Is it worth taking ship's excursion from Chioggia to Venice?

[cruisinclined]

We start an October cruise in Chioggia where the Quest docks for two days allowing a full day Venice visit. We have been before and are evaluating the value of taking a ship excursion on the full day in port, day two. We have OBC and have heard from these boards that it can be used in advance to book such excursions.

We have also read that the trip by hired boat into Venice can take up to two hours and disembarks at St Marks Square. The four hours of travel sound something of a trial so am asking for feedback from those who have experienced this excursion. It is not a 'must do', due to former visits, but Venice is such a treasure that one can never tire of it.

Was there  high demand for this excursion so that early booking is essential?

How long did this boat journey take in reality and was the boat comfortable and were  the usual needed facilities available on board?

Were there several morning sailings to Venice and what timeframe for departure was there? Possible to leave at, say, 10am?

Pick up time for return from St Marks? More that one pick up vessel?

Your overall assessment of this excursion mode, was it worth it?

Other feasible  travel options into Venice from Chioggia and back which have been successful and perhaps better ones to consider? But we need to keep things simple so preferably not a series of buses or trains. 

Thank you in advance for your experiences.

[tyler6597]

We ended our cruise in Chioggia back in May and it was an overnight stay then we got bussed to the airport in Venice. When we left the ship in the morning to go to Venice there weren't any busses or taxis. We had to walk to Chioggia. I' 71 and so is my wife and we brought her 74-year-old sister with us. It was at least a mile walk or more to catch a bus that goes to Venice and drops you off and the bus station in Venice and more or less you're there in Venice. It took two hours to get there. We were exhausted by walking from the ship to Chioggia. Now we had to find a water taxi to get to St. Marks square. This was on a Saturday and Venice was packed. We ended up getting a private boat that took us to St. Marks square for $100.00. It was getting late in the afternoon and there were just too many people there, so we figured out how to take the water taxi back to the bus station and got on Bus number 8 which took us back to Chioggia at the same stop we left from. That was the closest bus stop to the ship. So, the long walk began again, and we were all exhausted. We heard from some people that just went to Chioggia for the day and they said it was great. It has canals just like Venice and looks somewhat like Venice, but it was a lot closer. I can't understand why Azamara didn't provide a shuttle bus to Chioggia or a bus to or a bus to Venice. We had been to Venice 4 times before and we just wanted my wife's sister to see it. I guess the only way to see it without walking a mile to a bus is to take the shore excursion. Azamara must find a closer port to Venice. I also want to tell you that with the exception of the historical buildings Venice is not the gem it was prior to the pandemic. A lot of hotels and private residences on the Grand canal and canals off the Grand Canal are boarded up or in total disrepair. It's still worth going there but if it's a weekend be aware of the mob of people. 

[maggie777]

We are booked on the 8 hour shore excursion from ship ( Quest ) to Venice but have no info on details.

 

[tyler6597]

That's the only way to see Venice unless you want to walk a couple of miles to the local bus. Smart move.

Tyler

[hamrag]

To answer the topic question....we boarded the lift as a handful of folks returned from said tour....the answer from them, to a man and woman, was a resounding no, never again. We spent the afternoon exploring Chioggia, thoroughly enjoyable.

[maggie777]

4 hours ago, hamrag said:

To answer the topic question....we boarded the lift as a handful of folks returned from said tour....the answer from them, to a man and woman, was a resounding no, never again. We spent the afternoon exploring Chioggia, thoroughly enjoyable.

We are booked on this excursion. Can you give any details of the "resounding no"? What is the lift that you referred to?

[Host Jazzbeau]

26 minutes ago, maggie777 said:

What is the lift that you referred to?

Lift is British for Elevator, y'all.  😉

[hamrag]

6 hours ago, maggie777 said:

We are booked on this excursion. Can you give any details of the "resounding no"? What is the lift that you referred to?

From the discussion I heard moving in the lift from deck 9 to deck 5 the travel time seems to have taken a ridiculous amount of time and it just wasn't worth the time invested. Part of the time it rained heavily! That said, I have no idea the profile of those folks e.g. had they been to Venice on a previous occasion, first time, do they easily complain etc. etc. 😉

Edited August 30, 2023 by hamrag

[Lady President]

Like others said, no one I spoke to loved their day in Venice. It was just an exhausting day. They didn't arrive in Venice until mid afternoon so everything was very crowded. They didn't get back to the ship until about 11:00 and still had to pack. 

 

Most people, including us, stayed on the ship that day. We visited Venice for a few days after the cruise. 

[maggie777]

12 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Lift is British for Elevator, y'all.  😉

I am familiar with the British term lift ( elevator ). The use of the term "boarding the lift" confused me.

[maggie777]

6 hours ago, hamrag said:

From the discussion I heard moving in the lift from deck 9 to deck 5 the travel time seems to have taken a ridiculous amount of time and it just wasn't worth the time invested. Part of the time it rained heavily! That said, I have no idea the profile of those folks e.g. had they been to Venice on a previous occasion, first time, do they easily complain etc. etc. 😉

Thanks for the follow up. I had read that the transfer could be as long as two hours one way. We had previously booked a shorter excursion which was cancelled and Azamara placed us on this one at no extra charge.

[tyler6597]

It is not worth the 4 hours travel time to and from Venice. Most of the roads there are two lanes and if there's an accident which is often, you're really screwed. Visit Venice before or after the cruise for 2 or 3 days and go see the main attractions but personally my wife and I just loved roaming around the canals and getting lost. You see great things that are off the commercial beaten path.

Tyler

[hamrag]

1 hour ago, maggie777 said:

I am familiar with the British term lift ( elevator ). The use of the term "boarding the lift" confused me.

 

There are no words.....

 

board2 ●●○ verb 1 [intransitive, transitive] formal to get on a bus, plane, train etc in order to travel somewhere 

[hamrag]

1 hour ago, maggie777 said:

Thanks for the follow up. I had read that the transfer could be as long as two hours one way. We had previously booked a shorter excursion which was cancelled and Azamara placed us on this one at no extra charge.

Perhaps their strategy was bait & switch!

[maggie777]

9 minutes ago, hamrag said:

 

There are no words.....

 

board2 ●●○ verb 1 [intransitive, transitive] formal to get on a bus, plane, train etc in order to travel somewhere 

Thank you

[cruisinclined]

Thank you all for your input.

It reinforced what I had picked up from hints in some previous posts about Chioggia that the ship excursion was very lengthy.

Interesting to hear reports that the ship excursion or bus visit had indeed become a trial. Two hours each way is too long for us, perhaps most of us.

Advice for those visiting Venice for the first time to top or tail their visit with a stay in the city seems very sound but will be expensive most times of the year.

We will stay in Chioggia and explore, it sounds similar to some of the lovely Venetian islands we have visited in the past.

In summary, cruise companies which add Venice to their itineraries are no longer able to offer this city as an accessible destination where you can step off and explore easily. That perhaps needs to be made clear to passengers who may be assuming access formerly available. Having sailed down the grand canal it makes complete sense to me to have finally stopped that to start the process of saving this historic city and its lagoon although cruise ships are still entering the latter.

[maggie777]

Because we want to visit Venice if only for a day I inquired about the planned transportation for the 8 hour excursion. I was informed that the motor launch has 1 unisex toilet which is reassuring given the possible 2 hour ride each way. 4 hours on land should be an enjoyable combination of guided walk and free time before returning to ship.

[Grandma Cruising]

30 minutes ago, cruisinclined said:

Thank you all for your input.

It reinforced what I had picked up from hints in some previous posts about Chioggia that the ship excursion was very lengthy.

Interesting to hear reports that the ship excursion or bus visit had indeed become a trial. Two hours each way is too long for us, perhaps most of us.

Advice for those visiting Venice for the first time to top or tail their visit with a stay in the city seems very sound but will be expensive most times of the year.

We will stay in Chioggia and explore, it sounds similar to some of the lovely Venetian islands we have visited in the past.

In summary, cruise companies which add Venice to their itineraries are no longer able to offer this city as an accessible destination where you can step off and explore easily. That perhaps needs to be made clear to passengers who may be assuming access formerly available. Having sailed down the grand canal it makes complete sense to me to have finally stopped that to start the process of saving this historic city and its lagoon although cruise ships are still entering the latter.

I don’t think you ever sailed down the Grand Canal - cruise ships came in through the Guidecca Canal.

[Host Jazzbeau]

18 minutes ago, Grandma Cruising said:

I don’t think you ever sailed down the Grand Canal - cruise ships came in through the Guidecca Canal.

I'm not sure that even the Uniworld river ship can sail down the Grand Canal.  It would fit under the Rialto bridge [which no ocean ship could], but the traffic would be hazardous!

[KTV]

19 hours ago, cruisinclined said:

We will stay in Chioggia and explore, it sounds similar to some of the lovely Venetian islands we have visited in the past.

I read that there are no buses or taxis from the port to Chioggia. Tyler6597 said it is about a mile walk.  Is that to the town or is that to the nearest bus stop? 

[fruitmachine]

4 hours ago, KTV said:

I read that there are no buses or taxis from the port to Chioggia. Tyler6597 said it is about a mile walk.  Is that to the town or is that to the nearest bus stop? 

Linea 80 starts at Piazzale Europa in Sottomarina which is a 1.5 mile (2.4km) walk, but the nearest bus stop to the cruise terminal is on Via Naccari, which is roughly 0.67m or 1 km from there.

The timetable is here: https://www.arrivaveneto.it/orari-e-percorsi/ and a Google Map of the full route here: https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/2/edit?mid=1Vw-VM-5hKGY4r0H-nOSBW2jktxi2WCs&usp=sharing
 

This is the walk to Via Naccari:

[fruitmachine]

On 8/30/2023 at 3:29 PM, maggie777 said:

Thanks for the follow up. I had read that the transfer could be as long as two hours one way. We had previously booked a shorter excursion which was cancelled and Azamara placed us on this one at no extra charge.

I'm very surprised at a two hour transfer time on a direct private coach run by Azamara.  Is this really correct?
 

The public bus (that has frequent stops enroute) takes less than an hour from the stop nearest to the cruise terminal to Piazzale Roma in Venice. Google suggests driving it would take 1 hour +/- 10 minutes.

[Denfox]

How long is the walk from the ship into Chioggia? Is the 1.5 mile walk just to the specific stop for the Venice bus or is that the walk into the "interesting" part of Chioggia? Any must-sees in Chioggia or is it just a laid-back day walking around and enjoying the atmosphere? Thanks.

[combine]

44 minutes ago, Denfox said:

How long is the walk from the ship into Chioggia? Is the 1.5 mile walk just to the specific stop for the Venice bus or is that the walk into the "interesting" part of Chioggia? Any must-sees in Chioggia or is it just a laid-back day walking around and enjoying the atmosphere? Thanks.

Its a leisurely 15 -20 minutes walk from Ship to the Cathedral. Its a charming little town . Not a tourist trap (at the moment, ) decent coffees along the main street under €2 pp. If you have already visited Venice, its a pleasant town for a couple of hours. The shops close for lunch at 1pm.

Edited September 2, 2023 by combine

[maggie777]

2 hours ago, fruitmachine said:

I'm very surprised at a two hour transfer time on a direct private coach run by Azamara.  Is this really correct?
 

The public bus (that has frequent stops enroute) takes less than an hour from the stop nearest to the cruise terminal to Piazzale Roma in Venice. Google suggests driving it would take 1 hour +/- 10 minutes.

The transfer is by boat