Venice in June

Derek W

Derek W

Derek W

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Morning all,

I'm planning on going to Venice with the missus in June for 4 days and I'm looking for a few recommendations for places to eat mainly.

Had to renew my passport today, but we're looking at places approximately 100 quid q night so more into Airbnb than some hotels. Transfers from the airport, she's found something for 6euros.
Flight wise I think we're going either easy jet or Jet2 from Edinburgh to Marco Polo. Chances are well maybe get a hotel in Edinburgh before flying out depending on the flight times.

So far we've looked at boat trip down the grand canal, Gondola ride, and doge palace as well as the other usual tourist stuff.

I've skim read a few of the other Venice topics on here, don't eat / drink in places around the main tourist areas as you'll pay through the nose but I'm looking for ideas of other places to go.

Any recommendations?
 
The place is absolutely heaving with places to eat. Food was quite reasonable, drinks were fairly expensive.

We booked the gondola rides in advance, was better than the deals you could get when you got there, allegedly.
 
We stayed in Venice for the first part of our honeymoon at this hotel - https://www.hotelaireali.com/

It was lovely but quite expensive, we only ate there once but wished we'd eaten there more often as the food was outstanding. We met a few people at dinner who had made dinner reservations there months in advance because of its reputation, so I'd suggest looking into it if you'd like somewhere special.
 
I've been about 6 times now and never fails to disappoint. 4 days is actually quite a long time there and you will need to plan where you want to see as you can cover most obvious places well within 2 days.

Last time I managed to get an air b&b apartment in Campo San Polo for £340 for two nights and was worth every penny over a cramped cheap hotel. Campo San Polo is eerily quiet despite being 2 mins away from the centre and being able to chill with a bottle of wine in a Venetian apartment is as good as being out in the streets .

Everywhere is within walking distance so don't be afraid to stay on the outskirts in areas like Cannaregio, Dorsodouro and Castello .San Marco is a tourist hell hole in June so I avoid at all costs. All of Venice is equally if not more beautiful than San Marco.

You are literally spoiled for choice for restaurants and bars and on the outskirts it's very cheap .The closer you get into San Marco the more expensive it gets. I've heard some real horror stories of people wandering in to restaurants in San Marco and being hit with bills for £100 for a single dish and threatened if they didn't pay. On the outskirts you are treated like family. Avoid anywhere with a live band in the centre as they add that on to the bill along with an "admission charge" called Coperto

Don't let me scare you, it's usually only the places directly surrounding San Marco that operate like this. 5 minute walk out of San Marco and it's another world.

Check out the eatery guides to find hidden away places .some of the best food places I've eaten at have been the new modern style restaurants like the Novecento Jazz club 900. Prices are great, laid back atmosphere and great food. A lot of very traditional places play up to the tourists, being overbearing with service and will try to charge accordingly .

Wine with your dinner=cheap
Non local drink from a bar=moderate London prices.
Supermarket wine=cheaper than water.

Gondolla rides are price set so no one is supposed to undercut the other boats. In high season the canals are rammed and it isn't very romantic. Spend your money on a guided tour after dark, now that's amazing as the place empties and you feel like you've stepped back in time.
 
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Make sure you book the Doges Palace Secret Tour, it's excellent. We also loved visiting the islands Murano, Burano etc.

The food is all excellent as long as you plan where you're going (i.e. avoid St Mark's Square). Our favorite restaurant was Alle Corone.
 
Cheers for the suggestions so far. Will take a look tomorrow after I've sorted all my gubbins from the football today :cool:
 
I'm surprised at all the positives for Venice on here. Obviously I've been suckered into all the horror stories of restaurant rip offs etc :( I've never been, but it's sort of stuck in my head alongside Rome and a few others as being so touristy it's not worth the aggro. I guess I should give it a chance..
 
Use Tripadvisor on a daily basis - you can read reviews, find some amazing places to eat and often book a table with 10/20/30% discount.

Venice is a stunning city. As long as you're not an idiot - sitting down in a restaurant at the biggest tourist traps and ordering without seeing a price etc, you won't have an issue.
We went in June last year and it was just perfect.

We stayed in San Polo, the very east side near the grand canal. We walked everywhere within 15 minutes.
 
tres said:
Use Tripadvisor on a daily basis - you can read reviews, find some amazing places to eat and often book a table with 10/20/30% discount.
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I find TA increasingly a nightmare when in Europe. Italy especially - it seems full of Americans using over the top praise "most authentic meal in Florence" etc. And you turn up to these places and they're your average tourist-driven trattoria with gingham tablecloths etc. with very average food.
 
Scam said:
I find TA increasingly a nightmare when in Europe. Italy especially - it seems full of Americans using over the top praise "most authentic meal in Florence" etc. And you turn up to these places and they're your average tourist-driven trattoria with gingham tablecloths etc. with very average food.
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I normally take reviews with a pinch of salt purely for that reason. Even stuff on here its the same. The Vegas debate is one that springs to mind. Some folk love it (myself included albeit i did have trips arranged outwith Vegas, others think its their worst nightmare and wouldn't spend more than a couple of days there)
 
Scam said:
I'm surprised at all the positives for Venice on here. Obviously I've been suckered into all the horror stories of restaurant rip offs etc :( I've never been, but it's sort of stuck in my head alongside Rome and a few others as being so touristy it's not worth the aggro. I guess I should give it a chance..
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You've not done either of them right then. I haven't been to Venice but I went to Rome a few years ago and thought it was brilliant. Back alley restaurants always sounds like the cliche way to have a better trip but it really is. One of the best pizzas I've had in my life was down this tiny street that someone had recommended to my ex but without the name of it so we had to go search it out. Lived up to expectations for sure. And I lost the damn receipt so I may never find the place if I go back :o
 
Skillmister said:
You've not done either of them right then.
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I've not done either of them, which is what I was saying ;) I just get very put off attempting to do cities like that because when you spend so much time avoiding the tourist traps it starts to grate and take the fun out of it. It's like you're wandering round the city in the middle of the day and want some lunch, pop in somewhere only to have a **** meal and get ripped off for the privilege. I hate that. So you spend all your time finding alternatives and not actually enjoy the moment.
 
Minor bump of this one.

Got the hotel booked. Expanded the budget a little bit and booked 'a tribute to music' which is right next to the main piazza. Flights booked through Jet2 so we're just looking through some activities and restaurants. Will stick a few names in here after work to see if anyone has been to them and suggest whether it's a decent choice or not for those who have been. Seen some ridiculously nice places but sadly our budget won't cater for those ones :(
 
Scam said:
I'm surprised at all the positives for Venice on here. Obviously I've been suckered into all the horror stories of restaurant rip offs etc :( I've never been, but it's sort of stuck in my head alongside Rome and a few others as being so touristy it's not worth the aggro. I guess I should give it a chance..
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I'd always say its worth a visit, but personally I just didn't get much of a wow from Venice. We went late July when it was 30+ temps so probably completely the wrong time of the year to visit. Not just from a being too hot point of view, but it's major tourist season and everything is just packed.
 
Semple said:
I'd always say its worth a visit, but personally I just didn't get much of a wow from Venice. We went late July when it was 30+ temps so probably completely the wrong time of the year to visit. Not just from a being too hot point of view, but it's major tourist season and everything is just packed.
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Easter is a much better time to do both Venice and Rome better temps and fewer tourists milling around the place! Don't over obsess about avoiding being ripped off we had a hot chocolate in St Marks Square yes it was a total rip off but is was a lovely hot chocolate in fabulous surroundings. We used Trip adviser a lot and had some great meals at very reasonable prices especially when you consider the whole place is essentially a tourist trap. Get up early and stay out in the evening if you want to avoid the cruise ship crowds!

I would definitely recommend a trip to either Venice or Rome they are both unique cities with incredible history all around you, we did a two week trip flying into Venice then taking the train to Florence, Pizza and Rome before flying home the food, art and history were all amazing.
 
a1ex2001 said:
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Yeah we did a similar trip and using trains to get between the cities. Spent about 8-9 days visiting Venice, Milan, Florence and Rome. Then the last 5-6 days at Sorrento plus surrounding coastal villages as a bit more of a wind-down/chill-out.

My favourite city of them all would have to be Florence. It's still a busy city, but wasn't packed compared to others. It's just got a nice touch to it.
 
Right a few places we've looked at are as follows :-

https://www.algiubagio.net/
Located in and around the Jewish Ghetto to the North of the island. Prices look good (seriously cheap pizzas compared to other main meal dishes!) Pleasant view by the lagoon (albeit looking towards the cemetery!)

http://www.anticasacrestia.it/
As recommended by @wez130

https://www.ristoranteallecorone.com/
As recommended by @weringo When i first saw 4 star luxury I thought it might be too expensive, but the prices don't actually look too bad? Perhaps too much fish on the menu (Mrs isn't overly keen, yes I know, we're in Venice!)

https://www.laterrazzavenezia.com/offers/our-menu-a-la-carte/
Reasonably enough priced and i would doubt if either of us would have the full 3 / 4 courses. Is it in a too touristy area that it would fall into the category of overpriced, poor quality food?

http://www.osteriacadelvento.it/#
Just had a look at this place on the google reviews, food looks decent.

I'm sure as others have said there's loads of places to eat at but that's my initial thoughts. Obviously two are recommendations but has anyone visited any of the others above?
 
Semple said:
Yeah we did a similar trip and using trains to get between the cities. Spent about 8-9 days visiting Venice, Milan, Florence and Rome. Then the last 5-6 days at Sorrento plus surrounding coastal villages as a bit more of a wind-down/chill-out.

My favourite city of them all would have to be Florence. It's still a busy city, but wasn't packed compared to others. It's just got a nice touch to it.
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Had the best pizza I've ever eaten in Florence, from a little place with a wood oven that only offered three different pizza's on the menu.
 
Pringle W said:
Right a few places we've looked at are as follows :-

https://www.algiubagio.net/
Located in and around the Jewish Ghetto to the North of the island. Prices look good (seriously cheap pizzas compared to other main meal dishes!) Pleasant view by the lagoon (albeit looking towards the cemetery!)

http://www.anticasacrestia.it/
As recommended by @wez130

https://www.ristoranteallecorone.com/
As recommended by @weringo When i first saw 4 star luxury I thought it might be too expensive, but the prices don't actually look too bad? Perhaps too much fish on the menu (Mrs isn't overly keen, yes I know, we're in Venice!)

https://www.laterrazzavenezia.com/offers/our-menu-a-la-carte/
Reasonably enough priced and i would doubt if either of us would have the full 3 / 4 courses. Is it in a too touristy area that it would fall into the category of overpriced, poor quality food?

http://www.osteriacadelvento.it/#
Just had a look at this place on the google reviews, food looks decent.

I'm sure as others have said there's loads of places to eat at but that's my initial thoughts. Obviously two are recommendations but has anyone visited any of the others above?
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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.
 
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