One-Week Tour in Venice, Italy Report

Executive Summary

This report provides fully-detailed daily itineraries for two sets of couples who are planning to go for a one-week tour in Venice, Italy. The first set of couple, branded Couple A, is planning for a budget honeymoon tour which is based on romance and indulgence while the second set, Couple B, is focused on a luxury holiday at the Italian city.

This work is in a report format and therefore, it features three main sections which include introduction, body and finally the conclusion. The introduction offers a brief description of the report, thus offering an in-depth focus to the main theme or subject.

The second section consists of three main sections which include a brief profile of Venice City, the itinerary Plan for Couple A and the itinerary Plan for Couple B. The report begins with a brief profile of the city of Venice together with its surrounding regions.

Itinerary plan for Couple A comes next on the agenda, whereby various excursions within the city of Venice are proposed to the couples, in respect to their holiday needs and plans. Next is the itinerary for Couple B, also designed in accordance to the couple’s needs. Finally, there is the conclusion part, which sums up the main points of the report.

Introduction

This is a travel plan and market segmentation report which revolves around one week’s holiday in Venice for two sets of couples. The first set of couple consists of a newly-married pair which is planning to spend their honeymoon in the famous Italian city, starting from 30^th August, this year.

The other set consists of the bride’s parents, who have also expressed their interest for a holiday in the same region for the same time and for the same duration.

While Couple A would be seeking for romance and indulgence, whereby they would want to remain attached to one another and enjoy each other’s company to thevast pleasures of Italy, Couple B is more focused on a luxurious holiday that would mainly consist of adventure and exploration of the city’s rich historical and cultural aspects.

Considering this guidance, it is obviously clear that the two couples have different tastes and expectations for the holiday. This report offers a planned schedule for each of the two couples, in the course of their one-week stay in Venice.

The itineraries would basically feature only the ground components of the holiday, including all organised excursions and accommodation for the entire period. To set pace for the report, the paper begins with a brief profile of Venice City, which is the region targeted for the holiday.

Profile of Venice, Italy

Venice, which is situated on a group of over one hundred islands that are separated by canals and connected by bridges, is arguably one of the most famous cities in Italy (Thorne 2001). The city, which is the capital of Veneto region, is said to harbour a relatively high population of people, compared to other surrounding regions.

Among other aspects, the capital is popular for various aspects, such as its rich historical background, cultural tastes, and unique physical and natural features. All these features have served as crucial aspects of attraction to the Italian city (Norwich 2003). As it would be observed, tourism has been a major sector of the city’s economical profile for many years.

It is reputed to be one of the most visited places globally, where about 50,000 tourists are observed to visit the city in a single day, from various parts of the world. The Venetian capital is also defined by strong political and economical structures. The fact that the city controls a vast sea-empire has made it a major trading centre, thus emerging as one of the wealthiest cities in the European region.

The Venetian capital is well served by a network of various forms of transportation such as waterways, railways and airways (Denis and Pazzaglia 1999). Public transportation within the city consists of land transportation and canal travel, which constitutes of buses and vaporettis, respectively.

All these modes of transportation do play a significant role in enhancing the mobility for the many local and foreign tourists who tour the famous city on a regular basis, from various parts of the world.

Itinerary Plan for Couple A

This newly married couple is seeking for romantic satisfactions in their honeymoon, and Venice can guarantee them the best that their money could get them. Depending on the holiday needs for this couple, their one week stay in the Italian romantic heartland would include exclusive excursions to some of the best zones in the region, as well as accommodations befitting their standards and budget.

Things such meals would be offered at the travelers’ expense, unless they decide it is part of an arranged excursion. Honeymoon makes the basis for this holiday, and for that reason, the couple must be prepared for a lack of choice in the vast romantic options offered by this captivating island (Constantinides 2006).

Checking in at Venice: Thursday 30^th Aug

Couple A can decide to stay in Reiter, a fairly cheap 2-star hotel situated in Venice Lido and which is only about 10-minute ride from the heart of Venice by a water bus.

Nearness to strategic markets and bus stations makes this one of the most convenient accommodation hubs in this part of Italy, and this comes as an added advantage to the many visitors who end up there (Capatti and Montanari 2003) Reiter is indeed one of the most secure and enchanting accommodation zones in Italy, that offers reasonable accommodation prices for travelers.

One night’s accommodation in the hotel would range between 50 and 70 Euros for an en-suite double room. This is fairly cheap, compared to other hotels situated within easy reach of major zones of the city, some of which can go up to hundreds of Euros for a single night’s accommodation.

The hotel is furnished with modern hospitality facilities, including spacious twin and double rooms that can guarantee all sorts of modern comforts to the clients. From the comfort of your hotel room, you can be certain to enjoy the many benefits that can be associated with staying away from the centre of the city, such as avoiding tourist crowds, which are common near the heart of the big city of Venice.

This hotel would be friendly to those clients who be anticipating to save money while on a tour at Venice. The travelling convenience provided by the hotel will guarantee you a better value of savings.

Day 1 of the tour: Friday 31^st Aug

You can start your tour by visiting some of the places in the island that are considered to be romantic for couples in honeymoon. Perhaps, you can walk out to sightsee some of the city’s historic buildings and monuments. This adventure can also familiarize you with the social atmosphere of the city, as well as the way of life followed by its varied habitants.

However, the outcome of your adventures will entirely depend on the nature of process that you apply on your excursions for the day (Formica and Uysal 1996). You can also decide to pay a visit to some of the famous historical sites in the region. Here, you will be able to see the magnificence of architectural designs, as they have been used in some buildings.

In the course of your adventure, you can be assured of coming across attractive plazas such as La Pizzeria, where you can enjoy a cheap meal of pizza and risotto, in a more romantic atmosphere. The long trek along the magnificent streets of this part of Venice is not only economical, but it would help you discover the beauty and the mysteries of the romantic city.

Days 2 and 3 of the tour: Saturday and Sunday (1^st and 2^nd of September, respectively)

There are many exciting ways through which people can enjoy themselves while in Italy. However, nothing really can surpass a hip weekend in Venice city. You may be on a budget, but you can at least spoil yourselves in just what you would like to avoid most while in the island. You really deserve a contemporary romantic atmosphere for the weekend, and there are several places where you can be able to enjoy life to the fullest.

Try to start the weekend with a sightseeing adventure, probably in a traditional lagoon boat, which is much cheaper, compared to a tour on a cruise or helicopter. You can limit this to half-day’s outing, since there are many romantic things in store for both of you, and you don’t have all the time on your side.

Utilise the afternoon visiting some modern art galleries in the island such as the famous ‘Art Biennale’ among other exhibition centres. You can place an early booking in a trendy bar or even one of the smart restaurants in the city, for your romantic weekend evening together. Hilton Skyline Bar could be a special zone for something really special, such as a honeymoon.

From the panoramic top of the club, you can enjoy a wonderful view of the magnificent city of Venice. Here, you can also enjoy a treat of some expensive cocktail till late night, from where you can decide either to rent a room or to transcend the night with style, in some nightclub.

You can return to Venice Lido first thing on Sunday morning and end up at Lido Beach for something impressive, such as a thirty-minute ferry ride on the waters. You can go back to Hotel Reiter at around noon, from where you can take a big rest in the comfort of your hotel room.

Day 4 of the Tour: Monday 3^rd September

After a long romantic evening together in the hotel, you can wake up to a new day of adventure across the waters to Venice, where you can embark on a more romantic mission, such as an excursion along the canals.

This time, I would propose gondola ride through the canals, from where both of you can have a memorable romantic experience watching the tourists waving frantically in your direction, in the glimpse of their flashing cameras.

Venetian gondola rides are normally charged according to durations, whereby the official price is set to be 80 Euros for a 40-minute ride. Gondolas can carry up to a maximum of six people, but this does not compromise their unique romantic touch (Shoval and Raveh 2004).

You can consider choosing the evening as the most appropriate time for your gondola ride, since there are minimal gondola jams at this time of the day. Moreover, this would be the most convenient time you can make a brilliant choice of where you would like to visit, after having spent the rest of the day in other things, such as silent hand-in-hand strolls along souvenir stands and beauty stores.

Day 5 of the Tour: Tuesday 4^th September

You can spare this day to visit some of the favorite hotspots in Venice, where you can be certain to spend beautiful moments together as a couple. Physical exposure or evidence comes with many benefits to those travelers who are driven by the spirit of adventure.

You can start the morning by visiting the popular Rialto markets, situated alongside the massive Grand Canal. The markets are usually opened in the mornings, and it would therefore be wise for you to get there as early as possible, so that you don’t miss out some of your favourite stuffs. A wide array of goods and products, ranging from food stuffs to tourist merchandise, are traded in the market (Bernstein 2001).

Here, you can buy fresh flowers, among other romantic goodies and treats, for each other. You can retire to the hotel earlier for a big rest, or you can decide to have a more romantic stroll along the capital streets. Think of enjoying a stylish lunch together, in one of the cozy places around, such as Osteria Enoteca San Marco, before spending the afternoon experiencing the region.

Day 6 of the Tour: Wednesday 5^th September

After having spent a long day in Venice on the previous day, don’t even think of leaving the bed early. You can have breakfast on bed, and relax a bit in the comfort of each other in your hotel room, before embarking on another romantic excursion in the magnificent Venice City. Don’t be on a rush to get back to the hotel, but you can delay a bit in Venice, and get to see how the romantic city looks like at night.

There is no way you can imagine of a possible transport inconvenience, since ferry services between Lido and Venice operate on a twenty-four hour basis. Unlike other excursions, where you may have to spend time together with the other couple, you can make this one a grand moment for only the two of you. Be sure to spend a better part of your afternoon on the wooden bridge of Accademia, extending above the Grand Canal.

From this point, you can enjoy some of the city’s grandest scenes and views. Later in the evenings, you can visit the Lagoon shore in Castello or at Sant’Elena, from where you can try to capture a beautiful sunset (Carbognin, Teatini and Tosi 2004).

There are many hot spots in this region, just look for a place of your choice, possibly a less crowded sumptuously traditional palazzo, where you can share a romantic evening together, under the treat of tasty cuisines and local wine. Here, you can freely exchange your best stories in life until late night, from where you can take a twenty-minute ferry ride across the canal, to your hotel in Lido.

Day 7 of the Tour: Thursday 6^th September

Having spent a better part of time sightseeing some of the favorite hubs in Venice, you can now spare the last hours of your tour for the big comfort that comes with basking in the eternal glory of St. Mark’s Square or ‘the Pianzza’. St. Mark’s Square is one of the most significant tourist attractions in Europe, popular for its antique monuments, as well as other magnificent architectural structures (Howard and Quill 2002).

There is much to spend time on, in the one and only square of Venice, and you can be sure to be left spell-bound by the unique elegance of the place. This excursion meets the needs of two sets of couples, and therefore, they can spend time together in the famous square.

Itinerary Plan for Couple B

This is a couple with fewer demands, compared to the newly-married pair above. The elderly couple is mainly focused on nothing short of a luxurious holiday, and in the course of their one week stay in Venice, they would be busy exploring the history and culture of Venetians. Just like it would be in the case of Couple A, there’s more than enough that Venice could offer to this elderly couple, depending on their holiday needs.

Checking in at Venice: Thursday 30^th Aug

Even though it is apparent that you are both physically fit and strong, I would recommend a decently priced hotel near the heart of the city, for your accommodations for the entire period of your Venice tour. Apostoli Palace, which is located at Cannaregio, just a five-minute walking distance from the famous St. Mark’s Square, would guarantee you a treat worthy your plans and needs.

The facility is made to offer maximum comfort to all its clients in a stylish manner (Fotiadis 2007). A single night’s accommodation for a double room would range between 120 and 190 Euros in the hotel.

The most impressive feature for this place is its strategic location, which offers a reliable proximity to many significant zones within Venice, and this would come as an added advantage to the clients. More importantly, the hotel is served by a qualified staff, which is more attentive to the needs of their clients.

Day 1 of the tour: Friday 31^st Aug

It would be a perfect idea for the two of you to embark on an introductory tour of the city and its surroundings, either by bus or a rented car. The latter could be a bit expensive, even though it is the most convenient for your mission, and the one befitting your standards.

Later on, you can cross over to the nearest Lido Island where great adventure awaits. Here, you can treat yourself on a moderately-expensive late lunch in the company of your daughter and son-in-law, before retiring back to the hotel later in the evening.

Day 2: Saturday 1^st September

You can utilise the weekend in a useful manner, by visiting several historical sites upon which the city’s origins are based. Make sure to wake up early and prepare for a long boat ride along the Venice lagoon. Right from the lagoon, you will be able to catch wonderful sceneries of a natural environment that exceeds far beyond the island of Venice.

The island of lagoon is certain to reveal a strong history of the entire region, through a number of visible features which include; settlements along the lagoon, ancient monasteries, and fortifications, among other significant cultural aspects (Montanari and Muscar 1995). This historical and cultural tour would include a visit to strategic destinations in the region, such as Torcello, Altino, Burano, and Mazzorbo.

Day 3: Sunday 2^nd September

You may not be in a mood to wake up early this day, following the arduous excursion of the previous day. In that case, you can enjoy your luxury sleep until midmorning, before you can rise up for some leisure or recreational activity offered by the hotel.

Later on, after taking your lunch, you can take a brief stroll to the nearby markets for some simple shopping. You can buy fresh local food stuffs or fruits to take back with you at the hotel. Make sure to retire to bed early, to prepare for your next big excursion the following day.

Day 4 of the Tour: Monday 3^rd September

Today, you can embark on a mission to visit some of the major historical places in Venice. I would recommend that you start by visiting major historical monuments and other significant building structures in the city. Some of the most strategic structures worthy visiting would include; Fondaco dei Turchi, the Rialto Bridge, Palazzo Ducale, Ca’ Rezzonico, and Ca’ d’Oro.

You can spare sometime in the afternoon, to visit the boatyard at San Trovaso and see the magnificent artwork of gondolas. As it would be observed, these structures are some of the famous cultural symbols associated with the Venetian culture.

Later in the evening, you can join your children for a romantic ride along the canals in a lagoon. You can probably have an early dinner together in one of the plazas along the canals, before parting for the night.

Day 5 of the Tour: Tuesday 4^th September

A visit to the Rialto markets, where you can be certain to learn a lot about the cultural tastes of the Venice people can be a perfect idea for the day. The big market, which is situated along the Grand Canal, is a popular commercial hub in Venice (Logan and Martines 1972). Here, you can be sure to come across a wide range of products that depict the varied cultural tastes of the Venetians.

Day 6 of the Tour: Wednesday 5^th September

There’s no way you can leave Venice without paying a visit to at least one of the several museums within (Russo 2001). These museums are divided into city regions and would include; Peggy Guggenheim Museum, Arsenale, Correr Museum, Academy, and the Museum of Oriental Art.

The museums express a great deal of the city’s rich cultural tastes. More importantly, the museums also express varied cultural aspects, and therefore, it would be worth visiting all of them, if time allows.

Day 7 of the Tour: Thursday 6^th September

You would have traversed the entire city of Venice by now, but your errand in the enchanting region can’t be complete if you have not paid a visit to the St. Mark’s Square, which is only a stone’s throw away from your hotel.

This is one of the magnificent zones in the city, from where you can catch a glimpse of the authentic historical facets of the entire region (Davis and Marvin 2004).

Being viewed as the heart of the city, the square has always been the first stand, for the many tourists who’d be visiting Venice on a regular basis. Together with your daughter and son-in-law, you can spend some beautiful moments in this square of elegant manifestation, just before saying ‘Good bye’ to Venice City.

Conclusion

A good travel itinerary to any wonderful place comes with a timely planning and perfect research of the place, depending on the interests of the travelers. However, only qualified travel agents who possess a sound knowledge of travel matters can offer reliable travel itineraries to their clients regarding any tour that they would be planning to take on any part of the world.

The two itineraries in this report, whose design has been based on a perfect understanding of Venice city, are certain to guarantee the couples a well-guided and enjoyable tour of Venice city. through the itineraries, this report has succeeded in revealing the idea of market segmentation whereby the 7Ps marketing mix are used to justify the choices of the excursions proposed for each of these couples.

Reference List

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