The “Murazzi” [seawalls] of the Venice Lido
A route of between 15 - 20 km/9 - 12 miles and relatively peaceful on the island of the Venice Lido.
Point of departure is Piazzale Santa Maria Elisabetta, end of the line of the ACTV [ferry line] to the Lido; take the Granviale to the sea side [east] of the island, in reality hidden by the Blue Moon beach complex; turn right onto the Lungomare [street along the sea] and you will reach the Grand Hotel des Bains, made famous by the novel Death in Venice by Thomas Mann; after about a km/.6 mile you will come out at the Piazzale del Casinò, next to which is the Palazzo del Cinema [movie house], where every year in early September the International Film Festival is held.
Continue by passing in front of the Hotel Excelsior, the other famous and historic hotel of the Lido; the Lungomare continues for a few hundred meters/yards more up to a 90° curve to the right; here, where the sidewalk angles off, we will find a wooden slide built recently (2007) that allows one to push one’s bike up to small dirt road, which after a few meters/yards takes one directly to the seawall, avoiding the flight of stairs that previously had forced one to climb up carrying one’s bike by hand; the seawall was constructed to protect the Lido from storm surges. Along the seawall there is a narrow roadway that could be an excellent bike path, and in fact is very popular with cyclists, but unfortunately also with motor-bikers.
The bike path along the seawall continues for about 5 km/3 miles; to the left the sea is no longer separated from the beach, except for artificial reefs of huge rocks and pennelli [“brushes”] extending into the sea. During the summer, those who don't want to pay the exorbitant prices of the Lido bathing establishments, do their sunbathing by climbing on the rocks and pennelli. Others, with artistic ambitions, here and there along the seawalls, have placed unique wooden sculptures, paintings on rocks and wooden totems. In particular in the center of Malamocco between the seawall and the sea there is a sort of exhibition of works of "poor sculpture” made from recovered materials: two old black buoys with some branches and ecco there are two ostriches, other branches form a crouched dog, others with a jacket and a beret create a sailor. The collection is pleasant and useful to break up the monotony of the seawall.
Along the horizon of the sea one never fails to see silhouettes of the oil tankers that come and go from the lagoon.
The seawall and the bike path end at the beach of Alberoni at 7.5 km/4.7 miles from the starting point at Santa Maria Elisabetta; during the winter, when the beach is deserted, you can try to bike directly on the beach hardpack which usually is compacted sufficiently to withstand the wheels of a bicycle; continuing about another 3 km/2 miles one arrives at the pier at Alberoni, which marks the end of the island of Lido, running along the Malamocco channel, one of three access points into the lagoon.
You can ascend onto the pier and reach the Alberoni lighthouse; coming back, you can return by the same route as you came; or alternatively you could leave the seawall by one of the many side streets and get back on the main street that runs the full length of the Lido.
