Venice

Murano & Burano Islands Guided Small-Group Tour by Private Boat

Badge of ExcellenceVenice, Italy

From $31.69

Select Date and Travelers

up to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)

  • 5 hours
  • Mobile ticket
  • Offered in: English

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Overview

Explore the intricacies of two famed Italian handicrafts on a fully guided day trip from Venice to the nearby islands of Murano and Burano with a group of up to 20 people. Watch centuries-old glassblowing techniques in Murano, and marvel at the detailed stitches of exquisite Burano lace. Your knowledgeable guide will share the history of these two artisan islands while you visit local workshops and wander the picturesque streets.
  • Watch local craftsmen at work in a Murano glass workshop
  • Browse an impressive collection of glass artwork
  • See Burano lace being made by local islanders
  • Visit the Burano Lace Museum independently
  • Enjoy transportation by a private boat, exclusively for your tour group.
  • Enjoy an intimate tour experience with a group of 20 people or fewer

What's Included

  • Small groups of up to 20 people for a more personalized experience
  • Round-trip transportation by private boat just for your group
  • Expert local English speaking Guide
  • Glassmaking demonstration in Murano
  • Lacemaking demonstration in Burano
  • Discount at the glass gallery and lacemaking shop where the demonstrations are given
  • Hotel pickup and drop-off
  • Gratuities

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

  • Monument to Victor Emmanuel II
    Riva degli Schiavoni, 30100 Venezia VE, Italy

    At the statue of a man (Vittorio Emanuele II) on a horse in Riva degli Schiavoni (San Zaccaria vaporetto stop), in front of the lagoon. GPS Coordinates: 45.433846, 12.343526

End point

  • Hotel Gabrielli
    Riva degli Schiavoni, 4110, 30122 Venezia VE, Italy

    In front of Hotel Gabrielli Sandwirth (near San Marco).

What To Expect

Situated just across the Venetian Lagoon from Venice, the lovely islands of Murano and Burano are world-renowned for their traditional artisan crafts. You’ll meet up with your guide in central Venice for the short boat ride to Murano, a picturesque grouping of islands that has been home to some of the world’s finest artisan glassblowers since the 13th century.

Visit the workshop of a local glassblower to watch delicate forms take shape from molten glass through a combination of rolling, shaping with iron tools and blowing through a long metal tube. Learn tricks of the trade, like how minerals are added to give the candy-colored vases and chandeliers of Murano their vibrant hue. Enjoy some free time on the island to explore other workshops and perhaps pick up a souvenir to take home.

Hop back on the boat for the scenic ride to Burano, where traditional lacemaking workshops are scattered among the island’s brightly colored homes. Learn about the history of Burano lace and how it was once sought after by monarchs across Europe for its exquisite quality. You’ll get a chance to watch local craftswomen creating lace through a series of finely detailed weaving and stitching, carrying on a tradition that has thrived here for centuries.

If you like, visit the Burano Lace Museum on your own to delve even deeper into the history of this elegant craft. Enjoy free time to explore the island and peruse local shops before the return boat trip to Venice.

Isola di Murano

2 hours 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Burano

2 hours 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

  • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
  • Not wheelchair accessible
  • Infants must sit on laps
  • Not recommended for travelers with back problems
  • Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
  • Please note that on Mondays, the typical lacemaking demonstration in Burano may not always be available. In such event, the tour still offers a captivating exploration of the island that showcases its unique charm and rich cultural heritage. We appreciate your understanding
  • On certain dates, most travelers staying outside of Venice who are planning to visit for the day will be required to pay a €5 access fee. For further details (including exemptions) and to learn what days this fee is applicable, please visit: https://cda.ve.it
  • Some sites visited lack shade and can be hot under direct sunlight. We recommend bringing a hat, sunscreen and a bottle of water in warm weather.
  • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 20 travelers

Cancellation Policy

You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.

  • For a full refund, you must cancel at least 24 hours before the experience’s start time.
  • If you cancel less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time, the amount you paid will not be refunded.
  • Any changes made less than 24 hours before the experience’s start time will not be accepted.
  • Cut-off times are based on the experience’s local time.
  • This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund.
  • This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

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Featured review
Lee_S
Elly the guide was incredible! Boat was lovely. Wonderful visit! Excellent communication easy meeting location. Butane was beautiful with its amazing colors! Murano glass making factory was incredible. Perfect place to buy a lasting souvenir!

Reviews

4.5
3,998 reviews
Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews
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Reviews by Viator travelers.
Showing 1-10 of 3,998 reviews
Pretty good, not incredible
Nathan_B, Apr 2024
Pretty enjoyable. It feels a bit scammy since the entire time in Murano is spent trying to sell you glass at the museum.
Wonderful tour with Francesca Jin at City Wonders!
Lpkbathdesigns, Apr 2024
Francesca Jin was our guide from City Wonderd and she was amazing. She was professional, interesting, informative and fun. Thank you Francesca!
Elly, our guide was very good and we enjoyed spending the tour with her.
Keith_J, Apr 2024
Visiting the glass studio and watching the live demonstration of the glass master blowing the glass. The glass creations are breathtaking. Burano was very picturesque and colorful. We enjoyed every moment even in the cold rainy weather.
Fun with the glass
Alfred_T, Apr 2024
The host had a lot of interesting history and info and was a delight. Murano was great. The lace making was not that great but still interesting.
Burano Murano
Noel_G, Apr 2024
Monnie our tour guide was 5 star as was Burano. The Murano stop was too long. Glass factory was impressive but after that we spent too much time at factory showroom. Would’ve appreciated extra time in Burano
Amazing tour guide, amazing talents
Tony_P, Apr 2024
Francesca was an excellent guide and all of the other experts who assisted with the explanations of the glass and lace work were very informative and provided plenty of intriguing information. So much so that I may have spent a little too much at both the Glass and Lace shops lol.
Awesome tour!
William_R, Apr 2024
Excellent knowledgeable tour guide! Perfect proportions of guided narrative and free time on the islands. Highly recommend this small group tour!
Enjoyable day
william_d, Apr 2024
Burano and our guide Francesca Gin she was a fountain of knowledge well done her very informative about venice and the islands we visited
Worth the trip!
Prudence_V, Apr 2024
Francesca was warm and very informative. The boat ride was terrific and both Murano and Burano were fascinating
Informative, insightful and fun!
Sarah_D, Apr 2024
Francesca Gin our guide was charismatic, informative and helpful. She as a life long Venetian showed love for her homeland and shared this with the group sharing a little personal information with humour and lots of facts about our surroundings and way of life.
Fantastic experience!
Alexandra_V, Apr 2024
Anna was an engaging and knowledgeable tour guide. The ride to and from the islands was perfect. Would recommend to friends.
Burano a hidden gem in the sea
Franken_s, Apr 2024
Murano glass making demonstration was impressive, the showroom like a museum of fine arts. Burano was the jackpot. This small island is very colorful with an intimacy that is unachievable in Venice. The lacemaking demonstration was very quick, another lost art. We had about an hour on this wonderful little oasis, only enough time to get a gelato and walk around a little. To fully capture the essence of this gem of an island more time is needed. Our guide Elley was wonderful.
Take an easy afternoon to see Murano and Burano
Cindy_E, Apr 2024
We enjoyed the easiness of the experience on both islands and Giovanni was very friendly and helpful.
Day Trip Murano/Burano
Lisa_D, Apr 2024
Manuela did a great job on our day trip to Murano and Burano. She gave lots of details and was very passionate about her city.
We loved watching the...
Michelle_S, Apr 2024
We loved watching the glass blowing demonstration. Elly was very knowledgeable and friendly. We enjoyed the entire experience.
Couldn't get much better than Elly!
Christine_S, Apr 2024
We were drenched on Murano Island, but that didn't stop us from enjoying the demonstration at the glass factory or the fun boat ride across the lagoon. By the time we reached Burano, the weather had cleared and the day was perfect. What a beautiful place!!! I am so glad we didn't miss this one. Our guide, Elly, was the best we had all 14 days of our cruise. She was clear in her communication, interesting, and went out of her way to patiently direct us back to our shuttle bus at the Stazione Marittima.
Murano and Burano tour
Susan_T, Apr 2024
Lovely trip to Murano and Burano. Great to see a master glass maker at work. Burano was beautiful although 1h 20 mins wasn't really long enough to explore the streets shops and sit for a coffee. Our guide Matteo was very informative. Would recommend.
Excellent day
Elyse_N, Apr 2024
Elly was an excellent guide; friendly, knowledgeable, full of interesting annecdotes and local advice. We had a great day exploring the beautiful islands and getting a peek behind the scenes of the crafts that they're famous for.
Amazed by the Art & Beauty
Lisbette_H, Apr 2024
Alice was our tour guide and she was so incredible! We had so much fun being in a small group and enjoyed the experience at both Murano and Burano. Of course we did wish we could have spent more time in Murano because there is so much to see! Then Burano was incredible as well to see how they do the lace. When I saw the lady, it reminded me of my grandma. Because we wanted to go back to Murano and look at the other glass shops, we ended up telling Alice that we were staying in Burano and she help us with how to take the ferry to Murano. Thank you Alice!!!! You are so knowledgeable and funny!
Viator not customer friendly
Celedonia_F, Apr 2024
The tour was re scheduled to a different date. It was scheduled for 10:30 to 10:45 waiting time. We were there on time and keep waiting till 11:00 and nobody showed up. We called Viator so many times and we got te scheduled the next day but have y try o pay again. Not a good experience and customer service were not helpful. Not booking with Viator ever again.
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