Venice, Italy - Grand Sail-In

We had stopped at many ports prior to coming to Venice, but nothing compares to the beauty of the sail-in here.  Passengers were lining every outside rail for a chance to see Venice from a unique and high perspective.  I was on the 15th deck at the front of the ship.  Italian opera was playing on the loud speakers and it was beautiful.

This map should give you a good idea on our path as we made our way to our berth. (google maps)

Reference credit for the Sestieri map.
Venice is divided into six sestieri (singular sestiere) or neighborhoods. The Grand Canal, Venice's main thoroughfare, runs down the middle. Take a look at our sestiere map and find out more about each neighborhood, Venice's vaporetto or public transportation system, and visiting Venice.

Our sestiere map shows the location of each sestiere. Although San Marco is the most visited by tourists, each sestiere has its own unique character and tourist sites. The train station is in Cannaregio. On the same side of the Grand Canal are San Marco and Castello. Santa Croce, across the Grand Canal from the train station, is closest to the bus and taxi arrivals at Piazzale Roma. San Polo and the Dorsoduro are across the canal from St. Mark's.

We entered from the Adriatic Sea and the lagoon.  We were traveling on Tronchetto - Lido di Venezia (the waterway.) The next photo set is in Sestiere Castello. The man next to me told me that the big white yacht on the right hand side was owned by Richard Branson. ( Click here for more info on Richard Branson.)

It was exciting to start to see the little canals, bridges and boats.

Our little tugboat was there to do a big job.  He was attached to the ship to guide us through the city.

Palazzo Dandolo was a very busy area with many shops, cafes, and a dock for the taxis and gondolas.

Next we could see Sestiere San Marco.  On the left are the museums, on the right is Doge's Palace, and behind the palace is St. Mark's Basilica.  You can see the base of St Mark's Campanile (Campanile di San Marco in Italian), the bell tower of St Mark's Basilica, behind Doge's Palace.

The dome is Santa Maria della Salute, with the Grand Canal in the center of the photo.  The ship will go to the left of the dome.  The left section is Sestiere Dorsodoro and Sestiere San Marco is on the right.

This is a skyline shot showing the building colors and the tile roofs in Sestiere Dorsoduro.

Each canal has its own ambiance and character.

Santa Maria del Rosario (English: St Mary of the Rosary), commonly known as I Gesuati, is an 18th century Dominican church in the Sestiere of Dorsoduro, on the Giudecca canal. (Credit and link to more info)

As we turned to enter our berth (with a truly amazing parking job!), this view looks back at Venice.

The passenger terminal information.

Some one was videoing the arrival of the ship. You can watch this video on YouTube to see the Grand Sail-in from the land side.
Click here for the land perspective of the Grand Sail-In.