Starting off at the heart of Venice, in the Piazza San Marco, we'll take you down the fashion high roads and by-ways of the city. Rows of fine boutiques of every sort, from big name labels to jewellers, line these ancient and genteel walkways that seem to go on forever.

Many of the haberdasher's shops joining the Piazza San Marco to the Rialto date back to Medieval times: the Venetian nobles of days gone by came here to purchase the luxurious fabrics and fine leathers they wore. Not all that much has changed over the centuries -- today's visitors, passing through the portal of the Torre dell'Orologio in Piazza San Marco, will find themselves on a fashion stage, perfectly set against the impressive background of the city on the lagoon! Boutiques abound: Pollini, Max Mara, Gucci, Armani, Missoni, Cartier, La Perla, Fratelli Rossetti and many more...

Starting out once again from the Piazza San Marco towards the Museo Correr, (art gallery housing Bellini's La Pietą ), walk along the Via XXII Marzo, fashion's mighty mile in Venice. It is a wide street, beginning at the Chiesa di San Moisč and extending to the Campo San Maurizio, near the Palazzo Grassi. This area is among the most chic in Venice, and is in great demand by designers, in view of its central location and proximity to the royal gardens of San Marco. The Via starts at the Campo San Moisé with the recently inaugurated Luis Vitton boutique, followed by Bruno Magli, Damiani jewellers, Fendi, Versace, Prada uomo e donna, Moschino, Genny, Bulgari, Laura Biagiotti and Frette.