San Giorgio Maggiore, Burano and Murano
This day requires that you get up bright and early as there is a lot to do! Firstly you need to buy a full day vaparetto pass.
We started our sailing tour by first visiting the closest island to Venice - San Giorgio Maggiore. This island, is literally a stone's throw away from St Mark's Square - the most scenic and historic part of the City of Venice. And therein lies the appeal of this island. Whilst many tourists will climb to the top of the campanile (bell tower) in St Mark's Square to obtain a good view of the city, the best view of St Mark's itself and the beautiful Doge's Palace which fronts on to the Venetian shore, is to be had from the Palladian Church bell tower on the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore. And the tower also affords views of other iconic sights such as the Church of Santa Maria della Salute, as well as the nearby island of La Giudecca.
The No 2 vaporetto makes regular and frequent trips to the island, from the San Zaccharia pier close to St Mark's. The journey only takes a few minutes but make sure you go up the Palladian Church bell tower for the gorgeous views. To see the views of Venice described above, one must ascend the 200 year old bell tower. A small elevator takes you to the top and there is a small charge (the charge is much cheaper than the entrance fee to to the bell tower of St Mark's Campanile and there are no queues).
Then catch a boat to Murano to see the famous Murano glassworks. Murano Island is famous for glass-making and is the most popular island to visit. A few centuries ago, all glass makers were required to live on the island to protect the glass-making secrets. Today the tradition of glass making continues here and you can find out all about it in the glass museum. Some glass factories also offer tours and there are many shops selling glass creations and souvenirs. Murano also has canals, sidewalk cafes, and restaurants. There is a vaporetto from San Giorgio Maggiore to Murano and it takes around an hour.
After wondering around pretty Murano, hop onto the vaporetto again that heads to Burano Island.
This was our favourite island. Burano is made up of picturesque canals lined with brightly colored houses. Flowers grow in window boxes and small boats dot the canals. The island is also famous for its artisan lace makers and there's a Lace Museum as well as shops selling lace. The island's main street, is lined with pastry and souvenir shops, stores, bars, and restaurants. But if you wander away from that area you will see fewer tourists and can enjoy the peacefulness and beauty of the canals and colorful houses that has long attracted painters to the island.
A tip regarding this tour. I recommend not doing it on a weekend but only mid week (even in low or shoulder season) as Venice and the lagoon islands are amazingly busy with Italian tourists on weekends and the queues getting onto the vaporetto are huge and so you need to wait for ages to get on! We made this mistake and spent too much time waiting in queues in Murano and Burano!! So plan accordingly.
This is a great day!
Enjoy!
