Canal & Aperitivo Experience
Forget the gondola! Go local in a Venetian boat taxi that takes you through the city’s lesser known canals. View Venice from the water while riding past main sites such as Rialto and San Marco, and head into the local neighbourhoods of Cannaregio or Castello. Finish it all up with an aperitivo of local wines and cicchetti at sunset.
Venice Cicchetti & Canals Tour Highlights
- Take a boat ride along the Grand Canal, then veer off the tourist trail into some of Venice’s smaller, quieter canals
- Explore the residential neighbourhood of Cannaregio and see how locals live
- Travel like a true Venetian, on a stylish canal taxi
- Indulge in Prosecco and cicchetti while admiring an Italian sunset
- Learn about (and taste!) local food and wine
Inclusions: Local English-speaking guide, boat ride, and Prosecco and cicchetti samples.
Exclusions: Additional food and drink, souvenirs and items of a personal nature, and tips and gratuities for the Tour Leader.
Schedule details
- Duration: 1.5 hours
- Meeting point: Rialto Fish Market dock (“Pontile di Pescheria”)
- Starting time: 6.00 PM
- Ending point: San Marco Square (San Zaccaria Vaporetto stop)
Important note: The start time of this adventure varies depending on the time of the year. Please see below:
- 6 p.m. from March to October
- 3 p.m. from November to February
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Start your Venice boat tour at the Rialto Fish Market pier, in the oldest area of Venice, right in the heart of the city. From there, we climb into an oh-so-stylish Venetian taxi boat that takes us along the Grand Canal, crossing beneath that famous Rialto Bridge — a must for anyone who wants that classic Venice view.
From there, we head deep into the Venice canal system, exploring the smaller canals and passing through lesser known (and less touristy!) parts of the city, such as the site of the historic city hospital, or the cemetery island of San Michele. Then, depending on the tide, we ride through the Cannaregio area, the residential part of Venice that holds the Jewish Ghetto, Maddona dell’Orto Church, and Campo dei Mori.
As we continue along the Canal Grande, admiring its palaces and houses of nobility, we make an aperitivo stop in San Marco Bay and cheers one another with a local wine. We sip some Prosecco and sample some homemade cicchetti as the sun sets. Bellísimo!
We finish up our Venice canal tour on land at San Marco Square, which is close to most hotels and accommodations — or, if you’re still eager to explore, we can direct you to some nearby neighborhoods so your night can keep going!
Additional information
Inclusions: Local English-speaking guide, boat ride, and Prosecco and cicchetti samples.
Exclusions: Additional food and drink, souvenirs and items of a personal nature, and tips and gratuities for the Tour Leader.
Dress standard: Please wear casual dress and comfortable shoes for walking.
Your Trip: For your Urban Adventure you will be in a small group of a maximum of 16 people.Note that there is a maximum of 8 people per taxi boat.
Confirmation of booking: If you have your voucher, your booking is confirmed. We’ll see you at the start point. Get in touch if you have any concerns or require more information via the email address or phone number (business hours only) on your voucher.
Child Policy: Children between the ages of 6 and 11 inclusively are permitted on this tour at the rate listed above. Please select ‘child’ above when booking. Children below the age of 6 are not permitted on this tour.
Local contact
Office phone number: + 39 348 980 8566
Email address: [email protected] -
Mrs. Clare C. from United Kingdom travelled on 23 Apr 2018:
Giovanna S. was a fantastic tour guide in every way. Friendly, competent and extremely knowledgeable, she gave great insights into the history of the areas of the city we visited, as well as telling us concise and interesting stories along the way. This tour is a wonderful way to see the less touristed parts of Venice and to get a more comprehensive understanding of the layout of this lovely city. Thank you!
Ms. Katie B. from United Kingdom travelled on 09 Jun 2017:
It was a great experience and our guide was great.- She had some great tips including where to eat GF and where to get a good view of Venice. We really enjoyed it and appreciated how gluten free aperitivo’s were provided for my partner.
Ms. Clarice M. from USA travelled on 14 Apr 2017:
Our guide, Giovanna, was delightful. She provided great information throughout this tour, which took us “off the beaten path” as well as the entire length of the Grand Canal. The aperitivo portion lived up to expectations (and accommodated dietary restrictions quite well). Highly recommend this tour.
Mr. Duc L. from USA travelled on 26 Oct 2016:
Great Venice tour with Francesca. She was very knowledge during the tour, open to answer any questions, and provided recommendations . We had a very intimate tour with 3 people. The food was well paced. A wonderful introduction to Venice on my first day of my trip.
Mrs. Ulrike J. from Netherland travelled on 20 Apr 2016:
The tour was lovely. Francesca was a charming, enthusiastic and perfect host. Only negative comment is that the tour was 30 – 45 minutes shorter than booked…
