Venice Yacht Pier Srl - Port Procedures and Regulations

Venice Port Procedures and Regulations - Less than 24m

Section 1 - Pre-Arrival

The following is a check-list of procedures that should be undertaken before arrival.

The first thing you should do is either get in touch with an agency or contact us at Venice Yacht Pier directly and reserve yourself a berth providing LOA, GRT, draft, and where possible a copy of the certificate of registry. Additionally, in order to assist us with making best use of the available space, it's always helpful if you let us know of any other berth related requirement (e.g. gangway only on port or starboard side).

If you're using an agency they should provide you with a garbage form which must be compiled and returned at least 48 hours before your arrival.

If you're going to be carrying dangerous cargo or firearms these must be declared at least 48 hours before arrival either through your agency or otherwise directly to the harbour master's office.

For those vessels that have appointed an agency, pre-arrival procedures will be similar to that of a larger vessel. Captains / owners should therefore communicate both crew and guest lists to their agency who in turn should make sure this gets forwarded to the immigration police.

All vessels and agencies (where used) must ensure that authorities are quickly updated following changes to the ETA.

Vessels below 24m don't need a pilot on board and mooring men are also are completely optional. If you've reserved a berth on the mooring posts at Salute tying up is not always as easy as it looks due to strong currents. Therefore in order to guarantee both your safety and that of the other customers, we highly recommend the use of mooring men.

Tide tables and weather forecasts can be found on our weather page by clicking here or on the link on the right.

Section 2 - Approach / Arrival

On approaching Lido breakwaters (click here for a satellite image), vessels who've appointed an agency should contact them by phone to confirm arrival. Those without an agency should contact Venice Yacht Pier directly.

Sailing vessels must enter the lagoon under power and remain as such for the duration of the approach / arrival.

Once inside the lagoon speed limits come into force which unless otherwise signposted are as follows:

a) General speed limit for the lagoon taken as a whole : 20 km/h
b) General speed limit for the city of Venice and it's historic centre: 11 km/h
c) Speed limit for more sensitive areas such as the Grand Canal and smaller canals: 7 km/h or even 5 km/h (Off-limits for non residents anyway)

We recommend proceeding slowly and taking special care when transiting the St. Mark's basin which can be heavily congested. A map illustrating the speed limits in the lagoon can be found by clicking here.

Although tidal ranges rarely exceed average sea level by much more than a metre or so, you should note that currents can be fairly significant around the three mouths of the lagoon. A 90cm high tide can generate a current of 3.6 km/h - add onto this meteorological conditions and you may witness currents as high as 5 km/h on entering the lagoon. As stated before, tide tables and weather forecasts can be found on our weather page either by clicking here, or by following the link on the right.

You should have been communicated the exact position of your berth well before your arrival date by either ourselves or your agency. Apart from Riva San Biagio, alongside berths are identified by the numbers on the bollards. You can find plans of all the berths we control in the berths section of this site. Once you near the berths themselves you should be able to see the mooring men (if requested) and a representative of Venice Yacht Pier standing by ready to assist.

Once securely tied up, captains should ensure that all non essential electronic equipment such as radar is switched off in order to reduce to a minimum electromagnetic emissions.

Due to the high concentration of electricity and telephone cables lining the lagoon's bed, the dropping of an anchor is forbidden.

Those arriving without an agency must make sure that they visit the harbour master's office with their vessel's documents in order to "clear in". Additionally all passports should be physically presented to the immigration police. Feel free to contact us should you need any further details.

For any difficulty, make sure either we or your agency are promptly notified, especially where changes have been made to your schedule.

Section 3 - On The Berth

For those who've organised it, both water and wi-fi internet should be available immediately on those berths that have it. Contact either ourselves or your agency if you need any help connecting up.

Garbage collection for those who've organised it, is on a daily basis by barge. Generally speaking collection takes place between 8 and 10 AM.

Fuel can be found at two of the city's pumps although only to vessels pulling less than 2 metres draft. They are open Mon-Sat from 09:00 to 18:00 with a lunch break generally from 12:30-14:30. Click here for a popup map illustrating the location of the refuelling stations.

If berthed at either Riva San Biagio or Riva dei Sette Martiri, you may have noticed your close proximity to a residential area. To ensure ongoing good relationships with the local community we kindly ask all berth users to try and cut down loud noises after 10 PM.

If you're berthed at Salute it's important to ensure that your vessel is well lit up at night.

The use of tenders is permitted in certain areas as explained on our tender guidelines page.

The discharge of any waste (liquid, gas or solid) into the lagoon is strictly forbidden. This even includes the use of cleaning chemicals such as detergents. If in doubt make sure you ask your agency beforehand to avoid paying a fine.

The use of jet-skis or any other water sports equipment is prohibited within the lagoon.

Swimming is forbidden within the historic centre.

Section 4 - Shifting / Changing Berth

This procedure is similar in many ways to the Pre-Arrival and Approach sections found above.

Where applicable, agencies should double check and reconfirm their booking with Venice Yacht Pier and then at least 24 hours before the shift, and ensure an advisory fax is sent to the harbour master, pilots, and mooring men.

Once underway, the same regulations detailed in Section 2 become applicable.

If any problem arises please make sure that either that either we or your agency are informed asap.

Section 5 - Departure

Before leaving check that your agency (where applicable) has returned your passports and that all bills have been settled.

Where applicable, 24 hours before your ETD, your agency should send an advisory fax to the harbour master, pilots and mooring men.

Once underway, the same regulations governing navigation as detailed in Section 2 become applicable.

In the event of any problem you should get in touch with either your agency or ourselves asap.

The above information is provided purely as a guideline and is by no means exhaustive. If you can speak italian you will find more detailed information concerning all the regulations governing the Port of Venice by following the links provided on the right. Should you prefer, you can contact us via our online web email form or speak directly to your agency.