The Venice Biennale Tour

Package Overview

The Venice Biennale is the world’s oldest, largest and most prestigious contemporary art fair. Many of the fine Renaissance palaces of Venice, usually closed to the public, open as centres of modern and contemporary art for its duration. We explore the 2019 Biennale over 9 days from our quiet hotel in the heart of the city, interspersing these visits with trips to Venice’s modern and contemporary galleries and some of the less well-known historic sites and galleries in the region, such as the Roman city of Aquileia and MART, a stunning art gallery at Rovereto.

Experience
The remarkable world of contemporary art by leading artists from around the globe, at the world’s largest and oldest art fair
The less well-known sites of Venice and its surrounds: quiet islands, hidden gems and Roman ruins
Stunning new modern art spaces in Rovereto, showcasing Italian and international art
The backstreets of Venice, home to unofficial exhibitions and performances
The renowned architecture of Venice, including the Arsenale – only open to the public during the Biennale
HIGHLIGHTS

Well-paced visits to the Biennale’s exhibitions, in the historic Giardini and Arsenale and in palaces throughout the city
Visits to the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and Ca’ Pesaro in Venice
Day trips to two of northern Italy’s best new modern art galleries in the alpine town of Rovereto, and to the World Heritage-listed Roman ruins and mosaics at Aquileia
The tranquil islands of San Lazzaro degli Armeni and Torcello, where we enjoy a meal at Locanda Cipriani
The best of today’s international contemporary art in one placeReturn international/domestic air travel unless those flights take place during the tour
Special taxes and airport levies that can only be paid in cash at the destination. We will advise you of these charges (if any) before you depart
Costs involved in obtaining visas for countries visited, where required
Travel insurance. We require all participants to have comprehensive travel insurance. A typical policy for one of our tours will cost from $160 upwards, depending on your age, pre-existing medical conditions, the countries you are visiting and the overall length of your trip
Lunches and dinners not specifically mentioned as included in the itinerary
Personal expenses such as laundry and phone calls
Costs associated with any activity mentioned as “optional” in the itinerary, or any suggested free time activity

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Day wise Itinerary

• Day 1 : Arrive

  The tour starts in the hotel this afternoon. Please consult your individual travel documents for arriving at the hotel. After a stroll around our neighbourhood, there will be a light dinner in a local restaurant.

  • Meals & Drinks : Dinner

• Day 2 : The Venice Biennale

  This morning we visit the Giardini, the historic centre of the Biennale and the location of many of the national pavilions. We visit the Central Exhibition curated by Biennale Director Ralph Rugoff, the Australian Pavilion, and enjoy time to explore the other national pavilions. After a welcome lunch in an excellent Venetian restaurant, we continue exploring the National Pavilions in the Giradini and exhibitions in the Castello district. In the early evening we meet to talk about the day’s art over an aperitif.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch

• Day 3 : The Arsenale and Hidden Gems

  This morning we take a walking tour of the smaller exhibitions and hidden gems of Venetian art in the Castello and Canareggio districts, including masterpieces by Bellini and Carpaccio, and the excellent Museum of Icons, with works by Cretan, Cypriot and Dalmatian masters from the 14-16th centuries. In the afternoon, we visit the Arsenale, once the powerhouse of the Venetian naval and maritime industries, and a Biennale exhibition space since the 1980s. Five hectares of shipyard have been converted into spaces that host some of the Biennale’s main exhibitions and performances. In the early evening, we have a talk in the hotel on contemporary art.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast

• Day 4 : Rovereto

  Today we travel by private coach to Rovereto, a town that grew up around a fortress on the border between the Republic of Venice and the medieval Bishopric of Trent. Today it is home to MART, an impressive new modern and contemporary art gallery with works by de Chirico, Morandi, Carrà and others. After a break for lunch in a local restaurant, we visit the house and museum of the futurist artist Fortunato Depero. In the afternoon, we return to Venice.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch

• Day 5 : Glass and the Guggenheim

  After a leisurely start, we tour the art and exhibitions of the Dorsoduro district, including the Glasstress Exhibition – a stunning collection of glass art made by well-known contemporary artists – and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, with a fantastic collection of Kandinsky, Pollock, Magritte, Mondrian, Picasso and others housed in the 18th-century palace that was Peggy’s home from the late 1940s until her death. In the late afternoon, you may wish to visit the Punta della Dogana, a former customs house that was converted into a contemporary art space by Tadeo Ando which houses works from the Pinault Foundation’s collection. Evening at leisure.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast

• Day 6 : San Lazzaro and the Fortuny

  This morning we have a private visit of the island of San Lazzaro degli Armeni. The island was a leper colony before it was transformed into a monastery and refuge for Armenian monks. It is still a monastery today as well as a major centre of Armenian culture, holding some of the most precious texts from Armenia. In the afternoon, we visit the Museo Fortuny. The Fortuny family are most well-known for their fabrics and the invention of modern stage lighting, but they also collected an impressive range of fine and decorative art. The house museum is only open during special themed exhibitions, when modern and contemporary art is beautifully integrated into the Fortuny collection. Evening at leisure

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast

• Day 7 : Aquileia and Grado

  This morning we travel by coach to Aquileia, one of the largest and richest cities in the Roman Empire before it was sacked by Attila the Hun. The city is famous for its extraordinary Roman mosaics in its cathedral, some of which date back to the 1st century CE, and for the rare Roman glassware and jewellery in its archaeological museum. After lunch in a local restaurant, we’ll travel to nearby Grado, a beautiful medieval town founded by refugees from Aquileia with well-preserved medieval churches and a peaceful waterfront.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch

• Day 8 : Ca’ Pesaro and Torcello

  This morning we visit Ca’ Pesaro – the oldest public gallery of modern art in Italy, which built its collection through acquisitions in the first decades of the Biennale, and includes works by Klimt, Rodin, Kandinsky, Morandi and Calder. We then travel to the island of Torcello, one of the first inhabited islands in the lagoon. The magnificent mosaics in the 6th-century basilica, which we visit after lunch at Locanda Cipriani, are testament to the wealth of an island that is just too far from the centre of modern Venice to attract the regular crowds. In the late afternoon, we return to Venice by private launch. Evening at leisure.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast, Lunch

• Day 9 : Departure

  The tour ends after breakfast this morning. Please consult your individual travel documents for your ongoing travel.

  • Meals & Drinks : Breakfast

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Inclusions

• Hotel
• Sightseeing
• Any flights mentioned in the itinerary that take place during a tour
• Land travel by private air-conditioned coach. Where appropriate public transport is also used for short distance travel on some tours
• All accommodation in hotels or apartments as stated in the itinerary
• Breakfasts, lunches and dinners specifically stated as included in the itinerary
• Drinks at welcome and farewell meals. Other meals may not have drinks included
• Background talks on tour, site notes and online resources
• Services of tour leader throughout tour
• All entrance fees to sites mentioned in the itinerary
• Local guides at some sites
• Tips for drivers, local guides and restaurants for included meals
• Airport Transfers
• Tours begin either at the arrival airport or the first hotel, depending on the itinerary. If you have booked your international flights with Academy Travel and arrive before the tour commences, we will provide airport to hotel transfers to the closest main city on your arrival, and to the closest airport at the end of the tour. These may be either individual or group transfers.

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Exclusions

• Return international/domestic air travel unless those flights take place during the tour
• Special taxes and airport levies that can only be paid in cash at the destination. We will advise you of these charges (if any) before you depart
• Costs involved in obtaining visas for countries visited, where required
• Travel insurance. We require all participants to have comprehensive travel insurance. A typical policy for one of our tours will cost from $160 upwards, depending on your age, pre-existing medical conditions, the countries you are visiting and the overall length of your trip
• Lunches and dinners not specifically mentioned as included in the itinerary
• Personal expenses such as laundry and phone calls
• Costs associated with any activity mentioned as “optional” in the itinerary, or any suggested free time activity

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Terms & Conditions

Payment Terms & Methods :
* Some Advance Percentage of total booking amount
* Airfare/Transport fare to be paid full at one time in advance.

Cancellation & Refund Policy :
* Upon cancellation, refund will be made after deducting the Retention Amount.
* Retention Amount varies as per the number of days left before your package start date.

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This Tour is Offered by

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