Venice and the congress venue

[ Venice | Congress venue ]

Venice

Venice is considered among the most beautiful and best preserved cities in the world, unique in the fact that it is the only city in the world built on water. The city has earned the name of La Serenissima, the most serene, as throughout the city's remarkably stable history Venice favoured neutrality and peace when possible. Today the city's peaceful atmosphere is due to the complete absence of cars; boats provide the only means of transport along a system of over 150 canals. For those who prefer to explore the city on foot, more than 430 bridges connect the canals and streets or calle together.

There are numerous museums and over 200 churches to explore. When it's time to relax, you can spend time at the beach on the Lido, the famous setting for Thomas Mann's Death in Venice, where you can also hire bikes, play tennis and golf.

Central Venice is divided into six sestieri, or administrative districts, three on each side of the Grand Canal. On the northern side is Cannaregio, to the east Castello and in the centre the San Marco sestiere, boasting the beautiful Piazza San Marco. Santa Croce, San Polo and Dorsoduro are on the southern side of the bank. San Giorgio Maggiore (the Congress venue), Giudecca and Lido are separate islands, as are Torcello, Murano (where glass is produced), and Burano (where lace is historically made). There are over 100 islands in the lagoon, with an ever declining population of 75,000.