Venice in 1 Day: a guidebook for getting the most out of your visit

Venice is one of the most touristic cities in the world, but also one of the most spectacular. Piazzas, churches, basilicas and buildings worthy of being considered the most beautiful in the world await you. With the addition of its canals, Venice becomes a unique city in the world.

Touring it in 1 day can be stressful if you go without planning. That's why I have prepared this circular tour designed to get to know the most important sights of the city, such as St. Mark's Square, the Doge's Palace or the Rialto Bridge, in just one day. Come with me and let's get started.

The starting point of our visit will be the Santa Lucia railway station. This is the arrival point for most visitors to Venice and, from there, we can hop on a vaporetto or book a gondola ride, to cruise the Grand Canal to our first destination.

The Grand Canal is the main artery of Venice. Like one of the great avenues of the cities, but replacing water with asphalt and cars with boats. Our destination is St. Mark's Square. On the way we will see from the boat iconic buildings and constructions such as the casino, the Ca' Pesaro or the Rialto Bridge.

It is about 10 minutes by gondola or vaporetto ride to the Rialto Bridge and from there another 10 minutes walk to St. Mark's Square. These minutes on foot can be used to explore the typical streets of Venice.

More information about Venice

• Tip: If you want to be prepared before your trip, read the article on what to see and what to do in the Grand Canal of Venice.
• Price: The gondola ride starts at $40.
• Please note that the Venice transport card includes the vaporetto.

We arrive at what will be our main starting point on our tour. St. Mark's Square, the heart of Venice. Napoleon defined it as one of the most beautiful in Europe and he was right. This 9th century square is home to some of the main places you should visit. The Basilica of St. Mark, the Doge's Palace, the Clock Tower and the Old Procuracies are the emblematic buildings that we can see.

If we want before "getting down to business" we can relax with a delicious Italian coffee at the famous Caffè Florian. A place with a spectacular decoration and in a privileged place, having an espresso in its terrace is a very typical experience of Venice. Of course, you can pay more than 6 euros for a coffee, although for some the environment is well worth it.

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• A tip: Check the weather before your trip and keep an eye out for acqua alta. On rainy days or at high tide the water rises to partially flood the square. If your visit coincides with this phenomenon you will have to walk along the walkways installed if you do not want to get wet.
• Price: There is no cost.
• Be sure to read the post St. Mark's Square in Venice: a practical guide to discover it in full to get the most out of your visit.

The first thing we will visit is the first thing that jumps out at you when you enter the square. Well the second thing after looking up the tower. I'm talking about St. Mark's Basilica. This impressive Byzantine style basilica was built to house the relics of the saint that gave it its name.

On the outside, its gold and blue colors, its impressive frescoes and its 98.5 meter high bell tower where we have one of the best panoramic views of Venice stand out. The interior is equally spectacular.

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• A tip: Keep in mind that the queues are usually quite long and, as we have only one day, it is best to book a visit to St. Mark's Basilica to see all the essentials in the fastest and most complete way possible. In addition, we have the advantage of a guide to tell us all the essentials.
• Price: It starts at $52.
• If you are wondering how to visit St. Mark's Basilica, in this article I give you all the details.

Leaving the basilica and in the same square we have another of the most representative buildings of Venice. The Doge's Palace. It is a symbol of the power that Venice achieved and was the residence of the Doges, the top leaders of the city.

One of its facades overlooks St. Mark's Square and the other the Grand Canal. The Gothic-style building was also the seat of government and served as a prison. In relation to the latter, in the palace is the Bridge of Sighs, known for the sighs of prisoners who crossed it to go to their black destiny.

Inside the palace houses an impressive art collection, courtyards guarded by sculptures of great artistic quality and rooms worthy of the best palaces.

More information about the palace

• A tip: Keep in mind that you can access the Doge's Palace paying the direct entrance to save queues.
• Price: Below, I detail all the information about the prices of the Doge's Palace.
• And to make the most of your visit, be sure to read what to see inside the Doge's Palace in Venice.

During the visit to the Doge's Palace we will cross the famous Bridge of Sighs from the inside. After learning about its history, the best thing to do when leaving the palace is to approach the bridge and photograph it from the outside.

Contrary to popular belief, this bridge has nothing to do with romanticism. Its name comes from the fact that the prisoners of the Inquisition crossed it and looked for the last time at the sun through its small windows and let out a sigh knowing that they would not see it again for a long time. There are many secrets surrounding the Bridge of Sighs.

But there is one figure related to the bridge and romanticism. The famous lover Casanova crossed that bridge and was one of the few prisoners who managed to escape from that prison.

More information about the bridge

• Tip: See everything you need to know about the Bridge of Sighs.
• Price: The visit is included in the entrance fee to the Doge's Palace.

After visiting St. Mark's Basilica and the Doge's Palace, your hunger is sure to get a little peckish. It's the perfect time to grab a bite to eat and sample Italian cuisine near St. Mark's Square. In the square itself the restaurants are quite expensive, but in the adjoining streets there are many options at reasonable prices.

Being Italy, pasta is a must, but in Venice seafood and fish from its waters are also part of the menu. Some of the best places to eat near St. Mark's Square are Rossopomodoro Venezia, a franchise with good food and good prices, and Da Mamo if you want to taste the best Italian pasta. Another ideal option is to book a gastronomic tour of Venice and get to know in detail the culinary culture of the country, highly recommended for food lovers!

More information about Venice

• Tip: If you decide to go on a gastronomic tour, don't miss the article with the best gastronomic routes in Venice.
• Price: Booking a gastronomic tour of Venice, starts at $111

After lunch, the best thing to do is to take a walk to the Rialto Bridge. With tranquility is a walk of about 10-15 minutes to the bridge and we can take the opportunity to see less touristy streets and eat a delicious Italian gelato on the way.

The Rialto Bridge was built between 1588 and 1591 and its arches and the views it offers of the Grand Canal mean that it is usually full of tourists. So after lunch is a good time to visit as the influx of visitors is somewhat lower.

More information about the museum

• A tip: The Rialto Bridge is, along with the Bridge of Sighs, the most famous bridge in Venice and the largest bridge crossing the Grand Canal. Catch up on your visit to the Rialto Bridge in this article.
• Price: Free.

After photographing and seeing the Rialto Bridge, we will take another vaporetto that will take us across the Grand Canal to the Accademia Bridge. This bridge is one of the four that cross the Grand Canal and one of the most important bridges in Venice. It connects the Dorsoduro district with the San Marco district.

The name of this bridge comes from the fact that next to it is the Accademia Gallery of Venice, one of the most important museums in the city.

More information about the bridge

• Tip: Unfortunately, if you go only one day, I do not recommend visiting the Galleria dell'Accademia, as we would need too much time to see its works.
• Price: Free.

From the bridge itself we will walk for about 10 minutes to the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute on Punta della Dogana. The basilica is spectacular from the outside thanks to its imposing dome. The building was built to thank the Virgin of Health for the end of the plague that took most of Venice's population.

Under its huge dome and inside the church **you can see several works by Titian, such as David against Goliath or the Death of Abel. The famous Renaissance painter is buried in Venice itself in the Basilica of Santa Maria dei Frari.

More information about Titian

• A tip: I recommend you to book a guided tour. You can do it easily from the official website.
• Price: The price of the Basilica of Santa Maria della Salute starts at 4 €.

To crown the day, the best thing to do is to watch the Venetian sunset. Luckily the Basilica of Santa Maria is located on the Pointe della Dogana, which is one of the best places to watch the sunset. From there we can see the last rays of the sun over the Basilica Di San Giorgio Maggiore and its bell tower or part of St. Mark's Square.

From this point we can take a vaporetto back or cross back to St. Mark's Square to finish with a nice dinner and enjoy Venice by night. It all depends on how long you want to extend a magical day in the city of canals.

More information about Venice

• Tip: Find out about the Basilica Di San Giorgio Maggiore before your visit.
• Price: Free.
• Remember that the Venice Transport Card includes the vaporetto.

There is a lot to do and see in Venice and inevitably with only one day there are many things to visit. The tour we have done goes through the main tourist attractions of Venice, but it may be the case that you already know them from other occasions and want to see other things. In that case I share with you some alternatives to see:

• Jewish Quarter of Canareggio: In this neighborhood Jews were forced to live in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to keep them separated from the rest of the Venetian population. It is the oldest Jewish quarter in the world and in its streets you can see the Vendramin Calergi Palace, the Ca' d'Oro Palace or the Jewish Museum of Venice.
• Acqua Alta Bookstore: One of the most curious bookstores in the world. It has a large collection of antique books, but its attraction is not them, but the way they are placed. Due to the Acqua Alta many of their books are in gondolas located on the banks of the canal.
• La Fenice Theater: Its history makes it one of the most important theaters in the world since on its stage were premiered works such as "La Traviata" by Verdi. You can visit and see parts such as the Royal Box or the many rooms of the theater.

More information about the theater

• A tip: Any of these places are easily visited in one day and can perfectly replace any of the points of the previous tour. A good option if you are visiting Venice for the second time and you missed something.

When you set yourself the challenge of visiting Venice in one day, optimizing time to the maximum is essential. To achieve this I leave you with these tips for visiting Venice that, in my experience, will help you see the city in one day:

• The early bird catches the worm, as they say. In this case it is true. Beyond the obvious and having more time, getting up early and arriving early to St. Mark's Square will save us queues.
• Just as I recommend getting up early, I also recommend stretching out the day as much as possible. Venice at night has a different atmosphere and the night illumination transforms it completely. If you come back at night you will appreciate it, even if you are tired.
• Buy your tickets in advance. Doing so will save you the queues to buy tickets for the monuments and you will be able to go almost straight through.
• Guided tours also give us advantages. For example, in St. Mark's Basilica, although the normal visit is free, with a guided tour you can go directly to the temple without queuing.
• When you arrive at the Santa Lucia station, go to the tourist office there and get a map of Venice. These maps usually include information on the vaporetto lines, one of the best ways to get around Venice, and knowing it in advance allows us to move more quickly.