THE DOGE INVITES

Whether you approach this enchanting city by land or sea, your first glimpse of Venice will take your breath away. Once a powerful maritime republic which ruled supreme over Mediterranean trade routes, Venice continues to conquer visitors from far and wide drawing them into her net. Get ready for your capture on this entrancing orientation tour. Your private guide will meet you at your accommodation and lead you on a trail through Venice’s exquisite tracery of waterways and lacework facades, animated with true tales and snippets about the places you pass.

Venice is an archipelago of one hundred and eighteen tiny islands probably first inhabited by refugees escaping from nearby Roman cities, such as Padua, Treviso and Altino, during the Barbarian invasions in the 5th century AD. The city grew under the influence of Byzantium, flourished in the Middle Ages and reached the peak of its splendour during the Renaissance when it became a thriving commercial, cultural and artistic hub.

Make your way to St. Mark’s Square, once the heart of Venice’s political and religious life and today the main tourist attraction of this fabulous floating city. When you reach this wonderful piazza you will be standing in what Napoleon called “the finest salon in Europe” which does indeed appear to be a stunning hall of stone lined with remarkable historic buildings: the Basilica in all its Byzantine glory; the Renaissance clock tower proclaiming the city’s unrivalled wealth and prestige; the elegant arcades of the Procuratie; Sansovino’s ornate Loggetta; the Doge’s Palace, presiding regally over the Serenissima.

Located at the eastern end of the square, St. Mark’s Basilica was originally the doges’ personal place of worship. It was not until 1807, when it became the seat of the Patriarch of Venice, that this private chapel was converted into the city’s cathedral, and henceforth became a public marvel for all to enjoy. Step inside to hear how the construction of the building one thousand years ago was intricately bound up with a theft and the survivors of a storm at sea. The church’s magnificently decorated interior, with its marble inlays, finely carved capitals, jewel-studded altarpiece and, above all, glimmering mosaics covering 8,000 square metres of vaults and domes is an uplifting spectacle that never fails to impress.

Intriguing tales of scandal and conspiracies await you inside the Doge’s Palace, the former residence of the Venetian rulers and a feat of Gothic architecture. Follow your guide through the splendid marble courtyard, up the gold-vaulted staircase, past the doges’ private apartments into the Hall of the Great Council. Here, you will gain a better understanding of the city’s political institutions and take a close look at the priceless works of art by local painters that embellish the walls. An allegorical depiction of the Triumph of Venice by Veronese will draw your gaze to the ceiling while on the wall behind the doge’s throne you will see one of the widest canvas paintings in the world, the Paradise, created by Jacopo Tintoretto and his son Domenico between 1588 and 1592. To this duo we also owe the portraits of Venice’s first 76 doges represented on the frieze that runs beneath the ceiling. A macabre tale will explain why one of these paintings has been replaced with a black veil.

Grand monuments, graceful sculptures and decorative reliefs will amaze you as you saunter across the city’s squares and wander through its maze of narrow alleys, over fairy-tale bridges, along its celebrated canals. Busy workshops and bustling markets are as much a part of the Venetian cityscape as its elegant palazzi and pretty courtyards. A visit to the lively Rialto quarter, for almost 1,000 years the financial and commercial heart of the Serenissima, will let you feel the pulse of daily life in Venice, both past and present. Indeed from here it only takes a tiny step of the imagination to glimpse the sights and scents of exotic wares and oriental spices that merchants of old would have traded on this very spot. As you feast your eyes on brightly coloured displays of succulent, seasonal produce and a wide variety of fresh fish and seafood, your guide will paint a vivid picture of the scene in medieval times, when this site was Europe’s most important business centre.

In the afternoon, following lunch and time at leisure, reach the dock, hop aboard a gondola and soak up the charm and unique atmosphere of Venice on a magical ride with your private gondolier. While you glide along the shimmering waters of the city’s enchanting canals, the breathtaking views of the lagoon may seem like aspects of a dream… but this is a reverie come true.

After the gondola ride spend the rest of the evening at leisure.

Click your way through Venice on this private photo walk. Under the guidance of an expert photographer you will polish your skills and capture fleeting impressions of this magical, floating city. Venice is awash with irresistible views begging to be caught through your lens. The fabulous architecture, dream-like atmosphere and ever-changing light playing on its waters make the city a treasure trove for adventurous picture seekers. Participants will have the opportunity to fine-tune their technical skills, stretch their creativity and pick up tricks for a masterly shot.

This activity can be customised to suit the needs, interests and level of expertise of all participants. Budding photographers, amateurs, veterans or curious new-comers to the art of photography will enjoy a revealing experience – whatever their knowledge – as they immortalize the unrepeatable moments of a delightful morning in Venice. Your photographer-tutor will explain how weather conditions can affect the quality of an image, show how diverse perspectives generate a variety of moods and feelings, teach you the basic rules of composition as well as offer encouragement to break them, when necessary, to obtain a powerful image.

You will be led past some of Venice’s most enchanting settings and, by using light as your paint brush, sketch your en plein air impressions of this ethereal city of water and stone. While you wander through the exquisite tracery of calli and picturesque campielli, across fairy-tale bridges, past lacework facades, your photographer will illuminate your path by pointing out captivating details and turning the spotlight onto the city’s lesser-known areas. From behind the lens of your camera you will glimpse off-the-beaten-path locations and peek into the city’s unique spirit. A lasting collection of Venetian memories for your holiday album is the souvenir you will take home with you.

In the afternoon, following lunch and time at leisure, discover how Venice’s allure was to influence some of Italy’s greatest Renaissance painters on a visit to the Church of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari and the Scuola Grande di San Rocco. Inspired perhaps by the city’s magical mix of water, light and stone, its shimmering canals and the sparkling golden mosaics inside St. Mark’s Basilica, the artists of the Venetian School of painting – a distinctive artistic style that thrived in Venice between the 15th and 17th centuries – are known for their astonishing, ground-breaking and sensuous use of colour. Brilliant hues, dynamic compositions and psychological insight characterise the works of these masters whose sense of enjoyment and lust for life spill out of the canvas.

The Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari is one of Venice’s largest and most remarkable religious complexes. First built by the frari – meaning brothers – of the Franciscan Order of Friars Minor in the 13th century, the church underwent major renovation work in the 14th and 15th centuries when it acquired its Gothic layout. Today the austere, bare facade conceals some of Venice’s best-loved painted masterpieces. Your guide will point out the church’s major highlights and illustrate the lives, painterly language and extraordinary artistic careers of their celebrated producers.

You will admire Titian’s glorious Assumption of the Virgin, completed in 1518 and described more than two centuries later by Neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova as “the most beautiful painting in the world”. Hanging over the main altar, this colossal oil on wood is indeed indisputably one of the finest examples of Venetian Renaissance painting and strikes the onlooker with its sharp contrast of light and shadow, masterful use of a rich palette and intense emotional expressiveness. Among the gems that you will have the opportunity to admire inside what is indeed a treasure chest are also Titian’s Pala Pesaro, Giovanni Bellini’s Madonna and Child with Saints, Bartolomeo Vivarini’s Triptych of St. Mark as well as Donatello’s wooden sculpture of St. John the Baptist.

The largest collection of paintings by Jacopo Tintoretto is preserved within the walls of the Great School of San Rocco, originally the seat of a confraternity of wealthy Venetian citizens founded in 1478 and named after the venerated St. Roch, who protected the faithful from sickness and the plague. Between 1564 and 1587 Tintoretto and his pupils were entrusted with the decoration of three halls of the complex – the Sala dell’Albergo, Sala Terrena and Sala Superiore – with scenes from the Old and New Testaments. More than sixty canvases depict the story of the Bible, from the Fall to the Redemption, and stand out for their audacious compositions, rapid brushstrokes and dramatic chiaroscuro effects. Listen as your guide takes you through the sacred sequence and explains why this extraordinary painting cycle is known today as “the Sistine Chapel of Venice”.

Finally, get ready for a fun Venetian adventure. What better way to soak up the local way of life than an exhilarating rowing lesson complete with breaks for wine and tasty cicchetti? A hands-on introduction to navigating the canals, exquisite bites and the local elixir are the prime ingredients of this truly Venetian experience that is sure to be unforgettable. Immerse yourself in the city’s cultural and gastronomic traditions as you learn how to propel your raft and appreciate culinary treats that are peculiar to Venice.

A private water taxi will transport you to the starting point of the rowing lesson in the district of Cannaregio. Here, under the guidance of an expert instructor, you will enjoy a fun voga experience aboard a batellina coda di gambero, a traditional hand-crafted “shrimp-tailed” boat. Extremely rare nowadays – only seven boats of this kind still exist today – these batelline were once a very common means of transport, as attested by their appearance in works by Venetian landscape painters Carpaccio and Canaletto.

Stable, spacious and deep, these boats are suitable for participants of all ages and levels of experience, from beginners to voga champions. You will learn the basic strokes for rowing at the prow and at the stern and how to manoeuvre the batellina through Venice’s meandering canals. As you glide along the waters of the lagoon, stop at two bacari for tastings of cicchetti, accompanied by a glass of wine or sparkling Prosecco as a reward for your efforts. Bacari are cosy taverns where locals come to socialise, relax and indulge in pre-dinner drinks and snacks and probably derive their name from the God of wine, Bacchus. Cicchetti – from the Latin word ciccus, meaning a small quantity – consist of small plates of delicious finger food, prepared with a wide variety of fresh ingredients, and are Venice’s answer to Milan’s aperitivo and Spain’s tapas. Mouth-watering assortments might consist of fried snacks, beans, crostini bread slices with different toppings, cheeses and an array of fish dishes such as anchovies, cuttlefish, octopus, sardines, tuna croquets and the local source of pride, baccalà mantecato – creamed dried cod. Savour Venetian nibbles aboard your batellina boat and drink in the delights of the lagoon, before rowing back to Cannaregio.

After the experience a water taxi will take you back to your hotel.

Leave the tourist bustle of the city centre and sail off to explore two of the most popular Venetian islands on a half-day boat excursion. As repositories of the lagoon’s centuries-old traditions and manufacturing heritage, Murano and Burano play an essential role in your Venice experience. Don’t miss the chance to discover the history and customs of these magical islands and plunge into their timeless, dream-like atmosphere.

After breakfast meet your private guide and water chauffeur at your hotel and reach the first port of call on your lagoon excursion: Murano. Its 5,500 residents are proud guardians of the island’s long and still-thriving tradition dating back to 1291, when glass artisans were forced to move their kilns here from Venice because of fire risks. In a city of predominantly wooden buildings the profusion of glass-fusing ovens posed a constant threat. However this wasn’t the only reason that led Venice’s officials to relocate glass makers to Murano. Fear that the secrets of the trade might become known to potential rivals was just as dangerous, and possibly more so, than fires. By confining glass workers to a remote island, the republic sought to control glass production and trade and, most of all, to ensure that glass making techniques would remain a Venetian monopoly. The art of glass making helped publicise the island’s fame worldwide and it was the talented masters working here who produced the first Venetian crystal. This delicate, elegant material was highly prized and techniques of the craft were closely guarded secrets, the betrayal of which was once punishable by death. Today, however, you are free to watch glass blowers at work and see for yourself at close quarters how these Venetian craftspeople deftly pull from the furnace and model a dazzling array of splendid artefacts employing skills passed down through generations. These include wine stoppers, jewelry, vases, chandeliers and so much more.

After a pleasant walk in Murano rejoin your water chauffeur and set off for Burano, a quiet fishing village of about 2,300 residents, well known for its lace making industry. The origins of Venetian lace are lost in the mists of time. Legend has it that a fisherman went out to sea a few days before his wedding and encountered a group of mermaids while fishing. So love-stricken with his betrothed was he that the mermaids’ charms and songs failed to bewitch him. Impressed with the young man’s utter devotion, the mermaids decided to reward him with a magnificent piece of cloth embroidered by the froth of the waves. On their wedding day the fisherman gave the cloth to his delighted bride who immediately set about creating another similar piece of cloth… and that’s how the famed Burano lace was born.

Here you will admire a range of lovingly handcrafted goods including doilies, tablecloths, handkerchiefs, wedding veils and babies’ booties expertly woven by lace artisans using the same techniques as their ancestors in the 1600s, which is when Burano’s popularity spread across Europe. Intricate and beautifully stitched Burano lace creations were in high demand with nobles and royalties as attested by portrait paintings of illustrious personalities wearing outlandishly fancy lace finery. It is said that King Louis XIV wore a Burano lace collar for his coronation and the inventory of the English Queen Elizabeth I’s wardrobe provides evidence of her love of Venetian lace.

The striking polychrome homes of the islanders and the shifting hues reflected in the water are another typical feature of this uncannily beautiful spot which has long attracted landscape artists. The tradition of painting houses in highly-saturated hues may well be related to the island’s history as a fishing village. The bright colours which once helped fishermen to navigate through the fog and find their way back home are today a life-size canvas beckoning the modern visitor into the frame.

After a tranquil morning on these charming islands, you’ll be ready to cruise back to the hectic flurry of Venice again. Happy sailing!

In the afternoon, following lunch and time at leisure, relive the atmosphere of a bygone era on an exclusive costume fitting experience. You will enjoy a promenade and photo shoot along Venice’s canals dressed up in sumptuously decorated costumes.

The roots of the Venetians’ passion for fashion, opulence and luxury date back hundreds of years. You may not know that during the Renaissance Venetian nobles used to spend huge amounts of their fortunes on clothing to the extent that the city’s officials decided to introduce sumptuary laws with the aim of preserving economic stability. Clothing was used as a display of grandeur and social status and restrictions were put in place because reckless spending on fashion inhibited prospective marriage proposals as families could no longer afford to fund adequate dowries. However, fashion was also essential to Venice’s economy and the city dominated the textile industry for over two hundred years. Venice was renowned for the production of quality textiles that were in high demand throughout Europe. From the 13th to the 16th centuries the city was a major player in the creation of silk and velvet and also produced wool, cotton and lace.

The expertise of yesteryear’s weavers and tailors keeps inspiring and stimulating creativity today, as you will have the chance to see (and touch!) first hand. You will meet your private assistant in your hotel lobby and reach a famous costume atelier, displaying haute couture creations by one of the city’s best-loved and highly esteemed designers. Here beautifully hand-crafted and exquisitely embroidered velvet, damask and silk costumes are created to reproduce period clothing from the 17th century to the early 1900s. The distinctive style of the atelier’s creations results from a unique combination of precious brocades, traditional manufacturing techniques and inventiveness. Masks, accessories, feathers, headpieces and wigs are also available for the joy of collectors and fashion amateurs, alike. A member of staff will give you an introduction to the atelier’s collection and help you select and try on the perfect outfit.

Later, have the best fun you can imagine as you stroll along Venice’s enchanting canals dressed up as Venetian aristocrats. Your professional photographer will ensure the unforgettable moments of a magical Venetian reverie live forever.

After the experience spend the rest of the day at leisure.

After breakfast and check out, which will take place before 10:00 or 11:00 AM, meet your private water chauffeur outside your hotel and head for Piazzale Roma. Here your private driver will be waiting ready to take you to the airport or your next travel destination.