With a free audio guide, you are able to learn more about the architecture and history of the picturesque city as you take a self-guided sightseeing tour of Venice. Download each audio guide to your iPod, mp3 player or smart phone, and listen to them whenever you like. Featured audio tours include Doge's Palace, St. Mark's Basilica, the Carnival and Venice, a general overview of the city.
One of the best ways to explore the city built on water is to take a gondola tour. No one knows Venice like the gondoliers who have worked the waters of the archipelago for centuries. Many gondoliers double as guides, and, as they navigate the labyrinth of hidden canals and byways, passengers are regaled with stories or serenaded with songs about the ancient city.
Choose from several different sightseeing tours to explore the lagoon islands that surround the city. One popular excursion departs from Tronchetto and travels up the Zattere coast up past Saint Mark's Square and the Biennale Gardens. An experienced on-board guide provides a running commentary about the islands as passengers view the islands of Saint Erasmo, known as the "Venice garden," Saint Michael, home to the Venetian cemetery, and Murano, famous for the colored glass factory. In the afternoon, the boat returns to the Arsenale and docks at Saint Mark's Square so that passengers may spend some time exploring the city. An evening boat transfer from the Square returns the passengers back to Tronchetto.
