Venice departure location

[Vineyard View]

We are taking a RT Venice itinerary this May. I am wondering if anyone has information on actual departure/arrival location for these itineraries?  We will be going in early to Venice. I believe that the actual check in will still take place at the original cruise terminal?  I am not finding any information on this as yet and it would be helpful for planning purposes. Thank you

[Susan Laskowski]

Hi.  We’re doing Venice Rt in June and July on Seabourne Quest.  We’re interested in excursion recommendations, and another couple interested in sharing a private car in any of the locations?

[cruiseej]

On 1/30/2023 at 11:13 AM, Vineyard View said:

We are taking a RT Venice itinerary this May. I am wondering if anyone has information on actual departure/arrival location for these itineraries?  We will be going in early to Venice. I believe that the actual check in will still take place at the original cruise terminal?  I am not finding any information on this as yet and it would be helpful for planning purposes. Thank you

 

The Quest May cruises to/from Venice are listed in the post schedule for the Venice Marghera port, which is the industrial port on the mainland across the causeway from Venice. This is where most cruise ships have been docking since Venice banned cruise ships from the Giudecca Canal two years ago. There are no passenger facilities at the industrial port, so last year all cruise passengers still checked in and dropped luggage at the old Marittima cruise terminal in Venice, and were then bussed over to their ship. This year, some ships will also berth at Fusina, which is on the mainland adjoining the Marghera docks. I believe they are building a passenger terminal there, but I'd expect check-ins to still be at the Marittima terminal. (I'd try to confirm this with Seabourn about a month before your cruise.)

[Vineyard View]

Thank you for this information. From what I have read, there are several places now where different lines are docking smaller ships with the new restrictions, including Chioggia as well as the two you mentioned.  I wasn’t sure if Seabourn would be following suite there.
I guess there are a plus and minus to each. The industrial port you are a captive, so to speak, in not being able to come and go as you please - however it is closer. Chioggia, although further away, allows for exploring on your own and is said to be quite charming. 

[cruiseej]

Chioggia... Trieste.... Ravenna... all can be nice to visit, and all have been used in the past year by cruise lines who couldn't secure berths near Venice. But many passengers are sailing to or from Venice because they want to see... Venice! In last year's scramble for berths, many ships docked in Marghera. It's only a 20-minute bus ride across the causeway from the Venice Marittima cruise terminal, and makes it easy for people who are spending time in Venice, or headed to/from the Venice airport. This year, some additional ships will be accommodated due to the addition of two docks at Fusina. Some of the giant ships will continue to use other cities, as there is still not enough capacity for all the ships which used to sail to/from Venice.

 

As for being "captive" in the industrial port, I'd note that the majority of cruises which come to Venice use the city as an embarkation/disembarkation point. For those which are just stopping in Venice for a day, it's true that you can't just walk from your ship to into Venice, but a bus (or water tax, or ferry) onto Venice doesn't materially change the experience. The Marittima cruise terminal isn't in the center of Venice, either, so if you were a day visitor on a cruise there, you still needed transportation to get into the heart of Venice. 

[Vineyard View]

5 hours ago, cruiseej said:

Chioggia... Trieste.... Ravenna... all can be nice to visit, and all have been used in the past year by cruise lines who couldn't secure berths near Venice. But many passengers are sailing to or from Venice because they want to see... Venice! In last year's scramble for berths, many ships docked in Marghera. It's only a 20-minute bus ride across the causeway from the Venice Marittima cruise terminal, and makes it easy for people who are spending time in Venice, or headed to/from the Venice airport. This year, some additional ships will be accommodated due to the addition of two docks at Fusina. Some of the giant ships will continue to use other cities, as there is still not enough capacity for all the ships which used to sail to/from Venice.

 

As for being "captive" in the industrial port, I'd note that the majority of cruises which come to Venice use the city as an embarkation/disembarkation point. For those which are just stopping in Venice for a day, it's true that you can't just walk from your ship to into Venice, but a bus (or water tax, or ferry) onto Venice doesn't materially change the experience. The Marittima cruise terminal isn't in the center of Venice, either, so if you were a day visitor on a cruise there, you still needed transportation to get into the heart of Venice. 

Thank you. Yes, I have been following the Venice developments for ship docking since the new rules, and agree with all you are saying. We had the opportunity to experience Venice sail in and overnight in the past. It was truly beautiful and yet there are very solid reasons for the change.
We are going into Venice 4 nights early this time. My ‘captive’ statement was that if you are on the ship in the industrial port, you can’t simply walk off and on the ship. I have read multiple posts on other boards the experience of transporting using the industrial port to the ships. On more than one cruise line, it’s been stated a bit more time consuming in practice - more like 45 min. That said, totally agree that the other ports are much further away - and if one cannot go into Venice before or afterwards, for so many reasons, then those further ports would be a deal breaker for me.
Case in point. We originally (pre Covid) were going to book a Viking 15 day that was actually a B2B and had the turnaround in Venice. Great itinerary. With this change, and their docking in Chioggia, we scrapped that idea as it truly took away the Venice experience we were looking for. So we are taking a shorter itinerary and spending time in Venice. We will be trying Seabourn for the first time and very excited to be doing so!

[conchyjoe]

So I have a similar question but it is in regard to disembarking Seabourn in Venice.

Will we be bussed to the Marittima terminal as well to collect our luggage?

We are staying in Venice for a few days on disembarkation, anybody know if private water taxis can pick up from Marittima Terminal to take us to our hotel which is some distance away.

 

Thanks.

[Vineyard View]

I am researching just the opposite direction. I have researched a zillion (at least! Ha) hotels. Have reached out to several regarding transportation from hotel to the terminal. Most of the hotels I am talking with are in the Opposite end of the city from the terminal and they all respond that they can help us arrange transport - most via the water. So if you have booked your hotel, they should be able to answer that for you. If not, ask when you are looking at booking them.  My sense is that it’s not that difficult if you have a hotel on a waterway. If you do not, you will likely get to the closest water stop, and then need to transport your luggage on your own. That particular portion is driving where I am booking as it impacts me both with arrival from airport, as well as departure to terminal. I hope this helps.