Venice in June

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We have just booked Venice for a long weekend so you’ll have to report back some recommendations once you’ve been. certainly not spoilt for choice it looks. We’re going to the Relais Sabbioni.

Yeah I'll post back once we've been. I don't think we'll be going to any really fancy (expensive) places. Seen a couple of restaurants which looked good then read some Google reviews where folk were paying between 2 and 450euros for a meal!
 
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Thanks. No we won’t be paying that much for food either, we were in sorrento last year and noticed the dearer the food the smaller the plate of food was:o you just left the place hungry, we just like proper Italian grub!
 
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Thanks I’ll have a look through there tonight.

That would be great and report back,

Just booked one of the speedboat taxis to go from the airport to the hotel looks good fun!
 
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I think we're just going to get the waterbus instead of one of the taxis. The bus stops a few hundred metres away from where we're staying anyway so no point in splashing out too much on getting there!
 
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Tip 1, don't stay in Venice
Tip 2, to enjoy all Venice has to offer ensure you're up at least once at 5am to walk it as intended (or at 10pm at night) - basically whenever the tourist buses are not around
Tip 3, don't stay in Venice
Tip 4, pay the extra for the "special" Gondola tour
Tip 5, don't stay in Venice
 
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Tip 1, don't stay in Venice
Tip 2, to enjoy all Venice has to offer ensure you're up at least once at 5am to walk it as intended (or at 10pm at night) - basically whenever the tourist buses are not around
Tip 3, don't stay in Venice
Tip 4, pay the extra for the "special" Gondola tour
Tip 5, don't stay in Venice

ignore the above. Incredible place, avoid the overpriced hectic tourist traps and enjoy one of the most beautiful cities in the world.
 
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Tip 1, don't stay in Venice
Tip 2, to enjoy all Venice has to offer ensure you're up at least once at 5am to walk it as intended (or at 10pm at night) - basically whenever the tourist buses are not around
Tip 3, don't stay in Venice
Tip 4, pay the extra for the "special" Gondola tour
Tip 5, don't stay in Venice

Tip 6 Don't take too much advice from people on the internet :p

Tip 1. I'm staying in Venice.
Tip 2. I will enjoy Venice at those times as I'm ignoring Tips 1, 3 and 5.
Tip 3. I'm staying on the South Lagoon at a reasonably priced hotel.
Tip 4. Pre-booked gondola ride with Prosecco
Tip 5. Views of St Marks, Church of San Giorio Maggiore and Basilica di Santa Maria della Salute in a sub £600 hotel on the South Lagoon. Can't complain to that at all :o
 
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The only reason I say don't stay there is because quite honestly, you'll be done in a day, probably less. There are far more amazing places to stay in Italy that are merely an hour or so's drive from Venice meaning you can enjoy other parts of Italy. Venice is a day trip, tops.
 
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The only reason I say don't stay there is because quite honestly, you'll be done in a day, probably less. There are far more amazing places to stay in Italy that are merely an hour or so's drive from Venice meaning you can enjoy other parts of Italy. Venice is a day trip, tops.
i'd agree with this, 2 days was plenty for me to see everything
i was glad to leave as it's just stupidly busy and overpriced
nice place all the same
 
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Just a heads up @David Flett that there appears to have been a substantial fire in Venice tonight. I was having an evening drink with the missus and after the sun was just dipping we saw an orange glow to the west of the island. Looks like it was fairly big though. Can't find any details on it yet but it's about 20 to 12 just now so I'm off to sleep. Hopefully I'll know more by tomorrow.

Edit
According to Twitter it was the chemical works stacks flaring but it was stronger than usual just on the mainland rather than Venice itself
 
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Well that’s a relief then, least it wasn’t anything major that could have effected your trip! Hope your having a good time and there’s not any cruise ships ruining your view that I can see on the daily mail! :o
 
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Back home now but I'll post something a bit more thorough either Sunday / Monday but had a great few days in Venice.

As we had a few trips planned we definitely couldn't have 'seen it in a couple of days max' as others have mentioned. We barely scratched the surface and due to the heatwave that Europe's in just now we had to do what the locals did and hide in the shade whenever we could along with enjoying a wee drink or two in the afternoons. All very leisurely.
 
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Back home now but I'll post something a bit more thorough either Sunday / Monday but had a great few days in Venice.

As we had a few trips planned we definitely couldn't have 'seen it in a couple of days max' as others have mentioned. We barely scratched the surface and due to the heatwave that Europe's in just now we had to do what the locals did and hide in the shade whenever we could along with enjoying a wee drink or two in the afternoons. All very leisurely.
Glad you had a great time and yes you're right, you can't do it in a couple days. We were there for 5 days and it felt about right to see what we wanted to, plus we went in off season so less crowds than now.
 
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You get a nice view from on top of a shopping centre. Quick panorama that i took albeit I've got to level out the exposure and remove dust spots etc to the above photo. Fondaco dei Tedeschi by DFS just behind the Rialto Bridge. They limit the numbers on the terrace to 80 per 15 minute slot, but its free and i booked my place on the same morning. Well worth taking a look into it as the views are spectacular. It can be booked here https://www.dfs.com/en/venice/t-fondaco-rooftop-terrace and far less crowded than the bridge itself
 
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Food Review

Each morning we had the included breakfast from the hotel we stayed at. Typical continental breakfast, cold meats, cheese, fruit, yogurt, bread etc Due to the heat and the way our activities worked out we didn't have lunch out anywhere so can't comment on a typical place to eat in the afternoon.

On the first evening we asked the guys at the hotel for a recommendation and they suggested Trattoria Al Vecio Portal. This was just a two minute walk from the hotel we were staying at and had a nice local feel about it.
Starters - I had dried beef with a smoked cheddar cheese. The combination of the beef with the smokiness of the cheddar was lovely. Decent sized starter and quite filling. The missus had tomato and mozzarella with oil and lettuce.
First Course - We both opted for Ravioli in a tomato and herb sauce. Home made ravioli (aubergine and something else), good flavours and quite filling as well.

Service was good from the waiting staff and as we had passed here earlier in the day, the guy we spoke to (presuming the owner) he passed our table to say hello which i thought was a nice touch. We were given a table outside at the front of the restaurant which in Venice is typically on the street so you will have some tourists walking past as you eat but not the great hoards in the main areas.

Price 84 euros with tip on top

Second night we went to Trattoria Pizzeria Alla Fonte and we both decided to have a pizza. Nice enough food to eat but nothing to write home about. We also ordered a couple of sides of cheese selection and fried potatoes (chips) fine but not wasn't overly impressed. Finished up with a Creme Caramel (looked shop bought) My missus found it tricky to attract the waiters attention when we required the bill and had to be chased up to bring our drinks to us. Not somewhere where we'd recommend.

Price 68 euros with small tip on top

Third night we went to Ristorante Alla Conchiglia.
Starters - We both had the Bruschetta. Simple but tasty starter although one gripe was that it was fairly cool (we had a warmed Bruschetta on the last night which tasted better)
First Course - We both picked the same options off the menu (carbonara, spaghelli and tortellini with ham and cream sauce) so instead of having the same I picked the tortellini and the missus had the spaghetti. Her spaghetti tasted fine but the tortellini was phenomenal. I enjoy my food at the best of times but this was exceptional. I made the mistake of offering the missus a bite of mine.....and she loved it as well.
Second Course - on the recommendation of the waiter I went for the seafood skewers. A mixture of fish and peppers, something lighter to finish things off. Missus didn't have anything.

Service was alright again but again there was a delay in bringing drinks (while folk next to us got theirs) and the missus caught the waiters perving on every woman's arse as it went by! Nice setting by the canal though and there was a guitar player (busker) nearby but was quite pleasant.

Price 94 euros with tip on top.

Last night we opted to just sit at one of the bars outside our hotel Al Gabbiano. Waterfront restaurant so we got the best view while eating here.

Starters - Missus opted for Bruschetta (warmed) Can't go wrong with such a simple dish while i had the mixed meat platter (big portion) wafer thin smoked and dried meats but very tasty.
First Course - Spaghetti again for the missus and I went for the tortellini in a carbonara sauce. Good sized portions as with the starters but from my point of view disappointing compared to the night before. Certainly appeared to be more supermarket bought than home made but on the waterfront possibly trying to keep price down while catering for larger numbers than some of the restaurants we visited.
Dessert - I just some vanilla ice cream to finish.

Service - The waiter we had was fantastic, attentive but not obtrusive and also had a bit of humour about him as well so made the dining experience that much better.

Price 108 euros with tip on top.

We didn't go too far afield in the evenings as we'd already walked a fair amount during the day with our excursions so can only comment on places in and around where our hotel was.

We did stop for afternoon drinks (it would be rude not to) at Rialto bridge and surprisingly they were quite reasonably priced even compared to the south lagoon bars along the front. 4 euros for an aperol spritz. Quite booze-filled as well. One thing with these places though if you only order drinks you'll be put on the restaurant side, when outside and its only if you're eating that you'll be sat at the side of the grand canal.

Can post up other things like our organised trips later on after work if you wish.
 
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