How to get there and how to get around in Venice - Over 6 Transport options
Some of the questions and confusions I had when organizing the trip to Venice were those related to public transport.
Venice is not a conventional, ordinary city, where you can use the usual means of transport, such as metros, trams or buses. Being a city built on water, the transport requirements were adapted to the typical Venetian geographical positioning.
The good part is that, once you start to understand how public transport works in Venice, it will be very easy for you to move from one point to another, or from one island to another. They have a very well organized public transport system, represented mainly by vaporetto, as they are called, Venice's water buses.
In this article I will teach you how to drive in Venice, as simply, quickly and comfortably as possible. At the same time, I will present you the options to get to Venice, whether you travel by car or land at one of the two nearby airports.
And if you want to find out more information about what you can do in Venice, I invite you to read the following article: 3 Days In Venice - Complete Itinerary For Your First Visit to Venice. Here you will find the perfect 3-day itinerary for your first visit to Venice!
The easiest way to get to Venice is by plane. Venice has two airports nearby: Marco Polo, the main airport where the major airline companies fly, located 13 km from the city or an hour by boat, and Treviso Treviso, the airport located a little further, 40 kilometers away, where the low-cost companies usually fly.
Another way to get to Venice is by car, but you must know that road access is not allowed in the city, so you will have to leave the car either in a public parking lot at the entrance to the city, or on the mainland, in the city of Mestre.
1. How to get from Marco Polo airport to Venice
Marco Polo is the main airport of Venice, located 13 km from the city entrance. You have different options to get from the airport to the city, which I will mention below:
a. By ferry from Marco Polo Airport
The most authentic way to get from the airport to the city is by boat. The company that serves public water transport is called Alilaguna.
- There are two Alilaguna water transport lines that start from Marco Polo (the orange line and the blue line), and another seasonal line (the red line), which stop at different stations in Venice, or on the islands of Murano and Lido. For example, the orange line runs along the Grand Canal, and the blue line stops at San Marco Square. Below I leave you the map with the route of public transport on water, Alilaguna:
- A ticket with Alilaguna water transport costs 15 euros, or 27 euros round trip.
- The journey takes about an hour, and the advantage is that you can easily reach any point in Venice, without any transfer.
- From the airport you can quickly reach the departure point of the ships, just follow the signs that lead to the pier belonging to the Alilaguna company. You can buy tickets directly from the counter in the airport.
b. By shuttle bus from Marco Polo airport
Another option to travel from Marco Polo airport to Venice is with a shuttle bus that runs to Piazalle Roma, the main entry point in Venice.
- The bus has the number 5-Aerobus, or there are other shuttle buses of some private companies, such as ATVO.
- A ticket costs 10 euros/person, or 18 euros round trip, and you can buy it on the spot, at the counter, or online.
- If you are staying in Mestre, you can take line 15 or 45, which will take you directly to Mestre, the city located on the mainland near Venice.
- The disadvantage of this means of road transport is that you can use it only up to the entrance to Venice, in Piazzale Roma. Beyond this point there are no roads and only vaporetto or boats circulate. If you have accommodation closer to the old center of Venice, you will have to either walk, which I don't recommend, especially if you have a lot of luggage and don't know the city, or travel by vaporetto, the water bus from Venice. A vaporetto ticket costs 9.50 euros, or you can buy a ticket for one or more days, if you know you will use the vaporetto more often.
c. By water taxi
An option to get from the airport to the city can be the water taxi. It is not one of the cheap options to travel, but it is comfortable, as you will be transported as close as possible to the desired destination. Unlike the vaporetto or Alilaguna, water taxis are smaller boats that can also enter small canals, where larger ships cannot reach.
- Such a taxi ride costs 33 euros/person: Venice: Marco Polo Airport Water Taxi Transfer.
2. How to get from Treviso airport to Venice
Treviso airport is located 40 kilometers from Venice, and it is necessary to change several means of transport to reach the Venetian city. Even so, the total duration of the journey should not be more than an hour or two.
You have the following options to get from Treviso to Venice:
a. By shuttle bus from Treviso airport
There are several companies that carry out the transport from Treviso airport to Venice.
The main shuttle bus, ATVO, runs in the direction of the Treviso airport – Mestre – Venice, as far as Piazzale Roma. A ticket costs 12 euros, or 22 euros round trip.
Keep in mind that from Piazzale Roma you can only move further on the island on foot or by vaporetto.
There are other two private shuttle bus companies, Terravision and Barzi, where a ticket costs 10 euros, or 18 euros round trip.
b. By train from Treviso airport
A cheaper option can be transport by train. The Treviso airport does not have a train station, so you will have to take the Treviso Airlink bus to the train station in the city of Treviso.
From there, there are frequent trains that go to Santa Lucia station in Venice.
You can also buy train tickets on the website or on the app Trenitalia. To save money, buy the combined train + bus ticket from or to Treviso airport.
3. How to get from Mestre to Venice
Many tourists coming to Venice choose to stay in Mestre, the closest continental city to Venice, due to the lower accommodation prices, or if they travel by car and want parking for it.
Mestre is located approximately 10 km from Venice, a distance that can be quickly covered by train, tram, bus or car.
There are thus several transport options between the two cities:
a. By train from Mestre to Venice
Trains between Mestre and Venice run very often, at a frequency of 5-10 minutes. If you have accommodation near the train station in Mestre, this is the best way to get to Venice.
The train will drop you off at St. Lucia from Venice, and from there you can move further on the island on foot or by vaporetto.
Just keep in mind that the trains do not run at night. The program is between 5 and 00:20.
You can buy tickets on the website or on the application Trenitalia.
b. By bus from Mestre to Venice
Another option to get to Venice is by bus. There are numerous lines that run from Mestre to Venice, at the Piazzale Roma station.
There are also two night lines, unlike the train and tram which do not have a schedule at night.
Study the map below (source visitmestre.com) for the complete list of bus and tram lines that run between Mestre and Venice.
c. By tram from Mestre to Venice
Tram line T1 runs between Mestre and Piazzale Roma in Venice, with a frequency of 10-20 minutes.
How to get around in Venice
And now, let's move on to the beautiful part of your trip - How do you get around Venice?
How do you get from one part of the city to another? Or how do you get to one of the beautiful islands in the Venetian Lagoon, such as Murano or Burano?
The answer is simple: by vaporetto!
By vaporetto in Venice
Vaporetto are considered the buses of Venice, they are the means of public water transport that run in Venice and throughout the Venetian Lagoon.
They are a convenient, fast and very authentic means of transport. And the good part is that they form a well-developed system, with a well-established program, with many boats that run frequently.
Vaporetto lines
The vaporetto boats belong to the ACTV company. Below I leave you two links with the map and all the transport lines in Venice.
Some important lines that you should know about are:
- Line 1 – runs along the Grand Canal, and is the most frequented vaporetto, which runs very often, every few minutes. It is the main vaporetto used by tourists, both as a means of travel, as it connects Piazzale Roma, the entry point to Venice, with Ponte Rialto or Piazza San Marco, but also as a tourist vaporetto, because it gives you the chance to admire from the board the entire Grand Canal
- Line 4.1 – connects Piazza San Marco with the island of Murano
- Line 12 – connects the island of Murano with the island of Burano or Torcello
- Line 14 – connects the island of Burano with Piazza San Marco, Venice
How much does it cost to travel by vaporetto
A vaporetto travel ticket costs 9.5 euros, and you can buy it from any stations, or online, on the website veneziaunica.it or GetYourGuide.
If you know that you will use this means of transport more often, then it is more advantageous to have a ticket pass of 24, 48 or 72 hours, depending on the time spent in Venice. In addition to the vaporetto, you also have local terestrial transport included, such as buses from Mestre or from the Lido island (transport from Marco Polo airport is not included).
The vaporetto prices are:
- Ticket for a 75-minute ride – 9.5 euro
- 1-Day pass – 25 euro
- 2-Day pass – 35 euro
- 3-Day pass – 45 euro
- 7-Day pass – 65 euro
Don't forget to mark the ticket on the pier, before boarding on the vaporetto!
If you are not sure what kind of vaporetto ticket to buy, whether a single-trip ticket or a passfor several days, think in advance how much you plan to use the vaporetto in a single day.
If you want to get from Piazzale Roma to the center of Venice, then it is more advantageous to buy only a single ticket. However, if you plan to visit the surrounding islands as well, such as Murano or Burano, with a day pass you get better value for money.
Do not hesitate to make a full tour with vaporetto no. 1, along the Grand Canal! It is much more efficient to use this means of transport than to rent a private boat, as it will take you along the entire canal. And for a more spectacular view, go to the end of the boat, where you will have an unobstructed view of Venice!
How to get to the islands around Venice
Below I have prepared you a list with the numbers of the vaporetto that run on the most touristic and beautiful islands in the Venetian Lagoon:
How to get from Venice to Murano Island
- Line 3: departs from Piazzale Roma, Venice
- Line 4.1: goes around Venice and reaches the island of Murano from Piazza San Marco (San Marco S. Zaccaria station)
- Line 4.2: the same route as 4.1, but in the opposite direction
- Line 7: season line, departs from San Marco S. Zaccaria towards Murano
- Line 12: departs from the west of Venice, Fondamente Nove station, towards the islands of Murano and Burano
- Linia 13: departs from the west of Venice, Fondamente Nove station, towards Murano Island
- Line N: night line
How to get from Venice to Burano Island
- Line 12: departs from the west of Venice, Fondamente Nove station, towards the islands of Murano and Burano
- Line 14: connects the island of Burano with Piazza San Marco, Venice
- Line N: night line
How to get from Venice to Lido Island
- Line 1: it stops in all stations on the Grand Canal, the final destination being Lido Island
- Lines 5.1 and 5.2: the line goes around Venice, with a stop on the Lido Island
- Line 6: departs from Piazzale Roma, Venice
- Lines 10, 14
- Line N: night line
Related articles
