murano glass

We got off the Vaperetto and just wandered. SOrt of walked into a factory, found someone working blowing glass and he waved at us and showed us where to stand to watch him. No tour. No pressure. We were there on a day when most the factories were not open! We had no idea when we went that we find them all closed.

Be sure and check before you go!

One thing to watch out for is the glass blowing tour hustlers on the main Venice islands. They provide you with a nice water taxi ride to Murano and they then take you into the glass blowing demonstations. Then, the main part. You are taken into the sales rooms hoping that you will buy Murano glass. If you do, you will get the taxi ride back. If you don't, they dump you. You make your own way back.

Getting to and from Murano is very easing on the Vaporetto. ACTV (the vaporettos) even has a new DM run (Direct Murano) that goes to and from the Piazzale Roma numerous times a day. 20 minutes to get there. Or, you can take the No. 42 vaporetto. It takes longer but its a nice ride. Enjoy Murano. Walk up and down the canals and visit the nice shops. No glass blowing on Sundays (we found that out the hard way).

We went in July. We spent the day island hopping, via vaporetto. We went to Murano second, after San Michelle (the cemetery island) and before Burano.

There are a few factories on Murano that provide tours. Some charge, and others do not. We were greeted, when we got off the vaporetto, by someone who directed us around to a factory that does not charge. The tour was short, but interesting.

As far as I know, you can't reserve any tours, certainly not the one we did.

Took a tour last year of Murano and what you see is about a 15 minute glassblowing demonstration. After that, you are taken into the building where they sell the glass. A person walks with you through the building trying to sell you a piece of glass. The glass is beautiful but very very expensive. I don't know about you but I can't afford an $5000.oo or more piece of glass. If you have time to waste, I would say go, if not, you can find Murano glass in most shops in Venice. If you are on a limited amount of time, skip it, it's really not worth the time.

Our tour was not high pressure, or any pressure whatsoever. When the tour was over, you could easily walk right out the door, or wander the store. We did wander, and we left empty-handed.

For a momento, we bought a bottle-topper, which we added to our empty frosted glass limoncello bottle. It's now filled with olive oil (purchased at home - much cheaper than Italy!), but it's a constant (and inexpensive) reminder of our trip.

We enjoyed the day of island hopping, mostly wandering the areas more off the beaten path.

We took the public vaparetto to Murano, got off at the first stop and just started wandering. Went into 1 shop that just sold the glass but all at reasonable prices. Then went into another small shop and we watched the sole person who worked there firing up the glass and making things. It was all very cool and we left we quite a few items. My favorite being a "Doppio" dancing couple that was 2 figurines about 8" tall each. Very well done with good attention to detail. Price for the couple was 100 Euro.

Michelle and others....how well do they pack your purchases for transportation? A few years ago, I got stuck buying an admittedly beautiful set of handmade bowls in southern Spain, done up in wonderful Andalucian colours....but since it was a local place, it wasn't equipped to pack it properly. I had to watch them like a hawk all the way home. I keep looking at the glassware in Italy and saying to myself, "too risky." Can I risk it?

Jerry,

We took the vaparetto to Murano and there was a gentleman there asking if we wanted to see glass blowing. I agree with everyone else they will try to get you to buy something really expensive, even tell you they will ship it to the US.

the water taxi ride and glass blowing demonstration is worth a very short sales pitch. We didn't buy anything and left after about 20 minutes but my daughter enjoyed looking at all the glass. Just take the vaporetto back, its a little bit slower but don't buy something for the water taxi back.

There is a very nice church in Murano that is worth going thru and the glass shops are fun to walk thru, we went into several and found a vase we liked for my wife and several presents. Spent a total of about 150 euro on all gifts but both felt it was worth the money and time

There is also an excellent Osteria in a square about 3 blocks from the church.

There are also a couple of stores that sell glass along the canal across from the glass shops that are a little less expensive.

Need to add that you should dicker a little on price, especially for a cash purchase, 130 euro vase for 90 w/o much dickering.

We had no trouble with the wrapping, they bubble wrapped and triple wrapped, we put it in the suitcase surrounded by clothes and checked, no problems, but then Magilla Gorilla didnt handle our bags either :-)

I am a craftsperson and definitely found the glass demonstrations very interesting. It wasn't crowded when we visited and they happily answered my technical questions. There are many many glass shops on Murano (almost overwhelming) but such fun to stroll through. We also happened upon a glass blowers co-op with many artisans and aprentices at work - very interesting. Our main purchase was hand blown light fixtures (which were surprisingly reasonable) at one of the small, off-the-beaten-track shops. A note for those who like to make mosaics or use glass in craftworks, a couple of shops sell "smalti" I think it is called. These are small rectangular bits of glass available in a multitude of vibrant colors and sold bagged by weight. I believe they are only made in Venice (Murano) and are much more expensive to buy at home.

Jerry,
We just got back from Venice and I was determined to buy something in Murano glass for my niece's wedding present for later that week in Italy. As we only had 2 days in Venice and we were ther on Weds. -the day most of the glass blowing workshops are closed, we decided to settle for the glass blowing demo held in a shop on the street just along the lefthandside of BSM. across a little bridge, then shop around for something. If you have the time, as Lelie H. pointed out, crusing around to the little outer islands can be cool and relaxing. As another poster pointed out, Murano glass is sold not only all over Venice, but in Verona too (in case you forgot something for someone.) Buyer Beware! Look for the Murano glass with the artisan cooperative label if you want to support the local economy. I don't know what the labelling rules are for "Murano glass" as it's all purported to be "genuine Murano glass," but I do know there are cheaper knock offs that might be made in Murano but are not of the same quality. The artisan label, looks like a set of tongs angled toward a disc. There is more info at the website www.muranoglass.com. The true Murano glass is more expensive, but worth it in my mind. Along the street which runs toward the glassblower then continues on directly toward San Zaccaria's church there are numerous shops which sem to descend in price the further away from St. Mark's that you get. There is one on the left operated by the artist himself, and he has some unique stuff. As always, bargain with cash, and beware places that are having big end of summer sales right now. Things may be on sale, but they were marked way up to begin with!
Happy shoping.
Tracy

One last piece of advice. Yes, many places will ship but the prices are outrageous $100 for 10 kg just within Europe itself! The way they package things, you should be fine carrying items home with you.