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Since returning to the Arsenale in 2019, the Venice Boat Show has become a fixture in the city’s calendar, bringing contemporary boating culture into the former shipyard where the Venetian Republic built and maintained much of its naval fleet. The location gives the Salone Nautico a very different feeling from a standard trade fair, placing new boats, exhibitors, and visitors inside one of the most historically important maritime sites in Venice.
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Your Weekend Guide for the Salone Nautico in Venice
This past May, Venezianico marked the annual event with the launch of the Nereide Salone Nautico Limited Edition Venezia 2026, created in collaboration with the Venice Boat Show. If you’re planning to visit Venice for next year’s show, we put together a guide to spending the weekend around the Salone Nautico, including where to eat near the Arsenale, what to do after sunset, and – of course – what to wear while you’re there.
Where to Eat
For lunch during the Boat Show, Alberto Morelli, co-founder of Venezianico, recommends staying around Castello and Via Garibaldi rather than moving too far from the Arsenale. “If I had to pick one place, I’d recommend Nevodi for great seafood and a genuinely Venetian atmosphere,” he says. This classic, brick-lined restaurant is close enough to the show, but when you’re tired of the crowds, it’s far enough away to give you a proper Venetian lunch to relax and recuperate over a glass of vino bianco.
Another option is Al Covo, a seafood-focused restaurant that might be better suited for a slower meal, if you have an hour (or two) to really take in the city from the comfort of your tavola.
For dinner, Morelli recommends going as local as possible, opting for areas of the city “where many Venetians actually go in the evening for a spritz and dinner by the canal.” These areas include Cannaregio (or, more specifically, Fondamenta della Misericordia), a large, mostly residential, part of the city. Start with an aperitivo at Vino Vero, then head over to Antica Adelaide, for a classic local’s favorite for traditional Venetian cooking.
What to Do
As mentioned, the Boat Show is held inside the Arsenale, meaning you’ve already checked off one of Venice’s most-visited attractions. But, after the show has closed for the day, Morelli recommends walking alongside the lagoon from the Arsenale towards Riva degli Schiavoni to see the golden light dancing across the waters.
Once the sun has set, be sure to head southward towards Dorsoduro, a neighborhood in Venice that’s a bit bohemian and filled with world-class art museums, including Gallerie dell’Accademia and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection.
And it wouldn’t be Venice without a trip along the waterways that intersect the city. Be sure to book your ticket on a vaporetto, the city’s answer to public transportation, in the form of a water bus. “Be sure to take Line 1 along the Grand Canal at night. It’s one of the best ways to see Venice and something many visitors overlook.”
What to Wear
If you want to stay comfortable and not look like a tourist, make sure you pack appropriately. Given the time of year and the setting, going for something best described as what you’d find in Italian cinema is just the right thing to look – and feel!– your best. Think linen shirts, lightweight polos, a linen suit (or two, so you can mix-and-match jackets and trousers throughout your holiday. Stick with loafers that you can go sockless in and a back-up pair of sneakers if you plan to do a lot of walking around the city – remember, cars are rare in Venice!
With a wardrobe this simple, it’s best to let the accessories do a little more of the work. Instead of coming home with another postcard, why not pick up a Venezianico watch as your souvenir? During May’s boat show, the Venice watchmakers released the limited-edition Nereide Salone Nautico Limited Edition Venezia 2026, which took the Nereide platform and gave it a sharper, more dressed-up look for the Boat Show, with a white enamel dial, gold-tone indices and hands, and a tungsten bezel with a highlighted 10-minute regatta countdown sector. Since then, this particular reference has sold out, but there are other great watches still available from the brand including the Nereide Ceramica, Arsenale Moissanite, and Bucintoro 42.
After all, how often are you going to Venice for the Boat Show? You might as well dress the part.
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