge, you can enjoy some lovely views of the Grand Canal and the buildings that line either side of it.
Shop at Rialto Market
A short walk from the Rialto Bridge is the fish and vegetable market known as Rialto Market.
This would be a great place to visit on your first day in Venice and buy some fresh food for homemade lunch or dinner at your apartment (if you’re staying somewhere with a fridge/kitchen!).
Even if you don’t plan to buy anything, just walking through the market can be a cool activity on its own. There are many booths full of colorful food in the covered market with views of the canal.
The Rialto Market is where many locals go to buy their fresh food and gives you a glimpse into local Venetian life.
Find the Leaning Towers [Free]
Pisa isn’t the only place in Italy with a leaning tower — Venice actually has a few!
As you explore the streets of Venice and admire the old buildings, you’ll notice just how wonky they are. Many of the buildings are leaning or have a tilting wall.
It made it difficult to take photos since I usually use the edges of buildings to determine if I’m taking a photo level or tilted when I don’t have a horizon line as a guide.
The leaning towers in Venice are these church bell towers:
Santo Stefano
San Pietro di Castello
San Giorgio dei Greci
I was surprised to stumble upon another leaning tower, Il Campanile Storto of San Martino church, in Burano!
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