Tour of the Lido di Venezia
Boat tour of the Venetian coastline
Boat tour of the Lido di Venezia
Our tour continues along the island of Lido di Venezia, a narrow strip of land about 12 km long that separates and protects the Venetian Lagoon from the Adriatic Sea. Together with Pellestrina and Sant’Erasmo, it is one of the three islands with driveable roads.
The Lido also has a small tourist airport, which, before the construction of Marco Polo Airport in Tessera, served as Venice’s civil airport for regular flights.
The island is home to other noteworthy locations, including the ancient village of Malamocco, mentioned in texts as early as 840, and the village of Alberoni.
In the 19th century, the Lido became one of the most sought-after seaside destinations for European aristocrats, leading to the construction of luxury hotels like the Hotel Excelsior and Hotel des Bains. These hotels were later frequented by the global aristocratic and bourgeois elite.
To this day, the Venice International Film Festival is held at the Lido, at the Palazzo del Cinema.
San Nicolò Church and Bridge
One of the oldest abbeys on the Lido is the Church of San Nicolò, a Catholic place of worship located at the northern end of the island near the San Nicolò inlet, also known as the Port of San Nicolò.
It shares the relics of St. Nicholas with the Basilica of San Nicola in Bari. During the Republic of Venice, a thanksgiving Mass was held here at the end of the Marriage of the Sea ceremony during the Festa della Sensa.
With this ceremony, Venice celebrated its maritime dominion and expressed gratitude to the sea. The Doge, aboard the famous Bucintoro, would throw a ring into the sea as a symbol of Venice’s marriage to it.