Venice was officially founded on March 25,. A.D. 421. Venice is the only city in the world which is built entirely on water. There three thousand calli (narrow alleyways and streets), the same number as there are wooden stakes under each of the two bridgeheads at Rialto Bridge. Venice is made up of 100 islands separated by more than 150 canals and joined by 428 bridges, 50 of them private. The center and most frequented part of the city is Saint Mark's Square. At the eastern end are Saint Mark's Cathedral and the Doges' Palace (Palazzo Ducale), the two most important and imposing structures in Venice. The most famous of the three bridges spanning the Grand Canal is the Rialto (1588), lined with a double row of shops. The Grand Canal, the principal traffic artery of Venice, is lined with old palaces of the Venetian aristocracy, among which are many structures of historical and architectural renown.

Islands extend to the east in the direction of the Lido, an island reef outside the lagoon that is famous as a bathing beach and recreational resort. Great museums, such as the Ca' d'Oro (located in a Gothic palace on the Grand Canal), and historic churches are found throughout the city.

No motor vehicles are permitted on the narrow, winding lanes and streets that penetrate the old city, and the bridges are for pedestrians only. For centuries the most common method of transportation was by gondola, a flat-bottomed boat propelled by a single oar. Today, the gondolas are used mainly by tourists; motor launches carry almost all the freight and passenger traffic in Venice. The best time to go is from March through June, and from September until December.