{"id":19957,"date":"2016-02-18T18:20:20","date_gmt":"2016-02-18T18:20:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/advice-and-good-practice-to-cruise-in-italy-locaboat-blog\/"},"modified":"2026-03-21T21:02:50","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T21:02:50","slug":"advice-and-good-practice-to-cruise-in-italy-locaboat-blog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/blog\/advice-and-good-practice-to-cruise-in-italy-locaboat-blog\/","title":{"rendered":"Boating holidays in Italy: advice and good practice"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You\u2019ve chosen Italy for your boating\u00a0holiday in a P\u00e9nichette\u00ae<\/sup><\/a>\u00a0– good choice! You can look forward to\u00a0la dolce vita\u00a0<\/i>and plenty of\u00a0linguine alle vongole<\/i>\u00a0and\u00a0tiramis\u00f9<\/i>. But there are a few safety rules that you need to follow in Italy, where boating can be different from what happens in other countries.<\/p>\n

Here are some good practice guidelines to keep in mind when you\u2019re cruising on your\u00a0self-drive boating holiday in Venice<\/a>. But don\u2019t worry: our staff will remind you of any special points that apply to this destination when you arrive in Chioggia.<\/p>\n\n

1 \u2013 Depth of water<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

The water in the lagoon and the canals connects with the sea and the level is not controlled by locks. So it varies with the tides and can be as low as 100 cm. When you\u2019re mooring, it\u2019s important to bear this figure in mind and to take the following few precautions:<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Check the depth of the water where you intend to stop so that you don\u2019t run aground at low tide;<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Leave mooring lines as slack as possible so that the boat can swing with the tide;<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Fix the fenders in such a way that they will protect the boat at both low and high tide.<\/p>\n\n

2 \u2013 Boating in the lagoon<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

You can only sail within the lagoon by following the channels (canali<\/i>), indicated by posts that could be single or in groups known as\u00a0briccole<\/i>. You have to identify the entrance to a channel – indicated by a group of posts, with one about 70 centimetres higher than the rest – and then cruise close to the other\u00a0briccoles<\/i>, which are spaced 5 to 20 metres apart, always keeping to the numbered side.<\/p>\n\n

3 \u2013 Swells\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Quite large swells can occur in the lagoon. If this happens, the best thing to do is berth somewhere safe and sheltered. In Venice, you are only allowed to moor in harbour basins (the ones at San Giorgio and Sant\u2019Elena are the most welcoming).<\/p>\n

Please note, it is strictly forbidden to take your boat into the Grand Canal in Venice and Murano.<\/p>\n\n

4 \u2013 Wind and steering direction\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Our boats are fitted with engines with a maximum power of 40 HP, providing a cruising speed of around 7 knots. When there is a strong wind or current, it is better to stay at your mooring. If necessary, remember that it\u2019s better to steer against the wind and the current.<\/p>\n\n

5 \u2013 Arrival and departure manoeuvres<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

Manoeuvring with the current, especially in narrow canals and passages, is mainly done by hand. Bring the bow slowly towards the bank, find a good place for a crew member to secure a mooring line, and hold the boat still in this position, using the line. Allow the force of the current to swing the boat around completely until it is up against the bank. Moor the boat if you are intending to berth.<\/p>\n

To move off against the current, after casting off the mooring lines, push the boat away from the bank, again with the help of a crew member, and engage the engine. To leave in the direction of the current but with the bow turned against the current, first cast off the forward mooring line and push the boat away from the bank, allowing the force of the current to swing the boat around, while allowing some slack on the stern mooring line. Wait until the boat is in the perfect position before casting off completely, and engage the throttle.<\/p>\n\n

6 \u2013 Waiting manoeuvres\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

In locks, it is a good idea to cut the engine. By doing this you\u2019ll avoid blocking the engine\u2019s cooling system filters with mud stirred up while passing through the lock.<\/p>\n

Pass under mobile bridges with the current and stay well away from the bridge (at least 50 metres) to avoid ending up crosswise under the bridge. Wait until the bridge is completely open before engaging the throttle and passing through quickly.<\/p>\n\n

7 \u2013 In very shallow water or aground<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

If you inadvertently or in any other circumstances end up stranded in very shallow water or aground, you must:<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Put the engine into neutral.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Check that the cooling water is coming out of the exhaust normally. If not, cut the engine and carry out the necessary checks. Prime the pump before restarting the engine.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Transfer as much weight as possible to the bow and turn the boat manually by about 180 degrees, accelerating slowly and gradually.<\/p>\n

The other solution is to anchor and wait for high tide.<\/p>\n

If you ask to be towed off by another vessel, make sure you fix the line to the bow: the boat must be able to turn through 180 degrees.<\/p>\n

You now have all the information and boating advice you need to set off to Italy with no worries! Set a course for Venice and its lagoon for an idyllic boating holiday at an Italian pace!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You\u2019ve chosen Italy for your boating\u00a0holiday in a P\u00e9nichette\u00ae<\/sup><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19543,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[206],"tags":[209,207],"class_list":["post-19957","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tips-tricks","tag-italy","tag-unexperienced"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19957","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19957"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19957\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19958,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19957\/revisions\/19958"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19543"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19957"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19957"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.riverly.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19957"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}