Burchiello Brenta Riviera Cruise: Padua to Venice Grand Journey

Long day. Guide was phenomenal, who spoke 4 languages to meet the needs of all the travelers onboard.

Be aware that this is a very long day. The boat did not start off at meeting point, we were bussed to the first villa and then bussed to the boat. There is a lot of walking and getting on and off the bus. Booking thru Viator, the lunch was not an option, we didn’t even know lunch was an option. So at the lunch stop, we had to walk into town (about 5 minutes). The guide is excellent, she has to translate all the information 3 or 4 times, Italian first, English second and then the other languages, so there is constantly someone talking on the boat. During the villa visits, they have other guides and they split the guests up according to language. Once you get to Venice, you will need to find your way back. They do give you instructions. It will be a 45 minute walk to the train station, or a 30 minute ride on the water taxi. The Villas are beautiful and full of history, but it is a long day……

Very Grumpy not friendly captain. The guides were very friendly, but the captain was not friendly at all.I would have preferred a friendly smile.

I really enjoyed the trip via the Burchiello boat from Padova to Venezia. It was a slow but magnificent way to take a bite of the hidden beauty and old tradition. The boat crew and guide are all very nice and knowledgeable, providing very good introductions of the route and the attractions. Highly recommend it to people who like slowing and deep travelling.

It was a nice way to travel to Venice. We enjoyed seeing the villas and the lunch was great. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and was able to give commentary in both Italian and English. Because of this however, there were only a few times where we could sit and enjoy the cruise without constant commentary.

A restful, informative and beautiful way to travel between Venice and Padua. Our guide, Olympia, was kind, helpful and knowledgeable and made the visits to three villas excellent. There was nothing to criticise other than the lunch, huge portions but moderate quality. However, that was a minor issue since if you didn’t book lunch with the trip, there are other nearby places to eat. Not an inexpensive or speedy way to travel, taking all day whilst the train takes no more 30 minutes at a fraction of the cost, but if you don’t have the time the train is a good option, but would miss pretty riverside communities, beautiful countryside and a chance to visit amazing villas. Highly recommended.

A full day on the Brenta Riviera from Padua ending up with a cross largo entry into Venice landing almost at the doorstep of San Marco square. Thunderstorms for the start of the day 0800 - beautiful sunshine by 10.30 - landed in Venice about 5.15 - didn't really look at the time the entry into Venice was fascinating - and I've been to Venice several times. 28 people mostly Italian - 5 English speakers. Elsa our guide switched from Italian to English and back again with ease and her understanding of the 3 villas that we visited and the surrounding and adjacent countryside and river locks and bridges was more than comprehensive. The discussion on how the mathematics of the the Foscari villa informed the design of the of the Zaha Hadid sculpture added to our appreciation of her. Overall a great day.

Sadly we couldn’t start the cruise in padua as there wasn’t enough water in the canal. We had to walk to a bus and this took us to the first villa. Because of the disappointment a refreshment stop was added and another villa plus a shoe museum . We eventually picked up the boat, saw 2 more villas and then went into Venice. The canal bit was very uninteresting and once you’d seen one villa you had seen them all. I feel it’s a shame the company took our money the day before they told us there was no water. The ride into Venice was spectacular and our guide Francesca was knowledgeable and interesting and did her best to make the best out of a bad job. There was also too much ‘free time’ and the lunch which was extra was expensive.

Do NOT preorder the horrible fish lunch. We got sick from it. The food was all sitting out waiting for our arrival. Do NOT buy the water bus tickets (called Vaporetto or AcTV or City Bus) from Burchiello (offered at the end of the tour) to return. Most likely it will be too crowded and you won’t get on. If there’s room, it’s quick to get a ticket as you enter. Also, much faster private water taxi’s located at the dock may be available to the train station and airport. Danger on the boat right away as a passenger was hurt since the First Mate wasn’t doing her job ensuring the top deck passengers were following necessary safety actions. Not relaxing! A voice is constantly blabbing on the intercom repeating information in several languages nonstop during the trip. (Many times saying the same thing over and over in your language.) You can’t have a conversation with your friends/family as the loud speaker is a continuous annoyance. Not peaceful to enjoy the surroundings. It seems the tour guides feel their voices must constantly be heard. Solution: give the passengers headphones like museum tours do. Different channels for each language.

The river cruise is very beautiful, you see lots of beautiful villas from the boat and visit three of them. Silvia was the guide and she was really amazing: super informative, passionate and very efficient switching Italian, English and German and managing the trip. Since the trip starts pretty early and due to covid restrictions you wont have any opportunity for a bite till 13:15, you may want to make sure you have a breakfast before of take a sandwich with you. There will be coffee and water on board. If you want to see on the upper deck don't forget good sun protection.