Top 7 airport-transfer services for Venice in 2026

Marco Polo Airport (VCE) sits on the mainland edge of the lagoon, roughly 13 km north of Piazza San Marco. Getting into the historic centro storico means either crossing the Ponte della Libertà by road to Piazzale Roma, or boarding a boat from the airport's waterfront dock at Tessera. Treviso Airport (TSF), used by Ryanair and Wizz Air, lies about 40 km further inland near the town of Treviso. We weighted reliability highest in our scoring because a missed connection at Piazzale Roma can leave you hauling luggage through the narrow calli of Santa Croce with no wheeled-vehicle option forward. Price comes second, and language support at the point of confusion is the tie-breaker between closely matched services. Worth noting, the ACTV vaporetto signage at Piazzale Roma is still largely in Italian only, which tends to trip up first-time visitors trying to find the right floating pontoon for their sestiere.

The most common mistake visitors make is booking a land taxi to their hotel without realizing that cars cannot enter Venice. Every road terminates at Piazzale Roma or, for the parking garages, at the island of Tronchetto. From either point, you still need a vaporetto or water taxi to reach Dorsoduro, Cannaregio, or Castello. The second mistake is assuming the Alilaguna water bus runs around the clock. The last Blue Line departure from VCE is currently around 00:15, and during acqua alta season from October through January, services can be delayed or rerouted through the Canale di San Nicolò. A third pitfall tends to catch budget travelers arriving at Treviso. The ATVO bus to Mestre station runs on a fixed timetable that doesn't always align with late Ryanair arrivals. The last departure is typically 22:30, and there's no night bus alternative.

The ATVO Fly Bus earns the top spot for most visitors. It runs every 20 minutes from VCE to Piazzale Roma, costs €10 one-way, and takes about 20 minutes door-to-door. That said, it is not the right choice if you're staying on Giudecca, Murano, or anywhere along the Grand Canal south of the Rialto Bridge. For those destinations, the Alilaguna Blue Line drops you at stops like Fondamente Nove or San Marco Giardinetti without the luggage-hauling walk at Piazzale Roma. Families traveling with heavy bags to a Dorsoduro hotel might find a Consorzio Motoscafi water taxi from Tessera dock worth the €110 starting fare for a direct canal-side drop-off. Solo travelers on a tight budget who don't mind the slightly longer ride should look at the ACTV Bus Line 5 at €8, especially if they plan to buy a 72-hour ACTV pass anyway.