venice HELP!

How long will you be there?

I like the cafeteria-style restaurant in the train station. It is very convenient, not expensive, and you can just point at what you want.

We are spending 3 nights

Melanie when you say you are staying near the stations, you do mean Venezia Santa Lucia, not Venezia Mestre, right?

We are staying at the Arlecchino Hotel, near the Saint Lucia station, that is, I hope I checked right, the station we will depart for Salzburg from.

More helpful information would be the following: When are you going? Will it be your first time there? What sorts of things do you enjoy doing?
What sort of research have you done?

Do you have RS Venice Guide Book yet? A good source of information that we are using in planning our trip next summer.

We are going in late March and it is our first trip here, we are not huge museum goers but, love the historical aspects of the churches and similar. We love to walk and sightsee. I have done the usual research, where to stay (logistically speaking) read reviews etc. Just searched out some of the top sights, I was looking for some insight from people who have experienced it rather than me going by photos etc. Thanks for your help!

My favorite part of Venice is just walking around. If the cruise ships are running in March, you will want to avoid the San Marco area during the day. Not too far from where you will be staying is the gorgeous and historical Frari church, with some amazing history to it. Nearby is the Scualo di San Rocco, which well worth a visit. I love a little church and square called Miracoli. Hit the heavy hitters in San Marco in the off hours if you can, especially if the cruise ships are in town. Although Venice is quite walkable, I enjoyed having a Vaporetto pass, so we could hit the islands in the lagoon, and take late night cruises up the canal. Be aware that it can still be quite cold in March, as I found out the hard way a few years ago.

We are traveling from a Minnesota winter!! Also, coming from London and Paris so we planning on bringing layers. Thanks for the advice on sights, I would like to catch a mass while we are there if possible so I did get their schedule

One great experience is taking the short vaporetto ride to San Giorgio Maggiore. Lovely Palladio church with a bell tower that has an elevator and offers the most incredible views of Venice and the whole lagoon. Much easier and less crowded than the campanile of Piazza San Marco. We ate well in Dorsoduro: get off the vaporetto at the Ca Rezzonico stop and walk straight down the nearby street (and surprisingly it is straight!) to Campo San Barnaba. Just past the campo are a ton of restaurants, all small and inviting.

Cichetti bars are a great way to economically dine in Venice. Some of my favorites are: Alla Botte (calle della Bissa 5484, San Marco.) A little tough to find but well worth the effort.Go Campo San Bartolomeo near the foot of the Rialto Bridge. Find the public bathrooms and go around the corner. Also enjoyed the Ai Promessit Sposi (calle dell'Oca 4367, Cannaregio. Close to the train station is a tiny restaurant/bar called Al Cicheto which serves wonderful inexpensive sandwiches. Caters to workers. It's on Calle Misercorda. La Perla Rio Terra dei Franceschi 4615, Cannaregio is a busy pizzeria. Service can be slow if it's crowded but why not enjoy La Dolce Vita. Lastly for wonderful meal try Trattoria Alla Rosa Dei Venti on Fomdamenta Minotto, San Croce. Fixed menu which normally includes a choice of two staters, two main meals with side dishes and two desserts. 22 Euro if memory serves me well and for Venice that price is quite good. My personal meal of choice there is their Frittura Mista (the mixed fried fish). It's not a fancy place. Other than that I recommend you walk along the waterfront to the Park of Remembrance and watch the sun set. Hopefully the cruise ships won't be in your way. That end of the island has less tourists and is wonderful to explore and experience. Have a great time.

The huge groups of people from the cruise-liners begin arriving around 10 am, and leave central Venice around 3 or 4 pm. Piazza San Marco and the area toward the Rialto bridge get most crowded during those hours. You can visit other parts of Venice during those hours with smaller crowds. The best time I found to enter San Marco was late in the day, after 4 pm. Staying near the train station will make your exit easier. However, I have left from other areas of Venice and didn't find it much of a problem. The vaporettos run frequently. You can possibly avoid crowds by visiting the Accademia museum when it opens in the morning. I did that one year and had the museum to myself for quite a while. When you want a change of pace, visit the Peggy Guggenheim art museum. It's fun and religion-free.

I agree with Ted that the Frari and the San Rocco are great...admission is very inexpensive or free, depending on which you visit, and they have beautiful/famous works in them, along with beautiful altars and architecture. We spent a long time at Frari. Wandering that whole neighborhood was almost our favorite day in Venice. The San Zaccaria church (5 min from St. Marks) is cool and has a small and interesting crypt (see my daughter's spooky picture of it in her blog archives www.louisamarionphotography.com the pix from our whole trip are somewhat scattered through blog. For the crypt pic, type Venice in the blog search box and go to Venice, Day 13) We went to Doges Palace first thing in a.m. when it opened. No line for tickets; not crowded during our visit. Outstanding; allow at least 2 hrs. Ca Rezzonica is interesting if you want to get a good look at how the rich and noble lived hundreds of years ago.
We enjoyed early dinner w beautiful water views affordably by walking toward the 'tail" of the fish and getting away from the masses, followed by much wandering through that whole area. Murano is lovely, too. Hope you have a good trip.

My favorite part of Venice is the Castello neighborhood. Virtually no crowds, peaceful, quiet. I usually finish my Italy trips in Venice, so I'm looking for those things when I get there. If you're full of Energy and ready to go, then this area might not have much to offer. Venice is a pretty spendy town (everything is handtrucked in), so eating on a budget is tough. The earlier post about cichetti bars is on the money, though, as it will save you some. Don't eat anywhere on Piazza San Marco. Excellent experience, not excellent prices. I usually ignore the no loitering signs in the Piazza and take a seat on the steps to listen to the dueling orchestras. Great experience, there.
Since it is really easy to get lost in Venice (and part of the fun, might I add), take note early which vaporetto gets you back near your hotel. I've tried the 2am wandering through Venice trying to get back to my hotel, and I learned my lesson. Have Fun!

Do be sure to wander away from the crowded places. It's a myth that all of Venice is crowded. Here are some photos of Uncrowded Venice that I took there this past May, mostly in Cannaregio. Happy travels.

We spent the better part of a day in Venice and would have liked to spend more. We had planned two days but due to weather problems, we were only able to sightsee for one day. We took a vaperetto past the St. Mark's Square area to a park and then walked back to the Doges Palace for a tour. The Palace was lovely and we had a light lunch in the small cafeteria. We wanted to visit St. Mark's but weren't willing to face the crowds. One area that I wanted to see was Cannaregio. I had read about the Jewish Quarter in several books and was interested in it. We went to the Jewish Museum and then toured several very old synagogues with a small group that had started at the Museum. It was really fascinating and a real departure from the "shopping" that seems to be Venice. I am not against shopping per se but it makes for very crowded streets. We were on limited time due to picking up friends at the cruise ship return area. I would like to go back to Venice so I could visit Murano and Burano. I would enjoy seeing other places but fighting through the crowds is so difficult. Next time!

Id suggest getting up early some morning and walking to the market near the Rialto Bridge. They set up each morning and everything comes by boat. Very interesting to see and also to purchase fruit.