Venice Transportation

Check this website for info on transportation to/from the airport on the bus versus Alilaguna (public water boat) and for info on the vaparetto 12 versus 24 hour prices. http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/articles/venice_airport_boat3.htm Taking the Alilaguna, which is a public boat from the airport to Venice, would be my choice. Looks like you can buy a round trip ticket for the Alilaguna on the Orange Line which makes a stop at Rialto. Not sure how far it is from there to your hotel. If you use this round trip boat ticket, you may be able to just buy the 12 hr. vaparetto ticket and not worry about bus transportation to the airport in the morning. You would return to the airport on the Alilaguna. I did not check timetables. Hope the above website gives you the additional info you need. Have a great trip!

the walk from the pensione guerrato to the train station is a bit long and not easy. but it does give you a chance to do some last minute shopping. Honestly, I'd do the Alilaguna both ways - amazing introduction to Venice and a long loving farewell. Also do the 12 hour vaparetto (you'll get lots of use out of it). From the Alilaguna stop take the vaparetto to Rialto Mercato (first stop past the bridge). the guerrato is right on the other side of the market. use the vaparetto to get a sense of being part of Venice. use it when you're tired of walking and just want to sit and relax (ok, you may want to stand but you're still relaxing!). At sunset, OMG there is nothing more beautiful than a ride up and down the Grand Canal. Oh, the bus. Convenient I suppose but crowded and very non-Venetian. Enjoy your trip!

Thank you both for your advice. Looking at the Alilaguna timetable for the Orange Line, there appears to be hourly pick-ups from Rialto to the Airport in the AM. I could either take the 7:03 that gets to the airport at 8AM, or the 8:03 that gets to the airport at 9AM. I'm figuring that I have to be at the airport 2 hours before the 10:45AM domestic flight to Naples, right? Price wise, the Alilaguna + 12 hr. Vaparetto pass will cost us 42 EUR per person. Taking the bus each way w/ a 24 hr. Vaparetto pass will cost 26 EUR per person. Is the convenience of the Alilaguna boat worth the extra 64 EUR (16x4people)?

Slightly off topic: I'm assuming you are coming with 2 kids, not 22. :) The symbol of the city of Venice is the winged lion, the symbol of St. Mark. Challenge your kids to see how many winged lions they can count during your Venetian excursion. There are many... And trust me, they will look at things very closely to find those lions. Don't forget to look UP in Piazza San Marco.

I was debating just like you but I was flying in and then getting the train out. I decided on Alilaguna because it was easier and faster for the Zaccaria neigborhood - I could have taken the blue line or the orange line. The problem was that we could not stand (nor sit) on the deck so there was not much visibility. Vaporetto is much nicer for seeing Venice - you can stand on the deck if you liked. So I would suggest a 24hr vaporetto pass instead of Alilaguna. Walking to P. Roma is a long trek. As for Campanile, consider going to San Giorgio and up the bell tower there if the campanile line is long. Boat (No. 42 I think) from Zaccaria every 10 minutes. Look at RS for when the church is open. The tower entrance is inside the church.

Alilaguna is not worth the extra money. stick with the bus and the vaporetto. 24 hour pass and the roundtrip bus tickets for 26 euro. the bus will pick up and drop off in front of the terminal at the airport. Alilaguna is at the docks about a ten minute walk from the terminal. The bus will be more convenient and cheaper. Vaporetto rides are now 7 euro each, so the 24 hour pass will be cheaper after 3 rides. Bus will take you to Piazzale Roma from the airport. Exit bus and walk toward Grand Canal. Get on the vaporetto moving to your right as you face the canal. you want the Rialto Mercato stop.

Ron, Thank you for your opinion. I think we're leaning towards the bus/vaporetto option right now. As nice as it would be to arrive in Venice via water, I can't find a way to justify the expense. Angela, Great idea! Thanks! We'll definitely do that. I can see the kids getting into that. In order to get to the airport 2 hours before a 10:45AM flight, what time should I be leaving our hotel in the AM if we take the vaporetto/bus?

there is a vaporetto that should leave the Rialto Mercato stop at 07:38 and another one at 08:08 It takes about 16 minutes to get to the P. le Roma stop, so say 8 or 8:30 the bus takes about 25 minutes to the airport. An ACTV bus 5 should leave P le Roma for the airport at 8:10, 8:25, 8:40 and 8:55

I have a question about this subject. I will be traveling with my two nieces, 16 & 18 yrs old. If I arrive in Venice on June 19th around 14:30 and I leave Venice on June 21st at 21:00, which vaperetto pass should I buy? We will be staying close to St. Mark's Square. We will be going to Lido for one afternoon. Would my nieces get a discounted pass?
Thanks.

Patti,
Check out this site for current fares: http://europeforvisitors.com/venice/articles/venice-vaporetto-and-bus-fare-tables.htm There's lots of other good info on that site also. I don't think there are discounts for children 6 and over. My understanding is that they pay full price. Can anyone with more knowledge confirm that?

No age discounts on the vaporetto lines. However, for travelers from age 14 to age 29 a Rolling Venice Card is available for purchase. Cost is 4 euro. they can be bought at any Hellovenezia desk in Venice. there is one at the airport and one at the train station as well as a few other places. With the Rolling Venice card thiose folks can buy a 72 hour pass for 18 euro. the normal price of the 72 hour pass is 35 euro. So their cost would be 4 euro for the card plus 18 euro for the pass or 22 euro. At 7 euro per ride you be ahead after 3 rides. To the Lido and back is 2 rides. There are also other discounts for the card holder. More info here: http://www.hellovenezia.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=178&Itemid=158&lang=en

You are naive to think that <24 h in Venice will be meaningful. Just returned after 3 d, barely enough. Take the Alilaguna to and from Marco Polo but be aware the the Rialto stop is east of P Guerrato, meaning you will have to traverse the many steps up and down the Rialto Bridge to your lodging and on your return. Walking from PG to the bus is tortuous and 30 m or more if you hit the bridges correctly. The vaporetto #2 from Rialto to SMS is worth a 12 h pass and you will get the full flavor of the Grand Canal Tour. Consider the short vaporetto ride to San Georgio Maggiore for the best photos of Venice rather than from the Campanile.
Cheers, Tom

Tom, I'm not under any delusion that 1 afternoon in Venice is ideal. It's really a 24 hr. stopover en route to Naples. The cost of the flight was identical whether we stopped in Venice for 24 hrs, or Rome for 90 min. How could we pass up the opportunity?

I was in Venice last month and used both the Alilaguna boat and the airport bus/vaporetto combination to get to the airport. Frankly, I found the Alilaguna boat a disappointment--very crowded below deck and you couldn't stand on the boat deck and look at the scenery. The bus/vaporetto combination is faster, cheaper, and the vaporetto is more scenic.