Taking a Break from Venice in Burano

Venice is one of those cities people will tell you that you “have to see” in your lifetime. I’m not one of those people. I love Venice, and if people ask me what to do or see there I tell them, but if you don’t have a burning desire to see Venice, that’s fine by me. There’s plenty of world to see out there without other people making “must see” lists for you. But I digress.

If you’re in Venice for a few days, do yourself a favor and get off the island. Visit the nearby smaller islands of Murano, Torcello and Burano. In my experience, it’s the middle one in terms of toursty-ness. Nearly everyone takes the short trip to Murano (home of famous glass blowing studios), and nearly no one visits the furthest-away Torcello (mostly nature reserve, so very sparsely populated, but with a beautiful church). Burano, famous for its multi-colored houses and lace-making, is midway between the other two in both distance from Venice and in the number of tourists who bother to visit.

I loved my short visit to Burano, largely because you can’t go anywhere without finding something beautiful to photograph. Those brightly-painted houses are really something else, especially on a sunny day. And to watch those women making lace by hand - well, you’ll gain a greater appreciation for all that lace your great-grandmother treasured.

In short, if you’re visiting Venice for more than a day (which I highly recommend, if you can spare the time), take an afternoon and visit its nearby island neighbors.

>> And Katie Parla has a restaurant recommendation on Burano, too, where you can get Venetian seafood specialties. The photos make me hungry.