Options

There are three options for the final section:

• one follows the Girasile cycleway along the banks of the Sile river and then on to Mestre (56 kilometres)
• the second turns off the cycleway to head via Jesolo, and Cavallino -Treporti to Punta Sabbioni on the eastern shore of the Venetian lagoon (83 kilometres). Once you get to Punta Sabbioni you can take the number 14 traghetto to the Lido di Venezia.
• the third takes advantage of newly-opened stretches of cycleway beside the river Sile and the Taglio del Sile to offer a slightly more direct route around the laguna from Quarto d'Altino to Punta Sabbioni. (72 kilometres)

The main route via Mestre is the shortest, but while taking the causeway to Venezia may seem like the obvious choice, the obvious choice isn't always the best one: although there's now a cycleway beside the road it's still far from glamorous or romantic.

For my money the best way to see Venezia for the first time is on a boat coming into the city from the sea, so you really aren't missing out on anything if you opt for one of the variants. If you have few days, then I'd head for the eastern shore which would make a great base for visiting Venezia and the islands of the Venetian lagoon.

A compromise option would be to take the car ferry (service number 11) from the Tronchetto terminal (close to the end of the main route) to the Lido di Venezia. For more inform­ation see the transport and services section below.

  Map:  München-Venezia-variants-mapshow map in overlay    |  München-Venezia-variants-map  show map in new window   

Riverside cycleway in the centre of Treviso

Treviso to Musestre di Roncade

The route out of Treviso is a little tricky because of the one-way system around the Riviera Garibaldi. From what I could see, the best way is to follow the signs into the centre of town and then go through the cobbled vicolo that comes out on the waterside by the Osteria al Dante, then cross the road to the ciclabile by the river. Then, just before the bridge over the river, cross back over the road (there's a crossing) and take the cycleway along the arcade of trees. When you reach the (push-button controlled) crossing, that leads to the water-side turn right and cross the road and turn left. The ciclabile by the river seemed to stop at this point, but going straight on, following the river, seemed to be the easiest option here. Follow the waterside to the start of the Girasile cycleway – it starts just before the railway bridge (you should be able to see the twin circular blue signs about 50 metres away). There’s an I2/​I4 sign although the Girasile is numbered E4).

The Girasile is just beautiful. The Girasile park authority and the local author­ities in this area have invested a lot of money (€3.75 million) on new and upgraded sections of the cycleway as well as some bridges.

Treviso: the GiraSile cycleway

The stretch out of Treviso is popular with runners and walkers (at least it was on a Saturday morning). The cycleway out of Treviso is tarmac surfaced but this gives way to aggregate for most of the 22 kilometres. It is mainly dedicated traffic-free cycleway but there are some sections of quiet road that are restricted to residents (with a 15 kph limit). There's also a section of boardwalk where you have to get off and walk ('Cicli a Mano' signs).

There aren't a whole lot of places to eat and drink along the cycleway itself: the best bet is probably Casier sul Sile, about 6.5 kilometres out of Treviso, where there's a bar and a trattoria.

The GiraSile cycleway (part of the München-Venezia cycle route) near Roncade in the Veneto

Musestre di Roncade to Mestre

At Musestre di Roncade you cross the river and head for Mestre via Quarto d'Altino. The route makes a detour to take advantage of two quiet bridges over the Zero and Dese rivers - passing close to the Marco Polo airport.

The final stretch into Mestre was surpris­ingly quiet. There are a couple of points where you have to go under the rail line and under a main road, but in both cases, the underpass has a separate ciclope­donale.

Mestre, seemed pretty bike-friendly, and coming into town you pick up a cycleway that takes you pretty much all the way to the station - although note that there is a pedes­trian-only zone in the Piazza Erminio Ferretto.

Mestre to Venezia

When I rode this section of the route it stopped in Mestre. There's now a cycleway that takes you all the way to Venezia itself. The cycleway follows the Via Torino before going over the railway line and under the main road. It then continues to the causeway where the cycleway is on the right-hand side. The cycleway takes you over the causeway. If you are planning on getting a ferry from the Tronchetto of San Basilio piers then you need to turn right here, otherwise, rejoin the road for the final stretch (of almost 700 metres) over the Ponte della Libertà to the Piazzale di Roma. There are a limited number of bike spaces at the Bici Park on the Ponte della Libertà (see the transport and services section below). See the transport and services section for more inform­ation on ferries and bike parking.

Venezia - approaching the piazza di San Marco by vaporetto

Options and connections

If you're planning on continuing south there are a couple of options to consider. The first is the eurovelo 8 route that goes via Jesolo and then the islands on the eastern shore of the lagoon and then on to Chioggia on its southern tip. For more inform­ation see:

Another altern­ative is to follow the AdriaBike cycle route which takes you to Padova and then to Chioggia.

Treviso: cyclist on the the GiraSile cycleway - part of the München-Venezia cycle route

Articles in this series

• München-Venezia Overview
• München-Venezia: 1: München to Achenkirch
• München-Venezia: 2: Achenkirch to Hall-in-Tirol
• München-Venezia: 3: Hall-in-Tirol to Brenner
• München-Venezia: 4: Brenner to Fortezza Franzensfeste
• München-Venezia: 5: the PusterTal (Fortezza Franzensfeste to Toblach)
• München-Venezia: 6: the Ciclabile delle Dolomiti
• München-Venezia: 7: the Via Alemagna (Sotto Castello di Cadore to the Lago di Santa Croce)
• München-Venezia: 8: the Lago di Santa Croce to Treviso
• München-Venezia: 9: Treviso to Venezia