Venice Travel Time

The Accademia Galleries are located in Campo della Carità in the Sestriere of Dorsoduro (street number 1050) in Venice, very close to the Accademia Bridge. It is reachable by foot (about 25/30 minutes) or by water bus from the train station which is more or less about 4 euros one way. ( I was just in Venice 10 days ago and just walked).

Use Google maps:
https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Stazione+di+Venezia+Santa+Lucia,+30100+Venezia,+Italy/Gallerie+dell'Accademia,+Rio+Ter%C3%A0+de+la+Carit%C3%A0,+Venice,+Metropolitan+City+of+Venice,+Italy/@45.4362381,12.3192911,16z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m14!4m13!1m5!1m1!1s0x477eb1c7511cd1f1:0xfc7c01f280ca9309!2m2!1d12.3210436!2d45.4410697!1m5!1m1!1s0x477eb1ce021dc073:0xcb39dadfeea7176b!2m2!1d12.3281394!2d45.4310784!3e2

Don't miss the Piazza St Marco go inside the St Mark Basilica and take the elevator go to the top St Mark's Campanile for 360 views over Venice (but fyi this will cost 8 euros).

It is a great walking city picturesque that should be enough to see. Although I went to Peggy Guggenheim museum (modern art) which a found by accident.

Buy tickets in advance to circumvent long lines. I was there considered off-peak time but it was crowded.

When you say "Pieta", is this what you mean? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pieta

It is at St Peters in Rome

Or do you mean this church-- Chiesa di Santa Maria della Visitazione, nicknamed La Pietà

Mean no disrespect, but I think most people think of the statute in St Peters, when they hear "Pieta"

If this is your first time to Venice, I would recommend taking the vaporetto (Line #2) from the train station to the Accademia. Venice is so unique and seeing it from the Grand Canal as you enter is not to be missed. I would buy the round-trip or 2 tickets when you purchase your first vaporetto ticket for your return back to the train station. We've had some vaporetto stops around the Accademia last year where the ticket machine wasn't working.

I would not buy a museum ticket ahead of time. Personally, I think once you're in Venice, you will want to be outdoors as much as possible - San Marco piazza, wandering the quaint streets & bridges and taking lots of photos. Do go inside San Marco and up the Campanile for a terrific view.

I agree if you have never been you have to see the city taking the vaporetto winding the Grand Canal it is worth it

Only 6.5 hours in beautiful Venice - definitely don't waste those precious few hours inside a stuffy museum. Get out and explore the alleys and passages and canals of Venezia!

I'm going to agree with Tim. Museums are great but Venice itself is an experience.

Take the #2 Vaporetto from the train station to St. Marks Square. (It's faster than the #1 Vaporetto). Get off and wander. Explore the back streets. Stop for a coffee. Follow the signs to the Rialto Bridge. Cross it and check out the Rialto market. This will take you away from the most touristy part of Venice and more into the residential areas.

If your heart is set on the Accademia, then still take the Vaporetto to St. Marks Square, take it in, and then wander west towards the Accademia bridge that will take you to the Accademia museum.

Missing San Marco just to see art work is like going to Rome and seeing the Borghese but missing the Vatican, Collosseum, and Forum.

And be aware, in late June it will be hot and crowded.

Also note that vaporetto (water bus) is around €7.50 per ride -- so you might as well get your money's worth with a long, scenic ride through the Grand Canal.
And if you're going to the Accademia to see the statue of David, it's in Florence.

I want to thank everyone who responded to my questions! Your collective advice is wonderful.

Initially I'd planned on just walking around and taking in Venice's ambiance. Then reading all the tourist books (Rick Steve's, Rough Guide, Frommers as well as what I discovered online), I didn't want to miss out on the art collection in Accademia gallery in Venice. And the Pieta, where Vivaldi had written many of his pieces (I performed one of his concertos on viola back in my high school days), was a high second on my must-see-in-Venice list. (I'll see the other Pieta, sculpted by Michaelangelo, later on when I get to Rome.)

That being said, it really would be a waste not to tour the Grande Canal, San Marco Square, etc.

I'll be in Florence first and have taken in David at the Accademia there, as well as other museums (Uffizi, Duomo, Bargello) so I might just be art-saturated by the time I get to Venice. Incidentally, Venice was an after thought (hence my brief 6-hour visit)-- my true destination was (is) Padua for Giotto's famous frescoes.

So again, I very much appreciate all your input. I've decided not to use my precious hours in the Accademia and instead go with my first instinct and simply take in the city. Grande Canal, here I come! I know my six hours in Venice will be quite memorable!

Take into account the time you'll need to store your luggage (and collect it) and waiting time for the vaporetto.

Storing luggage in Venice. There are three options, Piazle Roma (you are not near this spot), Ferrovia (the station, adjacent to platform No 1, and the queue can be long), and a place just to the left of the station as you face the grand canal. It says "bag storage" or something like that, and I think it is about five euro per bag.

When you take a vaporetto down the Grand Canal, take a No 2 vap rather than the No 1 vap. The No 2 is less crowded and makes fewer stops, saving 15 minutes each way from your awfully short visit. Get off the No 2 at San Zacharia, which is near the Piazza. Venice is lovely, and you'll probably get back there.

Good plan to skip the Accademia, as it takes two or three hours to do it justice. It an absolute treasure chest. As you traverse the Grand Canal, keep your eyes open for the big hands - you'll know what I mean when you see them, and the big gold column just downstream from the Accademia vap stop.

At Padua, you have to make a timed reservation for the Scrovegni chapel, and you can do it on line. As you exit the station, you can buy tram tickets at the booth to the right of the station. The tram stop is over the road, outside Mc Donalds, and the tram saves a fairly boring walk to the chapel.

We got home from Venice last Thursday, and are having withdrawal symptoms! If you want a fun novel set in Venice, get "The Venetian Game" by Phillip Jones. Phil lives in Venice, and is a good friend. I am promoting his book witout a hint of shame.

And if you find yourself near the Frari Church, spend the three euro and go in. Titian's altar piece, the Assumption of the Virgin, will knock your socks off. As will the monument to the sculptor Canova in the Frari.

The bar over the bridge in front of the Frari, called Al Archivo, is good for lunch. Try a tremezzini, the triangular sandwiches in the display case. Two euro per piece.