Author

Alexandra Pereira

Story

TravelGuide

Photography

Marco Valmanara

A Nocturnal Guide to the Venice Film Festival

4 min read

The Basilica Santa Maria and the Doge's palace create a parade of grand, warm-lit edifices, seen from the canal at night.

What is the Venice at night without palazzos, bellinis and caffè corretto?

Wandering through Venice’s dimly-lit streets before dawn arrives, as partygoers clutch their shoes and bags trying to find their room keys after an all-night soirée, is still the truest celebration of nocturnal Venice. The rose-coloured light of the ancient streets’ lamps turn off as the sun starts to wake up, as the early risers heading to find the first vaporetto to the nearest lagoon cross paths with those only just ending their evening. A nocturnal wonder is the key to chance, twilight encounters in this mythic city – so after a film screening, a good meal and a perfectly chilled spritz, lay your fate to chance and get lost in an adventure after dark.

Each year I’ve returned, exploring the city at night is way to constantly rewrite what I knew about it. I still get lost trying to find that one water fountain I sipped a spritz on, have to ask myself if that vaporetto stop did ever really exist and where that café whose coffee coursed through my tired veins at midnight was located. But while it is easy to lose your way, here is my guide to help you try and navigate The Floating City, all the more beautiful under the moonlight.

Aerial night view of Hotel Cipriani, sublit pool glowing blue and lights twinkling on Venice's docks, homes and landmarks.

Hotel Cipriani on Giudecca Island

View into a busy bar at night, where barmen take orders beneath a row of five globe lights in pink-purple candy shades.

Bar Ai Do Leoni

Things To Do in Venice at Night

1. Al Covo

Dinner is the main event for a night out in Venice. I am always sure to make dinner reservations at the family-run Al Covo, whose menu features fresh locally caught fish and produce from nearby Venetian farmlands.

Campiello de la Pescaria, 3968, 30122 Venezia VE, Italy

2. Corte Sconta

Another failsafe option for dining in Venice includes the atmospheric, canal-adjacent Corte Sconta which serves classic sardines ‘in saor’ – a quintessentially Venetian sweet and sour dish – and fresh pasta to perfection under its vine leaf-covered terrace.

Calle del Pestrin, 3886, 30122 Venezia VE, Italy

3. Hostaria da Franz

Hostaria da Franz, which has been open since the late 19th century, and is known for its crudo made with seafood caught daily in the lagoon.

Salizada S. Antonin, 3499, 30122 Venezia VE, Italy

4. Caffè Lavena

Whenever I arrive in Venice, I’m always in need of a caffé corretto – an espresso ‘corrected’ with a shot of grappa. Caffè Lavena, located in Piazza San Marco, is adored by Venetians despite its location on one of the worlds most famous squares.

P.za San Marco, 133/134, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy

5. Bar Gabbiano

Hotel Cipriani’s Bar Gabbiano is an iconic spot for an impromptu rendezvous and a Bellini. With a central location beside the hotel’s legendary pool, live music sets a soundtrack into the night, with an unmissable DJ set every Saturday evening.

Via Giudecca, 10, 30100 Venezia VE, Italy

6. Fondazione Giorgio Cini

Just a hop over from Hotel Cipriani on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore you’ll find Fondazione Giorgio Cini. Cini houses the permanent Duse Room, dedicated to the Italian theatre star Eleonora Duse and her complex relationship with Venetian theatre and the city.

Via Giudecca, 10, 30100 Venezia VE, Italy

7. Teatro la Fenice

An evening performance at the Teatro la Fenice, famous for its role in Luchino Visconti’s 1954 film Senso, is another must. Echoing with the history of the famed composers who premiered their works here – Stravinsky, Prokofiev, Britten and Verdi, to name a few – today it is just as prestigious.

Campo S. Fantin, 1965, 30124 Venezia VE, Italy

8. Venice Jazz Club

A low-lit, intimate jazz club in the artsy district of Dorsoduro, Venice Jazz Club is the perfect place to sip on a Spritz as talented musicians serenade in-the-know Venetians with Latin, bossa nova and Jazz classics.

Sestiere Dorsoduro, 3102, 30123 Venezia VE, Italy

A purple cinema awning, glowing with white ripples and dripping with globe lights, advertises the eighty-first film festival.
In darkness, hotel staff wait as a late boat pulls up alongside the striped paline posts, guided by lamps, seen from above.
Seen waist down in black and white, two women in party dresses relax on marble steps with bottles of wine and buffet food.

IN THIS STORY

An eye mask crafted from the petals of Gerbera, Pansies and Roses lies in the sun, awaiting evening and the next masked ball

Hotel Cipriani

Venice, Italy

Author

Alexandra Pereira is a London-based writer. She writes about travel for publications including Condé Nast Traveler, Vogue and Travel + Leisure, and has co-authored several travel books, including Fodor Essential Norway and Michelin Guide Greece.

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