Vanishing Venice

Truth be told, Venice wasn't really on my list. I had read about the hordes of tourists and high prices. But my husband really wanted to see it, and after all, it is vanishing. I thought, well, might as well see it now. And boy, was I pleasantly surprised! I don't know if we timed it right or what, but I really enjoyed our stay here. I describe it as having that Disneyland feeling- magical. 

Getting Here

We took a train from Florence to Venice, a little over 2 hours of travel time.

Again, we booked Italo directly and reserved seats months ahead. We were scheduled to leave about 9:30 am, but there was a delay. We ended up waiting at the train station for a couple hours before they fixed what I think was an electrical problem. The delay required that we reschedule one of our tours, but otherwise it was manageable. We had some people entertainment while we waited.

Now, once we arrived in Venice we had a little trouble figuring out where to go. We knew we had to take a water taxi, but had trouble finding the station. Once we found it, we bought some tickets and got in line. There were a LOT of people that had the same plan, so we had to be patient.

The water taxi was crowded, but we made it just fine to our exit. A couple nice ex-pats helped us out a couple times on which water taxi to take and which stop to get off on. The ride itself was a little introduction to Venice.

Once we arrived at our stop, it was just a short little walk to our hotel.

When we left, my parents booked a private water taxi which was fun.

Chris and I took the water taxi back the same exact way without issue.

Where We Stayed

I booked our stay at Hotel Firenze, which again was a great choice. I Google mapped our stay, and relied on directions the hotel provided and found the hotel just fine. It's a little hidden from the walkway, so just keep your eyes open and look for the sign on the ground.

Our room, while small, was comfortable and had a nice balcony.

My parents were right next door. 

Activities

When we first arrived, the hotel concierge gave us a map and pointed out some of his favorite places- not the typical tourist traps- for a bite to eat. We headed his advice and found some grub and drinks. 

My favorite thing about Venice was just wandering the streets. I had read that you should just intend to get lost, so that's what we did. Exploring the small streets was the best part of Venice.

We had reserved a private gondola ride before we arrived. Obviously, a gondola ride is a MUST when in Venice. It was pretty awesome.

That first night we had reservations for dinner at Ristorante Al Conte Pescaor. Very good! We sat outside and had just a lovely meal.

The only tour we booked for this stop was a tour of Doge's Palace and St. Mark's Basilica. They were very cool to see.

You'll want to make a point to wander to Rialto Bridge.

We did of course visit the square.

We got some light flooding while we were there. They have what's called Acqua Alta in Venice. When the water come out, so do all the high walkways.

For our visit, the flooding was not too major. 

But again, just the wandering and seeing the streets and sights of Venice was amazing. 

You can pop in anywhere and grab a drink, and then move on. 

We made sure to visit the place that makes gondolas.

Chris and I left late that 2nd night to make our way to Germany. My parents left the next morning to fly home. We took a late water taxi getting back which gave us our last taste of Venice.

I'd go back to Venice. I'd want to time it right to try and avoid the crowds. We went in late September and it seemed to be the perfect time. It was magical.