Transportation in Venice
Venice is divided into six districts ( sestieri), three on either side of the snaking Grand Canal, the city's main 'street'. People get around on foot or by boat.Most of the main sights cluster in the San Marco and Dorsoduro districts. The best way to visit them is on foot.At the centre is St Mark's Square (Piazza San Marco), home to the Basilica and pigeons. The district is known as San Marco. The Rialto bridge connects it to the western labyrinths of San Polo and Santa Croce. East of San Marco stretches Castello, site of the Biennale. South across the Grand Canal is Dorsoduro, home to the main art galleries and nightlife spots. Northern Cannaregio is where you'll find the Ghetto.
Read more about transport from and to the airport
Vaporetto
Venice's water buses, known as vaporetti or battelli, are the main form of public transport. Non-residents, however, pay a high price to use them, so consider day passes or sticking to shoe leather. There isn't much alternative for getting to the islands.
Foot
Up and down the bridges and along the canals, most people walk around this compact city, except of course when they need to make a long journey, or simply to give sore feet a break.
Water taxi
These walnut-timbered speedboats are the luxury way to get about town, handy for the airport or if you have heavy luggage. If your hotel is on a canal, you can get door-to-door service.
Rent your car
The A4 autostrada (motorway) connects with the Ponte della Libertà that leads into central Venice. You can either park in Tronchetto just across the bridge, or park your car on the mainland in the train/boat terminal on the mainland side and take the water taxi or train across the Venetian lagoon to the city.
Transportation Tips
A Biglietto a Tempo pass, for 12/24/36/48 or72 hours, gives unlimited access to vaporetti and is much better value than individual tickets if you plan to get around a lot this way. Buy them at any stop.
Special Transportation
Traghetto
At strategic spots along the Grand Canal, these commuter gondolas ferry folks back and forth between the two banks. You stand up, which can be tricky for first-timers without a sense of balance!
Gondola
Once the main form of public transport in Venice, nowadays the gondola is almost exclusively the preserve of the tourist. It can be a romantic or rather kitsch way to get a water-borne tour of the city.
