You cannot ride a motorbike in Venice, and that is the best thing about it. The city is built on over a hundred small islands in a shallow lagoon, linked by about four hundred bridges, and there are no roads, only canals and narrow lanes. Cars and bikes stop at Piazzale Roma or at the parking islands, and everything else moves on foot or by water. So the ride begins on the mainland, at Mestre or Tronchetto, with the bike left in a guarded garage and a vaporetto to carry you in.
The old republic grew rich on trade with the East, and its palaces along the Grand Canal, the Basilica of San Marco with its golden mosaics and the Doge's Palace still show it. The lagoon is a delicate world of mudflats and salt marsh, with herons and flamingos in winter, and it is under pressure from tides: acqua alta, the high water, floods the lower parts of the city on autumn and winter days, and a system of sea barriers has been built to hold it back.
The long day's ride heads north through Treviso to the Prosecco hills between Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, which were added to the UNESCO list in 2019. The ridges here are steep and narrow, with vines planted on terraces that must be worked by hand, and the Strada del Prosecco winds along them, with a series of tight bends, stone farmhouses and small wineries. The surface is mostly good, with some steep sections, and the best months are September and October, when the harvest takes place and the leaves turn.
Fuel is easy on the mainland, but not in the old city, so fill the tank in Mestre before you go. Eat cicchetti, small snacks served at the bar, and a plate of sarde in saor, sweet and sour sardines. A spritz, an aperitivo made with Prosecco and bitter liqueur, is the local drink, though if you are riding, it is wise to wait. Visit the old city in the early morning or evening, when the crowds are lighter, and be prepared to walk.