Venice at Night

Venice is a magical city. It’s architecture, art, cuisine and its soul are constantly on display. Millions of visitors visit Venice annually to experience all that is wonderful about this nearly two thousand year old city built on marshlands in the Adriatic Sea.

Because of the popularity, Venice can get extremely crowded during the day. The Vaporetto boats that carry tourists and locals from port to port along the canals get completely filled. The canals themselves get so crowded with boats carrying passengers throughout the city that it can seem unfathomable that there aren’t constant crashes between boats.

During the day there is a buzz about the city. It’s not the same as the noise and crowds of cities like New York or Rome, but there is an energized feel about it that gets your heart racing a little. The vendors in the kiosks, the hawkers who try to pull you into their restaurants, and the thousands of people taking selfies can feel a bit overwhelming, especially to people like me who are easily overstimulated.

But as the sun begins to set in Venice, something amazing begins. It’s almost like a someone dialing back the chaos with a dimmer switch. Many of the visitors get back on trains and head home. Tourists sit down for a big dinner before heading back to their Airbnb or their hotel. The streets empty a little and the lights begin to turn on.

During the day, you see the flaws. Paint chipping, buildings leaning and graffiti expose the age of the city. In the evening, shadows hide these imperfections while accentuating the beauty of the architecture and stone streets.

There is something else going on in Venice and that is that even though tourism is as popular as ever, the population within the city center has fallen dramatically over time. On the main island the population has dropped by around 120,000 residents. This leaves the population on the main island below 50,000 residents. We were in Venice in November, which is low tourist season and with the population of Venice being at its lowest point probably since its founding, it was eerily quiet.

Often when people think of Venice, the idea of Carnival comes to mind. It’s easy to imagine that the streets would be full of drunken costumed revelers as they move from party to party. Instead, what you see are people quietly enjoying a bottle of wine at a restaurant in a plaza.

By early evening, most of the shops had closed, but the restaurants and bars remained open. We wandered around the corner and stumbled upon a crowd in a plaza enjoying wine and beer. They were gathering around a little enoteca named Al Merca. It is known for its small sandwiches, wine, aperol spritz, and great prices. We enjoyed a drink or two in the lovely Campo Bella Vienna and then walked over to the Rialto Bridge.

It’s difficult to enjoy the Rialto Bridge during the day, with the crowds of tourists all trying to position themselves for that perfect selfie. But at night, we were able to walk up to the apex of the bridge and rest against the stone handrail that has been smoothed to a fine polish by millions of hands that have run across it over the centuries.

From that vantage point on the Rialto Bridge, you see the lights from the streets and buildings as they dance along the ripples on the Grand Canal. The boat traffic was all but gone with the exception of an occasional vaporetto. What seemed chaotic only a few hours prior was now serene.

As the night went on, the streets continued to empty and at some point it felt like we were almost by ourselves. Whenever we would enter a plaza we would find people enjoying a restaurant or a bar, but side streets were really quiet.

We eventually got tired, but stopped for a slice of thick crust pizza at Antico Forno where the shopkeeper graciously served us even though it was only 5 minutes before they closed. The crust was crispy and the tomatoes, basil and mozzarella was still surprisingly fresh. It was a perfect end to a night of exploration of Venice at night.

We finished our slice and headed back to the Airbnb.

I can’t help but wonder how much the folks who do day trips to Venice are missing by not staying in the main part of the city. It’s such a different vibe in Venice at night. With the population drop in Venice, I wonder if we’re really experiencing Venice in way that nobody really has before. After this trip, I just can’t imagine visiting Venice without staying on the main island and walking it’s beautiful streets at night.