Grand Canal

The most beautiful street in Europe

Noteworthy for: Although the canal is nearly four kilometres long, only four bridges cross it - Ponte di Rialto, Ponte dell'Accademia, Ponte degli Scalzi and Ponte della Constituzione.
Snaking its way through the centre of the city from Santa Lucia train station in the northwest to St Mark's Basin in the south, the Grand Canal is the lifeblood of Venice.

Aside from its obvious trading and navigation uses, the canal was where rich Venetians would build their palazzi to show off their wealth and social standing, and it remains one of the world's greatest shop windows, almost laughably romantic and opulent.
History buffs can trace the chronology of the buildings erected along the route - everything from Fondaco houses, to Byzantine, Gothic and Baroque palaces. The Canal is also the setting for several regatti, as well as the famous festival of Santa Maria della Salute. Vaporetto route numbers 1 and 2 both traverse the length of the canal, and are a cheap way to see the sights.