Venice

Nobody arrives in venice and sees the city for the first time. Depcted and described so often that it's image has become part of the european consciousness. Venice can initially create the slightly anticlimactic feeling that everything looks exactly as it should.

The water-lapped palaces along the Canal Grande are just as the brochure photographs made them out to be, Piazza San Marco does indeed look as perfect as a film set, and the panorama across the water from the Palazzo Ducale is precisely as Canaletto painted it.

The sense of familiarity soon fades, however, as details of the scene begin to catch the attention - an ancient carving high on a wall, a boat being manoeuvred round an impossible corner, a tiny shop in a dilapidated building, a waterlogged basement. And the longer one looks, the stranger and more intriguing Venice becomes.

Founded fifteen hundred years ago on a cluster of mudflats in the centre of the lagoon, Venice rose to become Europe's main trading post between the West and the East, and at its height controlled an empire that spread north to the Dolomites and over the sea as far as Cyprus. As its wealth increased and its population grew, the fabric of the city grew ever more dense. Very few parts of the hundred or so islets that compose the historic centre are not built up, and very few of its closely knit streets bear no sign of the city's long lineage. Even in the most insignificant alleyway you might find fragments of a medieval building embedded in the wall of a house like fossil remains lodged in a cliff face.

British citizens can enter Italy and stay as long as they like on production of a full passport. Similarly unrestricted access is granted to all EU nationals, whereas citizens of the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are limited to stays of three months, though they, too, need only a valid passport. All other nationals should consult the relevant embassies about visa requirements.

Legally, you're required to register with the police within three days of entering Italy. This will be done for you if you're staying in a hotel (this is why you have to surrender your passport on arrival), but if you're on a self-catering trip you should register at the Questura (HQ of the state police). It used to be the case that nobody bothered too much about this formality, but in recent years the police have begun to be more pedantic with backpacking types in Venice. So if you think you might look like the sort of person a Venetian policeman might deem undesirable, get registered.

As enticing as the city's bars are its cafés and pasticcerie (most of which also serve alcohol), where a variety of waistline-threatening delicacies are on offer, and there aren't too many nicer things you can do to your taste buds than hit them with a coneful of ice cream from Paolin or Nico . Stocking up for an alfresco lunch, you'll be spoiled for choice at the stalls of the Rialto and the smaller markets pitched in a number of Venice's campi, whilst there's a host of tempting alimentari to supplement supplies.

As elsewhere in Italy, take-away pizza is all over the place, but most of it is pretty miserable fare in Venice - you'd be better advised to sit down in a pizzeria or have a snack in a bar. The widest range of take-out pizza slices ( pizza al taglio ) and pies is offered by Cip Ciap , across the canal from the west side of Santa Maria Formosa, at Calle Mondo Nuovo 5799 (9am-9pm; closed Tues) - their spinach and ricotta pie is especially tasty and filling. Next best choice is the simple take-away place over on the other side of the Canal Grande at Calle della Madonetta 1463, a few metres north of Campo San Polo.

As recently as just one generation ago Venice was a night city, where the residents of each parish set out tables on the street at the flimsiest excuse. Nowadays, with the pavements overrun by outsiders, the social life of the Venetians is more of an indoor business - a restaurant meal or a drink with friends might feature in most people's diary for the week, and a conversational stroll is certainly a favourite Venetian pastime, but home entertainment takes up most time and energy. That said, Venice's calendar of special events is pretty impressive, with the Carnevale, the Film Festival and the Biennale ranking among the continent's hottest dates. To find out what's on in the way of concerts and films, check Un Ospite di Venezia , a free bilingual magazine available from the tourist office and some of the more expensive hotels - it's produced weekly in peak season, monthly in winter.

The biggest tourist office - known as the Venice Pavilion - occupies the Palazzina del Santi, the waterfront building on the west side of the Giardinetti Reali, within a minute of the Piazza (daily 10am-6pm; tel 041.522.5150, ); smaller offices operate at Calle dell'Ascension 71/c, in the corner of the Piazza's arcades (Mon-Sat: summer 9.45am-5.15pm; winter closes 3.15pm; tel 041.520.8964), the train station (daily 8am-7pm; tel 041.529.8727), in the airport arrivals area (Mon-Sat 9am-8pm), and on the Lido at Gran Viale S.M. Elisabetta 6 (May-Oct daily 9.30am-3.30pm; tel 041.526.5721). The Calle dell'Ascension 71/c office is supposed to be the city's main outlet for information on the whole Veneto, but the staff are rarely as helpful as those in the Venice Pavilion.