The Biennale 2025: what to see if you only have two days

The Biennale di Venezia is enormous. If it’s your first time, you risk spending two days walking between pavilions without really knowing where you are or what you’re looking at. We live nearby and experience it every year, so here’s how to put together a weekend that actually makes sense.

Day 1: The Giardini della Biennale

Start with the basics: the Giardini are the historic heart of the Biennale. This is where you’ll find the national pavilions — the ones with the most ambitious architecture and the largest installations. Arrive when it opens (10:00), because by 14:00 it becomes a crush.

Begin with the Italian Pavilion. It’s always at the centre of the debate — sometimes remarkable, sometimes questionable, but always worth seeing first. Then move through the historic pavilions: the British, the German, the Nordic pavilion designed by Sverre Fehn. These are buildings that justify the ticket price on their own.

Don’t try to see everything. It’s not possible, and you’ll exhaust yourself. Choose 8 to 10 pavilions at most and give yourself time to actually look at them. Sit down, read the texts, let the work speak. The Biennale is not a race.

Around 13:00, head out and eat. Avoid the tourist restaurants near the entrance. Walk ten minutes towards Via Garibaldi and stop at Dai Tosi or Trattoria Alla Rampa. Real cooking, honest prices, Venetians at lunch.

In the afternoon, go back in — or, if you’re tired, take a walk to the Arsenale to get a sense of where you’ll be tomorrow. Gauge the distances, enjoy the route along the fondamenta.

Day 2: The Arsenale and beyond

The Arsenale is larger than the Giardini and more labyrinthine. This is where the Biennale presents the central exhibition curated by the artistic director — the more experimental work, the largest installations, the projects that don’t fit into traditional pavilions.

Arrive early here too. The Arsenale is a linear route, so follow the flow but take breaks. There are courtyards to sit in, enormous rooms to get lost in. Don’t rush.

Halfway through there’s a decent bar. Use it. Biennale fatigue is real, and if you don’t stop you’ll reach the end without the energy to appreciate what you’re seeing.

After the Arsenale, two options. If you still have energy, go and see some of the collateral events around the city — there are always dozens of them, spread across palazzi, deconsecrated churches, industrial spaces. Check the official programme and pick the ones that genuinely interest you.

If you’re exhausted (which is entirely reasonable), go for a drink at a bacaro in Castello. Al Portego or Alla Mascareta are both right. Sit at the bar, order an ombra and some cicchetti, and let the day settle.

A few practical notes

Buy your ticket online. The queues at the box office are long and losing an hour waiting is a waste.

Download the official Biennale app. It has maps, suggested routes and information on every pavilion. It’s well made and saves you when you get disoriented.

Wear comfortable shoes. You’ll be walking for hours on concrete, gravel and wood. The wrong shoes can ruin the day.

Don’t photograph everything. Experience the work in person, then maybe take one or two photos of the things that genuinely stayed with you. The Biennale isn’t lived through a screen.

If you can, avoid weekends. Weekdays are quieter, there’s room to breathe, and the installations are more enjoyable. The Biennale when crowded loses half its point.

Where to stay

If you’re coming for the Biennale, choose an apartment in Castello. We’re a ten-minute walk from the Giardini and fifteen from the Arsenale. In the evening you come home without fighting onto crowded vaporetti; in the morning you arrive early without stress.

Our apartments fill up with architects and curators during the Biennale for a reason: the position makes sense. Venice during the Biennale is extraordinary but also chaotic. Having a place to come back to — breakfast without rushing, cooking a meal in the evening — makes the difference between a stressful trip and an experience you remember for years.