Venice > Special topics > Cabin-cruiser rentals

Venice P�nichette Boat Rentals

Do-it-yourself cruising on the Venetian Lagoon

ABOVE: St. Mark's Basin is just a few hours by marked navigation channels from Chioggia, where you pick up your Locaboat Holidays boat.

By Durant Imboden

Venice isn't just a city with water-filled streets: It's also the main population center of the Venetian Lagoon, a shallow body of water that runs 45 km (30 miles) from its northern reaches to Chioggia, a fishing port and seaside resort at the southern end of the laguna.

The Venetian Lagoon is sheltered from the Adriatic by long strips of land and massive seawalls called litorali, and it's criss-crossed by navigation channels marked with clusters of wooden pilings. This makes it a friendly place for do-it-yourself boating--especially if you're a captain whose maritime experience is limited to lakes, inland waterways, or even the neighborhood swimming pool.

To navigate the Venetian Lagoon, you need a boat. Don't worry about bringing your own or buying a gondola: For the price of a three-star hotel room, you can hire a motor yacht from Locaboat Holidays, a company that offers self-drive Pénichette cabin cruisers in Chioggia. (Locaboat Holidays is British-owned, with a head office in France and a North American sales office in Lake Placid, New York.)

Boats come in various sizes. The smallest and least expensive is the  "Con Fly," which sleeps up to four people in two double cabins. At the upper end of the price and luxury scale, the P�nichette 1500R has room for eight to 11 passengers in four double cabins with two shower-equipped bathrooms. The P�nichette shown in the photo above is a "flying bridge" model, which is available in 4/5- and 6/7-person configurations.

Rentals are available from late March through early November. Prices include the boat with cooking essentials and linens, navigation tolls, insurance, an orientation session, and one bottle of cooking and heating gas. You pay extra for fuel, additional LP gas, navigation maps, and return of the boat to Chioggia if you prefer a one-way itinerary. Options include bicycle rentals, car parking, trip-cancellation insurance, and final cleaning. You can even bring your pet if you trust it not to jump overboard.

ABOVE: Channel markers near the glassmaking island of Murano in the Venetian Lagoon.

Suggested itineraries

As the captain of your own Pénichette, you have the freedom to go anywhere you like (within reason), but Locaboat Holidays does have several recommendations for cruise routes from Chioggia. The one- to two-week itineraries include cruising along inland waterways north of the Venetian Lagoon in the direction of Trieste:

One week: Chioggia, Venice and its islands, the mainland resort of Jesolo, Pontegrandi, and back to Chioggia. (143 km, two locks, two lifting bridges, 20 hours of cruising.) Alternatively, you might try Chioggia, Venice and its islands, Silea, Treviso, and back to Chioggia (160 km, four locks, three lifting bridges, 25 hours of cruising).

Ten or 11 days: Chioggia, Venice and its islands, Jesolo, Caposile, Marano, Chioggia. (170 km, two locks, eight lifting bridges, 30 hours of cruising.)

Two weeks: Chioggia, Venice and its islands, Jesolo, Caorle, Grado, Marano, Lignano, Cortelezzo, Pontegrandi, Chioggia. (344 km, 10 locks, 10 lifting bridges, 49 hours of cruising.)

If you're an experienced boater, you might consider including a cruise up the scenic Brenta Canal, which is famous for its Palladian villas (most of which are open to visitors).

Getting to Chioggia

Chioggia is about 60 km or 40 miles from Venice Marco Polo Airport and a bit farther from Treviso Airport, which is used by Ryanair and Transavia.

If you don't have a car, Locaboat Holidays can arrange transfers for an additional fee.

More information and bookings

Locaboat has a Web site where you can check prices, learn more about the available boats, and request a printed brochure.

About the author:

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.

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