2 Nights 3 Days in Venice with Kids in November...Itinerary Review

Your train ride should give the kids a little time to rest. (You too!) Try to avoid going to bed. Take a shower and get out to see a bit of Venice. Nothing specific, just a walk to work off the cobwebs and start absorbing this amazing city. Walk across the Rialto Bridge and see the view, the lights, or go to the Salute (crowds may be bad). Have dinner and stay up until 9:00. Fall exhausted into bed: you'll be wide awake at 6:00am and on local time! Tuesday: You have plenty of time you'll be up at 6:00 remember? But I'm not sure I'd take one of ony two days in Venice to go to Murano, alhtough you surely can. Depends on what interests you. Walk the Dorsoduro, along the Zattere if it's nice. Go out to St. Elena where there is a park and a more residential side of Venice. (How old are your kids?) Weds: Instead of the Campanile in Piazza San Marco, take the vaporetto acorss to San Giorgio Maggiore. A much better view, IMHO, and fewer crowds. You can see not only Venice proper but all the way across the Laguna. (Clear weather only.) At St. Marks' be sure you go up the stairs to the museum. Extra cost but well worth it! I don't know the two restaurants you've named. We liked Ristorante Nono Risorto, San Polo I believe. Good pizza. Doubt you'll need reservations in November, but if you have your heart set on a place, make a res.

If it were me, I'd skip Murano and do the Rialto market and then wander a bit. You could maybe do both but I think it would be rushed. But it is not something you need to decide until there. The vaporetto ride is probably around 30 - 40 minutes each way. Plus there are plenty of things to do in Venice proper. Nico is fine for gelato but also try our favorite, La Boutique del Gelato in between Piazza San Marco and Campo Santa Maria Formosa on Salizada San Lio In Basilica San Marco go upstairs to the museum for great views of the Piazza. Stairs to the right as you enter and around 5 euro for entry fee. Then instead of the Campanile in Piazza San Marco, consider taking the vaporetto to the Palladio designed Chiesa di San Giorgio Maggiore off the eastern tip of Guidecca. See the church and go up in the campanile there. Wonderful views back to Venice. You should be ok without reservations but it doesn't hurt to make them if you know your plans.

Great minds think alike...;-) Catch the vaporetto for San Giorgio Maggiore at San Marco-Zaccaria. If there are some fancy yachts at the yacht basin near the church, take a few minutes to stroll by. You can take the vaporetto back to San Marco or on across the Guidecca canal to the Zattere.

Unless you or your kids are just DYING to see a glass-blowing demo, I too would avoid going to Murano.

Great suggestions. Thanks so much. I think we will skip murano and wander...I love the other ideas about San Marco as well... Any restaurant recommendations? We are staying in an apartment in Dorsoduro... What's the deal with Harry's Bar and Hotel Danieli? Are these worth a visit or are they overpriced tourist traps? I see them mentioned often...

Harry's is pretty much an overpriced place to see other tourists.

If Harry's were a new bar in SF it would close in a day. I've been there several times because I always left wondering why anyone would go there, so I thought that I was overlooking something. When you walk in to the room full of tables and the tiny bar everyone looks up hoping in vane to gawk at someone famous. Everone there disappointed everyone there. The Bellinis are half the volume and twice the price of any other bar anywhere. I ate upstairs in the woody clubby and quite restaurant and I thought the pasta was wonderful. But it is a splurge. I don't recall seeing kids at Harrys. In SF speak, Harrys downstairs is one of those old time places that locals stopped going to a generation ago, but we take visitors there because they've always heard about it. The Danieli bar is small and borders on a huge high ceiling drawing room. It is a quiet place for a cocktail and the kids I saw seemed to enjoy the big space, comfy sofas and Shirley Temples. I hated the bar snacks. In downtown LA it would be the Biltmore - Hollywood in the golden era. I was there several times just because my hotel was a few doors away. I had a dinner upstairs and it was excellent posh food but a spurge

I just got back from Venice. My wife and I flew into Venice, which worked out great, but the suggestions to stay up the first day are legit. You want to quickly acclimate to the new time difference. Rest when you can, on the plane and train, and then even take Tylenol PM if you don't sleep well to assist. We did not see the Murano place, and to me, I am glad we didn't. I don't feel like I missed anything, and see so much Murano glass around town that I don't think there is a need to see how it is made, but that is just me. Definitely find time to wander, that is what Venice is all about. Get lost, shop, and just take in the most unique city in the world!

My teenagers and I went into Harry's and straight back out. Everybody in there looked to be my grandparents' age - and I'm not too far from 50 myself! If your kids are at least 15 or 16, make sure they don't have valuables, passports or too much money to lose and set them free, at least for several hours. They will have a fabulous time just because being independant feels so wonderful at that age. To be free and explore Venice w/o the old folks (30+) is a memory to last a lifetime.

lisa,, weather may be very wet and cool,, just to keep that in mind that wandering about will require some warm dry clothes,, good footwear a total must(waterproof)

Just returned from my first trip to Venice and I'd also skip Murano - not much out there for kids and your time in Venice will go quickly. Depending on their ages, another suggestion would be the clock tower tour. We went up with a very small group, and the guide kept the whole tour light and fun. The tour stops at every floor so there is no difficult climb, and you get to see the wonderful clock at the top. The tour takes about 45 minutes.

Lisa Check to see if this is still available. Sounds fun to me. Gondola Workshop (Squero di San Trovaso) – After you've trooped through the Galleria, head to the corner of Rio di San Trovaso and Rio Ognissanti canals to visit one of the oldest gondola workshops. Bobbie