The 10 Best Experiences in Venice

Learning to paddle your own gondola is one of the unique experiences that awaits you in Venice
Learning to paddle your own gondola is one of the unique experiences that awaits you in Venice | © one-image photography / Alamy Stock Photo
Sarah Gillespie

Whether it’s art, food or music that you love, this is your definitive guide to the 10 best experiences in Venice.

Home to carnival masks and shimmering glass sculptures, twisting canals and a magical skyline, Venice seems tailor-made for unusual experiences. Sporty types can try rowing, creatives can get stuck into painting classes or perfume-blending workshops, and gourmands can taste – well, just about anything. Critics may cry that everything in Venice has been done – but we say that they’re just not looking hard enough.

Art and culture experiences in Venice

1. Take a tour of the legendary Teatro La Fenice

Theater

Inside Gran Teatro La Fenice, Sestiere di San Marco (district of St Mark), Venezia (Venice), Italy.
© Hercules Milas / Alamy Stock Photo

One of the world’s most prestigious theatres, La Fenice has seen the world premiere of operas by Gioachino Rossini, Vincenzo Bellini, Gaetano Donizetti and Giuseppe Verdi. Founded in 1792, the appropriately named theatre (La Fenice means ‘The Phoenix’ in Italian) has survived two fires. The most recent, in 1996, sent shockwaves around the world and initiated a €90 million (£80 million) reconstruction process that lasted seven years. Although some critics called for the design to be modernised, ultimately the restored theatre is an almost exact replica of the original. Find out more about its fascinating history on this guided tour.

2. Listen to Interpreti Veneziani in concert with dinner

Restaurant, Italian

Chiesa di San Vidal, San Marco, Venice, Italy
© Jon Wilson / Alamy Stock Photo

Ideal for a romantic evening, this combined dinner-and-concert experience opens with a three-course dinner at Osteria Leon Bianco, a cosy Italian restaurant serving Venetian dishes. Choose from fish and meat options (drinks not included). After dinner, a performance by Interpreti Veneziani follows at the Chiesa di San Vidal, a former 17th-century church that now serves as a concert hall. Founded in 1987, the Interpreti Veneziani group are famed for their energetic take on Baroque music and have played all over the world, from the Melbourne Festival to the Tokyo Suntory Hall, but there’s nothing like hearing them in their home city.

Classes and workshops in Venice

3. Make fresh pasta with a Venetian

Family style, Italian

fd
© Viator

As any true Venetian (or Italian, for that matter) will tell you, there’s nothing like fresh pasta – and it’s easier to make than you think. Learn the secrets of this beloved Italian staple in this three-hour cookery class. Host Lorenzo has a lifetime of expertise and a clear passion for cooking, supplying fresh ingredients from the local Rialto Market – and it’s not just pasta either. Sip on a glass of prosecco as you learn how to create classic dishes such as squid ink ravioli, risotto and tiramisu. Once everything’s ready, sit back and enjoy the fruits of your labour at an intimate dinner party accompanied by excellent music.

4. Paint your own Venetian mask

Shop

Venetian mask Italy.
© Dmytro Sidashev / Alamy Stock Photo

Grinning, scowling, gurning – carnival masks are a Venetian icon, peering from shop windows in every corner of the city. At the La Bauta studio in San Polo, you can see the work that goes into painting them and take away your very own creation, in this one-hour, artist-led workshop ideal for families. Choose your mask from over 50 different models, then paint it using hard-wearing acrylic tempera paint. Finish the mask with touches of gold and silver, then go wild with sequins, ribbons and feathers. The acrylic dries quickly, so you can take (or wear!) your mask straight away.

5. Try a Murano island glass blowing demo and workshop

Art Gallery

Man working with molten glass to create the famous Murano glass at a glass foundry on the island of Murano, Venice, Italy
© David Hall / Alamy Stock Photo

The tiny Venetian island of Murano has been a centre of glass art production for over a thousand years. After the glass is melted and shaped in a furnace at 1,500C (2700F), minerals such as zinc, copper and cobalt are added to create the vivid streaked designs synonymous with the island. Murano artisans also popularised the millefiori (thousand flowers) technique, compressing coloured glass canes to create densely patterned beads. Learn about these techniques at this demonstration and workshop, where you can also create your own beaded artwork.

6. Mix it up with a perfume workshop at the Palazzo Mocenigo Museum

Museum

Antique bottles and jars of perfume ingredients at the Carthusia perfumery on the island of Capri, Italy
© Kevin Britland / Alamy Stock Photo

It’s rare that a museum smells as good as it looks, but that’s precisely the case in this combined tour-and-workshop experience. Although the 17th-century Palazzo Mocigeno houses hundreds of costumes and textiles, here you’ll be focusing exclusively on the five rooms dedicated to perfume. One room recreates the laboratory of a 16th-century perfumier; another contains an exquisite collection of decorative bottles. After the tour, you will join a master perfumier for a short workshop in which you will create your own signature scent.

Sports, adventure and spa days in Venice

7. Paddle your own gondola in a rowing class

Architectural Landmark

Gondolier flowing gondola, Venice canal, Veneto, Italy, UNESCO
© Jan Wlodarczyk / Alamy Stock Photo

It’s the ultimate Italian cliché: go to Venice, ride a gondola. But how many travellers can claim to have rowed one for themselves? In this great-value class, instructor Gloria Rogliani will teach you to row standing in the traditional Venetian fashion. The activity commences with a tour around some of Venice’s quieter canals before heading all the way to Murano Island, returning to the departure point approximately two-and-a-half hours later. Please note that due to the physical nature of this course, it is not recommended for travellers with back problems or serious medical conditions.

8. Relax in hot springs, combined with a wine tasting

Train Station

49
© Viator

Just 40 minutes from Venice, the verdant Euganean Hills are famed for their vineyards and hot springs. This four-hour evening excursion combines the two, commencing with a train journey from Santa Lucia station. Along the way, your guide will tell you of the hills’ history and geology. After arriving, it’s a short walk to one of the area’s secluded thermal pools. While in the water, you’ll taste three different types of local wine (red, white and dessert), with a short discussion of each. The last hour is given to relaxation in the pool before the journey back to Venice.

Here’s what else you can do in Venice

9. Get your own personalised Venice photo shoot

Art Gallery

Tourist taking photos in Venice
© Oleksii Hrecheniuk / Alamy Stock Photo

Unsure how to get great pictures for your Instagram? Let a professional photographer do the work, against one of the most beautiful backdrops Europe has to offer. Host Sam is a consummate professional, tracking down picturesque hidden alleys and uncrowded canals for flattering close-ups. With ten years of experience, he excels in photos of individuals, couples or families. Post-processing for 20-25 photographs is included in the price, though for an extra fee you can obtain every single photo from the hour-long session.

10. Try a seafood feast cooked by a Venetian sailor

Restaurant, Seafood

Italian pasta orzo with grilled shrimps, feta cheese and lemon closeup on a plate on the table. horizontal top view from above
© Sergii Koval / Alamy Stock Photo

This is about as Venetian as it gets – a seafood dinner cooked by a sailor, served in an old palazzo. Host Massimo has travelled the world on his voyages, yet never seems to tire of meeting people, crafting a highly personal and memorable experience in his own home. Fresh-cooked delicacies include cuttlefish with polenta, grilled prawns and caponata (aubergine stew) made with vegetables from Massimo’s own garden. A Spritz apéritif and wine are complimentary (though you can also bring your own bottle). Finish off with a classic Italian tiramisu or panna cotta – if you have room, of course.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.

Culture Trip Spring Sale

Save up to $1,100 on our unique small-group trips! Limited spots.

X
close-ad
Edit article