Giardini Reali – Venice Park

In Venice tourists normally don’t see more than canals and pavements. But believe it or not Venice has a number of beautiful parks. Take a break from the tourist route to relax or have a picnic in the closest park to the tourist beat – Giardini Reali Venice Park. Not many tourists go to Giardini Reali Venice Park but it is a green haven and easy to get to.

The Venice Royal Gardens lie between St. Mark’s Square and the water. It is west of the Piazzetta, behind Procuratie Nuove and Libreria Marciana – National Marciana Library, and near the vaporetto station.

Giardini Reali is quite small but the landscaping is exquisite, with plenty of colorful unique flowers and green foliage. Here you can have a picnic and rest your traveler’s legs on one of the benches. You can see up the lagoon to the center of Venice from the park. Look out across to the Lido and see the top of the bell tower in St. Mark’s Square. See Santa Maria della Salute from outside the park.

Napoleon Bonaparte ordered the creation of the Giardini Reali on drained marshland. Within the gardens are 30 pavilions each dedicated to a nation and displaying artwork from those nations. There are other statues throughout the park including one of Garibaldi at the park entrance. You won’t be lonely in the park as it is famous for the number of cats that sun themselves here.

The Giardini Reali is also the location for the annual Venice Art Festival. Entrance is free and it is always open, but just to be safe make your visit during daylight hours.