Venice Tours Founder Caterina Pepoli’s Insider Guide to Venice
For Caterina Pepoli, Venice, Italy is more than home, more than work: It’s part of her identity. “Like many Venetians, I grew up surrounded by water, stories, traditions, and centuries of history hidden behind every small calle (street) and canal,” she says.
Pepoli founded Venice Tours to help travelers discover her city beyond the clichés and go deeper than an overpriced espresso on St. Mark’s Square and a gondola photo shoot. They offer everything from tours that delve into Venice’s Roman history to mask-making classes and, yes, even gondola rides.
Experiences aim to capture travelers’ minds by taking them on a journey. A Venice history tour might encourage you to imagine yourself as an ambassador, and retrace old-time diplomats’ footsteps through Renaissance splendor to the Doge’s court. A gondola ride might begin with a guide to Venetian boat-building and continue with an immersive VR adventure through historic Venice.
Pepoli is a big fan of traveling slower to enable a richer sense of discovery. “Too often Venice is reduced to a beautiful postcard or a quick stop on an Italian itinerary,” she says. “In reality, Venice was one of the most sophisticated and influential civilizations in the world.” Here's her guide to making the most of your visit to the city—like a local.
What makes Venice so special
Venice is a byword for beauty, a city that seems to float on water, full of palaces, churches, secret courtyards, and shifting reflections. It’s inspired poets, artists, playwrights, and novelists through the ages.
But Pepoli encourages you to look beyond aesthetics and instead find her city’s soul and heritage. “This city shaped global trade, diplomacy, art, and culture for centuries,” she says. “It connected Europe with East Asia long before globalization existed.”
She recommends taking the time to sit, to be, to walk without maps, and to find your own personal Venice. “Venice is not a city you ‘visit,’” she says. “Venice is a city you experience. You hear it in the sound of footsteps at night, in the gondolas moving silently through narrow canals, in the church bells, in the small bacari (wine bars) filled with locals drinking wine and eating cicchetti (Venetian tapas).”
What to see and do in Venice
Pepoli recommends four big-ticket attractions to help travelers understand her city: St. Mark’s Basilica, the city’s signature church; the Doge’s Palace, where Venice’s leader ruled; the Correr Museum, a former royal palace; and Venice Accademia Gallery, home to paintings by Titian and more. She also highlights the colorful traditions of the islands of Murano, famed for glass-making, and Burano, known for delicate handmade lace.
But Venice is a living culture and Pepoli insists you should go beyond museums, seeking out local markets and family-run bacari, taking a gondola ride, and exploring mask-making and glass-blowing workshops. Sure, getting lost is important, but a guided walking tour can also transform your view of the city. “Venice is filled with hidden stories, symbols, legends, and details that most people would never notice on their own,” Pepoli says. “Sometimes a small alley or quiet square can reveal more about Venice than a famous monument.”
Her personal favorite hidden gems are the Scala Contarini del Bovolo, a spiral staircase that leads to spectacular views; the Squero di San Trovaso, a historic boatyard; the Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, a 14th-century church with art by Titian and Bellini; and Ca’ Rezzonico, a baroque palace and art museum.
Three other top tips? Explore Venice early in the morning before the crowds arrive, sip an aperitivo (a drink served with snacks) by a canal, and catch a classical music concert inside a church or palace.
Related: Visiting Venice for the First Time? Here’s What To See and Do
What to eat and drink in Venice
Venetian cuisine has its roots in local traditions and the lagoon’s bounty. Pepoli counsels against picking restaurants by location and recommends looking out for small bacari full of locals. “My advice is always the same,” she says. “Avoid choosing restaurants only because they are next to famous monuments.” A life lesson, if ever there was one.
Pepoli’s liquid must-tries include a traditional Venetian spritz and the Bellini cocktail, created, as was carpaccio, at Harry’s Bar. On the food front, she recommends cichetti, baccalà mantecato (creamed salt cod), risotto al nero di seppia (squid ink risotto), and fresh seafood pasta.
Related: Food in Venice: 9 Quintessentially Venetian Dishes and Where To Eat Them
Where to stay in Venice
For first-time visitors, Pepoli praises the convenience of San Marco, Venice’s most popular neighborhood which centers on St. Mark’s Square. “You’re close to the main monuments early in the morning and late at night, when Venice becomes calmer and more magical,” she explains.
But returning guests should look farther afield. “One of the biggest mistakes visitors make is staying only around San Marco and Rialto,” Pepoli says, referring to the neighborhood that houses the Rialto Bridge and Rialto Fish Market. “Some of the most beautiful parts of Venice are the quieter neighborhoods where everyday Venetian life still exists.”
Cannaregio, the district which includes the Venice Jewish Ghetto, offers great food and local vibes. “It’s full of traditional bacari, hidden canals, and beautiful evening atmospheres,” Pepoli says. She also recommends bohemian Dorsoduro for art lovers. Meanwhile, for couples in search of romance and quiet, the island of Giudecca “offers incredible views of Venice from across the water”.
Related: 10 of the Best Neighborhoods in Venice and How To Visit
Unmissable Venice events
If your diary allows, Pepoli recommends experiencing some of the city’s events while you're in town. The Venice Carnival runs over roughly two weeks, culminating on Shrove Tuesday (Mardi Gras), the last day before Lent. Dates change with Catholic Easter but usually fall in the period between late January and mid-February.
“The Venice Carnival is probably the most magical time of the year,” Pepoli says. “Venice transforms into a giant theatrical stage where history suddenly feels alive again. Masks, candlelit palaces, costumes, music: The entire city becomes surreal.”
Every even-numbered year, the city hosts the Venice Biennale Festival art extravaganza at Giardini della Biennale and the Arsenale, and every odd-numbered year brings the architecture Biennale: Both generally run from early May into November so there are plenty of opportunities to enjoy them. “I love the contrast it creates,” Pepoli says. “One of the world’s oldest cities becoming the center of contemporary art and architecture.”
One final recommendation is the Historic Regatta, which falls on the first Sunday in September and combines rowing races with a spectacular historical boat parade. “It’s one of the moments when Venice feels truly Venetian again: traditional boats, rowing culture, local pride, and the lagoon at the center of everything,” Pepoli says.
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