Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
At the southern tip of the island the Alberoni
pine forest
slopes down to the Lido's wild-
est, most scenic beach where marine birds fish in shallow sea pools. The majority of the
beach is open to the public, but if you feel the need for a restaurant and sun loungers, head
for the
Bagni Alberoni
( 041 73 10 29;
www.bagnialberoni.com
; Strada Nuova dei Bagni 26; um-
brella/sun lounger/deck chair €8/7/5; 8am-midnight Jun-Sep; ; Lido)
.
The biggest event on the Lido social calendar is September's Venice Film Festival,
when starlets and socialites attempt to blind paparazzi with Italian couture. Major events
are held at the 1930s
Palazzo del Cinema
, which looks like a Fascist airport when stripped
of its red carpet.
LIDO BEACHES
There are only three 'free' Lido beaches: the
Blue Moon
(Piazzale Bucintoro 1; 10am-6.30pm
May-Sep; ; Lido) complex, the San Nicolò beach to the north and the Alberoni beach at the
southern end of the island. The rest of the shoreline is occupied by
stabilimenti
: privately managed
sections of beach lined with wooden
capannas
(cabins), a relic of the Lido's 1850s bathing scene.
Many of them are rented by the same families year in, year out or reserved for guests of the grand ho-
tels. The
stabilimenti
also offer showers, sun loungers (€6 to €9), umbrellas (€11 to €16) and small
lockers (€18.50 to €28). Rates drop a few euros after 2pm.
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Isola di San Michele
Shuttling between Murano from the Fondamente Nuove,
vaporetti
41 and 42 stop at
Venice's
city cemetery
, established on Isola di San Michele under Napoleon. Until then,
Venetians were buried in parish plots across town - not the most salubrious solution, as
Napoleon's inspectors soon realised. Today, goths, incorrigible romantics and music lov-
ers pause here to pay respects to Ezra Pound, Sergei Diaghilev and Igor Stravinsky.
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Murano
Venetians have been working in crystal and glass since the 10th century, but due to fire
hazards all glass-blowing was moved to the island of Murano in the 13th century. Woe
