Venice Walking Tour With Gondola Ride

Exploring Venice Tour

The ultimate one-day private tour of Venice, this package combines strolling the winding, narrow streets through the heart of the city, visiting some of the most typically Venetian and culturally significant sites to be found here, and relaxing on a traditional Gondola ride through Venice as your guide vividly narrates the history, culture, and character of the city while you gaze upon some of its most extraordinary monuments.

The Venice walking tour and Gondola ride packs all of this into an unforgettable three hours, so in order to maximize your time and ensure that we deliver the tour of your dreams, we will consult with you to arrange the most suitable meeting point, and will also work on a custom itinerary for the walking section of the tour to make sure that you are visiting the locations you desire.

Typical Destinations Included in the Walking Section Of The Tour:

While your private guide will design the tour according to your location or preferred starting point, if you were staying near the center of Venice, then the following would be a suggested itinerary of destinations for the walking tour:

• Typical canal pathways
• Mask workshop and/or artisan interactive studio (as an optional add-on experience)
• Rialto Bridge
• Fondaco dei Tedeschi (ex-German trade house)
• Marco Polo’s neighborhood
• St. Mark’s “Great School”
• St. John & Paul’s Cathedral (aka Doges’ Pantheon)
• Campo S. Maria Formosa

Venice Twilight Canal Cruise and Aperitivo Itinerary Details

The tour experience will last for 2 hours, and your private guide will meet you at your accommodation or a meeting point that is suitable for you, just as the sun begins to set.

The tour gets underway as you are delivered to your captain for the evening and board the classical Venetian-style motorboat.

We just returned from a 10 day Italy trip (Venice-Florence-Rome-Pompeii/Sorrento) that was entirely planned and customized by Travel by Luxe and it was absolutely incredible! All the tours and guides were exceptional (especially Paolo for Pompeii/Sorrento). They were knowledgable, friendly and made the sites come alive with their stories! The transportation to and from each destination was seamless and easy. The communication before, during and after our stay from all the Travel by Luxe staff was impeccable - I never had to worry about a thing! I highly recommend this company and plan to use them again for future trips. They helped make for a priceless family vacation and memories we treasure!

Laura Richards ★★★★★

Venice Walking Tour & Gondola Ride Description:

This Venice walking tour begins with a casual stroll along the colorful canal paths of Venice’s fascinating sestieri (districts), such as Cannaregio, allowing you the opportunity to take in the gorgeous views while exploring some of the more authentic and less ‘touristy’ areas of Venice.

Include A Venetian Mask Or Artisan Workshop

If you have an interest in attending a classic Venetian mask workshop or would like to find out how Venetian artisans create their mosaic masterpieces, simply let us know ahead of time, and we will be sure to add such an experience to your tour.

Rialto Bridge & Exploring Venice

Alongside visiting some of the best examples of Venetian Renaissance architecture to be found in the city, we will take in the iconic Rialto Bridge – considered so ambitious during its construction five centuries ago that many believed it wouldn’t remain standing.

We continue through the Castello district, home to the Church of Saint John and Paul – a 15th-century Basilica in dramatic Italian Gothic style, and where Venetian explorer Marco Polo once lived.

Enjoy Venice As It Was Meant To Be Seen – From A Gondola!

The final section of our tour will see you and your private group sail off with your own professional Gondolier for a 30-minute adventure through the famous Venice canals.

Typically, our Gondola trips depart from Stazio Dogana and will include the following sites:

• Grand Canal
• Punta della Dogana (former customs house of Venice)
• Basilica della Salute
• Ca’ Dario
• Peggy Guggenheim’s Palace
• La Fenice Opera House
• Mozart’s House

We have worked with Travel by Luxe twice. In 2023, my husband and I wanted to visit Venice and Barcelona. We reached out to Luxe based on good reviews, and were connected with Irene. With her guidance and suggestions, we planned an amazing 3-week trip from Venice to Barcelona with stops in Bologna, Genoa, Levanto, Cinque Terre, Nice, Marseilles, and Narbonne. In every location, we had transportation, guides, and experiences awaiting us. We felt like we really got to participate in the locations we visited, not just walk through like the average tourist. Giulia checked in with us on WhatsApp every day to make sure we had all the information we needed for the next day. Irene provided suggestions for restaurants to book in each of our destinations, and Giulia helped make reservations at restaurants I couldn't book online. The hotels Travel by Luxe chose were excellent and made us feel pampered and comfortable. We had a fantastic time. I was impressed that everything was just as seamless in the France and Spain portions of the trip as in the Italy portion. This year, we decided we wanted to see more of Italy, so we contacted Irene again. This time we started in Milan and ended in Sorrento, with stops in Florence, Montepulciano, Perugia, and Rome. Again, everything ran smoothly and we had terrific experiences with our transport, our guides, and the experiences Irene and Giulia arranged for us. During this trip, we wanted to make some last-minute changes to our itinerary, and Giulia and Chiara were super-responsive and changed things around on the fly. In one example, we decided we wanted to skip a winery tour and cut our day a little shorter. Giulia consulted with the guide who was with us that day, and they made a plan for us to have lunch at a restaurant where we could taste the type of wine that we would otherwise have missed! It was a lovely experience that we never would have discovered on our own. Once again, the hotels Luxe chose for us were great and we were very comfortable. I whole-heartedly recommend this company for your trip-planning needs!

Emily Wright ★★★★★

Why Book Your Walking and Gondola Ride With Luxe?

For all its beauty, Venice can be an overwhelming city with the number of tourists and group tours coming and going. Reserving a tour with Luxe allows you to relax knowing that you are receiving a personal and custom experience built only for the needs of your private group.

Our local English-speaking guides are so passionate about exhibiting this magical city of theirs that we simply refuse to offer standardized group tours where guests are collected together with complete strangers and all offered the same cookie-cutter experience. 

Rather, we only provide private tours for individuals, families, or small groups and tailor the experience exactly to their tastes.

To find out mor,e you can get in touch with your guide by sending us a no-obligation online inquiry.