Paola was delightful and a patient teacher of rowing. Even with years of sculling, my son took a…read morelittle coaching to pick up the movement. Once he did, he said it was no more strenuous than walking. Paola guided the boat around some lovely, quiet parts of Venice as our son powered the boat.

Absolute highlight of our multiweek honeymoon in Italy. I'm so glad we did this…read more This was so much fun to do. I loved being able to tool around the canals of Venice with my husband and to see the city from the lagoon. It made the rest of the day sparkle, and I would 100% do it again when next in Venice. The analysis is simple. Eighty Euros for a 30 minute or so trip on a gondola for two (guys, it might destroy romance as we know it, but it costs more for singing to happen in boats apparently) or for the SAME PRICE a 90 minute lesson on a gondola where you can get people to sing for free! The administration of booking was painless on our end, and demonstrated really good customer service on Row Venice's side. Once we knew this was a thing, we reached out to book a session. They were able to email us back, in English, and helped to troubleshoot my inability to book and pay through the website the first time around. They were very patient with us and our lack of wifi and accommodated our last minute reservation. We lucked out and had two instructors and both were really friendly and personal. I also really appreciated how there were multiple couples who had all booked at the same time and each of us got our own gondola and instructor. Final props is that this place is a nonprofit entity that supports rowing culture in Venice. Support this group when you're next in Venice. It'll be a really fun day in a really beautiful town.

A little expensive but very convenient. Nice large Mercedes van to the dock. Transferred to…read morebeautiful private wooden boat. We skipped the gondola ride and enjoyed this convenient transportation from the airport instead. Tip: grab some beers at the dock to enjoy your boat ride.

We used Blitz as our VIP Private Transfer while in Venice and staying at the JW Marriott. This…read moreentailed both a private SUV service and a beautiful boat trip to the island (we had the same model Angelina Jolie's character drove in "The Tourist". Exceptional, punctual and courteous service. Each of our Drivers and Captains were top-notch and helped to make our beautiful journey all the better! Everyone was as friendly as can be! We highly recommend Blitz for all your transportation needs while in Venice.

Awful customer service even for repeat customers. Booking error not addressed, no options given,…read morenothing. Avoid and never use

The driver was exceptionally rude to me and disrespectful in front of my children.. acting like a…read morechild himself. Single mom with twins- booked a 5 am weeks in advance and confirmed myself 24 hr ahead. We were running 5 mins late... literally running.... And he started calling my phone 5:01, 5:02, 5:03, and 5:04. Separate calls. When we got there at 5:05 he snapped at me, threw his arms up, tossed his head and more. Getting out with twins alone at 5 was ha d enough... 5 mins late is not great but come on! Really!?

This is a MUST DO while in Venice! Nicola made us feel like true locals. We learned so much from…read morehim regarding the history of rowing. He took us to the Grand Canal to row as well as small quiet canals. He took wonderful photos for us too! We could not have imagined how great this experience would be! Forget the touristy gondola rides and absolutely book this lesson to row! You will not regret it!

What a wonderful day we spent on a "topo" and a "San pietro." Our group of five adults and six…read morechildren from 10-17 had an amazing day seeing islands of Venice and sights tourists don't normally see the certosa and the fort andrea(?) that kept Venice safe. Making it the world power it was in a be past due to its small manoverable ships. The knowledge of the young men made us see what entice was like and shared with us their passion that it would control bye to exist even with the encroachment of the huge cruise ships and continue inued dreggung if the canals. bravo to Venice on board

I was very disappointed. We didn't get to explore many of the canals, rather spending a large…read moreportion of the tour at the edge of the city and the lagoon. Further, the guide didn't seem to care much about the quality of our experience. She literally said "this is a group of younger people, so we can do a chill tour" -- I took this to mean she would be informal, but it turned out to mean she put minimal effort into educating us about the city or the ensuring we were getting to see the sights. There were people in the tour more interested in taking pictures, but instead of making sure that we stayed on track the guide just sat in her kayak while they took selfies. It was fun to paddle around in a kayak, and doing so at sunset was absolutely beautiful. But overall, this "tour" is definitely not worth the price.

I had SO much fun! Instructor and guide, Anna, was so knowledgeable and patient. She was such a…read morepleasure to talk to, it felt like a local friend was showing me around Venice. She had a friend with her--Andrea--who was also a local and SO NICE and KNOWLEDGEABLE! When I could not hear Anna, Andrea would relay the information back to me. As well as ask her in Italian really fast if I had any questions. She may become a guide as well so if you can somehow request either of these two girls you will get your full money's worth! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED and will 100000% be back next time in Venice!

We did the ghost tour. It was very informative and historical. The tour guide was energetic and…read morepretty loud for a big group. This was our first day in Venice so once night fell and we were being lead around very dark corners it was nice to be with a guide as the tourists disappeared. I loved the folklore told and learned a lot about Venice from this tour. I'd highly recommend it!

One of the best tours we had while on vacation. They were very organized and professional. We…read moreexplored parts of Venice on a very nice motor boat that accommodated a group of 8 people. Our tour guide was excellent. He explained the sights and took us through the less touristy areas which was awesome because we experienced the city like locals. It was a wonderful hour long ride and very well worth the price. There's no way we would've covered so much on gondolas and we would've paid double! So glad we experienced the canals with Avventure Bellissime. I recommend them and look forward to taking another tour with them on a return visit!

VenetoInside.com is an authorized third-party resale site that focuses on activities and tickets to…read moreattractions in the Veneto region. While most people associate the Veneto with Venice, it also covers popular cities Verona (of Romeo and Juliet fame) and Padua (a university town). Most people know about VenetoInside.com if they are doing research for independent travel as they are the authorized retailers of skip-the-line tickets to St. Mark's Basilica and St. Mark's Campanile (bell tower). The tickets are on sale during peak season (April 1 to November 2) and can be booked 10 minutes before the chosen time. Skip-the-line for the bell tower can be booked from April 1 to October 31. When you purchase the tickets make sure to follow the directions exactly. I highly recommend buying skip-the-line tickets especially during peak tourist season. Though the basilica doesn't charge admission, you are not allowed to skip the line. With limited vacation time, it's certainly worth paying a few euros to maximize your sightseeing. https://www.venetoinside.com/attraction-tickets-in-veneto/tickets/skip-the-line-saint-marks-basilica/ https://www.venetoinside.com/attraction-tickets-in-veneto/tickets/st-marks-bell-tower-skip-the-line-entry/ Alternatively I bought a guided tour ("St. Mark's Cathedral and it's Treasures") which is a tour with skip-the-line privileges and admission to the Treasury and Pala d'Oro, which is normally separate from the basilica. They also promote exclusive access to the St. Mark's Baptistery and Zen Chapel. I had no problem with buying my ticket and redeeming it for my tour. My only issue was that the guide's accent was so thick I had to supplement my visit with Rick Steves' audioguide. Not only was I able to understand much more, that audioguide was free. https://www.venetoinside.com/tours-activities-in-veneto/tour/venice-st-marks-cathedral-and-its-treasures-skip-the-line/ The other popular option is skip-the-line guided tours of the basilica and Doge's Palace, the other major attraction in Venice. This makes sense as they are literally next to each other. The only reason why I didn't do this is because I wanted to do the Secret Itineraries tour, which is sold separately and bought directly from the Doge's Palace website. *** Another popular excursion in Venice is visiting the islands in the Venetian lagoon: Murano, Burano and Torcello. There are two options for doing this. https://www.venetoinside.com/tours-activities-in-veneto/tour/half-day-excursion-murano-burano-torcello/ (guided tour) https://www.venetoinside.com/tours-activities-in-veneto/tour/hop-on-hop-off-venice-islands-boat-tour/ (DIY option) The DIY option did not exist at the time of my visit (~July 2018) so I chose the half-day visit. I made the most of my half-day tour as it included a glassware demonstration in Murano and transportation via chartered boat (as opposed to a vaporetto) with information given in English, Italian, Spanish and French. Subsequent visits I will do the DIY option as this will give me time to explore the colorful houses in Burano and have lunch and visit the chapel/climb the bell tower in Torcello. While perusing the reviews of the activities it seems like whoever responds to the negative reviews treats the review writer with disdain, mostly accusing the person for not paying attention to the instructions. I found this quite rude. There is a certain level of decency that should be respected when responding to negative reviews - hospitality 101. I hope they take this into consideration.

Easy to buy skip the line tix for the basilica and just show them on your phone. Very convenient…read more Don't pass up the 'extra' tours inside the basilica. They are all worth the extra few Euros. We especially enjoyed the last one which let you go upstairs to see the amazing gold mosaics up close and most wonderful you can go out on the roof overlooking the piazza- stunning views. No pics allowed inside but the vistas from this roof terrace were super. Can't believe I missed this on an earlier visit.