Around Venice

Italy Bike Tour

Bike in Venice; the city that lives on water

This great tour of Venice starts in Vicenza and loops like a pearl necklace through the Veneto region. The area is filled with valleys, lagoons, rivers as well as great architecture, including the unique buildings and bridges of Venice and the famous Palladian Villas of the Veneto (Ville Venete). The spectacular 15th to 19th century Palladian villas are scattered all over the Venetian plain (numbering about 5000!). The 16th century Italian architect Andrea Palladio designed many of these. You'll soon notice he preferred the classic Roman style. The route will take you along many Prosecco vineyards and you’ll have ample opportunity to taste some wine!

Beginning the bike in Venice, you’ll cycle on narrow islands along the coast and take a ferry to Chioggia, a major fishing port on the Adriatic. Padova (Padua) is known for its frescoes by Giotto and the University of Padua, one of Europe’s oldest (1222) and where Galileo was once a professor. Padua is one of the most important art cities in Italy and also the economic capital of Veneto. To complete the loop you’ll head back to Vicenza to finish your magnificent bike tour in Italy; one of the most historic and artistic regions in Europe!

Don't forget to check out our other Venice bike tours! Dolomites to Venice, Bolzano - Mantova - Venice, Venetian Highlights, Venice to Poreč 

A list of all our Italian bike holidays can be found here!

Tour Dates

• 2013 Dates
• Self-guided tour: Every Saturday and Sunday from *Vicenza and every Tuesday and Wednesday from Mestre, from March 30 to October 26, 2013.
• Instead of Vicenza, departure is from Treviso: May 11 & 12, 18 & 19, August 31 & September 1, 7, & 8, 2013.
• Guided tour: April 27, June 8, June 22, September 14, and September 28, 2013.

Skill Level

Easy self-guided or guided hotel tour with between 22 to 38 miles (35-60 km) of cycling per day over 6 days. Landscape is flat with just one steep climb of 1km in Asolo that is easily walked. Tour runs along good asphalt roads and bike paths with little traffic. Trains with bicycle transportation connect the main cities of the tour so in case of bad weather, or if you need a day of rest, you can reach your destination by train.

Where You’ll Stay

Self-guided tour: Option B: nice 2 to 3 star hotels mostly in city centers or sometimes in the outskirts of the city; Option A: very nice 3 to 4 star hotels mostly in city centers. All rooms have private facilities.
Group tour: Very nice 3 to 4 star hotels; rooms with private facilities.
Luxury hotels and villa accommodations available upon request.

What’s Included

• Hotel accommodations for 7 nights
• Breakfast buffets
• 27-speed hybrid bicycle
• Luggage transportation
• Route descriptions & maps
• Tour information packet
• 7 day hotline service
• Entrance into Villa Valmarana ai Nani
• Ice cream in the best ice cream parlour of Vicenza
• 24-hour ticket for public transportation in Venice (only if 3-4 star hotels booked, bike ticket not included)
• Guided tour also includes:
• Tour guide
• 7 x 3-course dinners
• Support vehicle
• Guided tour in Venice
• Excursions and wine tasting

What’s Not Included

• Local hotel tourist taxes (€1 to €4 per person/night, paid locally)
• Lunches
• Beverages, to be paid on the spot
• (For supplement, dinners may be included with self-guided tour)

Day-To-Day Itinerary

1. Arrival in Vicenza.
2. Vicenza - Bassano del Grappa, 25 mi. (40 km)
3. Bassano del Grappa - Treviso, 38 mi. (60 km)
4. Treviso - Venezia (Mestre), 25 mi. (40 km)
5. Venezia (Mestre) - Chioggia, 22 mi.  (35 km)
6. Chioggia - Padova, 38 mi. (60 km)
7. Padova - Vicenza, 32 mi. (50 km)
8. Departure from Vicenza.

DAY 1: Vicenza
Individual arrival in Vicenza, known as the "City of Palladio". Palladio is a famous architect from the 16th century, whose famous works are located in the city, namely the Basilica and the Villa Rotonda. From Vicenza, you can easily reach Venice by train in 50 min. time. The night's accommodations will be in a hotel within the city center close to the train station.

DAY 2: Vicenza - Bassano del Grappa, 25 mi. (40 km)
You will cycle from the valley to the beginning of the Alps until you come to Marostica, a very picturesque town with a nice Castle and the popular Chess Square (a live game with human chess pieces is still played every September of even numbered years). The Grappa Museum is also certainly worth a visit. Further along the way, you will reach Bassano del Grappa, a charming old town on the Brenta River crossed by a marvelous wooden bridge.Via a trek from Vicenza to the base of the Alps is the town of Bassano del Grappa, known for its spirit. Founded in the Middle Ages, Bassano del Grappa is famous for its covered wooden Bridge, the Ponte Vecchio or Ponte degli Alpini, designed by Palladio in 1569. It is tradition, mostly on the weekends, to have an aperitif at the bridge and for the lovers, a bacin d’amor (love kiss). Visit the famous Palladio Villa on your way to Treviso along the Sile River.

DAY 3: Bassano del Grappa - Treviso, 38 mi. (60 km)

Today while cycling along the Prosecco vineyards, you will be able to visit the very famous Palladio villa: Villa Barbaro. You can choose whether to have a glass of Prosecco in one of the wineshops along the way or whether to have it as 'aperitivo' in Treviso before dinner. We suggest you get lost among the many small roads that make up the Treviso free car zone to discover Piazza Pescheria (Fisher Square) and the many other characteristic corners of this wonderful city crossed by numerous canals.

DAY 4: Treviso - Venezia (Mestre), 25 mi. (40 km)
Ranked last year as the best part of the tour is the trek that runs from Treviso along the waterway, which was used by people to transport the products of the land to Venice during the Serenissima Republic. Arrival is at Mestre. From here, you can easily reach Venice by public transportation.

DAY 5: Venezia (Mestre) - Chioggia, 22 mi. (35 km)
Through the Ponte della Libertà (a 6 km bridge), you will finally come to the famous city on water, Venice. From there, you will take a ferry to the narrow island of the Lido. Here you will pedal past picturesque stone houses and along the seashore past bobbing boats and fishing nets extended into the water. Another ferry will take you to the even narrower Pellestrina Island with its natural oasis of Ca? Roman. Instead of cycling, a motor boat will transfer you to Chioggia, a miniature Venice with cobblestone streets and canals and home of one of the main fishing ports of the Adriatic. There is a lively fish market every morning but Monday. (For those willing to pedal a bit more, we suggest the extension to Po Delta and back for a total of 21 mi. or 34 km).

DAY 6: Chioggia - Padova, 38 mi. (60 km)
Cycling in Italy along the ancient navigable canals and locks, you will next arrive at 'Stra' at the beginning of the 'Riviera del Brenta' and famous for Villa Pisani and its garden with a hedge-maze (labyrith). Arrival and accommodation in the beautiful city of Padova, home of Italy's second-oldest university, founded in 1222.

DAY 7: Padova - Vicenza, 32 mi. (50 km)
In Padova, we suggest you visit the 16th century Anathomy Theatre, the world oldest surviving medical lecture hall as well as visit the recently restored frescoes by Giotto of the Life of Christ in the dazzling Scrovegni Chapel. From Padova, you leave the Euganei Hills on your left to reach the foot of the Berici Hills, and then on to the old Stone Caves of Costozza, where you can also admire the beautiful gardens of Villa da Schio. Stop at the old ice-cave of the villa, now a very unique wine-bar. Along a bike path, you can stop at Villa ai Nani before finally ending the tour back in Vicenza, where you will stay for the night.

DAY 8: Vicenza
Your bike tour in Venice will end after breakfast. 

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Questions? Call us! 877-965-2064 or e-mail us

• Nederlands: Rondje Venetië
• Deutsch: Rund um Venedig