Grand Canal

At a glance

Grand Canal facts that matter

Names, makers, dates, and context before the story opens up.

Italian name	Canal Grande
What it is	Monument
Where	Venice, Veneto
Known for	Venice's main street of water, palace facades, vaporetto Line 1, reverse-S sweep

The story

What you're looking at

The Grand Canal, called Canalazzo by Venetians, is the principal waterway through Venice's historic centre. Its inverted-S course runs between the lagoon and St Mark's Basin, linking the city with the Rialto trading centre. It was Venice's main commercial route and, from the sixteenth century, a prominent setting for aristocratic palaces. Regular mechanically propelled public transport began here in 1881, but routes and fares must always be checked live. The canal forms part of the UNESCO World Heritage property Venice and its Lagoon, not a separately inscribed site.

Verified details

Each statement below is linked to the record or institution that supports it.

The Grand Canal, called Canalazzo by Venetians, is Venice's principal waterway. It forms an inverted S through the historic city between the lagoon and St Mark's Basin.¹

The canal is almost four kilometres long and varies from about 30 to 70 metres in width.¹

The Grand Canal was Venice's main commercial route, linking the lagoon and St Mark's Basin with the Rialto trading centre. From the sixteenth century it also became a setting for aristocratic residences.¹

Regular public transport by mechanically propelled vessels began in Venice in 1881; that autumn the first waterbus, Regina Margherita, appeared on the Grand Canal.²

The Grand Canal is within the UNESCO World Heritage property Venice and its Lagoon. UNESCO identifies the Great Canal and the network of smaller rii as the water arteries of the lagoon city; the canal is not separately inscribed.³

Sources and citations (3)

Meeting VeniceThe Grand CanalThe Grand Canal overviewRead source
ACTVHistoryHistoryRead source
UNESCO World Heritage CentreVenice and its LagoonDescription and Outstanding Universal ValueRead source