Sep 14

Sep 14 Getting Around Venice

For a city built on wood pilings in the middle of a lagoon, exploring Venice presents a unique experience unlike any other places we have been to. When visiting Europe, we always look forward to the much better public transportation options and actually enjoy not having a car. The metro and tram systems are convenient and easy to use. The buses (especially the ones in Germany) are much classier and cleaner than King County's Metro buses. We are no strangers to using rail-based or wheeled public transportation to travel around. But only in Venice have we experienced that the majority of transport options all came in different sizes and forms of boats. There were absolutely no cars!

Alilaguna Ferry

Our first ride was on an Alilaguna boat. We flew in from Geneva to Venice's Marco Polo airport located on the mainland. We bought tickets for the orange line (linea aranceo) from a machine located in the Baggage Claim area for €15 per person. There is a cheaper option, which is a bus that takes you to Piazzale Roma, but that meant navigating through the labyrinth that is Venice's streets with our luggage from there. We already knew which boat stop was near our apartment, so taking Alilugana was the most straightforward option.

Stuart on the Alilaguna boat from Marco Polo. You can see our luggage up the stairs.

Vaporetto

The Venetian equivalent of a bus is the vaporetto, which is operated by Actv (I pronounced it "active"). Buying a transport card good for multiple days is the most cost-effective option for those who plan on using the system throughout their stay. A one-way ticket costs €7 per person. Stuart and I picked up 48hr card for €30 each. So if we took the vaporetto at least twice each day, we would pretty much be close to breaking even.

The first water bus started operating along the Grand Canal in 1881.

The apartment we rented was only 65 feet away from the San Stae vaporetto stop serviced by the 1 and N lines. We took a vaporetto more than 10 times including the line that took us to the islands of Murano and Burano. The trip to the islands alone involved 4 vaporetto rides.

You just tap this transport card on the reader before boarding the vaporetto. It's much like the ORCA card we have in Seattle.

Some rides are more comfortable than others just because the boats can get pretty crowded and may entail being on our feet for the entire time. Most of the time though, I found the vaporetto rides enjoyable. Sailing up and down the Grand Canal passing by incredible palazzos and churches is an experience that you just take in. Locals and visitors alike use the vaporetto, so this is a top-notch people-watching opportunity.

Other Options:

Water Taxis

There are plenty of water taxis that you can hire to take you anywhere you want. The leading water taxi operators of Venice formed the Consorzio Motoscafi Venezia, with over 100 taxis connected to a dispatch center. This convenience will cost you a pretty penny though. for example, a one-way trip between Sta. Lucia train station to any hotels in Venice will run you €65. Armed with our vaporetto card, we never had to take a taxi but we appreciated their classic look. Much like the black taxis in London, these wooden motorboats are pretty easy to spot, and you see them parked in widely popular areas.

Traghetti

A traghetto is essentially an old gondola that's been re-purposed to take people from one side of the Grand Canal to the other. Again, we never found ourselves needing to use this mode of transport, but we heard that a ride only costs €2.

This may or may not be a traghetto, but it's the same idea. Some are manned by 2 rowers and passengers ride standing.

What about gondolas? We did consider taking a gondola ride, but once we got there, it was less appealing to us. First off, it's pretty expensive, and they have become the epitome of a tourist trap. According to the city of Venice's official rate, a 40-minute ride should cost €80, but this can be taken with a grain of salt. Rates are negotiable, and some gondoliers charge higher or will cut the time short. Secondly, those gondoliers don't even look like they're having a nice time barely interacting with their passengers. A gondola ride does present a more romantic view of Venice since the small neighborhood canals are accessible this way, so to some poeple, the experience is worth the cost. Who knows, the next time I find myself in Venice, I might change my mind and spring the cash for it.

Our Own Feet

"But the beauty is in the walking -- we are betrayed by destinations." ~ Gwyn Thomas

The other way of getting around that we used quite a lot were our own feet! When we weren't on a vaporetto, we were walking around getting lost in the web of alleys and crossing the some of the 400 pedestrian bridges. This is the sure-fire way of finding those hidden gem bacari (wine bars), pasticceria (pastry shops), and gelateria. Comfortable walking shoes are so valuable when visiting Venice.

With its 150 canals serving as streets, Venice can only be explored by boat or on foot. Here are a few more photos and scenes during our commute to and from our apartment.