Venice Travel Blog

Venice from the air: Heliair helicopter tours

 

ABOVE: This nine-minute video offers a great overview of the Venetian Lagoon, the Lido di Venezia, and the islands that surround Venice's historic center.

If you've seen our satellite-image orientation map at Veniceforvisitors.com, you know that Venice is a cluster of islands in the Venetian Lagoon, which is separated from the Adriatic Sea by the Lido di Venezia (a long, narrow resort island). And if you've flown into Venice's Marco Polo Airport, you may have enjoyed a real-time overview of Venice and its Lagoon from the air.

For an even better birds'-eye view of Venice, you can book a private helicopter tour with Heliair, which offers trips of six minutes to half an hour from Nicelli Airport on the Lido di Venezia.

Rates aren't cheap--you'll pay anywhere from 75 to 330 euros per person, depending on the length of the tour--but if you've got the cash, Heliair can provide you with a breathtaking experience.

For details, visit the bilingual Heliair Web site.

BELOW: In a hurry? This YouTube video clip (taken by a passenger) is just over 3-1/2 minutes long and covers the high points of a tour.

 

A wedding couple in Venice

by Durant Imboden

While browsing on Facebook, I ran across a YouTube link to a wedding video titled The Italian Job // Love in Venice. The video, which is mostly set in Venice with a side trip to Milan, features a Malaysian bride and groom who were in Italy for their wedding photos and (possibly) a destination wedding.

The nearly eight-minute production by GregsVideo begins with a train scene that obviously was inspired by the meeting between Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie in a silly but visually appealing thriller, The Tourist, that was released in 2010.

Below is the Venetian-themed video, which you'll probably enjoy if you like Venice, trains, photogenic young couples, and/or weddings.

• Tip: If you're thinking of getting married in La Serenissima, see "A Wedding in Venice" and "Honeymoon in Venice" at Venice for Visitors for practical advice and links to useful resources.

 

An interview with Arrigo Cipriani of Harry's Bar

ABOVE: Maggie of Maggieinvenice.com guards the doorway of Harry's Bar in Venice.

We have mixed feelings about Harry's Bar (can anyone really justify spending nearly 17 euros for a Bellini?), but there's no denying that the saloon/restaurant has a colorful history and was an institution among the moneyed set before it became a popular tourist attraction.

Recently, Wendy Furtado of Nowness.com called our attention to a video interview with Arrigo Cipriani, the proprietor of Harry's Bar, from the luxury lifestyle site's "Five Days of Food" series. (Nowness is an editorially-independent Web site owned by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, the international group of luxury brands.) You can watch the video below:

Immortal Venice: Harry’s Bar on Nowness.com.