Venice is one of Italys top travel cities and a beautiful, romantic destination with many attractions. Its small, traffic-free streets along the winding canals make for great walking. You'll find many magnificent churches and palaces, lively squares, and interesting shops.

Venice actually consists of 117 bodies of land connected by more than 400 bridges over its 150 canals. The Grand Canal is like main street, cutting through the center of the city.

Venice is in on northeast coast of Italy. It is protected from the Adriatic Sea by a strip of land called the Lido. The region around Venice is called the Veneto.

Since it's near the sea, Venice has moderate weather although there can be rain nearly year round. Summers are humid and winters can be foggy and wet. To avoid the large crowds, spring and fall are the best seasons to visit. Venice experiences flooding or aqua alta about 60 days a year, October through early January.

Venetian glass, especially from the island of Murano, is a specialty. Carnival masks make great gifts or souvenirs. Venice is also known for its marbled paper and you might find some good lace here, too. You will also see many nice watercolors of Venetian scenes.