Venice, the capital of northern Italy’s Veneto region, is built on more than 100 small islands in a lagoon in the Adriatic Sea.
It has no roads, just canals – including the Grand Canal thoroughfare – lined with Renaissance and Gothic palaces.
This romantic city is well-known for its palaces, basilicas, grand squares, and gondolas which glide around its delightful waterways.
Venice has a renowned history that is simply beyond comparison having been the venue for several historical feats including the renaissance era. Romantics should travel on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express.
Our tour begins with an introduction to the origins, history and description of the main monuments: Basilica San Marco, Palazzo Ducale, Bell Tower, Clock Tower and Procuratie. In the Santa Maria Formosa we get to learn about the history and anecdotes related to this pleasant and characteristic square.
At Campo St. Giovanni e Paolo, the “Pantheon” of Venice, the great School of Charity, the Captains of Fortune we get to explore the sights. Marco Polo’s House and Malibran Theatre we learn about the anecdotes, the past and recent history cross each other in this beautiful corner of Venice.
Its best to visit the most important places in Venice as this is an essential way to understand Venice.
The tour will begin at the Accademia Gallery a museum gallery of pre-19th-century art in Venice, northern Italy. It is housed in the Scuola della Carità on the south bank of the Grand Canal, within the sestiere of Dorsoduro in Venice.
Later the tour continues with a guided walk through the Dorsoduro district, during which you will get to explore deeper into some new areas of the city on water.
The elegant gondola boat seats between two and four people, meaning it’s a perfect intimate experience for just you and your special someone, or a small family group. As your gondolier sing Italian songs and dribbles you around the canals, observe the Venice’s elegant palaces, buildings and boats.
After sailing past the beautiful island of San Giorgio Maggiore, our boat arrives at Murano, a popular spot known throughout the world for its precious glass manufacturing industry.
Here you have 40 minutes for a visit one of the factories, and discover the magic involved in the creation of the glass pieces.
The second stop will be at the picturesque island of Burano, famous not only for its lace, but also for the fisherman’s houses painted in bright colors usually seen on tour guides. Our stop will last about 30 minutes. After a short sail, you will reach Torcello, one of the earliest centres of civilization in the lagoon.
The only remains as the testimony of its former glory is the Cathedral with its magnificent mosaics and the church of Santa Fosca. This stop lasts about 30 minutes. We end the tour with the boat making its way back to St. Mark’s Square.
Why did Venetians go around wearing masks for over six months a year until about two centuries ago? What is the origin of Harlequin? What kind of mask was worn by Venetian ladies in their games of seduction? And what kind by doctors during bouts of plague?
Masks in Venice once had enormous significance in social relations, to such an extent that in some cases they were made compulsory by law, and over the centuries masks makers had considerably refined their art.
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