{"id":11987,"date":"2026-06-08T00:25:57","date_gmt":"2026-06-07T22:25:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.treffpunkt-venedig.de\/?page_id=11987"},"modified":"2026-06-08T00:25:58","modified_gmt":"2026-06-07T22:25:58","slug":"burchiello-brenta","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.treffpunkt-venedig.de\/en\/venice-day-trips\/burchiello-brenta\/","title":{"rendered":"Burchiello Brenta"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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In a nutshell:<\/strong> The Burchiello<\/strong> is a historic Venetian barge that today operates as a tourist day-trip boat between Venice and Padua<\/strong> along the Brenta Canal (Italian: Naviglio del Brenta<\/em>). The route passes the magnificent Palladian villas<\/strong> built by Venetian patricians in the 16th\u201318th centuries \u2014 including the UNESCO-listed Villa Foscari “La Malcontenta”<\/strong> by Andrea Palladio (part of the World Heritage site “City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto”) and the monumental Villa Pisani<\/strong> in Stra with its Tiepolo ceiling fresco. The day cruise takes 8\u201310 hours<\/strong> including villa visits and a lunch break; the return leg is by bus. Season: April to October<\/strong>, Tuesday\/Thursday\/Saturday. Prices around \u20ac105\u2013135<\/strong> per person including the boat trip, 2\u20133 villa entries and the bus return. Bookable in both directions: from Venice or from Padua, each to the other city.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

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“A romantic boat trip on the Brenta between the Veneto villas.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

If you are planning a day trip between Venice and Padua and fancy a different mode of transport than train or car, the Burchiello offers one of the region’s culturally richest day tours<\/strong>. The boat travels slowly \u2014 about 8 km\/h \u2014 past 11 locks and at least 6 Venetian patrician villas, of which the tour stops at 2\u20133 for interior visits. Arrival at the destination city’s pier is in the late afternoon, with a 30-minute bus return.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two booking directions<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Which direction to choose depends on where you are staying and which city you want as the “highlight at the end”:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Direction 1 \u2014 from Padua<\/div>\n

Padua \u2192 Venice<\/h3>\n

You are staying in Padua or the Veneto hinterland, want to start the day with the boat trip through the villa landscape and arrive in Venice in the late afternoon \u2014 the more atmospheric direction<\/strong>, because you glide slowly into the Bacino di San Marco in front of St Mark’s Square. Recommended if:<\/strong> you are heading to Venice anyway and want a special way to arrive.<\/p>\n

Start:<\/strong> approx. 8:30am from Padua (Pontevigodarzere)
Arrival:<\/strong> approx. 6:00pm in Venice (San Marco)
Price from:<\/strong> approx. \u20ac115 p.p.<\/div>\n Book Padua \u2192 Venice \u2192<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n
\n Most popular direction<\/span>\n
Direction 2 \u2014 from Venice<\/div>\n

Venice \u2192 Padua<\/h3>\n

You are staying in Venice and want a day trip into the hinterland \u2014 the Burchiello is the most scenic way to reach Padua. Recommended if:<\/strong> you are staying in Venice and want a one-day cultural journey with historic transport.<\/p>\n

Start:<\/strong> approx. 9:00am from Venice (Piet\u00e0 pier, Riva degli Schiavoni)
Arrival:<\/strong> approx. 6:30pm in Padua
Price from:<\/strong> approx. \u20ac115 p.p.<\/div>\n Book Venice \u2192 Padua \u2192<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

What actually is the Burchiello?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Burchiello<\/strong> (plural: Burchielli<\/em>) were the most important barges of the Republic of Venice on the Brenta Canal from the 16th century onwards. They carried patricians, goods and mail between the lagoon city and its summer residences in the hinterland. The wealthy Venetian families \u2014 Pisani, Foscari, Contarini, Widmann, Mocenigo \u2014 built magnificent summer villas along the Brenta Canal, designed by star architect Andrea Palladio<\/strong> (1508\u20131580) and his school. Along the roughly 30-kilometre waterway, a unique villa landscape<\/strong> emerged \u2014 Palladio’s Villa Foscari (“La Malcontenta”) is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site “City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto” (inscribed 1994\/96).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today’s tourist Burchiello (launched in 1960 on the historic model) is not the original boat, but it follows the historic route. Commentary is provided in Italian, English and partly German.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\n \"Burchiello\n \n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n
A video impression of the Burchiello boat tour Venice \u2192 Padua \u2014 Brenta Canal, locks, villa stops and arrival in the destination city. (Clicking loads the video from YouTube.)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n