Gondola Ride in Venice

There is no getting around it: the gondola is the image of Venice, and gliding along a narrow canal under bridges and past water-gates, close enough to touch the palace walls, is a genuinely magical way to see the city. Gondolas are long, flat-bottomed black boats, built asymmetrically so that a single gondolier standing at the stern can row with one oar and still go straight, and they are still built by hand in a few squeri, the traditional boatyards, one of which, San Trovaso in Dorsoduro, you can see from the Zattere. Gondoliers are licensed professionals who train for years and pass exams, and the profession has historically passed down through families; the first woman to earn a full licence did so only in 2010. A standard ride lasts about thirty minutes and follows a set loop from a gondola station — a stazio — through a network of side canals, sometimes with a short stretch on the Grand Canal. Fares are fixed by the city authorities for daytime and evening rides, set per gondola rather than per person, and a gondola takes a small group, so sharing with family or friends makes the price far easier to swallow. Singing is not included, and accordion serenades are a separate, pricier arrangement. Booking a shared or private ride online through a platform such as Tiqets fixes the price, the meeting point and the length before you arrive, which removes the haggling and uncertainty that put some visitors off. If you want the city for almost nothing, cross the Grand Canal on a traghetto, a plain gondola ferry rowed by two gondoliers, where Venetians traditionally stand.

Choosing your stazio is choosing your ride. The stations around San Marco and the Rialto are the busiest, and at peak times you may spend part of the half hour in a queue of gondolas under the Bridge of Sighs. Stations a little further away, in Dorsoduro, Castello or Cannaregio, tend to offer quieter canals and a calmer pace. Ask the gondolier which canals the loop takes and whether it includes a stretch on the Grand Canal, and agree on the length and the official fare before you set off. Evening rides cost more, and the sunset hour is the most requested; early morning, when the light is soft and the canals are empty, is underrated and often cheaper.

Shared versus private: a shared ride, sold by tour operators and on Tiqets, puts you in a gondola with other visitors for a fixed per-person price, which suits solo travellers and couples on a budget. A private ride gives you the whole boat; for a family or a group of friends, it is often similar in cost per head and far more romantic. Gondolas carry only a small number of passengers, so large groups will need two. Children are welcome, and gondoliers are used to helping people in and out of the rocking boat; wear flat shoes and travel light.

Expectations, honestly: the ride is short, the price is high for thirty minutes, and you will not have the canals to yourself in summer. But almost nobody regrets it. The trick is to make it count — combine it with something you were going to do anyway, such as a ride that ends near your dinner reservation, or book a combination that adds a guided walk or a museum visit. For the experience of the water without the cost, take a traghetto across the Grand Canal and the vaporetto Line 1 for the length of it, and save the gondola for one special moment.