Join us for a unique weekend in Venice. We will spend our Saturday touring the city as very few others will ever do. Our kayaks will give us the freedom to visit the well known canals and sights as well as the much less known smaller canals of this beautiful city. We will get to know our kayaks, rest, enjoy lovely Venetian food, to get ready for our challenge: The 30 km tour around the Islands starts in front of St Marco Square, ending with a specacular finale in the Canal Grande.

You will definitely not be alone: this event is like the London Marathon in a kayak. People from all over the world take part in this crazy race that isn’t really a race. It is crazy, chaotic and super fun. Really something very special.

The Vogalonga started in 1974 as small gathering of Venetian rowers expressing their love of the lagoon and as a peaceful protest against the influx of motorised traffic.

Now held for the 43nd time, this protest, a fun get-together and a non-competitive race rolled into one has grown to an incredibly fun, chaotic, festive, international event with over 7,000 participants in over 2000 people-powered boats, taking over the lagoon and inner city canals of Venice.

Together we will oust the destructive motorboats which churn up the fragile lagoon ecosystem and damage Venice’s buildings, and for one day the peace is disturbed only by the slap of oars, the drums of the dragon boats, the shouts and songs of the participants and the applause of enthusiastic spectators.

Pretty much any kind of people-powered craft can take part, from canoes to dragon boats, from stand-up paddleboards to traditional Gondolas. Locals as well as teams and individuals from around the world join in and add to the party atmosphere. It is a crazy event, with so many different nationalities and crafts, it is bound to be chaos, especially at the finish in the grand canal. You won’t have experienced anything like it, I promise!

The route

The start of the 30 km long Venice Regatta will be heralded with the shot of a canon. Awaiting the start sign, all participating boats will gather in St. Mark’s Basin, in front of the Dogana palace.

The race will pass the most fascinating places of Venice and  its lagoon. Starting with the Island of St. Helena, we will pass the islands of Vignole, Sant’Erasmo and San Francesco del Deserto. The islands of Burano and Mazzorbo are about midway, after which we will pass Madonna del Monte and San Giacomo in Paludo, then on to the Grand Canal of Murano. Arriving in Venice, we will enter the city through the Cannaregio Canal and finally the Grand Canal. We will finish the race in front of   the Punta della Dogana by St Mark’s.

The package:

We offer kayak coaching and training in London before the trip, the kayaks during the Vogalonga, as well as a guided trip through the canals in Venice on the day before the Vogalonga.

Food, flights, travel insurance and B&B during your stay are not included in the price.  We do have an option of sharing a B&B with us. Please get in touch if you’d like to hear more.

Want to join?

In order to take part, you must be fit enough to be able to complete the 30 km in a sea kayak.

Please get in touch before signing up, so we can discuss your current fitness levels. You don’t have to be able to be an expert kayaker yet, we will offer coaching and training. We only have one more month before we leave, so it is important you are available for all training sessions.

Training dates: 

Sunday 14 May

Saturday 20 May

Sunday 28 May

ailien@fitandhappyoutdoors.com

078 078 3456 4