# Three days in Venice: what the boats cost

> A single vaporetto ride is €9.50 and a 72 hour pass €45. Three nights planned around the fares, the 30 day Palazzo Ducale discount and the airport gap.

URL: https://myitalia.it/itineraries/3-days-venice
Last updated: 2026-09-02

Three nights, no car, and one arithmetic problem: a single vaporetto ride costs €9.50 while 24 hours of unlimited travel costs €25, so the pass pays for itself before your third boat.

## The fare that decides the shape of your stay

A standard ACTV ticket is €9.50 and lasts 75 minutes across the combined network of water and land services, including buses, trams and the People Mover. The land only version of the same 75 minutes is €1.50.

Timed passes cost €25 for 24 hours, €35 for 48, €45 for 72 and €65 for 168 hours, and validity starts at first validation rather than at midnight. Travelers aged 6 to 29 pay €27 for the 72 hour pass after buying the €6 Rolling Venice card.

On the boats you can only pay by card, never cash, and lines 16 and 19, the Casinò line and all Alilaguna services sit outside the ticket.

## Arrival day: the airport is not in any of it

Marco Polo is excluded from every ordinary ACTV title, which is the most expensive misunderstanding available in this city. The Aerobus fare is €10 one way and €18 return on lines 5, 15 and 45, or €18 for a combined Aerobus plus 90 minutes on the city network.

Holders of a 1, 2, 3 or 7 day pass can add the airport for €7 one way or €13 return, but only if the add on is bought at the same moment as the pass. Buy it afterwards and the discount is gone.

Walk the first evening. Prices here are in euros, and the cheapest hour in Venice is the one you spend on foot.

## Day 1: Palazzo Ducale at €30 instead of €35

Palazzo Ducale costs €35 at the door and €30 if you book online at least 30 days ahead, with €15 reduced. That 30 day threshold is unusually long and easy to miss by a week.

The ticket is cumulative for the St Mark's Square museums: Palazzo Ducale, Museo Correr, the National Archaeological Museum and the monumental rooms of the Biblioteca Marciana. A Museum Pass at €50, or €25 reduced, covers 12 civic museums for six months.

Opening is 9:00 am to 7:00 pm from April 1 to October 31, last entry 6:00 pm, and 9:00 am to 6:00 pm from November 1 to March 31. On Fridays and Saturdays between May 1 and September 26, 2026 it stays open to 11:00 pm. Booking is not compulsory.

## Day 2: St Mark's is now a paid basilica

The Basilica di San Marco stopped being free: €10 for the church, €20 with the Pala d'Oro, €20 with the museum and the Loggia dei Cavalli, €30 for everything and €15 for the bell tower.

Every ticket carries a name from the booking stage. Individuals enter at Porta San Pietro; guided groups and tour operators use Porta San Clemente and pay roughly a fifth more, while teachers and pupils on school visits enter the basilica free.

Reductions run at half price for ages 10 to 18, students up to 26 and over 65s.

## Day 3: the lagoon, and the 25 person rule

Guided groups in Venice cannot exceed 25 people, and guides may not use loudspeakers or stop where they block pedestrian flow. The rule came into force in August 2024 and 3 fines were issued on the first day it was applied.

School parties on educational visits are exempt, as are boarding and landing operations. If a tour you are considering advertises a coach load of forty, it is not operating inside the rule.

We could not open the city's own pages on this measure: the only readable source is trade press with a date on it, and the penalty amount and any extension to Murano, Burano and Torcello are unverified.

## The access fee: not in force, with a date

Venice's access fee has not applied since July 27, 2026. The 2026 trial ran from April 3 to July 26 across 60 non consecutive days and then ended, and reintroduction for a later season is a decision for the city council.

The charge only ever targeted day visitors to the historic city, not people staying the night. Check again before spring 2027, because nothing about the next season is decided.

## What the nights add, per person

Venice's overnight tax moves on 4 variables: zone, season, property type and classification. In the historic center during the high season, February 1 to December 31, it runs from €1.00 per person per night in 1 star hotels to €5.00 in 5 star hotels, and it stops after 5 consecutive nights.

Guest houses and short lets are graded in lions rather than stars, from €2.00 to €5.00. The Lido, Murano and Burano get a 20% reduction and the mainland 30%, and in January the base rates drop by 30%.

For the wider picture of how crowded this gets and when, see [Venice](/towns/venezia).

## FAQ

### How much is a vaporetto ticket in Venice?

€9.50 for 75 minutes on the combined network of boats, buses, trams and the People Mover in 2026. On board the boats you can pay by card only, never cash, and the ticket is already validated when you buy it that way.

### Is a multi day Venice transport pass worth buying?

The 24 hour pass is €25 and pays for itself in under three single rides, so it works from day one if you are moving with luggage. The 48 hour is €35, the 72 hour €45 and the 7 day €65, all counted from first validation rather than midnight.

### Do I have to pay to enter Venice in 2026?

No. The 2026 access fee trial ran from April 3 to July 26 over 60 non consecutive days and ended, so from July 27, 2026 the charge does not apply. Any later season needs a new council decision, so check again before spring 2027.

### How do I get from Marco Polo airport into Venice?

Not on an ordinary ACTV ticket, which excludes the airport entirely. The Aerobus fare is €10 one way and €18 return on lines 5, 15 and 45, or €18 for Aerobus plus 90 minutes on the city network.

### Is entry to St Mark's Basilica still free?

No. The basilica alone is €10 in 2026, basilica with the Pala d'Oro €20, basilica with the museum and Loggia dei Cavalli €20, the full ticket €30 and the bell tower €15. All tickets carry a name from the moment you book.

## Sources

| Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Venezia il biglietto ordinario ACTV di 75 minuti sulla 'rete unica' (navigazione + autobus + tram + People Mover) costa 9,50 euro (2026); il biglietto solo automobilistico da 75 minuti costa 1,50 euro. Il biglietto di navigazione non e' valido sulle linee 16 e 19, sulla linea Casino' e sulle linee Alilaguna, e non copre i viaggi da o per l'aeroporto Marco Polo. A bordo dei vaporetti si acquista solo con POS, mai in contanti. | [AVM/Actv - Azienda Veneziana della Mobilita'](https://actv.avmspa.it/it/content/urbano-venezia-0); [Venezia Unica - Citta' di Venezia](https://www.veneziaunica.it/en/buy-tickets/public-trasport-in-venice/actv-ticket-75) | high | 2027-06-30 |
| I biglietti a tempo ACTV di Venezia costano 25 euro per 24 ore (Venezia Daily Pass, che include anche i treni regionali Trenitalia dentro il Comune), 35 euro per 48 ore, 45 euro per 72 ore e 65 euro per 168 ore, cioe' 7 giorni (2026). I giovani tra 6 e 29 anni pagano il 72 ore 27 euro previo acquisto della Carta Rolling Venice da 6 euro. La validita' decorre dalla prima convalida, non dalla mezzanotte. | [AVM/Actv - Azienda Veneziana della Mobilita'](https://actv.avmspa.it/it/content/urbano-venezia-0) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| I biglietti ACTV di Venezia non coprono i viaggi da e per l'aeroporto Marco Polo: serve il biglietto Aerobus da 10 euro (18 euro andata e ritorno) sulle linee 5, 15 e 45, oppure il combinato Aerobus + rete unica da 90 minuti a 18 euro (2026). Chi ha gia' un biglietto da 1, 2, 3 o 7 giorni puo' integrarlo con 7 euro per sola andata o 13 euro andata e ritorno, ma solo acquistando l'integrazione contestualmente al titolo. | [AVM/Actv - Azienda Veneziana della Mobilita'](https://actv.avmspa.it/it/content/urbano-venezia-0); [doc 2](https://actv.avmspa.it/it/content/integrati-0) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Palazzo Ducale a Venezia costa 35 euro, che scendono a 30 euro prenotando online almeno 30 giorni prima; il ridotto e' 15 euro (2026). Il biglietto e' cumulativo per i Musei di Piazza San Marco: Palazzo Ducale, Museo Correr, Museo Archeologico Nazionale e Sale Monumentali della Biblioteca Marciana. Il Museum Pass da 50 euro (25 ridotto) copre 12 musei civici per sei mesi. La prenotazione non e' obbligatoria. | [Fondazione Musei Civici di Venezia](https://palazzoducale.visitmuve.it/en/pianifica-la-tua-visita/tickets/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| La Basilica di San Marco a Venezia non e' piu' a ingresso gratuito: solo Basilica 10 euro, Basilica piu' Pala d'Oro 20, Basilica piu' Museo e Loggia dei Cavalli 20, biglietto completo 30, Campanile 15 (2026). Tour operator e guide pagano 12, 24, 24, 36 e 18. Tutti i biglietti sono nominativi dalla prenotazione, e dal 1 luglio 2025 qualunque biglietto che comprenda la Basilica vale, entro sei mesi, anche per una trentina di altre chiese veneziane. | [Procuratoria di San Marco](https://basilicasanmarco.it/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/11-Tariffario-Biglietti.pdf); [doc 2](https://tickets.basilicasanmarco.it/it/support/prices) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| A Venezia i gruppi turistici accompagnati da guida non possono superare le 25 persone e alle guide e' vietato usare altoparlanti o sostare in punti che ostacolano il flusso pedonale: la regola e' entrata in vigore nell'agosto 2024 e nel primo giorno di applicazione sono state elevate 3 sanzioni. Sono esclusi dal limite i gruppi scolastici in visita di istruzione e le operazioni di imbarco e sbarco dai mezzi. | [TTG Italia](https://www.ttgitalia.com/incoming/venezia-entra-in-vigore-il-limite-di-25-pax-per-gruppi-KH20639939) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Il contributo di accesso di Venezia e' una tariffa per i visitatori giornalieri del centro storico: la sperimentazione 2026 si e' svolta dal 3 aprile al 26 luglio 2026 per 60 giorni non consecutivi e si e' conclusa, per cui dal 27 luglio 2026 il contributo non si applica; la reintroduzione negli anni successivi e' rimessa all'amministrazione comunale. | [Comune di Venezia - portale Contributo di Accesso](https://cda.ve.it/it/); [Comune di Venezia](https://www.comune.venezia.it/it/cda-info) | high | 2027-03-31 |
| A Venezia l'imposta di soggiorno e' articolata per zona, stagione, tipologia e classificazione della struttura: nel centro storico in alta stagione (1 febbraio - 31 dicembre) va da 1,00 euro a persona per notte per gli alberghi a 1 stella a 5,00 euro per gli alberghi a 5 stelle, si applica per un massimo di 5 pernottamenti consecutivi e in bassa stagione (gennaio) le tariffe base sono ridotte del 30% (tariffe valide dal 1 aprile 2025). | [Comune di Venezia - Settore Tributi](https://www.comune.venezia.it/sites/comune.venezia.it/files/documenti/Tributi/ids/TARIFFE%20IDS%20-%20STRUTTURE%20con%20classificazione%20L.R.%2011_2013_valide%20dal%2001.04.2025.pdf); [Comune di Venezia](https://www.comune.venezia.it/it/content/tariffe-ids-dal-19052020) | high | 2027-04-30 |

## Image

https://media.myitalia.it/media/city.venezia.v2.1600.jpg
Author: kallerna. License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0).
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ponte_di_Rialto_Venice_1.jpg

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