Discover how to get around Venice to reach all the islands of the lagoon and the corners of the city easily!
Venice is a unique city, both in terms of its history and its particular shape. Its historic centre is completely surrounded and crossed by water, and from above the city looks like a fish. Venice is made up of endless canals and rii, the main one is the famous Grand Canal, which crosses the historic city centre dividing it into two parts, by narrow calli, campi, fondamenta, salizzade and small islands connected by numerous bridges. In addition, the Venetian lagoon is made up of 62 islands, including Burano, Murano and Giudecca, as well as many smaller ones.
In Venice you can only get around on foot (bicycles are not allowed in the historic centre) or by water thanks to the typical Venetian "water bus": the vaporetto. In addition to the vaporetto, there are several other boats that can be taken to reach the main points of the city and all the remaining islands in the lagoon. So, what means of transport are useful for getting around the city when you can't or don't want to walk? Let's see them all in detail.
How to reach Venice
Venezia at dusk
Obviously Venice is well connected to the mainland, in fact it is possible to reach the city by various means of non-water transport, such as trains, buses, trams and cars. All this is possible thanks to Ponte della Libertà, a railway and road bridge of about four kilometres that connects the historic centre of Venice with the mainland. This bridge is the only access route for vehicular traffic in Venice, with arrival limited to Piazzale Roma and the island of Tronchetto, where there are car parks to park your vehicle. From the Venice-Marco Polo Airport it will therefore be possible to reach the city centre either by public buses or by sea, thanks to Alilaguna.
Water transport in Venice
A gondola in Venice
The most common means of transport, and of historical tradition, in Venice is certainly the gondola. When you think of Venice it is impossible not to think of this famous means of transport that, until the advent of motorised vehicles, was the most suitable and used Venetian boat for transporting people. Today you can enjoy a magnificent gondola tour through the canals of Venice, to admire the city and its historic buildings from the waters of the lagoon, but not only! In fact, there are special gondolas for crossing the canals. However, nowadays, the most popular means of transport remains the vaporetto.
The vaporetto
The water bus: the vaporetto
The vaporetto is a distinctive feature of this city: a true symbol of Venice, just like the gondolas. The vaporetto, which could be described as a water bus, is the easiest way to get around the city. Like the local buses, the vaporettos connect all the areas of the city according to lines and timetables designed for citizens. They are managed by the public transport company ACTV, which also manages transport in the mainland areas of the municipality of Venice.
Among all the lines present (here you can consult the map) the most useful ones for visitors are line 1 and line 2, the city centre lines that cross Venice mainly navigating along the waterways of the Grand Canal or the Giudecca Canal. The cost of a 75-minute waterbus ticket is € 7.50. Cumulative tickets cost instead:
€ 20.00 1-DAY TICKET
€ 30.00 2-DAY TICKET
€ 40.00 3-DAY TICKET
€ 60.00 7-DAY TICKET
Mobility in Venice is guaranteed during all 24 hours. From about midnight until 5 a.m. the night service network, marked by line N, is active.
Alilaguna
Alilaguna passing near San Giorgio
Another scheduled public service is that offered by Alilaguna, with a navigation network consisting of five lines connecting the Marco Polo Airport terminal and the Cruise Terminal to the centre of Venice, Lido, Murano and Punta Sabbioni.
Gondola traghetto
Gondola traghetto dock
A lesser-known gondola is the gondola traghetto (gondola ferry), a wider gondola than the normal ones, suitable for accommodating a larger number of passengers and manoeuvred by two gondoliers. The gondola traghetto allows you to cross the Grand Canal at speed without having to walk long distances to find a bridge, for the low price of € 2. The gondola traghetto stations are located at Punta della Dogana, Santa Maria del Giglio, San Tomà, Carbon and Santa Sofia.
The road transport in Venice
Ponte della Libertà by night
Venice also has a road network. Buses and trams run from Piazzale Roma to the mainland, with destinations to the centre of Mestre, Venice Marco Polo Airport and Treviso Canova Airport.
