Venice's historic centre is made up by six districts, called 'sestieri' (i.e. one-sixth); Cannaregio, Castello, San Marco, Dorsoduro, San Polo, and Santa Croce. Other islands are farther away in the lagoon, but still part of Venice. Among them, Giudecca, S. Michele, Murano, Mazzorbo, Burano, Torcello, Sant' Erasmo. S. Francesco del Deserto and Lido. Also Mestre on the mainland is within Venice city limits.

Sestieri

Cannaregio

Cannaregio has lots of importance in Venice's history.  It has the Jewish Ghetto and Museo Ebraico.  It was the home district of Titian, Marco Polo and Tintoretto.  The church of Madonna dell'Orto is known as Tintoretto's church and contains several of his paintings.  Another beautiful church in this sestiere is Santa Maria dei Miracoli, built in 1408.  The lovely  Ca' d'Oro, built between 1421 and 1431, is now the site of the museum Galleria Franchetti, with an eclectic mixture of paintings, coins and sculptures.  Cannaregio also has the Santa Lucia train station.

Castello

Castello, together with Cannaregio,  is where many Venetians actually live. It has life, good restaurants, campos, bakeries and meat shops. There are many places of interest to be found in Castello.  The Museo della Fondazione Querini Stampalia on Campo Santa Maria Formosa contains the eclectic collections and library of Giovanni Querini, a 19th century silk producer;  the Scuola di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni contains the splendid paintings by Vittore Carpaccio of the lives of the saints (1502).  There are several splendid churches  in Castello, including San Francesca della Vigna with very fine sculptures in the Cappella Giustinian and paintings by Veronese, Giovanni Bellini and Tiepolo; San Giovanni e Paolo with the tombs of 24 Doges; Santa Maria  Formosa; San Zaccaria; La Pieta' (Santa Maria della Visitazione) where Vivaldi was choir master in an earlier building; San Giorgio dei Greci, a greek Orthodox church; and in the far East of the sestiere, the church of San Pietro in Castello, which was the Cathedral of  Venice until the Primate's seat was moved to San Marco in 1807.

Much of  Castello is occcupied by the Arsenale, the great shipyard when Venice was at its peak. It is normally not accessible to the public, as it still contains some Italian naval installations.

Castello is also much visited by art lovers, because the Pavilion of the Venice Biennale exhibition (Biennale D'Arte Contemporanea & Architettura) is located in the Giardini di Castello.

San Marco

San Marco is the most famous and tourist-filled district in Venice.  Here, of course, are the awe-inspiring Basilica di San Marco, Palazzo Ducale (Doge's Palace), and the Campanile on the Piazza, where you can hear the battling orchestras of the Caffe Florian and Caffe Quadri.  The wonderful Correr Museum is on the opposite side of the Piazza from the Basilica.  Its streets are filled with luxury designer and souvenir shops and luxury hotels.  Here one will pay extra to be in the center of it all. 

Dorsoduro

This is a lovely residential district on the other side of the Grand Canal from San Marco.  It is home to many of the best-known museums in Venice, as well as the Foscari University.  Enjoy the space and museums here, including the famous Peggy Guggenheim Collection, the Accademia Gallery (by far the best collection of Venetian paintings) and the Ca' Rezzonico, which houses the Museo del Settecento Veneziano.  Lovely churches containing great works of art include Santa Maria della Salute, San Trovaso, the Carmini and San Sebastiano with a great many paintings by Veronese.  The large Campo Santa Margherita contains bars, cafes, gelateria and restaurants, with prices frequently more reasonable than those closer to San Marco.

San Polo & Santa Croce

These two sestiere are rather similar and the dividing line is not always apparent.  In the northern part you can smell fish in the morning in the Rialto market, eat in Chinese restaurants as well as many excellent traditional Italian osterias and trattorias. Don't forget the sights, of which San Polo & Santa Croce have many, including the Ca'Pesaro, housing Venice's Galleria Internazionale d'Arte Modern; the great Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari church, which holds a famous Madonna by  Bellini, another by Titian, and the tomb of Canova; and the unforgettable "Sistine Chapel of Tintoretto" in the Scuola Grande di San Rocco, the ceiling of which the artist spent the remaining years of his life painting.

Islands

Lido

Here you can enjoy the beaches, sun and 5-star hotels, as well as one of the few golf courses in the area.

Murano

World-famous Murano hand-blown glass is made here. Come here to see how it's done and walk in this maze of narrow streets.  Close to the Museo landing stage the Palazzo Giustinian houses an excellent small Glass Museum. And nearby is the 11th century church of Santi Maria e Donato built in the Veneto-Byzantine style with a lovely mosaic floor dating back to 1140 AD.

Burano

This lovely, tranquil fishermen's island with its colourful painted houses is worth the hour-long trip by waterbus. It used to be famous for its lace works -- there also is an interesting lace museum.  Most lace being sold on the island these days, however, is manufactured in China, so beware...

Torcello

This island is a five minute waterbus ride across the channel  from Burano.  Now there are are just two beautiful churches; the first cathedral in the lagoon, Santa Maria Assunta, built in 638 AD with substantial alterations and additions in the 800s and 1000s and wonderful mosaics dating from the 8th to 13th centuries, together with the nearby round church of Santa Fosca built in the 11th century. Now there are only a few houses and a museum with a resident population of less than 60, but it used to be the most important island in the lagoon in the early middle ages (with a population of over 25,000), when Venice was founded by residents of the mainland who were trying to escape the Huns' invasion. You could hardly believe it now...

Reaching Venice, you'll start wonder where to go to in order to avoid the masses, which are seemingly everywhere. Just walk around a couple of corners away from the Rialto-Accademia-San Marco triangle. In any direction you'll be able to find peace and quiet.  

Mestre

Mestre is where most Venetians actually live nowadays. There, and in the nearby Marghera district, there are also numerous plants and factories.  This is not an area where tourists normally indulge; Mestre, however, has a lovely little historic district of its own centered around Piazza Ferretto, a  large, arcaded square with a fountain in the middle, which is lined with shops, bars, and restaurants, and is always lively, both by day and night time. On the mainland there are numerous hotels (many with much lower prices than those found in the lagoon), camping grounds, and much cheaper parking lots for those who arrive by car. It is easy to reach the historical center with numerous options of public transportation in 10-20 minutes.