Murano Island in Venice: how to get there and what to see? Where is it located and what is it known for, main attractions, what to buy, is it worth staying overnight? Where to go next, how long to sail by boat from Murano to Burano or Torcello – Eurotraveler tells you everything in detail!
Murano Island. The inhabited land, which is located 1.5 km northeast of the center of Venice. A shelter for glassblowers, a territory without cars, a salted tourist spot.
Murano is not the only island lying in the Venetian Lagoon. But the most popular one.
And yes, it is divided into parts by channels, there is nowhere without them. No wonder – it’s part of Venice: if they didn’t exist, they would have.
Travelers want to see how the Murano masters blow. And even buy a glass product: original and colorful, not a fake. And preferably – for sane money.
That’s probably why the Glass Museum is the first thing you can see in Murano.
Actually, it is in the very center of attention of tourists. As well as shops selling trinkets and practical items made of this fragile material (here are some souvenirs to buy in Venice).
Murano restaurants are also not empty. Despite the poor assortment, impressive prices, and not at all amazing aftertaste.
Everything else, that is, canals, ancient churches, palaces and houses, is lazily examined in the process of moving into the depths of the island. However, the mass tourist does not get far here – there is no reason…
And even more so – in the evenings!
If you dare to visit Venice in November or in winter, you will wander in the dark, diluted with rare lanterns, almost completely alone. That’s where there’s plenty of room for romantics and creative people!
How to Get to Murano
Do you intend to get to the island of glassblowers immediately upon arrival in the “City of Canals”? Your choice is the direct vaporetto line 3 from Santa Lucia Train Station or Piazzale Roma, where buses from the continent arrive.
How long is it by boat to Murano from Venice? In this case, 20-25 minutes is the fastest way to get to the island!
Indirect route No. 4.1 follows from the same place. But do not rush to rejoice – it will not be possible to get to the place with this water bead quickly.
Since at first he goes in the opposite direction, he visits the island of Giudecca and enters the Lagoon from the other side of Venice, behind the Arsenal.
Then No. 4.1 makes a stop at Fondamente Nova and the cemetery island (Joseph Brodsky) of San Michele. And it gets to Murano only 1 hour and 10-15 minutes after departure from Venice Train Station.
His “colleague”, No. 4.2, is not so keen on “adventures” and spends 25-30 minutes on the road. However, this route starts from the S. Giobbe stop, which is on the other side of the Venice Grand Canal from the station.
Where to Get Off and Prices
We skip the first stop on Murano called Colonna – why would you merge with a huge (!) crowd of tourists? We go out to the second, Faro, landmark – the white lighthouse.
The price of the trip is 9.5 euros (2026) one way, but it is more reasonable to purchase a Venezia Unica card. For about three days – at least.
Buying a 3-day vaporetto pass for just €45 will allow not limit yourselves to traveling around the “City on the Water”.
People aged 6-29 years old can apply for a special Rolling Venice card upon presentation of their passport. Which entitles you to purchase a travel card with a significant discount – for 3 days for €33 (more information here – veneziaunica.it/ru/e-commerce/services).
Here is not so expensive tour to Murano and Burano from Venice.
What to Buy
Walk along the boulevard or local embankment – look into every store. Cause their assortment frankly pulls.
Besides, what if there turns out to be a glass masterpiece for a little money? Do you need to bring back a souvenir from Venice, don’t you?
Most tourists are not interested in unique things, and what is the local Glass Museum for? Trinkets for €5-7 are in demand – gifts to relatives. Get yourself a favorite necklace or a ring for 10-15 euros.
Glasses for €50, saucers for €35-40, monstrously beautiful vases for €80-120, and other trinkets iridescent with dozens of colors remain in the windows. As they are not the only thing that can be brought home from Venice!
Murano glass jewelry is the most compelling reason (for ladies) to visit the island.
Moreover, (let’s say in confidence) they are still cheaper here than in the squares and streets near the Doge’s Palace in Venice. Or, for example, in the Dorsoduro area, near the Academy Gallery.
And the assortment in the Murano Island is way richer – personally tested!
What to See in Murano
The island’s glass industry beckons, although no one fully understands what exactly. There are a lot of gaudy things for tourists (balls, beads, trinkets), there are few beautiful ones. And they are standing… just take a deep breath and move on.
Glassblowers rely on centuries-old traditions (they were evicted here in 1291 so that they would not burn down wooden Venice with stoves) and rare craftsmanship. Well, who else can put multicolored glass jets into a transparent fishtail? Or to make such a gracefully curved thing that there is no doubt – it’s done here!
However, enemies say that the sand for production here is no longer selected. And, it’s even scary to say, from China.
And in recent decades, apparently, not only sand, but also finished products have been transported from there!
Houses and Canals
That’s why we’re walking, trying to find the sights of Murano and understand why they say this island is “nothing special.” The houses are shabby, there are almost no palaces, and there are only two active churches.
Really, what to watch for Murano? And yet…
The sights are not striking, but the island is wonderfully beautiful.
There is no gloss – ordinary life. Luxury hasn’t caught on, but the old looks everywhere. It’s hard to explain in words – you have to see.
The sun, the canals, the pillars stuck crookedly into the bottom, the boats, the cobblestones of the embankments. Darkened stone columns, arches, brick walls, a two- or four-story city.
Rio de Vetrai is the most touristic place on Murano, and it’s almost always crowded. Except for the evenings.
And then: go and see.
If you subtract tourists and industry: “a plate of pasta for 15?”, everything here is like centuries ago. Slowly, truly.
You know why you came… Not for the beads, exactly!
The Murano Glass Museum? Sure – you’ll have to look inside.
Especially if you paid more than 40 euros for the local Museum Pass (Palazzo Ducale plus a dozen city museums and palaces of Venice). Again, there are many beautiful things inside.
As it is, just walk around the island and watch. Sit on the embankment, bask in the sun, listen to the water, go to the churches. They’re Catholic, but it doesn’t matter.
Churches
San Pietro Martire is right along the famous Rio dei Vetrai embankment, the “Glassblowers’ Quay”. Inside are Tintoretto and Bellini, the building itself is five centuries old.
The Murano Grand Canal is a worse direction towards the Glass Museum in terms of the originality of the buildings. And “from”, on the contrary, is better!
And there are few tourists there, more and more locals. There, at the very end, beyond the fence, is the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli. Then there are the Islanders’ “chalets” for several apartments, vegetable gardens…
The Cathedral of Santa Maria e Donato at the other end of the island is richly Gothic with Romanesque elements. It looks too new for the 12th century, inside there is an original mosaic of those times.
Age? More than eight centuries!
After the Torcello church, Murano’s cathedral is the oldest building in Venice. Although, it was renovated recently, acquiring completely uncharacteristic for its age gloss…
Where to Eat
The prices are at the level of the very center of Venice, and it’s expensive: a plate of pasta costs €10-12, pizza – from €10. Again, you’ll have to forget about finding a rest: other tourists will pass by and watch.
Will you enjoy your meal? If you visit places where locals eat, then yes.
In tourist places food is much worse. And why them try too hard cooking – tired foreigners will eat everything!
However, by leaving Rio dei Vetrai, which is too busy on almost any day of the year, you can find eateries for locals. They cook better there, and the prices are lower.
Where to Stay
Single travelers check into local hotels – Murano is considered notable for the time from breakfast to lunch. And few people dare to admire the sunrises and sunsets here.
There’s no time – there’s still a lot to see in Venice itself!
But there is a point in staying here for a day. Only he is hidden and inaccessible to everyone who runs at a brisk pace and also suddenly departs (forever?) another vaporetto.
Murano is for philosophers and those who take their time, intending to take everything they can from life…
What can be recommended from hotels based on the right reasonable price-quality ratio? And considering that the first one definitely cannot be approached with an average measure?
To create an appropriate mood, we highly recommend that you stay away from the tourist crowds and in a house overlooking the lagoon. At one time, we really liked Casa Sulla Laguna with rather large rooms and, on the contrary, a very reasonable price for Murano (from €120 per night in March).
The photos of the brand-new NH Collection Murano Villa are also pleasing to the eye. It is more fashionable, but also expensive (from €140-150). But it is located opposite the Museum of Glass and the Cathedral of Santa Maria e Donato.
Того самого, что самый старый в Венеции, если не считать базилику на Торчелло…
Представьте себе такую картину путешествия: восходы, утренние тосты, занавески треплет свежий ветер с лагуны, в голове предвкушение прекрасного дня.
А потом вас ждут прогулки вдоль каналов…
Заходящее солнце, косыми лучами золотящее обшарпанные стены, зеленые жалюзи, цветы в горшках. Фонари, бархатные вечера, темные ночи, лунная дорожка на воде, и месяц, желтый как пармезан. Все это взявшись за руки и вместе…
Впрочем, если остановиться в самой Венеции, романтику тоже можно организовать. Ибо катер от набережной Фондаменте-Нова – столь любимой Бродским – идет до Мурано от силы 15 минут.
Будет на руках проездной на вапоретто – катайтесь хоть каждый день!
А что дальше?
Дальше в обязательном порядке следует добраться и посмотреть Бурано. Хотя вапоретто от Мурано (№12) плывет туда аж 40 минут.
Равно вам следует побывать и на острове Торчелло. Ведь он по сути – колыбель Венеции!
Именно на Торчелло сбежали епископ со свитой и прочие жители, спасавшиеся от нашествия варваров
Кстати, в отзывах советуют начинать день поездкой на Торчелло, ведь часам к 5 вечера этот островок напрочь вымирает. И там становится немного неуютно прогуливаться.
А вот уже после визита на Торчелло нужно отправляться смотреть на обшарпанные дома (Мурано). И, наоборот, свежеокрашенную (Бурано) штукатурку…
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© Eurotraveler
