Things To Do in Venice

You’re spoilt for choice with dining options here. Luckily, there’s a local custom that’ll allow you to sample multiple restaurants in one night. Cicheti dishes are bite-sized, similar to Spanish tapas. You’ll find them on the menus of the city’s teeny backstreet bàcari bars, which are usually packed with locals. Expect fresh seafood like calamari, oysters and lightly-seared tuna, as well as the likes of pork balls and mini sandwiches. Each dish comes with a glass of wine, too. Ask for an ombra and you’ll get a Venetian variety.

This annual festival was started to mark the end of a plague, which hit the city hard between the years 1575 and 1577. Today, this origin may be long forgotten by the majority of the locals, but the celebration’s still going strong. On the Saturday, revellers dock at St Mark’s Bay in boats kitted out with decorations, plus plenty of food and drink. There’s a fireworks display at 11.30pm, followed by drinking and dancing late into the night. Then on the Sunday, a series of gondola regattas take over the lagoon.

Most visitors leave Venice with two new additions to their suitcase, glass – which the city is famous for – and a carnival mask. Cheap knock-offs are sold throughout the city so, to find the real deal, you need to know what you’re looking for. For authentic glass, the island of Murano is your best bet. This is glassmakers’ territory and most items wear the Vetro Artistico Murano trademark. For masks, the trick is simply to look for quality and a unique design. If there’s a whole display of identical masks, it’s likely they’re straight off a factory production line.

St Mark’s Square is sightseeing central. It’s here you’ll find the Basilica, a world-famous cathedral that’s been carefully crafted over several centuries by artists from all over the world. It’s completely covered – both inside and out – with colourful statues, mosaics and artworks. A terracotta-brick bell tower, called the Campanile, stands next to it. At 99 metres, it’s the tallest building in Venice and you can climb to the top for a panoramic view of the city. Back on the ground, the open-air cafes that line the square’s edges are ripe for people-watching. There’s a tuxedo-wearing orchestra that provides a backing track, too.

You can’t go to Venice without having a ride on a gondola. These long, black rowing boats are steered by professional gondoliers dressed in their trademark striped shirts and wicker hats. You can use one as a taxi to get from A to B, or go for a two-hour-long guided tour accompanied by an accordionist and singer double act. Sit back, relax, and take in the views as you pass by candy-coloured facades and elaborate, stone bridges.