What are the best Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice? The Grand Canal is one of Venice’s biggest attractions in addition to connecting the majority of its top tourist destinations. It is also Venice’s Main Street, forming a reverse S across the center of the city. Always packed with traffic, it is traversed by everything from gondolas to barges transporting produce to market. Here is our list of the top 5 Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice you couldn’t skip.
The 5 Best Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice You Shouldn’t Skip
1. A boat tour of the Grand Canal
The Vaporetto, a form of floating public transportation in Venice, runs the entire length of the Grand Canal between San Marco and Porta Roma. Take Line 1, not the express Line 2, which passes the palaces too soon and skips a few stops. You may also do it on a motorboat trip, with a guide who can point out the palaces you’ll pass as well as move closer for a better perspective and pass slowly.
There are numerous choices. On the Venice Grand Canal Small Group 1-Hour Boat Tour, you will not only travel through larger canals to view churches like Santa Maria Formosa and San Giovanni e Paolo from the boat, but you will also learn about and explore the Grand Canal’s features in smaller ones. The 2-Hour Grand Canal and Secret Canals Small Group Tour by Boat, which is the longer Venice Canal Cruise, makes stops in less popular areas of the city by luxurious motor launches.
The lengthier tour also stops in Dorsoduro, a lovely area, and Cannaregio, the site of Venice’s old Jewish Ghetto, in addition to an instructive tour of the Grand Canal. It’s possible that you’ve always imagined yourself riding in a gondola along the Grand Canal. The palaces along its banks can be seen, but it is not the ideal method to do so. You’ll actually get a better – albeit speedier – view from the Vaporetto; it’s preferable to keep your gondola trip for the charming little “back street” canals. This is because there are so many larger vessels racing through and obstructing your perspective.
2. Visit Santa Maria della Salute
The enormous Baroque church of Santa Maria della Salute, built in gratitude for the end of the 1630 epidemic, is practically directly in your Vaporetto line of sight as it crosses the Grand Canal at the San Marco station. More than a million timbers had to be driven into the lagoon’s floor by architect Baldassare Longhena in order to withstand the structure’s enormous weight.
The church is a striking landmark that is visible from San Marco across the Grand Canal. This grandeur is continued inside, where the enormous dome immediately catches the eye. The Sacristy contains the best paintings, particularly Tintoretto’s Marriage at Cana, so be sure to visit there. The church is directly in front of the Vaporetto landing.
3. Corner of the Palazzo Ca’ Grande
One of Venice’s greatest examples of High Renaissance architecture is the Palazzo Corner della Ca’ Grande, which is located just across from the Guggenheim. The large mansion was constructed in 1545 for the wealthy Cornaro family by the Italian master builder and sculptor Jacopo Sansovino; the name “Ca’ Grande” is Venetian dialect meaning “great home.” One of Sansivino’s earliest jobs in Venice was this one. Ca’ Grande was designed to dazzle, just like the other palazzi, with grand Ionic and Corinthian columns on the first and second floors, respectively.
4. The fourth Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice is visiting Palazzo Grassi
The three-story Palazzo Grassi, which is located on the opposing bank, exhibits both Baroque and Classical elements on its exterior. The last palace to be erected on the Grand Canal prior to the collapse of the Venetian Republic in 1797, it was built using Giorgio Massari’s plans and had a ground plan uncommon for Venice, with four wings circling a rectangular courtyard.
The courtyard, which, along with the rest of the palace, is used for exhibitions, underwent substantial restorations and upgrades when the Fiat Motor Company purchased the palace. The structure is intriguing since it successfully combines authentic Neoclassical and contemporary architectural styles.
5. Ca’ Rezzonico and the Venice of the Eighteenth Century Museum
The huge Ca’ Rezzonico, designed by two renowned architects, is on the left as the canal starts its lengthy curve to the right. The finest Venetian Baroque architect, Baldassare Longhena, started it in 1660, and Giorgio Massari finished it nearly a century later.
It now serves as home to the Museum of 18th-Century Venice, which offers an intriguing look at Rococo-era life in Venice. The lavish artistic designs and furnishings, including the Chinoiserie and lacquered furniture that was so in vogue at the time, are displayed in its 40 rooms. There are puppets, original 18th-century Venetian costumes, bronzes, porcelain, and ceramics from Venice. On the third floor are a theater and an intricately recreated 18th-century pharmacy.
The Ca’ Rezzonico Vaporetto stop is not exactly at the palace. To reach the Fondamenta Rezzonico, you must ascend Calle Traghetto to Campo San Barnaba and cross the bridge.
Conclusion:
Since their facades face the water, the ideal Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice to watch and admire all of these magnificent palaces is from the canal itself. One of the most popular Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice at night is to view magnificent palaces after the lights come on within their sparkling interiors. As you travel from San Marco to Ponte Della Costituzione, at the other end of the Grand Canal, you will pass by the attractions listed below in the order that you will see them. With the help of this practical guide about Things To Do The Grand Canal In Venice, you won’t miss any of the attractions.
