Venice’s Grand Canal, a major tourist destination in its own right, is also a vital link to many other tourist sites. It’s Venice’s main thoroughfare, curving back in a reverse S through the city’s center, as well as its bustling marketplace, packed with traffic including anything from gondolas to barges transporting vegetables.
Anyone of importance in Venice had to have a palace overlooking the Grand Canal, and palazzi from all throughout the city exhibit many architectural styles, including those from the 12th to early 18th centuries.
To view and appreciate all the magnificent palaces properly, the best approach is from the canal itself, since their facades are turned toward the water. One of the best things to do in Venice at night is taking in the opulence of these palaces when the lights are turned on. Starting at San Marco, these sites are organized by the order you’ll view them as you go from Ponte Della Costituzione (the opposite end of the Grand Canal) to the Rialto Bridge. You won’t miss a single thing while navigating the Grand Canal with our helpful guide.
Also, note that some companies may be closed because of current worldwide health and safety concerns.
Ponte della Costituzione (Constitution Bridge)
The community is split on whether or not they like the Santiago Calatrava-designed bridge that was constructed in 2007. While they may not be quite on the same page, they do agree that it is convenient to have a bridge where the Grand Canal meets the bus station and parking garage.
There is no attempt to imitate Venetian architecture in the design, with just the elegant arc of the bridge recalling the early models. Calatrava’s work elsewhere is also recognized in the steel and concrete structure, which is fronted in a mixture of Istrian marble and glass.
Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi
Because it was so remarkable, many other Venetian palaces based their designs on this Venetian Renaissance palace that you see just after San Stae. During the revival period at the end of the 19th century, many features of this structure were emulated across Europe. Construction of the complex was completed between 1480 and 1504, and it was overseen by Mauro Codussi.
Richard Wagner, the German opera composer, and his family often stayed here, and he passed away here in 1883. The palace where he formerly lived has a tiny Wagner museum within it.
Santa Maria di Nazareth
The magnificent church with columns and sculptures on the right, close to the Santa Lucia train station, was constructed in the 1670s by Baldassare Longhena, and Giuseppe Sardi added the façade’s magnificent columns and statues. The church is often known as Gli Scalzi and was built for the Discalced Carmelites.
Equally decorated is the Baroque interior, full of spiral columns, sculptures, frescoes and gold. The third chapel on the left has his painting of Christ praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, while the second chapel on the right has his fresco The Glory of St. Teresa.
Located in front of the church and near the train station, the bridge across the Grand Canal, Ponte degli Scalzi, is the smallest of the spans.
San Stae
While it’s known as Sant’Eustachio, practically anybody uses that name. It was created in 1678 by Giovanni Grassi, who constructed it in the form of a Greek cross, and thirty years later, master-builder Domenico Rossi completed the façade along the Grand Canal.
He is buried in the church and was paid for by Doge Alvise Mocenigo II. Plus, the artworks within are by Tiepolo and Pellegrini, two painters from the early 18th century. Bus stops are available in San Esteban.
Fondamenta Turchi and the Natural History Museum
This old, historical structure in Venice that was once a palace built in the ninth century has been renovated throughout the centuries and is now located across from Palazzo Vendramin-Calergi. It used to be the palatial home of the dukes of Ferrara, who entertained Emperor Frederick III here in 1452 and 1469. The city had taken control of the structure by the early 19th century and tried to restore it to its original 13th-century design.
Regardless of the outcome, this work is still an excellent representation of the Byzantine-Venetian blending of styles that was typical throughout the Middle Ages. The Natural History Museum is housed here, where you may learn about the natural history of the Adriatic and view many exhibits related to animals and geology. Another outstanding display of Venetian well-heads is shown on the ground level. Walk to the museum after exiting San Marcuola and riding a traghetto over the Grand Canal.