Where to shop in Venice
Markets
Rialto
Market
The Rialto is famous for its fresh fish, caught that morning in the lagoon.
Be sure to get there early to find the best buys! You will also find fruit
and vegetable stalls, and, in the surrounding streets, butchers' shops
selling pheasants, quail, venison and wild boar.
Open Tuesday to Saturday, 8am to 1pm.
Campo Santa Margerita
Fruit and vegetable market, open most days.
Strada Nuova, Cannaregio
Another excellent fruit and vegetable market.
Shops
With so many wonderful shops to choose from, it's difficult to know where to start! Here is a small selection of my favourites.
Battiston, Calle Vallaresso, San Marco
Decanters and glasses made of blown glass.
Bottega Veneta, Calle Vallaresso, San Marco 1337,
Tel: 041 522 8489
Say no more. Handbag heaven.
Cartapesta, Barbaria delle Tolle, Castello
Masks and other items in papier mache and leather - you can put aside a good
hour to browse in here.
Cenerentola, Rio Terra'Nomboli, San Polo 2600/A
Tel: 041 523 2006
Beautiful lampshades exquisitely crafted and also custom made.
Codognato, Calle dell'Ascensione, San Marco 1295
Tel: 041 5225042
Fantastic collection of jewellery: seas of emeralds and pearls in all sorts
of styles.
Dittura, San Vio 871, Dorsoduro
Tel: 0141 523 1163
Any Venetian will tell you to go to Dittura to purchase a pair of de rigeur
'furlane' - traditional gondolier's shoes made of velvet. Mainly worn as
chic slippers they are made for both men and women.
Il Prato: Legatoria, Calle de le Ostreghe 2457/58
Tel: 041 523 1148, fax 041
528 7928, ilprato@iol.it
A real find - my favourite shop in Venice. Exquisite leather goods from
cigar cases with temperature controls to elegant solitaire boards all
beautifully crafted using the same manufacturer as Hermes. Good initialled
stationary as well. The owner's beagle is the icing on the cake for me -
absolutely adorable.
Also has US distributor: Lucy Zahram and Co, Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills CA
(tel: 800 828 1333)
Mondo Novo, Rio Terra Canal, Campo Santa Margherita, Dorsoduro.
Tel: 041 528 7344
Another place
for masks. Word on the street is that Kubrick came here to
collect masks for a well known scene in Eyes Wide Shut.
Panificio Volpe, Calle Ghetto Vecchio, Cannaregio 1143
Tel: 041 715178
A pastry shop not to be missed: breads and sweets in the Jewish tradition.
Deer's horns packed full of crema di mandorla (almond fondant), tiny
delicate candles made of sugar and much, much more for those with a
sweet tooth.
Paolin in Campo Santa Stefano - in my opinion the best gelateria in Venice. Heavenly after an afternoon on your feet.
Rose Douce, Rialto - S. Giovanni Guisostomo, Cannaregio 5782
Tel: 041 522 7232
Murano glasswear; small multicoloured beads, delicate flutes and antique
necklaces.
Rubelli Fabrics, Palazzo Corner Spinelli, San Marco 3877
Tel: 041 523 6110, www.rubelli.com
Wonderful collections, luxurious silks and quality cottons. If you can't
get to Venice in the meantime you tempt yourself in the Chelsea Harbour
Design Centre: H A Percherton Ltd (tel: 020 7349 1590) has a concession - not
quite the same as being in Venice but still fun all the same.....
Vittorio Trois, Campo San Maurizio, San Marco 2666
Tel: 041 522 2905)
Workshop that sells original Fortuny fabrics for dresses and for furnishings
as well. Divine. (Also see Venetia Stadium for lamps, furnishings and
scarves: San Marco 2425, Calle Larga 22 Marzo. Tel: 041 5236953)