Rialto Bridge and Market
The Grand Canal's only stone bridge for three centuries, and the city's fish market.
Duration
1 hr – 1 hr 30 min
Best time
Between 7am and 9am
Open
Market closed Sunday and Monday
Entry price
Free
The Rialto was the only bridge across the Grand Canal until 1854. The stone one dates from 1591, after three successive wooden bridges collapsed; the commission went to Antonio da Ponte over Michelangelo and Palladio, and many bet on its falling. It stands on twelve thousand wooden piles driven into the mud.
At its foot, the Pescaria has held the fish market for six centuries, under a neo-Gothic hall of 1907. It is a genuine wholesale and retail market: restaurateurs buy at dawn, and it closes on Sunday and Monday, as fish markets do throughout Italy.
Getting there
Vaporetto line 1 or 2, Rialto or Rialto Mercato stop. The market is on the San Polo bank, at the foot of the bridge.
Rules on site
The market closes at one and opens neither Sunday nor Monday: coming in the afternoon means finding an empty hall. The bridge is unwalkable from ten to six in season.
