Book a Flight to Venice from €50

St Mark's Basilica: the heart of the city beats at Saint Mark's square with the famous 11th century basilica, a charming mix of Byzantine architecture with elements of renaissance and Romanesque art. The iconic church of Venice impresses visitors with the splendour of the gold plated mosaics in its interior, as well as with the famous Pala d'Oro, a section of the Altar decorated with gold and precious stones. Visit the museum in San Marco with the Loggia dei Cavalli, where the original four gold-plated bronze horses are kept, that were brought by Crusaders in 1204 from Constantinople. From here, the view of the piazza looks like a postcard.  Copies of the horses decorate the entrance of the church.  
Address: San Marco, 328, 0039 041 2708311, www.basilicasanmarco.it/

Doge's Palace: an amazing example of medieval architecture, the base of the lords of the city with its Gothic façade from white stone and pink Verona marble, the palace reflects the commercial grandeur of Venice when, in Medieval period and the Renaissance, it connected the West of the time with the countries of the far East. Palazzo Ducale is a beautiful complex of impressive halls, corridors, hidden rooms and works of art by Tintoretto, Veronese, Hieronymus Bosch. From here you will cross the famous Bridge of Sighs, named after the 19th century romantics who imagined the lamentations of prisoners as, from that bridge, they would see the light of day for the last time before they were sent off to prison. Infamous Casanova was imprisoned here for five years.  
Address: San Marco, 1, 0039 041 2715911, www.basilicasanmarco.it/ 

Accademia Gallery: visit the fantastic Gallerie dell’Accademia full of Venetian school painting masterpieces, dating from the 14th to the 18th century. Admire works by artists such as Titian, Tiepolo, Tintoretto, Bellini, Veronese, Canaletto and more.   
Address: Campo della Carità, 
Dorsoduro 1050, 0039 0415200345, www.gallerieaccademia.org/

Peggy Guggenheim Collection: if you love modern art, head for the Dorsoduro district to admire creations by top European and American artists of the 20th century: works by Picasso, Matisse, Magritte, Dalí, Mondrian, De Chirico and more, are presented in the Venetian 18th century palazzo with the amazing view to the Grand Canal. Don’t forget to try the carpaccio at the Museum Café.
Address: Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, Dorsoduro 701-704, 0039 041 2405411, www.guggenheim-venice.it/ 
 
Tour on a vaporetto: tour the Canal Grande on a vaporetto to live the experience of sliding on the water boulevard of Venice. You will admire masterpieces, such as the Ca' d'Oro Golden Residence and Palazzo Grassi, from a different point of view, passing under the dreamy Rialto bridge.  

Gondola ride: although it sounds like a tourist cliché, gondola rides remain an unforgettable experience in Venice, as the vessel slides under the Bridge of Sighs and the gondolier sings “La donna è mobile” and “Ο Sole mio”.

Murano Island: get the vaporetto to the “homeland” of Murano blown glass, tour around the traditional glass-makers dating since the Middle Ages and visit the Glass Museum (Fondamenta Giustinian 8, tel. 0039 041 739586), with the largest Venetian glass collection in the world.   
Address: take vaporetto No. 52 departing from Fondamenta Nuove

Burano Island: famous for its handmade lace. Its typical houses, painted in bright colours, were once used as lighthouses for fishermen returning from the Adriatic Sea. At the Lace Museum (Piazza Galuppi 187, 0039 041 730034), you can watch the few Venetian women that still make precious lace by hand. 
Address: take vaporetto No. 12 departing from Fondamenta Nuove.

Ultra-expensive siren-boutiques with famous Italian and international brands lure visitors to their shiny windows at Saint Mark's district, next to the Doge's Palace and the Bridge of Sighs. In the city alleys, small, tasteful shops sell handmade creations with Venetian lace, carnevale masks that are real masterpieces, and full costumes made of velvet and brocade for a special carnival look, maps of the journeys of the greatest explorer in the world - who was born in Venice - Marco Polo. Of course, you cannot leave any Italian city without making sure you have bought some packs of handmade pasta, in shapes and colours that will take your dishes to another level.  

In the glass-shops on Murano island you will find a great variety of handmade jewellery and ornaments of blown glass, flowers, starfish, corals and other skilfully made shapes.

At Saint Mark's square cafés, a colourful crowd of tourists enjoy their espresso with a view to the high Campanile or sip on a Bellini as aperitif, like Hemingway, Grace Kelly and Madonna have done in the past.  

The culinary soul of Venice is in Rialto and the historical food market of the 16th century bridge. Every morning, boats loaded with fresh fruit, vegetables and seafood from the neighbouring fish market arrive at the picturesque mercato and chefs crowd these floating green grocers and fishmongers to get the ingredients for their kitchens. Sole alla Casanova, a special named after the promiscuous charmer of Venice, risotto with cuttlefish, steamed oysters with garlic, fish soups, fried sardines with sweet and sour onions (sarde in saor, in Venetian dialect) are some of the lagoon specials that you must try in the trattorias around the market and the osterie of the city, the Venetian tavernas with splendid terraces overlooking the sea. 

Follow the example of the locals who, as the night falls, they head for a bacarata in the tiny, traditional bàcari. These are famous hangouts where Venetians can get a bite of cicchetti, appetizers very much like tapas, with a glass of spritz aperitif.

Take a late night walk in the illuminated Saint Mark's square, when the piazza is free from the crowds of tourists and pigeons. Continue your night in the hip night spots of the Dorsoduro district.

• Carnival In February the city of the Doges is the protagonist of the most spectacular carnival on the planet. Piazza San Marco is the centre of medieval carnevale originating from the Roman Saturnalia and the Dionysian cult, that excites all six sestieri (neighbourhoods) of the city. Locals and tourists alike are dressed in bauta, the trademark of Venetian carnival with the black cape and white mask, dandies and Casanovas, harlequins and marquises, look like a Commedia dell'arte troupe dancing to Venetian tunes, under a rain of serpentine and confetti. The celebration culminates with the great gala along the Grand Canale with the gondolas illuminated by torches. 
• Biennale Modern art originality has its own meeting place, every two years in Venice in the greatest international art exhibition. In the atmospheric spaces of the former Arsenale shipyards and the Corderie cord makers of the city, artists from around the world present their avant garde creations, while parallel events, theatre, dance and music performances transform the lagoon to a vast art workshop.  
• International Film Festival The oldest film festival in the world is held every year in late August to early September at the Lido of Venice. The Golden Lion is the prize awarded to the best of the films screened in the Palazzo del Cinema.

Getting to and from the airport in Venice

Aegean Airlines lands on the “Marco Polo” International Airport of Venice, 10km north of the city. One of the largest airports in Italy, it has luxurious shops, restaurants, cafés, banks, foreign exchange offices, post office, car rental agencies, Wi-Fi for a fee at passenger areas.

Choose the most idyllic way to get to the city: by sea. The Alilaguna water buses connect the airport to Piazza San Marco and the journey is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes long. You can also get to the city on the local ACTV bus that will take you to Piazzale Roma in 20 minutes. The journey by conventional taxi costs about 25 Euros, but water taxis are much more expensive.