Free Things to Do on Vacation in Venice, Italy

Here is a list of free things to do on vacation in Venice.

Free Internet
You will probably be much too busy enjoying the amazing sights in Venice, but you might want to email your family back home, check your stocks or even just take a break and visit your favorite comedy website. You can get a free half hour of internet use per day at the Telecom Italia Future Centre.

The following information about free things to do in Venice is excerpted from Italy Heaven

Venice Itself
Its canals, bridges, architecture, lagoon and lanes, can be explored and admired totally free. Put on some sturdy walking shoes and enjoy the view.

Churches
St. Mark's Basilica, the greatest of Venice's churches, is free to enter (expect queues, don't try to enter with a rucksack or indecent clothing). The terrace, museum and chapels have entrance fees.
Santa Maria della Salute - the main part of the church is free, as are occasional organ vespers.
San Vidal - this church, by the Accademia Bridge, is used for evening concerts. In the daytime you can enter free.
I Carmini - the Church of Santa Maria del Carmelo contains paintings by Lorenzo Lotto and Cima da Conegliano.

Concerts and Events
Free events in Venice are not always well-publicized, but keep an eye on posters around town. Touring foreign choirs will often give free concerts in Venice's churches, there are local church festivals for saints' days, and occasionally you'll just stumble across free live music in a piazza or bar. During heritage week in May there are free events organised in museums, and by scrutinising the 'what's on' leaflet from the tourist office you might find more cultural initiatives that don't cost anything. Big festivals and rowing events can be watched without charge, and during the Carnival there are lots of free entertainments in St. Mark's Square, as well as lots of costumes to admire. Check the list below to see if there is a festival or rowing event during the time of your visit.

Carnival (Carnevale) - This is the big one, Venice's greatest tourist event. St. Mark's Square fills with glamorous, sinister figures in mask and costumes. There are masked balls and public parades and crowds of visitors from all around the world. The Carnival takes place in February, during the ten days leading up to Shrove Tuesday. More about the Carnival.

La Sensa - The Festa della Sensa celebrates the relationship between Venice and the sea. It involves a procession of boats traditionally led by the doge (nowadays the mayor) who throws a ring (nowadays a wreath) into the waves to symbolise a marriage between Venice and the sea (or Venice's dominion over the sea, depending on interpretation). The event follows Ascension Day, and in 2007 took place on 20th May.

The Vogalonga - This is a huge and cheerful rowing event which takes place on a Sunday in May or June (in 2007 the date was 27th May). Thousands of participants row around a 30km course, reclaiming the lagoon from motorised boats. More about the Vogalonga.

The Biennale - The Biennale started as an art show every two years, and has grown to become an umbrella organisation covering a large range of events, including the Venice Film Festival. The main art exhibition takes place in odd-numbered years, and in even-numbered years is replaced by an architecture show. In 2007 the event runs from 10th June to 21st November. More about the Biennale.

Festa del Redentore - Every year Venice gives thanks for its relief from a severe outbreak of plague in the late sixteenth century. A temporary bridge of boats crosses the Giudecca Canal to the Church of the Redentore. The religious celebrations are held on the third Sunday of July. The night before (Saturday) is a great party with feasting followed by night-time fireworks and the weekend finishes with a gondola regatta. The dates in 2007 were the 14th and 15th July 2007. More about the Festa del Redentore.

The Seaside
In Italy you are usually expected to pay to go to the seaside. Beaches are lined with establishments where you must pay to rent a sunbed alongside hundred of others sunbathers. However, there is a stretch of 'free beach' (spiaggia libera) in easy reach on the Lido, straight over the island from the vaporetto stop. Take something to lie on, as the gritty surface isn't particularly clean.