Visiting Venice can be expensive. Fortunately, there are discount passes for transport in Venice (and for a few other things as well) that can help ease the strain on the budget.

Please note:  The blue coloured words below are clickable links. Click on them to be taken to the appropriate page in the official websites.

Transport Passes

A single, one hour vaporetto trip in one direction costs €6.50 for any visitor aged 6 years and over. There are no discounts for seniors. A person in a wheelchair and their carer/caretaker can travel for €1.30 per trip. Apart from these exceptions, everyone pays full fare unless they purchase a transport pass. The transport passes listed below are good for all for all ACTV vaporetto (water bus) services around the Venetian lagoon, including out to Murano, Burano, Torcello, Guidecca and the Lido, and ACTV urban bus services in Mestre, such as to Marco Polo airport, and on the Lido. They do not cover the more expensive water taxi service or gondolas, and do not cover the Alilaguna ferry service to the airport.

Tourist Travel Cards: Tourist travel cards are time based passes usable from the time they are first validated (usually when they are purchased or picked up at an ACTV or HelloVenezia ticket window) for the period chosen, and included in the price is the transport of one luggage item of up to 150 cm as the sum of its three dimensions. They must be passed by one of the iMob validating machines located at the entrance to the ACTV vaporetto loading docks and aboard the urban buses at the beginning of each and every journey and change of vehicles.

Base prices (NOT including extra cost for travel with origin or destination at Marco polo Airport):

  • 16,00 € - 12-hour travelcard
  • 18,00 € - 24-hour travelcard
  • 23,00 € - 36-hour travelcard
  • 28,00 € - 48-hour travelcard
  • 33,00 € - 72-hour travelcard
  • 50,00 € - 7 days travelcard

Attention: currently, travel on the n°5 Aerobus Line with origin or destination at Venice Marco Airport is excluded from the Tourist Travel Cards, and requires an additional special fare ticket. The cost of the single ticket is €5.00 one way, and €9.00 round trip/return. If purchased together with the Tourist Travel Card, it costs slightly less, at an additional €3.00 one way and €6.00 round trip/return compared to the above listed base prices. There is also a special "Aerobus + Water" fare which for €10.00 includes one vaporetto ride and the n°5 Aerobus to Marco Polo Airport in a 90 minute period.

Venice Connected Public Transport Ticket. Venice Connected Public Transport Ticket - Purchased online at the VeniceConnected.com website, using a credit card, at least 7 days in advance, you can purchase the above ACTV Tourist Travel Card at a discount (at the same time as purchasing other services such as museum passes, parking, toilet passes, WiFi, if desired). This is currently the cheapest price available for the passes, and usually the best deal for visitors who are not eligible for the Rolling Venice card. Passes become activated when collected at one of the several VeniceConnected Points located at the main entrance points to Venice or from the automatic machines listed below. You must specify the day of pickup when booking the pass that cannot be changed. There is a full list of VeniceConnected Points on the website. It is also possible to purchase online up to 4 days in advance, but with no discount.

Using the unique PNR provided upon confirmation of the original order, it is also possible to collect your pre-booked transport passes  from a 24 hour automated ACTV ticket machines at one of the following locations, rather than from one of the staffed Venice Connected Points:

  • at the Marco Polo Airport near Actv bus-stop of bus n°5 (on the ground floor, just outside the Arrivals Hall);
  • the ACTV embarking point Scalzi at Ferrovia (exiting the train station to the left, towards the Scalzi Bridge);
  • the ACTV embarking point Santa Chiara at Piazzale le Roma (the n°2 line stop closest to the Bridge of the Constitution);
  • the ACTV embarking point Vallaresso at San Marco;
  • the ACTV embarking point Giardinetti at San Marco;
  • the ACTV embarking point Danieli at San Zaccaria;
  • the ACTV embarking point Pietà at San Zaccaria;
  • the ACTV embarking point Arsenale;
  • the ACTV embarking point Zattere;
  • the ACTV embarking point of the n°2 line at Rialto (closest to the Rialto Bridge);
  • the ACTV embarking point San Marcuola;
  • the ACTV embarking point Ca' d'Oro;
  • the ACTV embarking point San Tomà;
  • the ACTV embarking point Santa Maria Elisabetta at Lido (outside waterbus stop C);
  • the ACTV embarking point in Punta Sabbioni;
  • the ACTV embarking point at Burano;
  • the ACTV embarking point Chioggia Vigo;
  • at the entrance of the Ospedale dell'Angelo Hospital in Mestre.

This video tutorial (available on YouTube) shows how to use the machines to receive the Public Transport Tickets. Like much of Venice Connected, it is not necessarily an intuitive thing.

Rolling Venice Card RollingVenice card Only for tourists aged between 14 and 29 (inclusive), the Rolling Venice card can be purchased in Venice at HelloVenezia ticket offices and Tourist Information Offices for €4. The young person may then purchase a discounted 3 day ACTV Tourist Travel Card at €18. The Rolling VeniceCard allows considerably reduced admission charges to most museums, plus occasional other discounts. You need proof of age and identity to purchase this. The Tourist Travel Card available with this discount is considerably cheaper than any other solution available to the occasional tourist. As of 23 June 2011, the reduced price Tourist Travel Card purchased in conjunction with the Rolling Venice card DOES NOT INCLUDE any travel having as its origin or its destination Venice Marco Polo Airport, for which a separate ticket need be purchased.

CartaVenezia or Imob.venezia card CartaVenezia or Imob.venezia - Purchased in Venice at the HelloVenezia desks, renewable on-line. For those who may visit Venice frequently there is the CartaVenezia which is a personal document entitling you to travel on ACTV buses and boats at discounted prices. The CartaVenezia can be acquired for €40 if you live outside the Veneto and then carnets (books) of tickets for the boat or the bus at substantially reduced prices (about €1.30 each) for both boat travel and bus travel around Venice and the Lido. The CartaVenezia is renewable when it expires after 5 years. For longer stays, there are also monthly passes which have validity from the 1st to the end of the given month, for €30 (vaporetti + Lido buses) or €35 (vaporetti + Lido buses + Mestre urban bus lines). Holders of CartaVenezia or Imob.venezia cards can also purchase reduced fare Alilaguna tickets (at roughly half the full price - see Alilaguna for details). The Imob.venezia passes include travel with origin or destination at Venice Marco Polo Airport at no extra charge. The cost for a one way ticket on the n°5 Aerobus with origin or destination at Venice Marco Polo Airport for those with CartaVenezia or Imob.venezia cards is a standard urban bus fare of €1.30.

Other Passes

VeniceCard VeniceCard Purchased in Venice at any HelloVenezia ticket office, it offers access to the Doge's Palace, the Querini Stampalia Foundation, the Jewish Museum and the ten Civic Museums and sixteen Chorus churches (see below), as well as to the public toilets (two times) and also offers some "other reductions", such as reduced price entry to the Biennale and temporary exhibitions at the Fortuny Museum, the Peggy Guggenheim museum, and other venues. There are also discounts at some stores, shops and restaurants. This is different than the VeniceCard previously available (which in some versions overlapped other transport and culture passes), and is now available in only two versions: Junior (6-29y.o.) at €29.90, and Senior (30y.o. or over) at €39.90, both valid for 7 days.

Chorus Church Pass The Chorus Church pass can be purchased online or in Venice. This is a good idea if you plan to visit many of the churches in Venice. Most charge an entry fee, such as the Basilica di Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari (a.k.a. the "Frari"). Some churches, including the Basilica di San Marco and Santa Maria della Salute, do not charge an entry fee. For cheaper entry to the churches that do, the "Chorus Churches" pass can be purchased for €10.00 either online (10% discount) or at the first of the churches you visit. The pass allows free entry to all of the others on the card during the next twelve months. Children under 10 are free, and discounts are available for visitors under 29. There are also family discounts available. Details and access to online purchase are at the Chorus Organization site.

Venice Connected Culture Passes Venice Connected Culture Passes - Purchased online at the VeniceConnected.com website, using a credit card, at least 7 days in advance. The Museum passes allow for entry to multiple Civic Museums of Venice for one fee, at a reduced price compared to the sum of the single entrance fees. The exact offerings vary according to the season. Details of the specific cumulative tickets and individual museums are found at the Civic Musems website.

Other Venice Connected Services Venice Connected - Purchased online at the VeniceConnected.com website, using a credit card, at least 7 days in advance with discounts, 4 days in advance without discounts. A number of services, such as public restroom access, car parking services at the Venice Municipal Garage in Piazzale Roma, and WiFi Access through the Venice Municipal WiFi network can be purchased in advance through the VeniceConnected site, and paid for at the same time as the purchase of other services such as Public Transport Tickets and Museum Passes.

Redeeming other services purchased through the Venice Connected site

  • Museum passes are provided within your purchase voucher, with your PNR, and can be printed to be shown at the entrance to any participating museums (a link to the printable voucher is provided in your confirmation email);
  • For parking show your PNR on entry;
  • For WiFi, you will be sent a separate email with ID and Password;
  • Toilet passes must still be collected at a manned Venice Connected Point. These can be picked up the next day should you arrive too late into Venice to reach an open Venice Connected Point;
Redeeming Alilaguna Passes purchased through the Venice Connected website
  • Passengers must redeem the PNR at an Alilaguna desk not a Venice Connected Point. If tickets are not redeemed before boarding there is no guarantee passengers will be admitted on board even if they have a valid voucher
  • Tickets are valid to be used for your journey within thirty days after redemption at the following sites:
  • Marco Polo Airport  Alilaguna docks: Everyday, 08.00–24.00 (8am-midnight)
  • San Marco Giardinetti  Alilaguna dock: Everyday, 08.30–17.00 (8am-5pm)
  • Venice Port, Isola Nuova Tronchetto 24/a: Mon–Fri, 08.30–13.00 and 14.00–17.30 (8:30am-1pm and 2pm-5:30pm); Saturday, 0.830–13.00 (8:30am - 1pm); Sunday closed.