Cannaregio is the northernmost of Venice’s six historic districts and home to one of the world’s oldest Jewish ghettos. Like every other part of the city, there are beautiful old buildings lining canals and around almost every corner. Visit Cannaregio to tour ancient churches and palaces. For your evening's entertainment reserve seats at a 17th-century theater.
Get around Cannaregio on foot or by taking a vaporetto, the water bus service. Venture into the heart of the district by visiting the Jewish ghetto, which dates back to the early 16th century and was the home of the fictional Jewish moneylender Shylock in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. It is still the center of Jewish life in the city.
Tour the Jewish Museum for insights into Venice's Jewish history and to see goldsmith and textile artifacts from the 16th to the 19th century. Visit the area's five synagogues, which all date from the 16th century and boast elaborately decorated interiors. The oldest is the German synagogue, constructed in 1528.
Stop by other centuries-old buildings in Cannaregio. Inside the 14th-century Church of Madonna dell 'Orto are large canvasses and other works by the 16th-century Venetian painter Jacopo Comin, more commonly known as Tintoretto. Discover more artistic treasures at the Ca d'Oro Palace, a 15th-century gothic palace that is now an art gallery.
Another notable building is the Oratorio dei Crociferi, a small medieval chapel and former hospice that's decorated with canvasses depicting religious scenes. The wooden ceiling features a painting of The Assumption of the Virgin with Angelic Musicians.
Enjoy the tranquility of the Parco di Villa Groggia, a small and intimate park with statues, palm trees, lawns and an early 20th-century theater.
In the evening, join locals in canal-side bars for a front-row seat to see the laguna at dusk. Try cicchetti, Venetian versions of Spanish tapas dishes. Then watch a production at the Teatro Malibran, a 17th-century opera house.
Cannaregio lies approximately 1.2 miles (2 kilometers) north of Venice city center. Travel to the historic neighborhood on foot or by water bus.
