Incredible Day Trips From Venice + Amazon or Cash Giveaway

As mentioned in my travel guide to Venice, you can take several day trips from Venice. All of these days trips are in the Veneto region or Venetian Lagoon. One of the many reasons why Venice is my favorite Italian city! We focused our day trips from Venice in the Venetian Lagoon because we only dedicated one day for these trips. I’ll go into more detail about these towns below.

As a recap, in order to get to Venice, we took a high speed train from Florence to Venice (our trip originally started in Rome). From Florence, it was about an hour and a half ride to Venice and we got off at the Venezia Santa Lucia station. Then we ended our trip by taking another high speed train from Venice back to Rome.

Day Trips from Venice

Here is a list of the best day trips. Some of these places can be explored in a day and you can either take high speed trains or ferries to get to these locations. You’ll have the opportunity to see several UNESCO World Heritage sites. If you’re not familiar with what a UNESCO World Heritage Site is, it is a landmark or area which is selected by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as having cultural, historical, scientific or other form of significance, and is legally protected by international treaties. Many of these sites are extremely old and unbelievably incredible!

Transportation 

As I mentioned earlier, we focused our day trips on islands in the Venetian lagoon. Therefore, we went to Murano and Burano. All of which can be seen in a day and is 100% worth the trip. We originally wanted to also visit Torcello since it is on the same path, but we were just way too exhausted from the day. However, I’ll share some details about it too because it is very similar to Murano and Burano.

In order to get to these Venetian islands, you will need to take the ferry also known as the vaporetto service (water bus). You will need to get to the Fondamente Nove station. The most common vaporetto line to get on is line 12. This line will stop at the most common islands such as Murano, Burano, and Torcello. So we focused on following the line 12’s schedule only.

Burano

The first part of our day trip was visiting the island of Burano. Since Burano was the last stop on the vaporetto line 12, we figured it would make sense going the furthest so that when we are ready to head home, we don’t have sit on the water bus as long. The ride from Venice to Burano took 45 minutes. Burano is a fishing village and is known for their lace and linens.

We went to Burano first thing in the morning. We went as early as we could and it was the best decision we ever made. The water bus wasn’t crowded and we were able to thoroughly enjoy Burano. Burano is known to be the most colorful town in the world and the moment we stepped onto this island it was unreal. I thought maybe a street or a section of Burano would be colorful, but no! Every single house/building was colorful. It was as if Crayola threw up on this town in a good way! We later learned that the reason why this town is so colorful is because when the fishermen returned to the island at night, it made it easier to find their homes.

Getting to Burano Early

If you do plan on going first thing in the morning, keep in mind that most stores and restaurants do not open until 11 am. Some shops may open at 10am. So I recommend using this opportunity to walk around and see the town as much as you can and go to the stores and restaurants when more people arrive. The island is very small and you can see it in less than an hour. But every corner and nook is a photo-op! We couldn’t stop taking snaps everywhere we looked!

What To Do In Burano

If you plan on eating a meal in Burano, I recommend anything seafood. After all, it is a fishing village and the seafood was so fresh! We had lunch at Ristorante Pizzeria Principe. Wow, the spaghetti and clams was AMAZING! If seafood is not your thing, they have other Italian dishes. Tre got their diavola pizza. He claims it was one of his favorite places to get pizza in Italy. I tried it and it was good and the diavola was so delicious!

You have to check out the lace and linens in Burano. They really are beautiful! Authentic lace is really expensive. There is so much detailed work that goes into it. So if the price seems too good to be true, chances are it is not authentic. The best place to shop for lace in Burano is Emilia Burano, Martina Vidal Venezia, Laces by Olga and the Lace Museum. Sometimes you’ll catch someone making the lace. I can’t believe someone has the patience to make it. I love the dresses in Emilia Burano!

Murano

After spending most of our day in Burano, we decided to stop and check out Murano in the afternoon. Since the vaporetto line 12 had to make a stop in Murano anyway, we figured it doesn’t hurt to see it. After all, when will we get another opportunity like this?! It’s about a 30 minute ride from Burano. If you are coming from Venice, the trip from Venice is about 10-15 minutes. It is the first stop on vaporetto line 12.

Glass Blowing

Murano is known for their glass blowing. The moment you set foot on this island, it is very obvious that glass blowing is their thing. If you are interested in the glassmaking process, you can get a guided tour of one of the glass factories. There are companies that offer free boat rides to Murano with a glass factory tour. Our hotel, Hotel Rialto, offered this complimentary to their guests.

What To Do In Murano

This island is bigger than Burano and has more shops and restaurants to check out. Murano has wider waterways and pavements and you can pretty much get to anything on foot.  There are 3 important churches to see: Basilica dei Santi Maria e Donato, Chiesa di San Pietro Martire, and Campo Santo Stefano.

The pavement around the lagoon is surrounded by shops, cafes, and restaurants. We didn’t dine in Murano, but we did stop for some drinks and coffee at Ai Piantaleon Ristorante & Bar. It’s a cute restaurant with incredible outdoor seating. They have their own pier where they set up the table & chairs. It was the perfect spot for some Aperol Spritz! We also did some shopping and brought back cute jewelry and home decor made with Murano glass!

Torcello

Unfortunately, we did not stop at Torcello. Although, now I regret it. Coming from Burano, it was so easy and convenient to get to. From Venice, Torcello is the 2nd to last stop on the vaporetto line 12 and the stop before Burano. It’s known to be more peaceful compared to Burano and Murano.

What To Do In Torcello

Torcello is older than Venice and used to be one of the most populated islands. It used to be surrounded by several palaces and now only one palazzo remains. Now there are only about 10 permanent residents. So insane to think! Torcello’s main attraction is Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, the Museo Provinciale di Torcello that housed the Palazzo dell’Archivio and the Palazzo del Consiglio, Attila’s Throne (an ancient stone chair), and Devi’s Bridget (Ponte del Diavolo). Ernest Hemingway (and other well-known artists) used to spend time on this island.

There are places to eat in Torcello. Trip Savvy recommend 3 places to check out: Osteria al Ponte del Diavolo, Ristorante Villa ‘600, and Ristorante al Trono di Attila.

Padua

Padua is a walled city east of Venice and a 25 minute train ride from Venice. It’s the oldest city in Northern Italy. You’ll find the 2nd oldest university (Bologna has the oldest). One of the most impressive European botanical gardens and the oldest is Orto Botanico. Basilica di Sant’Antonio is one of the churches that claim to have St Mark’s remains. People have said that Scrovegni Chapel is worth checking out because there are stunning frescoes by Giotto. It is recommended to get tickets in advance.

Verona

This is the infamous town where Juliet and her balcony lives from William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet. Verona is sometimes called the ‘Florence of the North’. Verona is about a little over an hour train ride from Venice. The city’s central square, Piazza delle Erbe is worth checking out. Piazza delle Erbe has been the center of Verona’s economic and political life. They host the local market there and you’ll find Tower Lamberti (Verona’s tallest tower) and Palazzo Commune (Verona’s town hall building).

Treviso

Treviso is a medieval town north of Venice and is about a 30 minute train ride from Venice. This town still has its defensive walls and gates. You’ll find several coffeehouses. They’re also known to be the origin of Prosecco – yes the delicious bubble and sparkling white wine! Treviso also claims to be the birthplace of the popular Italian dessert Tiramisu and that you will be able to find the best tiramisu in Italy there!

Vicenza

Vicenza is about a 45 minute train ride from Venice. It is famous for Palladio’s work, Teatro Olimpico (Olympic Theater). It has the oldest surviving stage set and one of the three Renaissance theatres that still exists. Aside from the theatre, a lot of the architecture is created by Palladio. The Basilica Palladiana is considered to be Palladio’s masterpiece.

More Day Trips from Venice

I can probably go on and on about all the day trips from Venice. There are so many. Hence, why I think Venice is one of my favorite Italian cities and is so underrated. Tre and I are seriously contemplating returning to Venice this year and hope to take advantage of these day trips. Another place we would love to visit is Lake Garda. Lake Garda is the largest lake in Italy and I heard it is so beautiful. Especially the town of Sirmione. It is about a 2 1/2  hour train ride from Venice. I’m convinced I have to check it out after my friend Bryn visited. She loved it and said visiting Lake Garda was her favorite part of her Italian trip.

So have you been to any of these towns listed above?

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