Your Photo Guide to Venice: Riva degli Schiavoni

Between St. Mark's Square and the Arsenale: Exclusive shots for ambitious photographers

The Riva degli Schiavoni is unbeatable for photographers thanks to its unique lighting conditions and the backdrop of San Giorgio Maggiore and the Church of La Salute at the entrance to the Grand Canal. Take the time for a walk dedicated solely to photography—without any in-depth historical lectures, but with a focus on capturing the perfect shot.

An important planning tip: To avoid having to walk the same route twice (from St. Mark's Square and back), I recommend that you first take the vaporetto from the Line 1 to the Sant’Elena stop to drive.

A walk toward St. Mark’s Square has one major advantage: if you start at Sant’Elena and walk back slowly, you’ll always have the best views and the panorama right in front of you. If you started at St. Mark’s Square, the magnificent backdrop would be behind you the whole time.

Here's how to plan your photo walk:

1. The Start: From St. Mark's Square, head toward the lagoon and keep to the right.
2. The Descent: Go to the vaporetto stop San Marco/Vallaresso. During the day, the Line 1 toward Lido.
3. The Trip: Ride four stops to the station Sant’Elena.
4. The Photo Walk: Once there, get off the bus, take your camera out of your bag, and start your leisurely walk back toward St. Mark's Square.

Note on scheduling: We have deliberately chosen not to provide an estimated time for this route. Photography is a very personal process. Everyone sees different subjects, and everyone has different ideas about their perfect composition. Just take as much time as your eye needs.

The Tour on the City Map

As you can see on the map, the vaporetto departs from the San Marco/Vallaresso stop and takes you to the Sant’Elena stop. Throughout the entire return trip, you’ll enjoy a magnificent view of the Venice skyline.

Among other places, you’ll pass the Biennale grounds and the entrance to the Arsenal. Decide for yourself, on the spot, how far you want to stray from the riverside path shown here and venture into individual alleys or canals to take your photos.

Expert Tip: Planning for Sun and Heat The entire photo tour recommended here takes place in direct sunlight. Please decide for yourself, depending on the season, whether to take the tour in the morning or in the late afternoon. Especially in the height of summer, it’s advisable to avoid the hottest part of the day around noon, as there are hardly any shaded areas along the Riva.

From a photographic perspective: At midday, the sun is directly overhead over the lagoon. This results in extremely harsh contrasts and unattractive, deep-black shadows. For the magnificent facades along the Riva and the panoramic view toward San Giorgio Maggiore, the soft light of the „golden hour“ (just before sunset) or the crisp morning light is technically far superior.

Photo Gallery: These scenes await you on this tour

Light and Timing: The Perfect Sunset on the Riva

The route I'm suggesting here (essentially from photographer to photographer) is one of the few and rare locations in all of Venice that's ideal for sunsets and the blue hour.

You can’t see the sunset from the city center. And the northern outskirts, on Tronchetto Park Island at the very northern tip of the city, are far too far away. At best, you’ll run into photographers there who are capturing urban scenes. That’s because the backdrop at this spot consists of countless industrial and refinery towers.

And as mentioned elsewhere, you can decide for yourself which backdrop (San Giorgio, La Salute, the Giudecca Canal, etc.) you want the sun to set against in your photo. Just walk back and forth along the wide waterfront road until you find the perfect spot.

Please send me your photo. I'm looking forward to it.

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