Intrepid Urban Adventures guide Camilla reveals the secret life of Venetian locals and how you can sidestep the crowds to join them yourself.
Venice has made headlines as tourism surges in the floating city. It’s no secret that well-known spots, like Saint Mark’s Square and the Rialto Bridge, are heaving with visitors.
Go beyond the bridge and you’ll stumble into a world that’s lesser known but more enticing.
The Rialto area, behind the famed bridge, is the oldest part of the canal city. It’s a place where Venetians greet their neighbours with wide grins, share espressos and go about their days without the hustle and bustle of the crowds.
Intrepid Urban Adventures local guide Camilla Feiffer knows all about local life; she’s Venice born and raised.
No place like home
Today, Camilla is proud to share Venice with travellers from around the world, but as it turns out, this wasn’t always the plan. She tells me after she finished school she flew the nest and moved to the United Kingdom to pursue her master’s in art and history.
She returned home for a summer in Italy – a stint that was supposed to last ‘just a few months’ while she applied for post-university jobs back in England.
But the city had other plans for her.
‘I started showing people around Venice for free at the beginning. When friends of my parents would come to visit – they’d ask me to show them around as a favour,’ she says.
‘And it was something that came so easy for me, I didn’t see it as a job. I loved showing them Venice and I enjoyed sharing the art and history of the place,’ she continues.
Before she knew it, Camilla’s ‘small favours’ turned into a full-blown career move. She says ‘I really enjoyed it. And I thought ‘I’m going to do this full time. I’m going to stay in Venice to do this.’’
Now, she’s been leading Intrepid Urban Adventures tours for almost six years and says she ‘explains the story of Venice through the food,’ on their Cicchetti & Wine Tour.
Seeing a different side to the city
Venice is a place that intertwines local life and tourism like nowhere else. Unlike cities such as Rome, where tourists typically flock to attractions in the city centre while locals live in the outer suburbs, Venice’s compact size surrounded by water means residents live and work in the throng of tourism.
This unique dynamic offers travellers a rare chance to glimpse into local life and see the way the people here move about their days. But you’ve got to be willing to go a little further than the most well-known spots.
‘I never go to Saint Mark’s Square,’ Camilla tells me. ‘And so we don’t take our tours there because we want travellers to experience the city the local way,’ she smiles.
Intrepid Urban Adventures takes travellers beyond the Rialto bridge and into the Rialto neighbourhood. This way, they get a taste of everyday Venice as they skip through the local market, restaurants and bars to snack on cicchetti, the city’s answer to tapas, and wash it all down with a splash (or three) of Italian wine. Bellissimo!
Let a local lead
‘The Rialto neighbourhood is busy in some spots with locals going about their day,’ Camilla says. ‘But then, you can turn a corner, and it’s totally quiet and empty – you just have to know the places to go,’ she smiles.
Camilla explains that the Rialto neighborhood was the first area to be settled on the island, dating back to AD 421 – more than 1,600 years ago. Its name reflects its strategic location: ‘Rio’ meaning river and ‘Alto’ meaning high, referencing its position as the highest point on the island, offering a safe place to establish the first community.
She says this neighborhood began as the ‘heart of the city,’ and that hasn’t changed. Venetians still make their way to the Rialto markets every week to pick up fresh fish and catch up with friends.
‘Sometimes, Venice feels more like a small town,’ Camilla says. ‘On Saturdays, we’ll see plenty of people we know at the markets, then head to a local bar for a drink before going home to cook. That’s a typical Saturday for us.’
This way of life really fascinates the travellers on her tours. ‘It’s something they love to see,’ she says. ‘We also take a local ferry – a little gondola across the Grand Canal – just like the locals have done for years.’
Responsible tourism in Venice
While travellers can get a more authentic feel for local life, the growing influx of tourism can be overwhelming for the people who call Venice home.
Regulations have been implemented to help curb tourism’s effect on the local community. The Italian government has capped tour group numbers in the city at 25 people, banned megaphones and no longer allow large cruise ships to dock in the heart of Venice. Camilla feels this is a start, but more could be done, like some of the regulation changes other cities have made around Airbnbs.
As a result of the growing crowds, many Venetians have opted to move away. The city’s population is in decline and, last year, reached 50,000 – its lowest in 300 years. Camilla feels this pull, too. She loves showing people her city and working in tourism, but with a family to care for, the challenges of overcrowding and the soaring cost of living are hard to ignore.
Still, she knows if all the locals leave, the city may turn into a museum that exists only for visitors. For now, she’s content straddling two worlds – enjoying ‘small town’ life while working in the tourism sector. She takes pride in offering visitors a glimpse of the Venice they might otherwise miss, sharing a side of the city that’s close to her heart.
You can see a different side of Venice in just a few hours and support the local community with Intrepid Urban Adventures’ Cicchetti & Wine Tour.
