Americas Cup Race in Venice next week, what to avoid?

[lanceholt]

We will land in Venice on May 17 and I just read that the Americas Cup will be held while we are there prior to boarding the NCL Jade on May 19. What should we be concerned about, what areas to avoid, how much extra time to get around?

[tom_uk]

I don't think it's *the* America's Cup, it's one regatta in a subsidiary series called "America's Cup World Series". Reading about it, I think the regatta will be held beyond the Lido, out in the Adriatic. So my guess would be that there won't be too much impact in the city itself - the teams and spectators will all be on the Lido. Which would be a place to avoid, of course, unless you're into sailing.

 

I suppose there might be an impact on the top-end hotels, as the glitterati coming to the event congregate there. But I think the teams will all be on the Lido; and I also think that a lot of the fans will be looking for the cheapest deals they can get, which might mean they'll be staying on the mainland and getting the ferry to the Lido for the races.

[lanceholt]

The inside race is just outside the Grand Canal, comments I have read describe it as a very tight course, and the other course is by the Lido. My daughter and I were in Copenhagen last fall on the day of a major bike race and saw a lot of disruption which extended actually to the city being cut off from the port area with no transportation to the port available. I am just trying to see if I can anticipate some of the issues we may find in Venice those days.

[TITISSA]

The inside race is just outside the Grand Canal, comments I have read describe it as a very tight course, and the other course is by the Lido. My daughter and I were in Copenhagen last fall on the day of a major bike race and saw a lot of disruption which extended actually to the city being cut off from the port area with no transportation to the port available. I am just trying to see if I can anticipate some of the issues we may find in Venice those days.

 

 

DH and I will arrive in Venice on May 18 to board the Jade with you on the 19th and when I heard about the America's Cup I got concerned. I think we'll have to deal with a lot of extra bodies and long lines. I tried to figure out where most of the crowds would congregate and try to avoid that area. Maybe the hotel will be able to help us ... What a pain :mad:

[lanceholt]

Where are you staying? We are staying at the UNA Hotel, in Canareggio, so it should be quiet there in any event and there are small restaurants nearby from what we are told. We'll look at the race schedule as the area around St. Marks will be the most crowded the day of. We plan to go into St. Marks, take a gondola ride, have coffee at a cafe in St. Mark's square, use the vaporetto, and for the most part just walk the city and enjoy the atmosphere. We are using a water taxi from the airport to the hotel and from the hotel to the cruise dock (the hotel is on a canal).

[TITISSA]

We are staying at Hotel Arlecchino which is 3 minutes on foot from Piazzale Roma. I was planning on doing St Marks Square and all that on Friday. However, with the race going on I think I'll go to Murano and Burano. I already made dinner reservation at a restaurant on a canal near St. Mark.

 

The day of our cruise if we have enough time, I would like to visit the Jewish Ghetto. I read a book that took place there and now I'm curious.

 

At the end of the cruise we have another day in Venice. I'm meeting my sister and her husband and we'll rent a gondola and we also have reservation at a canal side restaurant. The next day we fly back to NY.