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Travel to Venice

Flying to Venice

Flights to Venice from the UK are offered by British Airways, KLM, BMI, Alitalia, Air France, easyjet and Lufthansa. Cheap flights to Venice are available in the off-peak months outside of the main summer period, although year round bargains can be found by shopping around with budget airlines.

Flight times: 

From London - 2 hours; New York - 8 hours 30 minutes; Los Angeles - 16 hours; Toronto - 10 hours 55 minutes; Sydney - 20 hours 45 minutes.

Travel by road

Summary:

The main road route into Venice is the A4, although once travellers arrive in Venice, driving is no longer possible. Most vehicles taken as far as the city are parked at a car park in Piazzale Roma or Tronchetto; parking at these locations is expensive, so travellers often opt to park in Mestre on the mainland and continue their journey by train or boat.

Italian roads are generally well maintained and road users drive on the right. Speeds on motorways are 139kph (81mph) for cars of 1100cc or more and 110kph (68mph) for smaller cars, unless conditions are wet in which case the 110kph (68mph). The minimum driving age is 18 and drivers without EU licences must carry an International Driving Permit. Any EU national taking their own car will need an International Insurance Certificate (Green Card).

Emergency breakdown service:

Automobile Club d’Italia (tel: (011) 3964 9981). Call 116 from any roadside phone to request assistance from an ACI operator.

Routes:

The main route is the A4 which passes through Turin, Milan and Padua before arriving at Venice. There is good access to this road from connecting routes to other major cities, including the A13 from Bologna and the A1 from Florence, Naples and Rome.

Driving times:

From Milan - 2 hours; Bologna - 3 hours; Rome - 5 hours; Paris - 10 hours 53 minutes; Barcelona - 11 hours 48 minutes.

Coaches:

Eurolines (tel: 041 538 2118; www.eurolines.it) prrovides a service to Mestre from London, Amsterdam and Paris.

ATVO (tel: 0421 5944; www.atvo.it) operates a more local service and stops in Treviso, Verona, Padua and Milan from the Piazzale Roma.

Travel by rail

Services:

The railway service in Venice is well-maintained, thanks to the fact that the majority of travellers arrive either by rail or boat.


The rail station servicing Venice is the Saint Lucia Station at the west end of the Grand Canal. Trains arriving in Venice terminate at this station with travellers continuing their journey by foot or by boat. Travellers should be aware that rail tickets must be validated in one of the stamping machines located on the platforms before boarding any train in Italy. Failure to do so constitutes an offence and can result in a hefty fine.


Operators:

Trains to Venice are run by the state-operated railway Trenitalia (tel: 199 892 021; www.ferroviedellostato.it). Services from major international cities generally terminate at Milan, with the state-run rail service taken for the remainder of the journey.

Journey times:

From Bologna - 1 hour 35 minutes; Florence - 2 hours 40 minutes; Rome - 4 hours 20 minutes; Milan - 2 hours 45 minutes; Verona - 1 hour 45 minutes; Paris - 9 hours 40 minutes; Berlin - 15 hours 40 minutes.

Travel over water

Summary:

The main ferry port in Venice is the Port of Venice (tel: 041 533 4111; www.port.venice.it) which operates ferries out of the Venice Passenger Terminal (tel: (041) 240 3000; www.vtp.it) located to the west of the city centre. The port also caters for large cruise ships and is one of Europe’s busiest ports.

Ferry services:

Ferry services to other cities and countries are run mainly in the summer. Minoan Lines (tel: (30) 2810 399 800; www.minoan.gr) operates from Greece and runs a daily service from Venice to Patras on the Greek mainland, with additional stops in Corfu. The journey takes approximately 36 hours.

Venezia Lines (tel: 041 822 1101; www.venezialines.com) also operates during the summer and provides high-speed catamaran sailings linking Venice to Croatia and Slovenia.

Nearest port:

Venice.

Transport to the city:

The Port of Venice is located on the main island and lies within walking distance of the Piazzale Roma from where alternative forms of transport can be obtained. A free shuttle also bus runs between the two locations.

Transfer time:

5 minutes walk to transport hub\", water boat to centre."

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