Are you planning a road trip to Venice? Learn how to get to Venice by car and how to find a safe parking in Venice Italy.
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🚗 Getting to Venice by Car
Venice is a city consisting of several islands located in northern Italy.
The city doesn’t have roads but instead water channels, making it completely car-free.
Venice has a lot to offer and there are plenty of things to do in Venice. You should definitely visit Venice with your own or a rental car, on a roadtrip through Italy.
From Vienna, you can either take the route over Slovenia, Maribor, Ljubljana OR over Klagenfurt, Villach and Udine. Both routes take about 6 hours to Venice from Vienna.
Driving from Austria from the direction of Salzburg over the Dolomites (alps) to Venice takes about 4 hours. The landscape is beautiful, and the last bit is a highway. The toll is about 10 Euros.
Another route from the direction of Innsbruck in Austria, or if you are coming from Germany, is the Brenner Pass, via the Italian province of South Tyrol. You have to use the Austrian highway, and you need a paid highway sticker for that and the Brenner costs about 20 Euro to cross.
From Trieste take the E70 and in about 2 hours you are in Venice.
If you are coming from Verona or the Lake Garda, take the A4 for 1 1/2 hours to Venice.
Traveling from Milan to Venice take 3 hours over the A4 state highway.
Arriving via Turin and you can take the same A4 autostrada. The traveling time is about 4 hours to Venice.
Getting from Bologna to Venice is a 2-hour drive on the A13 freeway and from Padua just 40 minutes via the E70 motorway.
Venice is also one of the day trips from Bologna, so you could just enjoy the city as a stopover to Venice or visit nearby towns.
From Florence, it takes about 3 hours on a good day and if you take the fast highway and not the scenic one.
Italian highways have toll passes. You take the ticket at the entry point and pay at the exit, cash, or card.
🅿️ Parking in Venice Italy
Coming by car to Venice can be a bit daunting because you can’t just get a hotel on the island with a parking spot in the premises. The buildings in Venice are surrounded by water.
You have two options.
Either you book a hotel on one of the Venice islands or the historic center and park the car in one of the huge parking garages at the entrance of the city.
Or you stay on the mainland, in Mestre, at a hotel with parking included.
There are a couple of high-story parking lots at the entrance of the main island, this is the Tronchetto parking area in Venezia. Parking spaces are priced somewhere between 20-32 € per day.
Options for car parking in venice Italy is tight and getting there ain’t that easy. You need to cross the same bridge, which the tram and buses use. So, it can get crowded and super stressful!
There is a parking lot in Mestre (mainland) located near the bridge and next to a bus and tram stop.
It’s a better option because it’s cheaper, only 10€ per day, and you don’t have to cross the bridge.
🛥 Getting around in Venice
Public Transport
Public Transport is great in Venice! It’s straightforward, well connected, not all too expensive, and most importantly safe, even at night.
To get into the main Venice island, you will need to cross the large bridge by tram or bus.
The tram and bus pass by every 20 minutes or so up until 1 am, then a night bus or tram takes over.
The tickets can be bought in Tabacco stores, vending machines, or so-called ACTV offices.
Look out for the large T sign, which means they sell tickets there.
The main tram and bus stop, Piazzale Roma, is located at the west of Venice island, right next to the Ponte della Libertà.
For example, a one-way ticket from Carpenedo in Mestre main land to the historical city of Venice will cost you €1,50.
To move between the islands, take the Vaporetto. That’s the name of the public water bus ferry system.
A one-way boat ticket for 75 minutes is priced at €7,50.
If you plan on using the tram, bus, and boats a lot to get around, I recommend you get a 24-hour ticket priced at € 20.
You have to validate your tickets when you enter the bus, tram, or Vaporetto. Look out for the white card reader with colorful buttons.
Taxi
The former city island nation might not have roads to accommodate taxis, but you will be surprised to see so-called water taxi.
They are simply boats that take people around on the water instead of a car on a road.
You will find water taxis at the entrance of Venice, right next to the bus and train station. From there you can get a ride to the city center, to the piazza san marco, doge’s palace or rialto bridge which will save you a lot of time.
