Venice Suggestions

It really depends on your interests. Like Modern art? Guggenheim Museum. Churches? Frari Church and St. Mark's basilica are must see places. I think the Doge's Palace is great as is the Accademia museum. I recommend taking a gondola ride and exploring the area where gondolas are made/repaired. Download the Rick Steves Audio Europe app and get the Grand Canal Tour. Take the Vaporetto from Piazale Roma to St. Mark's using the audio guide. Take a vaporetto to Murano to see glass blowing and to Burano for lace. Oh, get a vaporetto pass for the length of your stay to save money. Also, don't be afraid to wander! Get lost in the maze and you'll be surprised how beautiful the city is away from the crowds.

I would add the island of Torcello, close to Burano.

Whatever you have most interest in do that in the morning.
Spend the rest of your day away from the S. Marco area and just wander the canals,
have some gelato and watch the world go by. Poke into small older churches & stumble onto small
lesser known squares for some vino and food.

On a clear morning for a grand view of Venice and a break from the crowds, is taking the Vap to San Giorgio Maggiore.

Visit the 10C. San Giorgio Magiore church. Then use the elevator to go up the Campanile. Cost is 1 euro I think.
Once you're there you can stay as long as you like. You can see for miles and miles beyond Venice in all
directions, and of course you can see the grandness of Venice.
When you exit the church grounds, turn north (right) walk along the promenade and there's a small
cafe to savor a long lunch and the water and the boats.

On Sundays at 11am the remaining Benedectine monks who live there sing the Mass in Gregorian chant.
Public is welcome so you do not need to be Catholic.

Gondola - yes! They're expensive, but it's such a unique city and these are part of it.

San Marco - go there during the day but also return after dark to enjoy the ambiance of the piazza. Be sure to dance in the piazza at night, even if you don't see anyone else doing it.

You don't say how you're arriving & hotel location, but it's nice to ride the vaporetto the length of the Grand Canal.

Be sure to walk away from the main Rialto Bridge-to-San Marco route that's heavy with tourists during the day. Cross the bridge near the Accademia and walk in the Dursodura neighborhood or similar.

RELAX & enjoy it!

You really could use a good guide book to help. Its hard to know what to ask, if you don't have a starting point. Gondola vs vaporetto is not a choice. A gondola ride is fun and worth doing once while there, but it is recreation, not routine transportation from A to B. Vaporettos are like city buses, for routine transportation on fixed route, so are necessary to getting around.

How is the beach at Lido?

St. Marks Cathederal, Doge's Palace, Friar Church, Rialto Bridge, Morning Fish Market near the Rialto, a trip up and down the Grand Canal. Gondola Ride in the day, at night, you don't see the beautiful buildings. Get lost! Skip the Gugenheim Museum, it is filled with Modern Art, which is not why I came to Venice.

Try a chichetti crawl by visiting different places. Each chichetti pub has their specialties, fried, sandwiches, etc. My favorite is Osteria al Portego. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g187870-d1034685-Reviews-Osteria_al_Portego-Venice_Veneto.html Their Tiramisu is amazing!

July 15, If you are able to be in Venice on July 15? If so you can see Festa del Redentore. It is an amazing firework display and a time when all Venetians come out and sets up tables and have a dinner party on the water and then enjoy the fireworks.

Lido beach is nice and relaxing. Bring you own sun screen, they want an arm and a leg to purchase it there. It is not clear blue water, dark brown when there. Be prepared for Speedos!