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 the subject of this little video, 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.