A vaporetto ride along the Grand Canal is fun for the whole family – line 1 runs the complete length from Piazza Roma to Piazza San Marco, passing the ornate facades of Venice's most regal palaces along the way. Pre-mobility, you can enjoy the city no differently than you could "before kids". Do consider bringing a baby carrier as strollers can be a real drag in the city. Then there’s the Alilaguna ferry, which has various routes and stops around the city center – at €16, it’s much cheaper and the views are the same. Finally, you can get a coach or bus to Piazzale Roma, the road terminus on the edge of the city (€10). From there, walk or take a vaporetto (€9.50). 2. Know your boats…

There are blue flags flying everywhere around the lagoon and you'll find one of the best Blue Flag-certified beaches right at the lagoon's southern end. Sottomarina – part of the municipality of Chioggia and much more easily reached by car than by water-bound public transport – is a much-loved beach escape with a huge variety of water activities to keep everyone entertained, and decent accommodation nearby. Over Christmas the area around the Rialto Bridge glimmers with lights and markets, but it is in January for the Regata delle Befane – the boat race where participants dress as witches – that visitors will want to find a viewing spot on the infamous Ponte di Rialto.

Walking remains the best way to get around the six sestieri of Venice. The city on the Lagoon is relatively small – going from the Santa Lucia railway station to Piazza San Marco only takes about thirty minutes on foot, for example – and its main sights are usually well-marked and easy to find. Although you should probably arm yourself with a good GPS and a nice map, the unconventional layout of Venice's streets and alleyways can thwart even the best sense of direction. This is one of Italy’s chi-chiest ski resorts, but there’s plenty to do year round, from hiking to eating (try the Michelin-starred SanBrite, whose owners source all their ingredients locally). This is part of the Ladin community, an ancient population of the mountains that have their own language and traditions. Learn about the Ladins, and the Regole – essentially a collection of centuries-standing families who "govern" the town – at the Ethnographic Museum, housed in an old sawmill. And while climate change is sparking drought in Italy, the canals of Venice are usually full. Even last summer, when Italy’s lakes and rivers were visibly drying up, Venice looked the same as ever. Can I still take a gondola ride? You’re going to be taking a lot of boats in Venice – here’s how to know which one to take. From the airport, if you want to arrive by water, take the Alilaguna ferry – a private company that has different routes and stops around the city. Alilaguna also has a couple of tourist lines out to the islands. This one’s simple. This may be a pedestrianized city but Venice has more foot traffic than most places have cars, so there are unwritten rules. Walk on the right, overtake on the left, try not to grind to a halt in the middle of the narrow streets, and never – never – sit down on the pavement (not least because you can be fined – see below). Think of these as real roads and you’ll be fine. 12. Don’t get fined

Of course, their volcanic origin should give you a hint that Italy’s famous thermal spas will be nearby. The small, neighboring towns of Montegrotto and Abano are home to various springs and spas that have been going since Roman times. Today, along with other nearby towns Galzignano, Battaglia and Teolo, they’re said to form the oldest, and largest, thermal spa in Europe, with 240 thermal pools between them. One of our favorites is the Abano Ritz Hotel Terme – family- and female-owned for three generations. The thermal mud they use in balneotherapy treatments comes from right beside the hotel and the pools in their 6,000-square-meter waterpark stay a constant 33 degrees (91.4F), thanks to the thermal waters that spent 25 years and 100km (62 miles) underground before gushing out here.Today, you can still walk along the street, just as they did – the only thing that’s changed is that it’s now pedestrianized and the “most elegant street in Europe,” according to 19th-century historian Cesare Cantù. The jewel in Vicenza’s crown, though, is the Teatro Olimpico – a jaw-dropping theatre by Palladio, its interior crafted entirely from wood, stucco and plaster to aid the acoustics. Its trompe l’oeil stage set is the oldest in the world. If you have a car, it’s worth driving around the countryside, which is littered with sumptuous villas also designed by Palladio – La Rotonda is one of the finest. The Biennale, an annual cultural exhibition held in Giardini and Arsenale is understandably a huge draw for fans of contemporary art and architecture. Other sights include the colossal Basilica di Santa'Antonio – where the remains of St. Anthony of Padua are kept – and Prato della Valle, a huge square (said to be Europe’s largest) where grand statues of local luminaries stand guard over a moated island (join the locals and buy a pizza at nearby Pizzeria Orsucci, going strong since 1922, and eat it in the square). Don’t miss Piazza delle Erbe, where there’s still a busy food market, both inside and out. Looking for souvenirs? La Bottega del Pane is a pantry of exceptional local foods. Furthermore, as a response to warnings from UNESCO about the damage caused by cruise ships, Venice officially banned such ships from the historic city center last April. Instead, large ships are now redirected to alternative ports like Fusina and Lombardia, alleviating the pressure on Venice's infrastructure. Then there is the Vogalonga, with its more than a thousand participants every May, and the Regata delle Befane on the day of the Epiphany in January, where rowers dress up as the Befana, a witch-like figure from Italian folklore that brings sweets to kids on the day of the Epiphany.