Top Oz Tours offers a great range of Venice tours and experiences. You can browse the options here.
Like a beautiful siren rising from the watery depths, Venice has bewitched travellers for centuries.
This is a destination that will exceed your expectations in every way. Defined by a turbulent history, la Serenissima has staved off the ravages of time and tide to top the modern-day ‘bucket list’ for visitors from all over the world.
So popular is the city with travellers, that the Venetian authorities trialled a ‘Venice Access Fee’ in 2026 to curb overtourism — particularly amongst day trippers. The trial has now ended, but the fee will be reintroduced during peak periods in 2027 and beyond. If you’re staying overnight in Venice itself, you will be exempt from the charge (instead, you’ll pay a tax that is built into the cost of your accommodation).
Here’s a checklist of our top ten things to do in Venice on a first visit.
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1. See amazing art
The city’s many galleries house a priceless cache of Renaissance, Gothic, and Byzantine art. A must-see are the works by Tintoretto on display at the magnificent Gallerie dell’Accademia. The fabulous Peggy Guggenheim Collection showcases 20th-century European and American art, with a focus on the avant-garde movement.
2. Attend a festival
Venice hosts a calendar of vibrant large-scale cultural events, including the world-famous Art Biennale and Venice Film Festival. However, the jewel in the city’s crown is the masked magnificence of Carnevale. This two-week celebration of costume, craftsmanship, and visual art in late January/early February is undeniably the greatest theatrical street event in Europe. It’s well worth planning your visit around, but you’ll need to book accommodation well in advance. Many events and activities during Carnivale are free of charge to take part in.
3. Admire the Basilica di San Marco
Literally built on top of the water (on thousands of wooden pilings), Venice was never going to do things by the book. Today, the city’s jaw-dropping centrepiece — the Basilica di San Marco — looms large over the Grand Canal and dazzles with four miles of golden mosaics and 800 years of history.
4. Choose a museum, any museum
Venice has enough museums to keep the more ardent of culture vultures well and truly occupied. Right next door to the Basilica, the exquisite Gothic-style Palazzo Ducale (Doge’s Palace) holds a cache of antiquities that will take your breath away. Various wings date back to different eras.
For a lesson in Venice’s extensive maritime history, the Naval History Museum is full of fascinating relics from the past and is worth visiting for the architecture alone.
5. Dine at Quadri
It’s Italy, and it’s Venice, so even the simplest meal eaten ‘al fresco’ is priceless. But if you have cash to splash on eating out, the sky’s the limit. For the ultimate romantic dinner (think Johnny and Ange in The Tourist), book a table at Quadri on Piazza San Marco. You’ll enjoy a sumptuous meal served with a generous side of potential for celebrity sightings.
6. Have a drink at Harry’s
There are endless bars and cafes to drift between in Venice, but one venue you absolutely must visit is Harry’s Bar — which over the years has welcomed everyone from the King of Spain to Ernest Hemingway. If you haven’t sipped a Peach Bellini at Harry’s, well, you haven’t really been to Venice.
7. Shop for authentic Venetian masks…
Venice’s retail offering is a confusing hotchpotch of high-class artisanal products and cheap tourist tat. The basic rule of thumb is you get what you pay for — so if you’re looking for authentic handmade products, be prepared to pay. For authentic Venetian masks, you can’t go past Ca Macana. They use ancient papier-mâché techniques to craft their stunning creations, and you can opt to take part in a mask-making workshop.
8. …and Murano glass
And where else would you go for Murano glass but to the island itself? Only authentic artisans are allowed to display the Murano trademark, and shoppers can literally spend hours admiring the wares of the wonderful ateliers and watching them work.
9. Cruise the canals in a gondola
Gazing at the straw-hatted gondoliers deftly steering adoring lovers down the Grand Canal is extraordinarily enjoyable in and of itself. If the budget doesn’t stretch to a private gondola ride yourself, opt for a shared ride or just jump on board a vaporetto (water bus). It’s a pretty good substitute! Alternatively, you may want to power yourself through the canals on a guided kayak tour.
10. Lose yourself in the magic of Venice
Throw away your maps and turn off your apps because Venice is a city to get lost in. The best way to explore is just to wander the backstreets and let your next adventure find you. With no traffic and myriad secrets to uncover, there’s no such thing as a wrong turn. Cool your heels in the elegant shadow of the Rialto bridge overlooking the Grand Canal and imagine the life that could be yours — if only you’d been born Venetian…
For more inspiration, visit www.italia.it.
Browse our range of Venice tours and experiences here.
Do you have any suggestions to add to our list of the top things to do in Venice on a first visit? We would love to hear from you. Join the conversation on our Facebook page.
Additional images: Depositphotos and Bigstock
About the writer
Julietta Henderson is a Melbourne-based travel writer and author. Originally planning to visit London for six months, she ended up staying for ten years and now divides her time between her home in Australia and several months of the year in the UK, Italy, and France. Julietta has travelled extensively through Europe, North America, Indonesia, New Zealand, Australia, and Russia, and believes the keys to a great travel experience are an open heart, an open mind, and an open-ended ticket. Her first two novels — The Funny Thing About Norman Foreman and Sincerely, Me — are now available in bookstores.
About the writer
Adam Ford is editor of Top Oz Tours and Travel Ideas, and a travel TV presenter, writer, blogger, and photographer. He has travelled extensively through Europe, Asia, North America, Africa, and the Middle East. Adam worked as a travel consultant for a number of years with Flight Centre before taking up the opportunity to travel the world himself as host of the TV series Tour the World on Network Ten. He loves to experience everything a new destination has to offer and is equally at home in a five-star Palazzo in Pisa or a home-stay in Hanoi.
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