The Grand Canal is Venice’s main water street, lined by palaces best read from a boat. Choose a gondola for atmosphere or a small motorboat when distance and commentary matter.
Venice · GRAND CANAL TOURS
14 ways to explore
The Grand Canal reads like a procession of palaces from the water. Choose a gondola for atmosphere or a small motorboat when range and commentary matter more.
Shared gondola along Venice’s Grand Canal plus app commentary and VR Gondola Gallery, with a short intro walk and classic sights included.
“Me and my husband really enjoyed the ride and also the information that they gave us on the walk would highly recommend”
Grand Canal gondola with live guide, a short walking intro, and Gondola Gallery VR, passing La Fenice, Salute, Peggy Guggenheim.
“The host was lovely I think her name was Melanie. Everything was coordinated perfectly and the gondola ride was beautiful 😍”
Shared gondola ride in Venice, $46: 30 minutes gliding from San Marco and Rialto through Canal Grande with a master gondolier.
“All was perfect except guy at counter who sold others tickets. He was very rude when we had questions.”
Shared Grand Canal gondola with live commentary and optional VR, small boats of up to five, guided stops near St Mark’s Square.
“It is not worth what it costs. The VR was ok but the guide was not. We walked to the gondola with a bit of commentary that was hard to hear and the guide was in a hurry. We boarded a gondola and went down a few areas that were dark and old. Once at the Grand Canal we were at the other end from the bridge and turned off after 20 minutes down another are and were unloading not where we started but a couple blocks away. Then you have to find your way back.”
A private 30-minute gondola ride on Venice’s Grand Canal, plus the Gondola Gallery, near St. Mark’s. Audio support, short and sweet.
“Great 30 minute gondola ride of the city, although it was a much better price to book on the spot with no wait than booking on GGG.”
Skip the queue for a shared Grand Canal gondola, then enjoy VR and in-app commentary at the Gondola Gallery near St Mark’s Square.
“Here’s the deal…we set up a gondola experience because we were worried that we would not be able to find a gondola on our own. The truth is, you can do this on your own. We didn’t gain anything from this experience that we would would not have gleaned on our own. It’s was nice having set plans, so we recommend if you feel better knowing you get to do a gondola in Venice!”
One-hour Grand Canal motorboat tour from St Mark’s, seeing Rialto, Ca’ Pisani Moretta, La Salute, and the modern glass bridge.
“The guide was very knowledgable and pointed out lots of places of interest and some interesting facts. The sun was setting during the second half of the one hour trip which made it even more enjoyable. We were happy we saw all the famous landmarks so well worth the money”
Skip lines at Doge's Palace and St Mark's, then walk Hidden Venice and ride the Grand Canal by motor launch.
“I greatly enjoyed all the 3 tours. The tour guide, Sabrina, was incredible - very knowledgeable, enthusiastic and entertaining, and spoke excellent English! I had a lot of fun and learnt a lot! Would highly recommend this package to anyone including families with children as you get decent time for a lunch break in between tour 1&2. Small tip: Don't forget to bring a bottle of water and sunscreen - the guide will try to keep you in the shade as much as possible but you still burn pretty quickly especially on the boat.”
30-minute Venice gondola ride on the Grand Canal with live singer and musician serenading you in a small-group flotilla from $59.
“We booked in a hurry and didn’t realize it was a shared ride… but we had an amazing time and the music was beautiful! I don’t think the couple in the gondola with us realized it was shared either though, and they definitely didn’t seem happy about it… maybe an extra, extra note in the description would be good? I digress, this was an amazing way to experience Venice and the musicians were extremely talented and skilled :)”
Shared gondola serenade on Venice’s Grand Canal with live Italian songs, Gondola Gallery, and optional dinner for small groups.
“The beautiful sound of you female serenader plus male voice and accordion will stay with me for ever!”
Private gondola from Rialto on the Grand Canal and inner canals, up to five people, 30 to 45 minutes.
“Had a wonderful time and information given was really informative, such a special experience”
Guided walk plus a 30-minute gondola on St. Mark's Basin, Gondola Gallery, and a 200-site audio guide in 3 hours.
“the guide was fab. Very informative and ending with a gondola just amazing. Very good value for money and highly recommend”
Private Venice canal cruise with Grand Canal, Jewish Ghetto walk, Arsenale shipyard entry, and Dorsoduro gondola workshop in 2 hours.
“Tour was in a taxi and not in a wooden boat like the photos. Taxi was old and run down. Tour guide talked badly about “tourists” and the way they shop. His knowledge about the history was limited. We found ourselves correcting him several times. One strange thing was he kept asking us to leave our belongings (purse and backpack) on the taxi when we got off. Felt sketchy. Tour guide left us in the shopping district and not back where we started like it said. It was a 40 minute walk back. We mentioned we wanted to go back and he ignored us. Just awful experience. This was our…”
1-hour private small-group Venice boat trip along the Grand Canal and Giudecca with a local guide, Rialto views, and photo time.
“This boat ride was really interesting. We took it on our first day in Venice. I originally planned it for our last Ana I’m so glad I changed it. It gave us a nice sense of the city and good ideas for how to spend the rest of our time.”
