Venice is one of the most visited cities in Italy, so it is very easy to get there. Venice has multiple ways to get there. Discover the most common ways to get to Venice. Because Venice is on a lagoon, the water plays a crucial role in transportation.
Getting to Venice by plane
The closest commercial airport is Marco Polo Airport, on the mainland near Mestre. The Antonio Canova Treviso Airport, located 25 km (16 mi) from Venice, is relatively smaller but becoming increasingly busy as the main destination for Ryanair and Wizz air budget flights. Both airports have bus connections with Venice (Piazzale Roma), Mestre, Padua and other towns. To access the historic center from either of these two airports:
The San Nicolo Airport is an airfield directly on the Lido. It handles only small aircraft, as the runway (grass) is about 1 km long, and does not have any scheduled flights, but might be of interest to private pilots (arrivals from Schengen states only) due to its convenience to the city (it is a short walk to the vaporetto landing).
Getting to Venice by train
Trains from the mainland run through Mestre to the Venice Santa Lucia Train Station on the west side of Venice (make sure you don't get confused with Venezia Mestre which is the last stop on the mainland!). From the station district, water buses (vaporetti) or water taxis can take you to hotels or other locations on the islands. Direct trains to Venice are available from many international destinations, including Munich, Vienna, Budapest, Zagreb and Ljubljana.
Getting to Venice by car
Cars arrive on the far western edge of Venice, but remain parked at the entrance to the city: Piazzale Roma or Tronchetto Parking. There are no roads past this point -- and never were, even before cars. An alternative for parking is to use the car parks on the mainland (terra firma) and catch a train, tramway or bus to Venice. Park near the Mestre railway station, and catch a train to Venezia St.Lucia. There are many trains, it is very near (8-10 minutes) and quite cheap. Don't bother searching for free parking near the train station, there are no free parking spots near. Besides, Venezia St. Lucia is a good starting point to visit Venice. However drivers going to the Lido can use the car ferry from Tronchetto (vaporetto 17), right hand lane off the Ponte della Liberta into the city.
Getting to Venice by rental car
Most of the major rental car companies have outlets at Piazzale Roma, at the edge of the city. These are on the ground floor of one of the major parking stations. When you are dropping off your car, you need to find street parking and then walk to the rental car outlet and hand in the keys. Do not park in the parking station! There is a vaporetto stop across the road from the parking station.
Getting to Venice by boat
Cruise ships arrive at the port of Marghera. From here, the cruise ships themselves organize a ferry transfer to the Venice Cruise Terminal and vice versa. All embarkation/disembarkation operations, including baggage delivery, are carried out at the Venice Maritime Station Cruise Terminal (Venice Passenger Terminal).
At the beginning of 2021, the construction of a new cruise terminal in the port of Marghera was approved to free the port in the center of Venice from existing cruise traffic. The Italian authorities came to this conclusion due to the great discontent of the local population caused by the structural damage that large cruise ships cause to the city.
