Inside Of OG Venice Travel Guide

OG Venice is the first, and still the only, strictly "city" guide to Venice Italy.  It is the only guide to Venice  that focuses exclusively on artisan shops, local eateries, beaches, nightlife and providing detailed and accurate practical information about life in the most serene republic of Venice. I started this project more than five years ago, after nine years of watching, listening and learning around Venice, with one not-so-simple goal:  To create a guide that could free other tourists from the theme-park experience and help them discover the living breathing Venice behind the breathtaking facades of this City.  What does such a guide include?  Hmm...

Practical Information.  As Venice has become increasingly mass-tourism centric, accomplishing everyday things has become more and more difficult.  This is true for everyone in Venice, tourists and locals alike.  The first Thank You letter OG Venice received was from a group of students who were overjoyed to have been able to, finally, find a grocery store and a laundromat near the apartment they had rented. Now, OG Venice can direct fellow travelers to virtually anything they may need, from Vaporetto passes to Food to Pharmacies.  And, as unglamorous as these things may sound, they are not only the first things you should take care of in Venice, they're also the tasks that are most likely to put you in contact with real Venetians right away.  If you have any practical questions about life in Venice, check out these sections of OG Venice Travel Guide:

• WiFi & Cellular Phone Service.  You can stay connected for a lot less money than an international mobile plan would cost you...
• Tips & Tricks.  Learn about all the surprises that Venice will throw at you and master some tricks for going with the flow like a native Venetian.
• Transportation. Unless you can walk on water, you'll want to know about boat services in the lagoon!
• Food.  Forget everything you've heard, it is possible to eat very well, even on a very tight budget, in Venice.
• Necessities.  It is much more difficult to find a hair dryer in Venice than it is to find a priceless work of art.  But OG Venice can help you find just about any seemingly ordinary thing that can be seemingly impossible to come bye in Venice!

Nightlife.  Don't let the elegant facades fool you!  Venice is a loud-singing hard-drinking town.  As Venetians like to point out, "It's not as though you'll be driving anywhere!"  Adjusting to Venetian nightlife, which seems to begin at around 10AM for those who have the day off, is a challenge.  But here's the thing: Venetian nightlife, especially bacaro hopping, is really not about sloppy drunkenness at all.  It's about the community in Venice and the exchange of ideas.  Bacari are the places where Venetians go together to catch up on life and discuss the goings on in their town and making "bacaro tours" is a local tradition practiced by Venetians of almost all ages and backgrounds.  Children play in the squares while parents enjoy a spritz and groups of childhood friends who have been practicing together for decades perform music of all genres.  That's right, you can't even go out at night without meeting an artist, in Venice!

• Our Bars & Nightlife Section features local-favorite bars in each district of Venice.  Now, Venice has a lot more bars than just those listed here. But those listed here are bars wherein I am absolutely certain that everyone who walks through the door will be treated well and honestly, and where we tourists have a chance of mingling with some real Venetians.  

Shopping.  Venetian artisans have been renowned throughout history for their skill and creativity and the historically famous Venetian arts are still coveted by many travelers today.  Sadly, however, many tourists miss their opportunity to acquire authentic Venetian treasures in Venice.  There are an unfathomable number of fake Venetian products being sold to tourists in the center of Venice itself.  Worst of all, since most people don't even know they're purchasing fakes, this has sullied the reputation of contemporary Venetian artists.  Are they really still making cheap versions of post-war favorites?  Of Course Not!  They are making gorgeous contemporary treasures unlike anything you've ever seen before.  The Venetian artists of today are still among the most creative and talented artists in the world.

• Our Shopping Section proudly features more than 60 contemporary Venetian artists and artisans engaged in crafts ranging from jewelry to glass work, from sculpture to clothing design to leather works.  All of these shops are Venetian owned and many of the artists you will meet in these shops create their contemporary pieces using traditional Venetian methods and materials.  These are places where you can find the new treasures in Venice.

Excursions.  Visitors to Venice  can quickly come to feel disconnected from nature, surrounded as they are by cobble stone streets and marble and plaster buildings.  Venice can seem like an entirely man-made environment (Venice is architecture!), and most of the gardens one sees a wisteria creeping out of are off limits to the rest of us.  Yet, Venice is situated in and dependent upon an extremely unique and beautiful natural environment:  The Lagoon!  There are many Islands in the lagoon, each with its own population and culture, and each of which contributes its own gifts to Venice.  Lido has beaches.  Sant'Erasmo has farms.  Burano has lace and gorgeous colored homes.  Murano, of course, has glass factories… and there's more!  The Island of Certosa, for example, has an enormous marina and acres and acres of nature preserve.  

• Our Excursions Section and our Lido Beaches show some of the myriad options there are for exploring all of the different worlds, environments and lifestyles there are to be found in the lagoon.  All of these places an easy and inexpensive to reach.  And, as incredible as it may seem, they are also all really Venetian.

More!  Oh yes, there's more… 

• Experience providers.  Believe it or not, it is possible to go to Venice, stay for for three days, and still never actually meet a Venetian.  (The percentage ratio of Venetians to Tourists is truly shockingly small.)  Yet, the best way, perhaps the only way to really see Venice, is in the company of Venetians.
• Local Tourism Sites and Key Resources.  OG Venice provides links to the most useful and informative local tourism sites.  Through these links you can buy boat and museum passes, learn about eco-friendly tourism initiatives, read local news…or just book a taxi from the airport…
• The OG Venice Trip Planner.  The very steps I use to plan my own travel to Venice, updated to include the services of some amazing startups - Hopper.com & AllTheRooms.com - Which have made travel planner so much easier not just for Venice, but the world.  

So… It may be a little quiet around the OG Venice Blog for a while as I focus my energy on improving OG Venice Travel Guide.  But hey!  That's exactly what I am here for:  To continue to create the first, only and very best city guide to Venice, Italy.