Things to do in Venice & the Dolomites

In Venice's San Marco area, see St Mark's Basilica and its gem-set Pala d'Oro, then the Doge's Palace, where the visit continues through the Bridge of Sighs to the New Prisons. Glide along the canals in a gondola, cross the Rialto Bridge over the Grand Canal, and take a boat from Fondamenta Nove to Murano's Glass Museum and Burano's Lace Museum. The area also covers the Arena di Verona, a Roman amphitheatre that stages summer opera, and Seceda in the Dolomites, where two cable cars from Ortisei reach a 2,500 m viewpoint facing the jagged Odle peaks.

Good to knowBook St Mark's Basilica online; at the Doge's Palace, standard tickets have no fixed entry slot, but the Secret Itinerary tours are by reservation only. Gondolas charge the city's fixed fares per boat for up to five people, so board at an official gondola station. The Seceda lifts run in a summer and a winter season and close in between, and the Arena di Verona closes to visits on performance days.