Riding the vaporetto in Venice with luggage

We always do one personal bag and one rolling carry-on each (for the two of us) and we've never been charged extra on the vaporetto. We were there last May. Do be sure to anticipate your stop so that you don't get stuck too far from the exit. When the boats get crowded, it's always a bit of a free for all once the boat pulls up to each stop. Channel your inner Italian and say "Permesso" really loud as you push your way through once the boat stops.

When you get to the dock, just stand back and watch what other people do. You'll get an idea pretty fast of what it will take for you to get on the Vaparetto. If it's crowded you can just become temporarily Italian and shove your way on like everyone else does - it's kind of fun if you just get yourself into the right frame of mind! If it isn't crowded you'll have no problem. I have never been charged for luggage. If it looks too daunting you can certainly hire a water taxi but it will cost you a WHOLE lot more...could be worth it though just for the convenience.

The response above are correct regarding luggage, but are you aware of the vaporetto passes that can save you €€€? There are 12 hour, 24 hour, 72 hour passes available at "Hello Venezia" right outside the train station.

I've never taken a water taxi, but then I'm usually wandering around on my own. You did not say the ages of the four of you, but if you are all adults or teens and can each handle your own bags, you should be fine on the vaporetto. If any are young children who cannot lift or manage their own bags, it might be different. You also do not mention the time of day you will be arriving. Vaporettos are the public buses of Venice, and they can be super jam packed during commuting hours or the heart of the tourist season, so that could be an extra challenge, and particularly at those times be sure everyone keeps hold of their bags and does not have wallets or purses that can be easy prey for a pickpocket. I have never heard of any extra charge for baggage, and have often seen travelers on board with full size big bags, and never seen anyone getting charged. Be sure to look into the vaporetto passes, which are good value if you will be riding often during your stay, or if you are thinking of going out to Murano, Burano, etc. Passes also give the freedom to hop on and off a vaporetto for one or two stops, without worrying if that is worth the 7 euros. Whether you are traveling with a one-time ticket or a pass, be sure each person validates their ticket or pass as they go into the stop each time they ride. I have heard it said that passes are rarely checked on board, but when I was in Venice last fall, my pass was checked three different times in just four days.

While we had only a carry=on each, there were several people that would board with two bags. I do have a suggestion that you can save you legs and or back is to leave at least one bags at the station. It does cost you but it was a more relaxing solution.

I haven't seen anyone pay an extra charge last year. Also I'll add what was left off about the passes and I foundn the most useful is not all vaparetto stops have ticket machines to purchase a ticket, so a pass comes in handy. We meet a friend in Venice who didn't do his research and didn't get a pass. We were going to take the vaparetto to Ca Rezzenonico and the vaparetto stop at our hotel or another we walked past didn't have ticket machines. We ended up walking there, which turned out some great back lane photographs as we got lost.

There is no extra charge for luggage. Plus, as Laura explains, you can purchase 12, 24, 36 or 72 hour passes for the vaporetto at the Hello Venezia kiosks. Three things to understand about riding on the vaporettos with luggage. 1) There are a lot of people getting on and off the vaporettos, 2) a large area in the middle of the vaporetto is standing room only - no seats. This is where I am with my luggage. You won't find too many people inside where the seats are located, 3) be cautious of where you stand if you have a backpack. On some vaporettos, the passengers are very close to each other. Easy opportunity for somebody to reach into your backpack. With luggage, I usually have my backside up against the side wall. Never a problem or a concern.

They'll probably be impressed with how small your rolling carry-ons are compared to some other luggage coming onboard. I've never seen anyone pay extra. We have taken our tour groups of 26 people, all with luggage, with no official issue.

I think it is important for the new readers of this Helpline, and for those regulars who may not be familiar to give facts as much as possible, especially if apparently officially representing the RS organization.

Just because I've never seen anybody asked for an IDP, doesn't mean that they don't exist.

Just because somebody thinks they have never seen anybody charged for excess baggage on a vaporetto doesn't mean that there is not a charge.

According to the ACTV webpage - and that is the authority which provides and charges for vaporetti in Venice, "Included in the price is the transport of one luggage item of up to 150 cm as the sum of its three dimensions." The price for the additional piece is an additional fare.

It is possible that people will have provided themselves with the additional ticket prior to boarding, as per the regulations.

It is like people saying that they never see Romans paying for the bus or validating their tickets. That's because they have season passes which don't need to be validated on every ride.

And before you say, ah Venice is different, yes in Venice the pass or ticket, tourist pass or resident pass, has to be tapped before each and every boarding. ( I use a non-resident resident pass).

Thank you for all your answers to my question. We did travel to Venice in early May and had a wonderful visit. The Vaporetto worked just as most of you said. Our RS rolling bag was much smaller than many travelers. It was easy to manage on and off the Vaporetto even though it was very crowded at the beginning point.
We had some confusing directions where we bought the tickets outside of the train station about which dock to go to to get to the Academia Bridge. But it just took a few minutes of stepping back, getting the lay of the land and sorting things out.
We did remember to validate before we got on. It was helpful at that stop because you had to validate before you went through the turnstile.

Remember to leave all the bricks at home.

We try to travel as light as possible these days--with each traveler handling their own luggage. We often go left at the Mensa and walk to our hotel--not even using vaporettos. It's a pretty pleasant stroll.

Thanks for reporting back. It is nice to know how things went...

Nigel is right. One carry-on case and one tote bag or backpack per person is definitely NOT excess luggage for a vaporetto. You need to cart a 30" case or larger to incur a fine. My husband trucked a 24-25" case and was still within the limits. A 30" case is VERY large. Really, for people hauling gear for an activity or someone living away from home for long periods of time.