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Visiting Venice with young kids – family travel in Italy

If you’re asked to name the most family-friendly destination you can think of, Italy is usually (deservedly) among the first suggestions – but while much of the country if perfect to explore with little ones, visiting Venice with young kids takes a little more planning.

A gondola on one of Venice's canals - why I think Venice with young kids is a great idea for a trip
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There’s no question that there are plenty of things to do in Venice with kids, even if the idea of visiting an art gallery or marvelling over the architecture and churches is not going to be top of your wishlist.

Even just getting from A to B on the vaporetti is huge fun, and one reason that it’s such a memorable city break with kids… but unlike most other cities, you need to feel reasonable certain your kids won’t fall into the first canal they see (which is why I put it off during the toddler years). So here’s what to consider before planning a visit to Venice with young kids is great.

Check out my complete set of travel tips for Venice with kids as well as my pick of the best things to do in Venice with kids here

When to visit Venice with young kids

One of the big bonuses of visiting Venice with young kids is that you can plan your trip for one of the quieter periods.

Do avoid peak summer if you possibly can, when the heat and humidity (plus the crowds) make it a far less pleasant way to explore.

People also flock to Venice for Carnevale, in the two weeks running up to Shrove Tuesday (usually in February) while Easter is also considered peak season, so also usually best avoided.

But in from March to May and September to October are ideal: the temperatures are lovely – you might have to dodge a few showers, but we’ve enjoyed sun and temperatures of 20-22C in October – and there are fewer people around.

Walking around Venice with a baby or toddler

Having no cars in the centre of Venice is a distinct bonus when you’re exploring with kids – but you do need to watch out for the canals instead of the traffic.

There’s nothing between the banks of the canals and the water, which is not only dangerous but dirty – so visiting during that time period between toddlers starting to walk and the age when they are able to understand the risks, is definitely not ideal.

While I strongly believe it’s possible to keep travelling with young kids, Venice is one city break I’d be tempted to postpone until they are older, to avoid spending your entire trip worrying about them falling in.

Gondola on one of the small canals in Venice between warm orange and yellow painted houses - you'll find little bridges over the canals throughout the city if you're visiting Venice with young kids

If you’re planning to use a buggy, be prepared to have to carry it up and down steps to the bridges, manoeuvre narrow winding streets and sometimes uneven surfaces as well as negotiating streets thronged with visitors.

A baby carrier solves that problem but as you’ll probably be doing a lot of walking (and as it’s usually warm in Venice), it’s likely to be hard work if you have a young toddler.

Kids aged under 14 are also the only ones allowed to use scooters and bikes within Venice’s narrow streets but you’ll hit the same problem as with a buggy, so realistically the best way to get around is on foot (including the occasional bribe of gelato) or by boat.

Taking the vaporetto with kids

While the idea of travelling by water might seem overwhelming (although also exciting!), Venice’s transport system really isn’t too complicated to use.

You’re unlikely to get through a family city break in Venice without taking the vaporetto at least once – and honestly, it’s half the fun. An ordinary bus can’t compare to a water bus, after all.

For more tips on getting to Venice from Marco Polo airport, including where to buy tickets, and whether to book a shared water taxi, check out my complete set of tips

Children under six travel free, but otherwise a single journey costs 7,50 Euros for all ages and the ticket is valid for 75 minutes from the time you validate it at the vaporetto stop.

Unless you know you won’t be using the vaporettos much, the day passes are better value though, especially if you’re staying for more than one day. A one-day pass costs 21 Euros, while a 48-hour pass is 30 Euros, a 72-hour pass is 40 Euros and a seven-day pass is 60 Euros.

It also makes it easy to hop onto one of the vaporetti whenever you’ve got kids with tired legs, and taking line 1 along the Grand Canal or line 2 (which runs almost in a loop from San Marco Giardinetti round under the Accademia and Rialto bridges, out to the west past the cruise port and down towards Dorsoduro and Giudecca, then back to San Marco San Zaccaria) is an easy way to see the city.

View along the Grand Canal with its old palazzos - taking a vaporetto is the easiest way to get around Venice with young kids

Planning a gondola ride?

A gondola ride isn’t cheap: prices start from 80 Euros for a 25-30 minute trip during the daytime (120 Euros at night), it’s not the cheapest option.

So if you’re visiting Venice with young kids, you want to feel certain that you won’t be wasting your money. Once your children hit around four, they’re more likely to enjoy the experience than spent the half hour being bored (or trying to climb overboard).

Equally, if you have a baby who might doze, lulled by the rocking water as you soak up the sights, it’s a wonderful memory of family travel in Venice. But once again, it’s not something I’d try with a toddler.

The traghettos – like a larger gondola, crossing the Grand Canal between the bridges – are normally a fantastic way to get a taste of a gondola trip without the price tag, but they’re very wobbly, so not such a good option with younger kids.

Things to do in Venice with young kids

Check out my complete list of the best things to do in Venice with kids for specific attractions to consider – after all, it makes a big difference if you’re planning a city break in Venice with a baby versus a trip with a four-year-old.

And needless to say, all kids are different – I’ve visited cathedrals with my daughter when she was younger and fascinated by the decoration, for example, so you don’t need to rule out the Basilica San Marco if you think your children will be mesmerised by the gold and mosaics.

But if you’re visiting Venice with younger kids, there are a few great options which should definitely be on your family’s list.

Hunt for lions

There are some great games you can play as you explore Venice, including the change to hunt for the lions dotted all over – the winged lions representing the city’s patron saint St Mark.

Look out for them on flags, on door knockers, on buildings and topping columns in St Mark’s Square for starters, or consider a special tour of Venice with kids to help pick out some of the quirky details of the city.

A winged lion, the symbol of Venice, at the top of a column - spotting the lions is one of the fun things to do in Venice with young kids

We loved our experience with Lucia from Venice Walks and Tours, a fabulous scavenger hunt starting in the oldest part of the city and taking us to the Rialto Market, and through the streets to Basilica San Marco.

While you might not want to share all the gory details of Venice’s glittering heyday, a few legends and the Doge’s Palace are fascinating for any age.

Check out my full review of our tour of Venice for kids here

Explore Burano

No matter what age you are, the colourful streets of beautiful Burano are guaranteed to raise a smile.

Located on the outer Venetian lagoon, you do have at least a half-hour boat ride to get there but the laid-back atmosphere and the vibrantly coloured houses lining the canals make this small fishing island a great place to explore.

You can even get a glimpse of glass blowing in shops like New Arte Fuga for an easy way to watch this astonishing craft, rather than a longer tour on Murano which isn’t always that exciting for kids – obviously the shelves are filled with fragile glass creations though!

For more tips of things to do in Burano with kids in one day, check out this post

The brightly coloured houses of Burano in Venice overlooking a canal - why I think Venice with young kids is a great idea for a trip

Do try the local delicacy of buranelli (small S-shaped butter cookies) too – Pasticceria Costantini is the classic spot to buy.

Keep an eye out for the leaning belltower of the Chiesa di San Martino Vescovo, the patterned facade of Casa Bepi Sua and the ‘high tide’ house, just off Piazza Galuppi, not far from the church, which shows how high the water levels have risen over the years – perfect for measuring kids against.

It’s worth arriving early to avoid the crowds, although if you’re visiting out of season, it’s can be quieter than the main island.

Visit the beach

Not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the city , but it’s easy to spend a day on the sand if you’re visiting Venice with young kids.

Take a 20 minute vaporetto ride over to Venice Lido and you’ll be greeted with long stretches of beautiful white sand beach and its own chilled-out atmosphere if you’re looking to escape the hustle and bustle.

You’ll need to rent a deckchair and umbrella at the private beach clubs and hotels, but at the public beaches, you can just lay down a towel on the sand and enjoy so kids can enjoy running around on the wide beaches, building sandcastles, and splashing in the waves.

It’s only 7 miles long, so you can also easily hire bikes to explore, including ones with child seats.

Loungers on the beach at Lido de Jesolo just outside the city of Venice - why I think Venice with young kids is a great idea for a trip

You could even stay by the coast, as well as visiting for a day trip, if you head to Lido de Jesolo, around an hour away – ferries run between the two and there’s some great child-friendly accommodation by the beach too, including apartments with cooking facilities and a washing machine. Handy if you’re travelling with a baby.

Find a place to play

If your kids are looking for a place to play between sightseeing, Venice’s canals and narrow streets don’t always make it easy – but there are a few spots to head for, including a rare park.

The Giardini Savorgnan in Cannaregio is one of the largest green spaces in the city, originally a botanical garden and now a public park. There’s also a play area – and it’s not far from the station and Ponte delle Guglie with its gargoyles.

For more green space, the Giardini Reali are close to Piazza San Marco, although you won’t find swings or slides here, while further into Castello is the Giardini della Biennale, also known as the Giardini Napoleonici – there’s a play area not far from the Santa Elena vaporetto stop.

One of the campos or squares in Venice where kids can run around and burn off energy without worrying about falling into a canal on a family city break

Otherwise the campos, or squares, of Venice are great for letting kids burn off some energy without the risk of falling into a canal. Campo Santa Maria Formosa isn’t far from the Rialto Bridge and Piazza San Marco, while Campo Santa Margherita is a great option in Dorsoduro and Campo San Polo near the Rialto Market.

You’ll often find puddles as well as flocks of pigeons to chase in St Mark’s Square – it’s worth knowing that the water in these can be pretty filthy, so packing wellies or boots is a good plan as it’s almost impossible not to splash.

Museum of Natural History

The Museum of Natural History is another fun museum in Venice for kids of all ages, and a family-friendly gem.

Located inside the Fondaco dei Turchi, a grand 13th century Venetian palace facing the Grand Canal, Venice’s Natural History Museum is a treasure trove of fascinating natural discoveries spanning 700 million years of history. 

From a 7-metre long dinosaur to a mighty whale skeleton, there are plenty of exhibitions that are guaranteed to impress younger visitors. Many of the creatures in the museum’s collection even come from the Venetian lagoon that surrounds the floating city.

Family-friendly art at the Peggy Guggenheim Collection

You can easily fill your time in Venice without visiting an art gallery, but the Peggy Guggenheim Collection has to be one of the most family-friendly museums in Venice if you do fancy some culture – and children under 10 go free.

Every Sunday at 3pm, the modern art museum hosts free workshops for children aged 4 to 10 – these are in Italian, although you can request the option of it being translated into English when you prebook.

The workshops aim to make the art collections more accessible and engaging for younger visitors, with the opportunity to get hands-on and try some art techniques for themselves.

The museum also has a full calendar of other fun family-friendly events, as well as its impressive collection of modern art, featuring some of the 20th century’s most important artists.

Hand holding an ice cream cone against a blue sky - there's plenty of gelato as well as pasta and pizza if you visit Venice with young kids

Food in Venice with young kids

My daughter’s favourite foods are pasta, pizza and ice-cream, so while pizza and gelato aren’t traditionally Venetian, you certainly won’t struggle to find both across the city along with ‘cicchetti’ to nibble.

Look out for baccala mantecato, a creamy salt cod concoction usually served with bread, along with tramezzini, sandwiches made with crustless white bread.

Don’t expect to find children’s menus in restaurants, although most are usually happy to do smaller portions or let kids share a plate of pasta, for example.

More tips for Venice with young kids: Finding toilets

It’s worth keeping a stash of small coins to hand for public toilets while you’re out and about in Venice with kids. There are several dotted around central Venice which have baby changing facilities, including near Rialto and the Accademia Bridge.

Entry costs 1.50 Euros and there’s usually an attendant who can change a note, but otherwise you’ll need to feed the coins into the turnstile. While card payment was supposed to be an option in some, we never actually found it working anywhere.

Otherwise, the Fondaco dei Tedeschi store also has free toilets (on the ground floor and fourth floor), while attractions often have toilets too. Restaurants will have toilets for customers as well, although not necessarily baby changing.

The Flush app (free to download via the Google Play store or Apple Appstore) is also a good option to find the closest toilets. But it’s well worth seizing the opportunity while you can, in case of urgency, as you’re not guaranteed to find anywhere nearby.

For more ideas of things to do in Italy with kids, check out ideas for nearby Bibione with kids, as well as my best of Tuscany with kids, and a week in Rome with kids, including a family-friendly tour of Rome 

*First published 2016, last updated 2022*

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Why Venice with young kids is a great idea for a family city break, from the fabulous food to the Lido beach and colourful Burano #venicewithkids #veniceitaly #mummytravels

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Gondolier/Grand Canal/Venice campo copyright MummyTravels, all other images courtesy of Depositphotos

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