The Lagoon Islands by Vaporetto

Burano — 40 minutes from Fondamente Nove — is a fishing village where every house is a different color and lace-making still produces handwork in a few remaining shops. Murano is closer: glassmaking since 1291, when the Republic moved the furnaces offshore to reduce fire risk. The Lido is Venice's beach — eleven kilometers of Adriatic-facing sand and the art deco Film Festival hotels.

Buy a 24-hour vaporetto pass (25 euros). Start Murano (20 min from Fondamente Nove), continue to Burano (30 min from Murano). Burano is the most photogenic and most crowded by midday — go early.