Festivals and Events
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Carnival
Twelve days of celebration: masked balls, treasure hunts, street entertainment, music.
http://www.carnivalofvenice.com -
Picasso, La Joie de Vivre
200 works by the Spanish master at Palazzo Grassi.
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Festa della Sensa
Keeping alive the tradition of the Doges who would ride out in a ship and toss a gold ring into the waters off the Lido as a symbol of Venice’s relationship with the sea.
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Vogalonga
An endurance race involving hundreds of boats.
http://www.vogalonga.com -
International Festival of Contemporary Dance
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Redentore
A festival of lights, colours and fireworks.
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The Venice International Film Festival
The 2007 event will be the 64th.
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Regata Storica
Colourful and exciting boat races along the canals.
http://www.doge.it/regata/regata14i.htm -
The Venice Marathon
Over 6,000 runners compete in a race with spectacular backdrops.
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International Festival of Contemporary Music
At the Malibran theatre, in the Fenice or at the Piccolo Arsenale Theatre.
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Feast of Santa Maria della Salute
Venetians give thanks for being spared the worst of the plague in the 17th century. The faithful light candles and everyone samples the mutton and frittele veneziana - fritters stuffed with pine nuts or raisins.
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Christmas Market
Ceramics, glass, jewellery and many other Christmas gift ideas in Campo Santo Stefano.
Theatre, Cinema and Opera
The main theatres in Venice are the Carlo Goldoni, where there’s a contemporary repertoire and musicals; the Malibran, which hosts concerts and operas; the Fondamente Nuove, which specialises in world music; the l’Avogaria, which often stages productions in the Venetian language and La Fenice, which is the place for opera and ballet. There are several movie theatres in Venice, but films will have been dubbed into Italian. The Videoteca Pasinetti, however, does show them in their original language. In summer in Campo San Polo, films featured in the Venice Film Festival are shown in the open-air.
Museums and Galleries
There are many museums and galleries to enjoy in Venice. The Accademia is one of the best art museums in the whole of Italy. There are 24 rooms in three historic buildings. The Peggy Guggenheim is generally regarded as one of the best and most comprehensive collections of modern art in Europe with works by artists as diverse as Picasso, Dali, Miro, Mondrian and Pollock. And the Palazzo Grassi is a striking building with a white, green and pink façade. Built in the 18th century, it now hosts regular exhibitions on a wide range of subjects.
For Children
In Italy, the child is king! They should love the experience of all kinds of boat travel: water buses, water taxis and gondolas. A climb to the top of the Campanile (bell tower) in St Mark’s Square shouldn’t be missed and they can feed the birds in the Square. The Peggy Guggenheim museum is said to suit children very well and there’s a lovely sculpture garden outside where they can run around. As you wander around the shops, you’ll find that Venice is teeming with small surprises for the young ones: old-fashioned dolls, models of ships and gondolas, animal miniatures made from Murano glass. And then, of course, there’s the gelati – Italian ice cream to die for.
