Venice 3-day itinerary

Arrive at Piazza San Marco before 9am to beat the crowds. The Basilica di San Marco (free, €3 skip-the-line) is covered in 8,000 square metres of gold mosaics — the effect at sunrise is otherworldly. Climb the Campanile (€10) for the definitive Venice panorama. Then walk to Doge's Palace (€30, or €40 with Secret Itineraries tour) for the Bridge of Sighs and Tintoretto's Paradise.

Walk to the Rialto Bridge through the narrow calli — getting lost is the point. Visit the Rialto Fish Market (closed Sun–Mon, morning only). Then a bacaro crawl — cicchetti (small bites, €1.50–3) and ombra (wine, €2–3) at Cantina Do Spade, All'Arco, and Cantina Do Mori (Venice's oldest, since 1462). Three stops with wine and cicchetti will cost €12–18.

Head to Dorsoduro for evening drinks at Campo Santa Margherita — Venice's student piazza where spritz costs €3–4 and the atmosphere is entirely local. Start at Ai Do Draghi or Margaret Duchamp. Dinner at Osteria al Squero near the Ponte dell'Accademia (cicchetti and canal views) or pizza at Rossopomodoro on Campo San Polo. Walk back through Venice at night — the empty calli are magical.

Vaporetto 4.1 or 4.2 from Fondamente Nove to Murano (20 minutes, free with day pass). Watch master glassblowers at work in the fornaci along Fondamenta dei Vetrai — some offer free demonstrations, hoping you'll buy (no obligation). Visit the Museo del Vetro (€10) in the Palazzo Giustinian for 2,000 years of glassmaking history. The Basilica dei Santi Maria e Donato has a stunning mosaic floor.

Vaporetto 12 from Murano to Burano (40 minutes). This tiny island is painted in psychedelic colours — every house a different shade of pink, purple, yellow, and turquoise. Originally so fishermen could identify their homes in fog. Walk Via Baldassarre Galuppi for lace shops and seafood restaurants. Lunch at Trattoria al Gatto Nero (risotto di gò, €18) — a local institution.

Return to Venice and explore Cannaregio — the northernmost sestiere, far from tourist crowds. Walk the Fondamente della Misericordia for local bars and restaurants. Dinner at Osteria L'Orto dei Mori (creative Venetian cuisine, mains €14–20) or Al Timon (bacari with canalside tables, cicchetti €2–3). The Jewish Ghetto (the original — the word "ghetto" comes from here) is nearby and haunting.

Start at the Gallerie dell'Accademia (€12) — Venice's premier art museum with Bellini, Titian, Tintoretto, and Veronese. Then the Peggy Guggenheim Collection (€16) in her former Grand Canal palazzo — Pollock, Picasso, Dalí, and Max Ernst in an intimate setting. Walk through the Dorsoduro backstreets — Zattere waterfront promenade has Giudecca views and gelato at Nico's.

Cross to San Polo and wander the narrow calli around the Frari church (€5) — Titian's "Assumption" altarpiece inside is staggering. Then get intentionally lost — the joy of Venice is turning corners to discover tiny campi (squares) with wellheads, washing lines, and children playing. Lunch at Antico Forno near the Rialto for pizza al taglio (€3–5 a slice) or Ae Oche for tramezzini (€2).

Take Vaporetto Line 1 down the entire Grand Canal at golden hour — from Piazzale Roma to San Marco. This is the most beautiful public transport ride on earth — palazzos, churches, and gondolas gliding past for 45 minutes. Farewell dinner at Trattoria alla Madonna near Rialto (seafood, mains €14–22) or keep it cicchetti-and-spritz at your favourite bacaro.