Cannaregio Audio Guide for Venice

Welcome to Cannaregio, the northernmost and most lived-in of Venice's six historic districts. You are standing at the gateway to a neighborhood where the city’s grand history meets the hum of everyday life.^[2] To your west lies the train station, and just ahead, the district stretches out in a series of long, parallel canals that gave this area its name - likely taken from the Italian 'canna' for 'reed,' which once filled these marshy lands centuries ago. As you look around, you might notice that the atmosphere here feels different from the crowded paths of Saint Mark's. Cannaregio is the second largest district by area and the most populous, serving as the authentic heart where Venetians still shop at morning markets, work in quiet artisan studios, and gather for an evening spritz away from the main tourist trail. Today, we will explore its hidden corners, from the world's first ghetto to the parish church of the great painter Tintoretto.