Museums
The Jewish Museum (Museo Ebraico)
La Fenice Theater (Teatro La Fenice)
Visit this historic theater with an audioguide good explanations in several languages. The theater is an identical reconstruction rebuilt in 2003 of the previous theater building that burned down in 1996.
The Peggy Guggenheim Museum
The Peggy Guggenheim Museum offers a personal collection of modern art collected by Peggy Guggenheim. Peggy was an American married to modern artist Max Ernst, and funded a number of his contemporaries. The gallery includes a sculpture garden and works by Picasso, Kandinsky, Tanguy, Duchamp, Pollock, Dali, and Mondrian.
Leonardo da Vinci
in Chiesa di San Barnaba shows around forty models of machines reproduced from Leonardo's codices. Some of the exhibits are interactive and copies of the codices are available for further reading. Dorsoduro 2771, opening hours 9:30 - 19:30, until 31th December 2012. â¬8.
churches
Although San Marco is free, other famous churches charge an entry fee. If you plan to visit three churches or more, you are better off buying the churches pass. There is also a combined pass for museums, churches and transportation only available at the tourist information office but it is relatively expensive.
outdoor sights, piazzas, bridges, canals
Don't miss the Rialto market and the Rialto Bridge Italian: Ponte di Rialto on San Polo, the smallest sestiere. The Rialto market is for shoppers. To the east is a neighborhood of small shops and restaurants; to the west is the Rialto farmers' market. Shopping is slightly less expensive than in the tourist-filled Piazza San Marco. The bridge has become one of Venice's most recognizable icons and has a history that spans over 800 years. Today's Rialto Bridge was completed in 1591 and was used to replace a wooden bridge that collapsed in 1524.
Zattere
It's a long and sunny walk along the Giudecca canal, protected during winter time from cold northerly winds for being exposed to south and shielded by buildings. You might find interesting to see how a gondola is made, stopping by the Squero Venetian for small ship yard across the canal near San Trovaso Church. It's one of the few still in business in town. With some luck, you'll see some gondole through various manufacturing steps note that gondole are not straight to counter-balance the gondoliere push.