We’ve been to Venice a few times in the past but our last visit was the first time as a family. The capital of northern Italy’s Veneto region, the city is built on a lagoon. Of course, having canals instead of roads is what makes Venice unique. Marco Polo is the closest airport served by flights from the likes of Heathrow, Gatwick and Manchester. There are several ways to reach Venice which can vary wildly in price so it’s worthwhile knowing what your options are in advance.
We were staying at the Hotel San Moisè which is walking distance from San Marco Square. We’d picked this area as we were visiting the Venetian islands, including the colourful Burano, and taking POD on her first gondola during our time in Venice. We had three ways of reaching our hotel – a private water taxi (the most expensive option at around €180 each way), a public bus to Piazzale Roma followed by water bus No 2 to San Marco or Rialto or the Alilaguna waterbus, getting off at San Marco or Sant Angelo. The last two options involved a 5-10 minute walk with our luggage.
On arrival at Marco Polo, the bus was discounted as it didn’t feel particularly Venetian. We opted for a public water taxi (Alilaguna) as it seemed like great fun and was reasonably priced at €45 for the three of us. As seven-year-old POD had not visited Venice before, it seemed a good introduction to the city. The Arancio or Blu lines both go to San Marco although we hadn’t looked into how long it would take. A while as it goes – around one hour 15 minutes to do the six-mile journey to Venice. Lovely at it was taking in the scenery and watching the other boats speed past, we were all a little tired and hungry.
We had a brilliant few days getting lost in Venice (an absolute must!), seeing the islands and taking POD on a gondola. When our time was over, we opted to take a private water taxi back to Marco Polo airport as our hotel quoted €120. We were collected from our hotel as the sun began to set and POD absolutely loved being in the boat. There was much whooping from the back when our driver went fasted while I did my best to stand upright! The light was wonderful and it was a truly perfect end to a wonderful time in a very special city. Private and shared water taxis can be quite reasonable in Venice but it’s certainly a good idea to shop around – potentially while still in the UK. Our return trip was more than worth it purely for the fun factor. We arrived at Marco Polo looking a little wind blown but we’d had the time of our lives!
