ABOVE: The history of Venice (like the history of humanity in general) isn't always pretty, and Venice Secrets will show you how the Venetian Republic "applied justice, in a severe manner with certain and sometimes cruel punishments."

• 2019 Update: As of January, 2019, the Venice Secrets exhibition was still going (despite the information on its Web site) so check it out if you're in the neighborhood and the exhibition's subject matter interest you.

From March 31 through May 1, 2018, a major exhibition titled Venice Secrets will allow locals and visitors "to get to know the cruellest and gory side of the Venetian Republic" over the centuries.

The official press release states:

"On 31 March 2018, Palazzo Zaguri opens the “Venice Secrets, Crime and Justice” exhibition to the public.

"An exhibition which recounts the history of Venice through torture, death penalty and inquisition themes, with unique items and suggestive reconstructions, debunking myths and false myths about one of the most long-lived historical realities within the European scenario.

"The display circuit, structured in four sections and 36 showcasing rooms (first section: Justice and torture; second section: Prisons and prisoners; third section: The capital executions rite; fourth section: Inquisition and Holy Office), offers the opportunity of viewing hundreds of torture instruments and over 60 original documents exhibited to the world for the first time, talking of a dark Venice and its dramas, such as the case of Doge Francesco Foscari, the tragic end of Carmagnola and Giacomo Casanova’s prison stint.

"Each showcase room features the narration of a story, but also of the secrets of the magistrate benches which made up the structure of the State. Ample space is dedicated to the Holy Office through several examples, from the clash between the Republic of Venice and the Holy See, to the figures of Giordano Bruno and Paolo Sarpi."

Admission prices are:

• Adult €16€
• Disabled persons, students, teachers, over 65, child 6-14, €12
• Child under 6 or disabled person's assistant, free
• Group €12 per person (minimum 10 people)

For more information, including directions and a map to the Palazzo Zaguri, see the Venice Secrets Crime & Justice Exhibition Web site at venicesecrets.net.

BELOW: The Venice Secrets exhibition is in the Palazzo Zaguri on the Campo San Maurizio, within walking distance of the Piazza San Marco.

Images courtesy of Venice Secrets Crime & Justice Exhibition.

ABOVE: A sample walking map from our Venice Hotel Directions at Veniceforvisitors.com.

For some time now, we've been offering step-by-step walking directions to hotels in Venice's historic center at our main Web site, Venice for Visitors.

We've just finished improving and expanding our collection, which now totals more than 170 hand-edited walking maps.

Each hotel has its own page with directions from the most convenient arrival point.

We also provide hotel photos, brief hotel descriptions, and links to the hotels' pages at Booking.com.

For even more convenience, our index pages now show you:

• Alphabetical hotel listings
• Hotels near Alilaguna airport-boat piers (organized by boat lines and stops)
• Hotels near taxis and airport buses
• Hotels near Venice's Santa Lucia railroad station
• Hotels near the Marittima and San Basilio cruise piers

Whether you're looking for a hotel or wondering how to reach a hotel that you've already booked, head over to Venice for Visitors and see:

• Venice Hotel Directions

MAP CREDIT: Walking map by Anders Imboden, using basemap data from the Comune di Venezia and Regione Veneto under license IODL-2.0.

ABOVE: Look for the tiny yellow Venice Luggage Deposit logo at the entrance on Calle Larga Malvasia, which is only a few minutes on foot from the Piazza San Marco or the Rialto Bridge. (The building number is Castello 5496.)

Venice has a good supply of left-luggage offices, with locations at Marco Polo airport, at the Santa Lucia and Mestre train stations, in the Piazzale Roma (the city's bus and taxi gateway), and the cruise port. Until recently, however, finding a place to dump your bags in the heart of the historic center wasn't easy, unless you were checking in or out of a hotel.

Now there's a new, independently-managed Venice Luggage Deposit office in Castello, roughly midway between the Rialto Bridge, the Piazza San Marco, and the Campo Santa Maria Formosa. It's open 7 days a week from 9:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m., and the price per calendar day is  €6 for the first bag and  €5 for each additional piece.

Storage rules are fairly simple: You can't check flammable objects, jewelry or other precious objects, money, business documents, or bags with smelly contents. You can check suitcases, backpacks, baskets, and other luggage up to a maximum weight of 25 Kg or 55 lb. per item.

For more information, including maps that show how to reach Venice Luggage Deposit from the Rialto Bridge and the Piazza San Marco, see:

Veniceluggagedeposit.com

(The site is in Italian, but you can convert it to your favorite language with Google Translate.)

BELOW: The office's interior before the crowds arrived on opening day.