Private Murano, Burano & Torcello tour from Venice with guide

★★★★★★★★★★ 4.00 (5 reviews)

Free cancellation

1/9

Duration4h

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN · DE +3

Mobile ticketAccepted

Three islands, one guide, four hours of Venetian history and color

A private guided tour of Murano, Burano and Torcello islands departing from Venice, led by a local guide in your choice of language. You visit Burano for its brightly painted houses and traditional lace workshops, Murano for its centuries-old glass furnaces and arched bridges, and Torcello for the ruins and churches where the Venetian republic began. The tour runs four hours and includes the guide only; a €5 Venice access fee applies on certain dates for day visitors from outside the city.

Step-by-step itinerary

Visit Murano, Burano, and Torcello islands

Travel from Venice to Murano
Explore Murano's glassmaking history
Travel to Burano island
See brightly colored houses in Burano
Visit traditional lacework shops
Travel to Torcello island
Discover origins of Venice in Torcello
Enjoy local food and drinks
Return to Venice

The Experience

The boat leaves from Venice and takes you first to Burano, an island of narrow canals lined with houses painted in bold reds, yellows and blues. The lacework here is not a museum piece—locals still make it by hand in small workshops, and the guide will show you where. If you came to Venice to photograph something other than the Rialto Bridge, Burano is why: the colors are real, the light changes all morning, and the island fills with tour groups by noon, so timing matters.

Murano comes next. In 1291, the Venetian Republic moved all glass production here to keep the furnaces away from the wooden city center—a decision that made Murano famous and kept Venice from burning down. Seven islets connected by arched bridges, Murano still runs on glassmaking. You will walk past working furnaces and see how the craft works, not as a performance but as the island's actual economy. The guide takes you to places locals use, not the tourist corridor, and explains why a city that once ruled the Mediterranean built its wealth on sand and fire.

Torcello is the oldest of the three and the quietest. More than 1,500 years ago, this was where Venice began—before the lagoon islands were fortified, before the republic became a power. The cathedral still stands, and so do the mosaics. The island has no crowds and almost no shops, which is precisely why the guide brings you here. You will see what the other two islands grew from, and you will understand why Venetians chose to build on water in the first place.

What’s included

Local guide in your choice of five languages.
access to all three islands and their neighborhoods.
visits to local popular gathering places where residents spend time, not just tourist stops.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPublic transport nearbyNot for pregnant travelersNot for heart conditionsInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Yo Tours

Is this one for you?Book this tour if you are staying in Venice without a car or prefer not to navigate the vaporetto system alone. The guide handles the route, the timing and the boat transfers between islands, so you spend the four hours seeing what matters instead of figuring out which dock to use next.