Venice-Getting to the ship from Venice Island

[loadstone]

I am cruising on the Celebrity Summit on 7/10. I would like to spend a couple of extra days in Venice. I have read that it is very expensive to get from the hotels to the cruise ships.

 

Does any know if you can get to the cruise ships by ferry (vaparetto) and not get ripped off for a 100 Euros? Or has anyone had a good inexpensive experience with transfering from a hotel?

 

L

[agabbymama]

I am cruising on the Celebrity Summit on 7/10. I would like to spend a couple of extra days in Venice. I have read that it is very expensive to get from the hotels to the cruise ships.

 

Does any know if you can get to the cruise ships by ferry (vaparetto) and not get ripped off for a 100 Euros? Or has anyone had a good inexpensive experience with transfering from a hotel?

 

L

 

You can use the vaporetto, if you don't have a lot of luggage to schlep. Transportation is the main reason I chose to stay at Ca' Doge in Piazzale Roma. The ship's shuttle and the bus to the airport both stop right in front of the hotel. And there is a vaporetto stop at Piazzale Roma also. And it looks pretty level for rolling luggage.

 

Ca' Doge looks like a decent hotel and the reviews on TripAdvisor.com are pretty good too.

 

Have a great trip.

[Susan-M]

We stayed at the Sofitel just off Piazzale Roma - it's convenient & inexpensive to get to/from the port (by shuttle or land taxi) & even walkable if you are so inclined (which we were).

 

Piazzale Roma to Piazza San Marco is approx. 20 minutes on foot, or you can take a vaporetta.

 

Some info from the Venice Cruise Terminal website:

 

map: http://www.vtp.it/pages/comeRaggiungerci/crociere.jsp?n=0

directions: http://www.vtp.it/pages/comeRaggiungerci/dettaglio.jsp?idm=N9TJQI370QEBK450YX34KN08MM3PCGHM&iconaInfo=ico-raggiungerci

[calberry]

I am cruising on the Celebrity Summit on 7/10. I would like to spend a couple of extra days in Venice. I have read that it is very expensive to get from the hotels to the cruise ships.

 

Does any know if you can get to the cruise ships by ferry (vaparetto) and not get ripped off for a 100 Euros? Or has anyone had a good inexpensive experience with transfering from a hotel?

 

L

 

I guess 'ripped off' is comperable to 'beauty is in the of the beholder'. We're all different.

 

We took a water taxi from our hotel to the ship, and stopped at another hotel on the way and picked up two other couples (one we were traveling with and the other we met on our Cruise Critic Roll Call) so we were able to split the cost. What a wonderful way to travel, see the sights of canals a final time, and approach the ship from the water. Were there cheaper ways? You bet. Were there more fun ways? No way!!!

 

Check this link to my blog. There are a couple of pictures of the taxi and some smiling faces

 

http://calberrymedcruise.blogspot.com/2007/09/post-17-boarding-day.html

 

Steve

[cberge]

I would just like to say the using a water taxi and the charge that goes with is NOT being "ripped off.".that is the charge and that is the way it is...like using a taxi here in the US as opposed to using the city bus...you pay more,but you are not "ripped off".Sorry,but that is just not a fair thing to write about using a water taxi in Venice.

[JeriNP]

Actually, I've heard quite a few people refer to the water taxi as a rip-off, highway robbery, canal robbery, etc. Overcharging tourists is a standard economic strategy used by most tourist destinations, including New York. It's like buying a NY pretzel in Central Park ($3) vs. the Bronx ($1.25). So yes, it's a rip-off. It in no way detracts from the beauty of Venice or the experience itself to call it what it is. How can it NOT be a rip-off when the vaporetto, used by the locals, is so much less $$$?

[kdowneymd]

venice being one of the more expensive cities in italy, I can understand wanting to watch expenses. But staying 3 days post cruise, the cost of a water taxi is almost a drop in the bucket compared to hotel and food. It goes with the territory, you have been on a several thousand dollar cruise, and will add on another several thousand by staying several days, bite the bullet and enjoy a wonderful experience

[rebeccalouise]

I am cruising on the Celebrity Summit on 7/10. I would like to spend a couple of extra days in Venice. I have read that it is very expensive to get from the hotels to the cruise ships.

 

Does any know if you can get to the cruise ships by ferry (vaparetto) and not get ripped off for a 100 Euros? Or has anyone had a good inexpensive experience with transfering from a hotel?

 

L

 

There are several hotels in Piazzle Roma, which I think is a great place to stay. The two that are right in Piazzle Roma are the Santa Chiara and the Hotel Cadoge. I have also stayed at the Sofitel and it was great. You do have to go over a small bridge to get there but you can see it from Piazzle Roma (a very good choice). You would not need to use a water taxi for these. I have done the water taxi twice- the first time I went to Venice. It was pretty convenient and a nice experience. Just like the gondola ride. Now I try to act more like the locals and take the public transportation and mostly I just walk. But that's because I know the terrain. If you are not staying in or around Piazzle Roma and it is your first time to Venice- take a water taxi. Trapsing around looking for a hotel loaded down with bags is NOT fun!

[Paul S]

You can take a vaporetto to Ple Roma, and then a land taxi to the ship - its a long walk from the vaporetto stop to the ship.

 

Be aware that single trips on the vaporetti are also relatively expensive at 6 euros, and you are required to purchase an extra ticket for your luggage. I suspect not many people do, but you could be stopped by an inspector. With the land taxi and a tip as well, it could come out around 40 euros for two. if you can manage to share a water taxi it won't be much more per head (and could be cheaper if you can get six people) and will be much more convenient.

 

Paul S

[NH Cruiser]

We just returned from a cruise with a prestay in Venice and used a water taxi to the hotel and to the port. It's like a private tour of Venice both ways: a slow ride through the back canals you would not see on your own and an tour down the Grand Canal. We did a private taxi from the airport because no one else was arriving when we did; however, we shared a taxi to the ship with four others, making it quite reasonable. You're dropped off right at the dock where the ship staff takes your luggage. We used Venezia Taxi and had excellent service. We saw lots of people trying to move large pieces of luggage up and down the bridges, and it wasn't a pretty sight. For the most part, they were really struggling.

[loadstone]

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have been to Venice before and did not mean to offend anyone. Yes, it is a beautiful place (in fact one of my favoirte places in all my travels). However let's all be realistic and admit that there are tourist traps in every major city. I wanted to hear if people thought it was worth the price of the water taxi or not. I also know that the proximity of the cruise ships is not too far and that was my concern compared to the prices I was hearing.

 

I did a land tour in Venice in 2004 and I recall I paid around 25 Euros for a 4 day pass for the vaporettos.

[jefarl]

We stayed at the Santa Chiara in Plaza Roma which was a very nice, small, clean and reasonablly priced hotel when we first went to Venice in 2004 for a 4 night stay. Woudl do it again, especially if we were going/coming from a cruise. It has an express and local vaparetto stop just a few yards away, and you can get to to the crusise ship via foot, land tax and then to either the airport via land bus or taxi when you need to go home. The train station is accross the canal but not easy to get to with a lot of luggage (we found out the hard way!)

[DD]

The name of what we found works well is called the Alilaguna. This is a private water taxi service (by private I mean ownership, not number of people on the taxi -- it's like a public bus). It's 6 euro per person and it leaves a short walk away from San Marco. It's very close to the Tourism Office in Venice. The Alilaguna runs twice an hour (I think this year it was on the 10s and the 40s) and it's about 1/2 hour ride to the port. Once you get off the Alilaguna, it could be a 3-5 min walk or a 10-15 min walk depending on which berth your ship is in. Unfortunately, ours was in the far berth so it took us about 15 min to walk. It was an easy walk though. There were no steps, just ramps.

 

There's some distinction between vaporetto and Alilaguna. I believe their routes are different. I know that people often call the Alilaguna the vaporetto or vaporetti but they're not exactly the same thing. I think (and I'm not positive) that the vaporetto stays just in Venice proper but the Alilaguna goes between the airport, cruise port, Venice proper, and the islands. Anyway, whatever the distinction, I'm positive that you want to ask for the Alilaguna to get from the airport to Venice and from Venice to the cruise port. I took Rick Steves' word on this and he was correct! It worked so easily for us in early November. Hope this helps!