I’m a sucker for picturesque destinations. I’ll scroll through blogs, drooling at the sight of beaches, lush forests and canals, lusting for a chance to go. So when the opportunity to spend 2 days in Venice came by, you’ll bet I jumped on it.

Angus and I initially planned on spending our entire two weeks in Italy up in the Dolomites. However, since we were already landing into the Venice airport, I couldn’t resist suggesting we spend some time exploring the infamous city. I mean, we were so close to the place, why WOULDN’T we? I’ve seen about a million photos of this picturesque city, as I’m sure you have as well. It’s colourful buildings, maze of canals and gondolas have been utilized all over the world. In fact, there’s even a makeshift “Venice”, complete with canals and gondola rides in Caesars Palace Hotel in Las Vegas. You know you’ve made it as a city if you make it into Vegas. 

2 Days in venice part I–The experience

Day 1 

The night before, we stayed at the Venezia Campsite. The campsite is located about a two-minute walk from a bus stop that takes you straight into Venice in about 20 minutes. Tickets were 4 Euro return. That was the easy part. The tricky part of our journey was getting around Venice. When we first walked into the city, we were welcomed by the (big canal) that gave Las Vegas Venice a run for their money. We were also welcomed by the insane crowds of people all doing the same thing we were doing: being tourists. I’m not one for big crowds, but it doesn’t bother me too much. Angus, on the other hand, gets absolutely drained by it. Knowing this, one of the first things we did once we got to Venice was to get food. And, as a typical tourist, we got some good ‘ol takeaway pizza.
Venice is a maze of canals with bridges and walkways that all look the same after you spend a few hours walking around there. There is one main pathway that most people will take to explore; however, Angus and I decided to take the path less taken and get ourselves a little lost. We spent the rest of the day exploring the canals, taking a million pictures and doing some people watching. We ended our day with an obligatory gelato. They are so cheap in Italy!

Day 2 

I’ll be straight. As beautiful as Venice is, there aren’t a million things that Angus and I were into/could afford other than to walk around, enjoy the art and enjoy the views. For our second day, we explored some more. However, we decided to take the touristy path to see where everyone else was heading. After about an hour of walking through Venice, we ended at Piazza San Marco, which houses Basilica di San Marco (St Mark’s basilica), or the ‘drawing room of Europe’ as Napoleon had once called it. After walking along small canals and buildings for a while, we were astonished at the size and grandeur of piazza San Marco. This area also housed Doge’s Palace, Venice’s former political and judicial site, and the Torre dell’Orologio, a gigantic clock tower built between 1496 and 1506.

Overall, Venice was a beautiful city and one I would recommend going there for a few days. However, I thought our 2 days in Venice was plenty enough to enjoy the city without getting bored, although of course I’m sure other people would argue otherwise. Angus and I were a bit underwhelmed due to the crowds. Half the time it felt like we were getting herded around the streets! For those of you thinking about going, or are going and trying to find budget friendly ways to go, here are a few tips from yours truly.

2 Days in Venice part II–Tips and tricks

1. Avoid peak season like the plague – We went in mid-August, thinking most families were done with their holidays and kids were going back to school. Boy, we were wrong. If you’re not into crowds and/or don’t like being herded around like a flock of sheep, avoid going to Venice in the summertime. It’s hot, it’s packed, and you have a high chance of getting hit by selfie sticks.

2. Save money on food by eating pizza and gelato. Seriously. Eating pizza and gelato every day was the DREAM. You can get takeaway pizza for 2 euro a slice, and gelato at 2 euro a scoop. The food in many of the restaurants in Venice are overpriced and in my opinion, not nearly as yummy as the pizza. Save some money and just pizza yourself up and top it up with gelato. Also, bring a water bottle with you! It gets hot there and the last thing you want to pay for is a 5 euro bottle of water. 

3. Get lost. If you stray any length away from the touristy path, you’re bound to get lost in the maze that is Venice. No sense of direction will help you here, as everything starts to look the same and the streets aren’t necessarily gridline. Expect to get lost, and be okay with it. Just make sure to schedule any restaurant bookings keeping in mind you may get lost finding it. Or just get takeaway pizza like we did and you’ll never have to worry about being late. Ya know.

4. Avoid the gondola, unless you’re willing to pay up or have a large group. It costs 80 euro for a 30 minute ride, regardless of how many people go and a maximum of six people. So, it may be worth it if you’re a six man group, but for just two people, I felt like 40 euros for a half hour on a boat that goes 3 miles an hour was a rip-off.

5. If you really want to go on a boat… take the vaporetto, a waterbus that takes you through 3.5 km of the Grand Canal starting from the railway station to the San Marco Basilica. It’s a great way to see the city without walking for miles too! Vaporetto tickets can be found either at a Vaporetto stop or you can buy a single-trip ticket on board. These range around 7 euro for single trips, 20 euro for 24 hrs unlimited, 38 euro for 48 hrs or 40 euro for 72 hrs.

6. Bonus tip! ENJOY IT. Even if you go during the heat of summer and are jam packed against hoards of other people, don’t get cranky. We had warned you didn’t we? Just enjoy the moment, take tons of pictures, take the roads less taken, and most importantly, HAVE FUN! 

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