In this guide on what to see in Venice in 3 days It will help you not to miss anything from one of the most beautiful cities in Italy and the world.
During the first two days you will have walked through the most famous places in the historic center neighborhood and through the Dorsoduro neighborhood, including some of its best viewpoints and a romantic gondola ride. On this third day we suggest you board a boat to visit the most charming islands of the Venetian lagoon: Murano, Burano and Torcello.
Based on the experience of our last trip to Venice, we have made this guide to know the best places in Venice in three days. We start!
Tips for traveling to Venice
- To get from the airport to the center or to your hotel, you have several options: bus + vaporetto, boat, taxi or book this convenient direct transfer to the hotel.
- To stay at the Venice in 3 days We recommend the Antica Locanda al Gambero, located 5 minutes from the Plaza San Marcos and the Rialto Bridge and with one of the best quality / price ratios in the city.
- If you are going to do more than two vaporetto trips a day, you will save money by taking the one, two or three day ticket available at any of the stop machines.
- A great option to know the history and not miss anything of the city is to book this free tour of Venice Free! or this free tour of the legends of Venice, which goes through less common places.
- Remember that in order not to pay commissions and always have the current change we recommend you use the N26 card to pay and the Bnext and Revolut cards to get money at the ATMs. They are the ones we use, They are free and will save you a lot.
More information in this post about the best tips for traveling to Venice.
First day in Venice
The route of the first day of Venice in 3 days Start watching the sun rise from the Riva degli Schiavoni, overlooking the church of San Giorgio Maggiore. On this same walk you have the Bridge of Sighs, one of the most famous in the city, which connects the Ducal Palace with an old prison and that you can not miss either.
Keep in mind that to cross this bridge you must first enter the magnificent Doge's Palace in Venice, where in addition to the bridge you can visit rooms full of works of art, visit the armory and climb the beautiful Scala d'Oro.
To learn about the history of the palace and save yourself the long lines you can book this guided tour in Spanish or take this offer which includes the entrance to the Basilica of San Marcos without queues and a city tour with a guide in Spanish.
This palace is located in the Plaza San Marcos, next to the Basilica of San Marcos and the Campanile, which will be the next two visits of the Venice in three days.
But before entering the Basilica, we recommend you to have a coffee at Florian, one of the city's historic coffee shops, located at St. Mark's Square or at least, stand at your door to enjoy this iconic place. After trying one of the most expensive cafes in the world, you can enter the Basilica of San Marcos for free, which impresses by the Byzantine mosaics of the exterior and interior as well as some interesting payment rooms, such as the Treasury, the Golden Shovel and envelope The entire Museum, which has the original sculptures of the Horses of San Marcos and spectacular views of the Plaza San Marcos.
A good option to know the great history of the basilica and save time is to book this guided tour in Spanish with which you will also skip the lines, endless especially in high season.
When leaving the basilica it is worth looking to the right to see the Torre dell'Orologio in Renaissance style, with two bronze figures, which touch the hours.
The last visit of the Plaza San Marcos is the elevator climb to the Campanile to enjoy some of the best views of the square and the city.
Views from the Campanile
After the visits of the Plaza San Marcos, the route of the Venice in 3 days Continue with a walk through the narrow streets and canals of the old town until you reach the Rialto Bridge, one of the most essential places to visit in Venice.
Before arriving at the Rialto Bridge, we recommend that you look for the Scala Contarini del Bovolo, a beautiful spiral staircase, from which you will have incredible views of the historic center.
At this time, we recommend making a stop near the Rialto Bridge where you have several options to eat without wasting much time, such as pasta to take away from Pasta and Sugo or the pizza at the taglio of the Pizzeria L'Angelo. For dessert we recommend the delicious ice creams of Suso Gelatoteca.
In the afternoon, the Venice in 3 days Continue with the ascent to the terrace of the T Fondaco dei Tedeschi shopping center, one of the best viewpoints in the city. Admission is free, although it is recommended to book in advance on the official website, especially in high season.
Views from the terrace of the Fondaco dei Tedeschi
When you get off the viewpoint you can cross the Rialto Bridge to enjoy the best views of the Grand Canal, without a doubt, one of the best things to do in Venice.
After crossing the oldest and most famous bridge in the city, you will arrive at the Rialto market, full of stalls and shops, perfect for looking for a gift like the typical Venetian mask or the precious Murano glass.
After the shopping you can return to the Rialto Bridge to get on a vaporetto and take a great walk along the Grand Canal, following the orange line. Remember that if you get a square at the back or front of the vaporetto you can enjoy sitting views of incredible Renaissance palaces, such as the famous Ca'Rezzonico Palace and Ca 'd'Oro Palace.
Depending on the time of the sunset, we recommend you get off again at the Rialto Bridge stop, to see the best sunset from the high area of the bridge.
Sunset on the Rialto Bridge
If it is not yet the sunset, you can make time saving the GPS or the map and losing yourself in this area of the historic center full of charming bridges, canals and corners, which we are sure, will not leave you indifferent.
For dinner in this area you have Italian cuisine in the Trattoria Al Gazzettino or in Baci & Pasta, two of the most recommended restaurants to eat in Venice.
To end the first day of Venice in three days You can take a romantic evening walk to San Marcos Square or book this dinner cruise in a Venetian Galleon.
Map of the first day in Venice
Second day in Venice
The second day of Venice in 3 days Start by taking a vaporetto at the San Zaccaria stop, near the San Marcos Square, to visit the Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore that opens at 9 am. This church located on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, hides in its interior great works of Tintoretto and an impressive viewpoint to the entire Venetian Lagoon from its campanile. After the visit to the church, you can return to San Zaccaria with the vaporetto, from the same stop that you embarked.
The route continues on foot along the Riva degli Schiavoni promenade in the direction of the Fenice Theater, one of the most beautiful opera houses in the world although before arriving at the theater we recommend you stop at two photogenic points with the canal and the gondólas as protagonists , such as the Hotel San Moisè and the Ducale Bar.
Venice canals
The visit to the impressive Teatro Fenice is done with audioguide in Spanish and if you are lucky like us, you can coincide with the rehearsal of an opera. You can book the entrance to the theater in advance here.
When leaving the theater we recommend you to climb a traghetto, gondolas that are used to cross the Grand Canal, to reach the Basilica Santa Maria della Salute, a church that stands out for its great dome and for the paintings of Titian and Tintoretto inside .
After the visit you will head to the Academy Bridge, a beautiful wooden bridge that is just a few meters away from one of the most important art galleries in the world, the Accademia Gallery. This complex, formed by three religious buildings, has the largest collection of Venetian art in the world.
Academy Bridge in Venice in 3 days
The route of Venice in three days Continue with a walk through Dorsoduro, the university district of the city, which has much less tourism than the historic center but no less charm.
In this neighborhood there are several palaces among which Ca 'Rezzonico stands out, which has inside a museum and several meticulously decorated rooms. Another of the essential places in Dorsoduro is the Church of San Barnaba, which became famous for being a library in the famous film of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. Next to the church is El Ponte dei Pugni, with a curious history of fights between rival gangs.
Church of San Barnaba
This area of the neighborhood with several channels is for us the most beautiful and also has restaurants of better quality and cheaper than those of the center, such as Volo Pizza Y Pasta & Sugo, which you can use to eat and fill the stomach with the best cuisine.
In the afternoon, the Venice in 3 days Continue with the route through Dorsoduro through the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, one of the best decorated buildings in Venice. If you go well on time, next to it you have the Basilica of Santa María Gloriosa dei Frari, which has an interior with numerous sculptures and works of art, among which "The assumption"of Titian, who will leave you speechless.
The walk through this neighborhood ends when you cross the Rialto Bridge, which will take you back to the historic center of Venice.
At this point, we recommend you approach another of the jewels of Venice, the Acqua Alta bookstore, one of the most beautiful in the world, which is located just 500 meters from the Rialto Bridge and we are sure, you will fall in love.
Acqua Alta bookcase
Upon leaving the bookstore we suggest you take a romantic gondola ride through the narrowest and quietest canals of the old town. Keep in mind that the price of a private gondola is around 80 euros, although you have the option to book this shared gondola ride or this ride that includes seranata, with a maximum of 6 people, for less than half.
To end the second day of Venice in three daysNothing better than going to dinner at Spaghetteria 6342 or to the Osteria alla Staffa, two magnificent restaurants in the city.
Map of the second day in Venice
What to see in Venice in 3 days
The last day of what to see in Venice in 3 days We suggest you take an excursion to Murano and Burano. This tour, considered one of the best excursions in Venice, starts at the San Zaccaria stop, taking line 41 of the vaporetto.
Keep in mind that for this day it is advisable to take the 24-hour ticket of the vaporetto, with which you will save enough money.
Before reaching the first stop, Murano Island, you will pass in front of the island of Saint Michele, also called "The island of the dead", for being the historical cemetery of Venice. After about 40 minutes you will disembark on this island famous for its crystal.
In addition to visiting a factory to see how the glassmakers work by hand, you can take the opportunity to buy a souvenir piece in one of its stores as well as before you go, take a walk on the Grand Canal, visit the Church of Santa María de los Ángeles, the Basilica of Saints Mary and Donato and reach the lighthouse of Murano.
Murano in Venice in the three days
Before taking the vaporetto to go to the next island, you can take the opportunity to eat in the Restaurant alla Vecchia Pescheria, in which the pasta and the frying of fish and seafood, are their specialties.
After eating, the Venice in three days Continue with the visit to Burano, our favorite island and the most beautiful in the archipelago of the Venetian lagoon. To get to Burano from Murano, you can take a vaporetto from the same pier that the one in Venice left for you and it takes half an hour. This small island has a beautiful town, with the facades of houses painted in bright colors. This tradition of painting houses goes back to its past sailor, when fishermen in foggy days were guided by color to find their home.
The island is also famous for hand-crafting lace threads.
Burano
If you go well on time you can continue the Venice in 3 days visiting the island of Torcello, the oldest island in the Venetian lagoon, located 5 minutes by boat from Burano. Although it does not have much to visit, you can walk to the Basilica of Santa Maria dell'Assunta, with beautiful Byzantine mosaics and learn another perspective of this area of Italy.
A good way to put an end to this Venice in 3 days is to return at sunset with the sunset over the lagoon and dine in the Osteria Enoteca San Marco or in the Osteria da Carla, both located near Plaza San Marcos.
Keep in mind that a great option to visit all these places saving time and knowing the history of these islands better is to book this excursion to Murano and Burano by speedboat or this excursion that Murano, Burano and Torcello do, both with a guide in Spanish.
