The roughly 4 km long Grand Canal is without a doubt the main thoroughfare of Venice, winding like an axe through the entire historic centre. It stretches from Santa Lucia Central Station to St Mark's Square, where it empties into the lagoon.

Book a room with a view of the Grand Canal

Venice's thoroughfare

Interestingly, there is no continuous and long promenade on either side, the houses usually grow right out of the water, leaving no room for a sidewalk. However, this does not change the fact that along the canal you will find many smaller and larger squares from where you can observe the lively traffic on the water.

Instead of asphalt, there's water, and instead of cars, there are hundreds of boats, from public transport vaporetti, to cargo boats, to DHL and FedEx delivery ships. Sit down with a real Italian gelato and watch the action on the water for a while, it's extremely calming.

Transportation on the Grand Canal

Only 4 bridges

Although the canal is more than 4 kilometres long, you can only cross it over 4 bridges. The first two - the Ponte della Costituzione and the Ponte degli Scalzi - are located at the Santa Lucia main station and, apart from taking you from one bank to the other, are not very interesting.

However, the largest bridge right in the centre of Venice is already one of the most famous bridges in the world. Stone Ponte di Rialto with its canopy is one of the most beautiful structures in Venice. The last bridge, which spans the Grand Canal, is a wooden Ponte dell Accademia by the famous Accademia Gallery.

Grand Canal Bridge

A ride on a vaporetto or gondola

The Grand Canal is the most beautiful of the water. The facades of the most beautiful Venetian houses "grow" right out of the water, every now and then one of the dozens of smaller side canals opens into the Canal Grande, and there are views of the most famous Venetian monuments.

The easiest option is to hop on a vaporetto (water public transport bus) and take any length of the canal. There are stops at each corner on both sides of the canal and boats run here about every 5 minutes. Backbone lines 1 and 2 run along the canal, and from the station to the Rialto Bridge, the 2/ booster line also runs.

There are also gondola ferries crossing the canal at several points, for which you pay a nominal fee 2 eur. You will find a list of these in the Transport chapter.

Gondola on the Grand Canal

Accommodation with a view of the Grand Canal

Along the canal you will find a number of hotels with some of the best views in the world. It's logical that hotels located right on the Grand Canal have higher prices, but if you're looking for romantic accommodation, you won't regret it. Check out these great-rated hotels right on the canal, for example, with a price of 110 eur per night in a 2-bed room.