Walking in Venice

ABOVE: Maps can be useful tools, but don't forget to simply look up and look around.

Google Maps and other smartphone-based maps can be useful, but they can also be wildly inaccurate. And even when they're reasonably accurate, a marker that's off by just 10 or 20 meters can place a hotel, restaurant, museum, etc. in the next street or on the other side of a canal. For this reason, we recommend buying a good printed map when you're in Venice.

Venice map We prefer detailed maps (such as the Touring Club Italiano's 1:5000 Pianta della Città:Venezia), but if you aren't near a large bookstore, you can buy a simpler map like the popular map shown in the inset photo, which is available at most tobacconists, newsstands, and souvenir shops.

Sestier de Santa Crose sign In fact, some of the cheaper maps (such as the one shown) have one advantage over more detailed street plans: They show Venice's six sestieri or districts in contrasting colors, which can help you figure out where you are when you see a sign like the one at left.

Use the map only when necessary

It makes sense to look at your map before leaving your hotel, the railroad station, etc., just to get your bearings and to figure out a rough route. But don't stop at every corner to check the map: If you do, you'll quickly become frustrated, because street names in Venice change constantly, and a surprising number of streets aren't shown on even the most detailed maps.

The same rule applies to smartphone and tablet users. We recently saw a man walking along, staring continuously at the map on his iPad while his wife enjoyed the sights.

Remember: Venice is a compact city, and when you get lost, you're probably no more than a two- or three-minute walk from a square, a church, or another landmark. When in doubt, follow the crowd and the directional signs that are scattered all over the historic center (see below).

Look for directional signs

ABOVE: Official signs point to the San Tomà traghetto stop, the Rialto Bridge, and the Piazza San Marco--but if you look carefully, you'll notice that the left-pointing arrows were added by vandals.

Official directional signs--normally yellow, but sometimes white--are easy to find if you look up at buildings as you walk down streets or wander around campi (squares).

Other signs direct you to vaporetto stops or traghetto piers (where you can catch inexpensive gondola ferries across the Grand Canal).

In addition to official signs, you'll see many homemade signs that shopkeepers and residents have painted or tacked up on buildings to help lost tourists.

Don't obsess about plotting a route from point A to points B, C, and D: Just follow the arrows to the section of town that you're trying to reach. You can look at your map again when you're closer to our final destination.

Tip: Sometimes, a sign may have arrows in two directions. This simply means that you can get to the destination by parallel routes. (But watch out for the occasional yellow sign that's been tampered with: An extra arrowhead may be legitimate, but it could be a prank to confuse tourists. When in doubt, ignore add-ons.)

Pay attention to signs on streets, squares, and bridges

Venice is filled with visual cues that can help lost tourists find themselves, if only they know where to look.

For an example, we'll take you to the Campo Santa Maria Mater Domani, a small square within a few minutes' walk of the Rialto Bridge:

By looking around the square, you can can see a number of signs on the walls of the buildings.

The signs below tell you the name of the square ("Campo S. Maria Mater Domini") and show that you're in the parrochia or parish of S. Cassan (Venetian dialect for "San Cassiano"), a larger church in the vicinity:

Nearby, a sign tells you (in dialect) that you're in the sestiere or district of Santa Croce, which will help to narrow down your choices if you look at a map:

Another sign points to a street that will take you to the railroad station and the Piazzale Roma (In this case, the left-pointing arrows that were added are legitimate, because either route works):

If you're looking for specific streets after leaving the square, you'll also see signs, but you need to be careful and distinguish between variations on the street name (e.g. "calle" for street, "sotoportego" for "tunnel" or "covered street," "rio terà" for "street built on a filled-in canal," "ramo" for a "small branch of a street," etc.):

It's also worth noting that some streets in different parts of Venice have the same name, and in at least one case that we know of, two parallel streets (the two Calli delle Oche near the Campo San Giacomo dall'Orio) share a name. This can be useful to know when you're looking for a specific address.

Speaking of addresses, Venetian addresses aren't consecutive street numbers, and they're almost meaningless without a directory that identifies addresses such as "San Polo 1541" by location.

If you're heading for a hotel, apartment, or B&B, you'll need precise directions, because the house number won't do you any good untl you're almost at the door:

And there you have it: How to navigate around Venice on foot. If you get lost, don't worry--you'll hit a major canal or the Lagoon before you go too far afield, and Venetians are generally willing to give directions, although the often-heard"sempre dritto" ("go straight") shouldn't be taken literally in a city where even direct routes have twists and turns every few meters.

Durant Imboden has written about Venice, Italy since 1996. He covered Venice and European travel at About.com for 4-1/2 years before launching Europe for Visitors (including Venice for Visitors) with Cheryl Imboden in 2001.

PC Magazine has called this "the premier visitors' site for Venice, Italy." Over the years, it has helped more than 30 million travelers. For more information, see About our site, our Europe for Visitors press clippings, and our reader testimonials.

Buy a good Venice map

Use the map only when necessary

Look for directional signs

Pay attention to signs on streets, squares, and bridges