The T Fondaco dei Tedeschi rooftop terrace in Venice offers an absolutely amazing view of the city. It’s located in the city center right next to the Rialto bridge, and it’s free!

Curious about visiting the rooftop terrace at T Fondaco? Read on for all the details!

Visiting the T Fondaco dei Tedeschi rooftop terrace in Venice

The history of the building

I can’t find a great translation for fondaco, but it seems that the term is used for a few well-known buildings in Italy, and that it can have a few different meanings. Il Fondaco dei Tedeschi in Venice was used as a storehouse for goods that were traded by foreign merchants (tedeschi = Germans).

There is also a Fondaco dei Turchi in Venice (turchi = Turkish), which is now a museum. Il Fondaco di Pisa is a customs house, which ties in with the one in Venice as well, since Napoleon used the Venetian fondaco for that purpose.

Under Mussolini, il Fondaco dei Tedeschi was a post office.

Finding T Fondaco

Located just around the corner from the iconic Rialto bridge, it’s easy to find and in a central location.

The department store

Inside, you’ll find some luxury food products on the ground floor, along with accessories. The first floor is women’s fashion and jewelry, the second is men’s fashion and watches, and on the the third are women’s shoes and beauty products. If you’re not in the mood for shopping, do what we did and take the elevator straight up to the fourth floor, to the terrace.

Getting to the rooftop terrace

After reaching the fourth floor, we joined a line of tourists. My friend asked if we were meant to have booked. I said no, fairly confidently, until I noticed everyone showing a booking confirmation on their phone. Oops!

We approached the gentleman who was checking tickets at the door. I asked him if we were supposed to book. He said yes. I said we hadn’t. He smiled in a teasing way, and asked why. I told him I didn’t know we had to.

“Wait here,” he said. We waited next to him for a few minutes, while he let in everyone who had a booking at that time, then he let us in too. Success! I say book to avoid confusion, but you might be able to sneak in like we did.

 

The view

As you can see, it was overcast, but the cloud cover kept us cool under the July sun.

We were up there for about 20 minutes or so, taking photos and enjoying the gorgeous vista in front of us. At a certain point, the gentleman working there asked us to make our way back into the shop in order to allow in the people who had booked for the next time slot.

If you’ve been to Venice, you know that it’s extremely crowded, and that it can be a little overwhelming and unpleasant at times, especially around the major sights. Il Fondaco dei Tedeschi offers a respite from the crowds, and comes with an absolutely gorgeous view. Don’t miss it!

Booking your visit

Like I said above, booking might not be necessary, but it’s probably best to do so just in case!

Want more Venice tips?

Ready to escape the touristy areas? Check out this post on five unique places to visit in Venice. Hungry? Thirsty? Here’s my list of great bars to visit, where you can have a spritz and some of Venice’s famous cicheti!

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