Venice holidays lay claim to be one of the most romantic city break destinations in the world. Set in a beautiful lagoon, with winding waterways for streets, Venice is awash with fabulous treasures - from the magnificent altarpieces of Titian to Tiepolo's neck-craning ceilings.
Once impossibly wealthy and the centre of Mediterranean maritime power for centuries, the former Venetian powerhouse is now, sadly and slowly, sinking into the mud; a tourist theme park kept afloat by an astonishing 20 million visitors every year. Holiday hotels in Venice take more cash per room than any other city in the world. With just 90,000 tourist beds, many Venice holidays turn into day trips from the mainland.
Howevery they arrive, visitors to Venice are staggered by the city's architectural heritage, charmed by its vivid colours and entranced at its artistic wonders. But they may also be outraged at the avaricious rip-off prices, stifled by the countless crowds and lost down a maze of claustrophobic side streets.
Snaking through the heart of Venice is the Grand Canal, always busy with boats, lined with sumptuous painted palaces and topped by the photo-snapping set piece of the Piazza San Marco and the neighbouring Palazzo Ducale.
Canaletto scenes beckon at every turn, bolstered by scores of magnificent churches, many crammed with paintings and sculptures in a roll call of the world's greatest artists, from Carpaccio to Tintoretto. Among the city treasures are museums such as the Accademia whose collections consist of virtually nothing but masterpieces.
And off the tourist trail, visitors can delight in the backwaters and picturesque byways. Venice's intricate network of around 150 canals and 400 bridges is split into six districts, or sesistre. The city is unique in having no buses, cars, trams or taxis - only footpaths and boats.
Venice may be a glorious but glamorous cliché, it's beauty may be faded and crumbling, the avarice of its inhabitants sharpened by an endless stream of free spending tourists but, no matter how many travel books you have read, photographs or movies you have seen, a visit to Venice remains an awe inspiring experience. That first cruise down the Grand Canal will never be forgotten.