Venice: a canalside city guide

Setting off for a weekend in Europe's most romantic city, there's just one question: can Venice live up to the fairy-tale? Stepping out of a water-taxi to join the floating city in time for tea, you discover at once that the 'Cornetto' ad fantasy is a reality but for one thing: the ice cream is better.

The history

After the collapse of the Roman Empire, the natives took refuge on small islets and sandbanks off Italy's northeast coast. They sank wooden posts into the muddy waters of the Adriatic and built settlements linked by bridges. A city thrived and by the time of the Crusades, Venice was the trading centre of the world. When this waned in the 19th century, Venice reinvented itself as a tourist destination.

The must-see

St Mark's Square is the hub of Venice and its picture-postcard piazza teems with 14 million visitors a year. The Basilica houses the stolen remains of St Mark and is covered in 4,000 square yards of breathtaking gold mosaic. Formerly the political hub of the Empire, the next-door Doge's Palace is now filled with the best Venetian art from the 16th century. There's also an armoury boasting more off-the-wall attractions such as keys that fire poison darts, booby-trapped boxes rigged with pistols, and armour for horses, pets, and children.

And the rest...

When you want to escape the crowds, and you will, head towards the Rialto Bridge for the 13th-century markets selling fish fresh from the boat, home-grown fruit and vegetables. Further north is the relaxed residential area, the Ghetto (where the term originates) with stunning architecture and artisan shops. Venice boasts a fine collection of art at The Accademia Gallery over the Accademia Bridge, with masterpieces by Bellini, Carpaccio, Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese. Nearby is the former home of Peggy Guggenheim with works by Picasso, Kandinsky, Miró, Pollock and Max Ernst.

Getting about

Join the hordes of tourists queuing for gondolas and you'll set yourself back a fair wedge of euros as well as several leagues in the credibility stakes. For a more authentic experience, do as the locals do and take the waterbus (vaporetto), a gondola ferry across the Grand Canal (traghetto) ferry, or hire your own boat. Venice isn't big and it's possible to get from one end to the other in an hour on foot, providing you don't lose your way in the maze of small streets. But meandering amongst crumbling grandeur and picturesque bridges, in a city that just oozes romance means that being lost has never been so much fun.

Where to eat
If there's one thing the Venetians do better than romance it's food. Fresh, Mediterranean seafood meets the spices and flavours of the Byzantine East to create the unique cuisine of Venice. There's food to fit every budget. From stalls selling pistachio ice cream, spiced wine, pizza and paninis, to osterias where you can pick from a 'cicheti', a mini menu similar to Spanish tapas.

Venetians enjoy an 'ombra' – a tiny glass of wine that holds no more than a few sips - while standing in the street, and then cruise from osteria to osteria from late afternoon until dinner. For something more substantial find a 'trattoria' and try a Venetian delicacy such as cuttlefish cooked in its own ink on polenta (not one for the faint hearted). If eating black goo served on white goo isn't your thing, sample the light, fresh ravioli rounded off with pannacotta and a big glasses of soave. For a treat, try 'da Fiore', Venice's only Michelin-starred restaurant serving magnificent seafood and carpaccio.

Where to stay

Nothing much happens past 9.30pm in Venice so there's no better excuse to buy a bottle of the local strawberry cocktail 'Fragolino', and head back to your hotel for an early night. For intimate, traditional 'locandi' (small hotels) the 'Ca' Pisani' (00 39-041 240 1411), is great for style and comfort or the more funky Design Hotels (0800 169 8817). For somewhere really special, the 'Danieli', next to the Doge's Palace, is the best address in town with wonderful views of the lagoon (Castello 4196; 00 39-041 522 6480).

When to go

Venice has sunk in the last 100 years, a result of mainland industries pumping water out of the aquifer below the city so go now before you can only visit with waders. The waterlogged walkways can whiff a bit on a hot summer's day but the fun of messing about in boats in a clement clime should more than make up for any pong for the summer visitor. Venice is equally stunning in the winter sunshine, when the mists roll in off the Adriatic, and if you visit late February you'll catch the Carnival.

Getting there

British Airways flies from Birmingham, Edinburgh, Gatwick and Manchester; EasyJet flies to Marco Polo airport from Gatwick, Bristol and East Midlands; and Ryanair flies from Dublin, Liverpool, Shannon and Stansted to Treviso, a 20-minute bus ride from Venice's Piazzale Roma. You can get to Venice from Marco Polo airport on the waterbus but it's worth upping your budget and taking a water taxi to arrive in style. Pay at the booth inside the airport to avoid being overcharged and enjoy your own private glass-roofed boat to smooch your way the 20 minutes from the airport to the door of your hotel.

For further information contact the Italian Tourist Board (020 7408 1254). Tour operators Travelsphere (0800 567 7372), British Airways Holidays and Thomson offer competitive packages.